Lot Ended
Description
Just four owners from new, the current for 15 years; older restoration
in regular use; four-speed gearbox; 12v electrics; flashing indicators; original
number plate; driven 25 miles to the sale; ready for Vintage summer
fun
One of the
best-loved cars of the Thirties, it is no exaggeration to say that the 8 was the
car that saved Morris. Cheap and cheerful with lively road manners and room for
all the family, it was far more suited to Britain's increasingly crowded roads
than the larger models that had formerly underpinned the Morris
range.
Better equipped than most of its 1934
competitors, it boasted electric wipers, a three-speed box with synchromesh on
the top two gears and effective Lockheed hydraulic brakes. Powered by a 24bhp
Morris UB Series 918cc four-cylinder side-valve engine with three-bearing
crankshaft and single SU carburettor, it was good for 60mph and
40mpg.
Available as a two- or four-seat tourer
and a two- or four-door saloon, it proved so successful that over 164,000 had
been sold by the time it was replaced by the Series II in 1937, around 20,000 of
them in open Tourer form.
First registered in
Leicestershire in December 1935, this four-seat tourer has had just four owners
from new, according to the V5C. Although there isn’t much history with the car,
we are told that it was restored in the late-1980s, old MOTs showing that
it was in regular use from 1989 – 2001, clocking up some 8,000 miles over this
12-year period.
Our vendor acquired JU 5528 from
a friend in August 2011 at which point it had been off the road for 10 years.
Notes on file state that he went right through the car to get it roadworthy and
make it a reliable daily driver, incorporating a few useful upgrades along the
way.
Already converted to a four-speed gearbox
(which greatly improves the driving and hill-climbing) it was fitted with a
complete new clutch assembly and the hydraulic brakes were fully overhauled with
new master cylinder, wheel cylinders and brake linings, using correct parts all
supplied by the spares department run by the owner’s club.
The electrics were upgraded from 6v to 12v and converted to
alternator charging, flashing turn indicators also being added in the interests
of safety. The original dynamo was retained should some purist wish to convert
it back to 6v spec in the future. The bodywork was tidied up as required, a new
pair of tyres were fitted and the speedo was also replaced.
Back on the road in 2012, the fuel system gave trouble to begin due
to a decade in storage, but this was soon sorted and the car has been in regular
use since. It retains its original Leicestershire-issue number plate, JU 5538,
which is transferable, according to the V5C.
Supplied with some useful technical literature, including a highly
detailed maintenance manual produced by the Morris Register in 2008, it also
comes with a 50-page book, Sixty Years of Morris, published by the
Morris Register in 1973. A quantity of useful spares will also be made available
to the winning bidder by separate negotiation if desired, but these will need to
be collected from the Ledbury area (partially rebuilt engine; 4-speed gearbox;
half shafts; original dynamo; copper head gasket; tool kit etc).
As you can see in the photos and the video, this
charming little Tourer is in good shape for a 91-year-old with bags of Vintage
character. Driven some 25 miles to the sale, it has been starting promptly
and running nicely as we have whizzed it around on site, with healthy oil
pressure.
A great way to scoot around during
the long hot summer that lies ahead of us, it will win friends wherever it goes.
You get more smiles per mile in a Morris 8 than you do in virtually any other
car, no matter how flash or expensive it may be!
Consigned by James
Dennison – 07970 309907 – james.dennison@brightwells.com