What's an Aero 8 like?

What's an Aero 8 like?

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Discussion

sealtt

Original Poster:

3,091 posts

158 months

Friday 12th June 2015
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Hello,

Having had a love of the Aero 8 design since I first saw it at Geneva a number of years ago, the newest iteration due to be released later this year has got to the point of looking so incredibly good that I almost have to buy one!

I currently drive a F430 Spider and had been planning to upgrade it to the 458 Spider in the next 12 months. The 458 being the best sports car I've ever driven, and I have had my heart set on it for ages. I have a Range Rover for daily duties - which I absolutely love! - so this is a second car purely for fun & enjoyment on a nice day with a friend, my fiancee or daughter in the passenger seat along for the ride to enjoy the noise, (a little bit of attention!), the looks, the performance and just overall experience of being out on the roads on a nice day in something special.

So my questions... well, what are these Aero 8 cars like to drive? Do you think it is going to suit my usage well? Is there any car you would compare it to? Would it be a real disappointment as a driving experience for someone who loves driving mid-engine Ferraris? Also what's the public response like? Although pretty good, the Ferrari is not always 100% positive.

- Seal

aero250

41 posts

174 months

Monday 15th June 2015
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I Have an Aero series 1. An aero seems ideal, it has plenty of performance and decent handling for the road. Every trip is a special occasion and surprisingly everybody ,young and old, seem to love it. You wont be short of attention!!

markcoopers

595 posts

193 months

Tuesday 16th June 2015
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I too have a series 1 Aero 8 and much like you wanted a fast, capable, good looking car that you could drive as well as admire. I would say that it comfortably ticks all those boxes, and i chose it over a 360 spyder.

Just returned from 700 miles around wales with friends in Westfields and TVR's and no issues with staying in contact and without fail stealing the limelight. …….however, my older car does rattle and crash a bit and the weather protection could be better. I had no idea about the later Series 5 cars, so you may find it is the best of all world. You certainly will not be disappointed, so worth an hour or so on a test drive for sure.

sealtt

Original Poster:

3,091 posts

158 months

Tuesday 16th June 2015
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Thanks for the comments, good to hear.

Funnily enough I was at the Malvern show and by coincidence Morgan were there with a Plus 8 which I had a sit in last weekend, was surprisingly comfortable and a very nice place to be inside. I'm really positive about the idea of the Aero 8 now which should be even better.

It is intended to be a good weather only car, though in England you never really know when rain protection will be required!

I will definitely be going to see one and test drive as soon as they have a car available, I'm excited to try it as I think it might just be exactly what I'm looking for.

ukshooter

501 posts

212 months

Wednesday 17th June 2015
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I currently have a Ferrari and an Aero 8 Series 4 (can be found in the classifieds), Series 5 is on order and previously had the Series 3.

I have used my Aero as an everyday car for a few years and now it is more of a fair weather car ( I have a Tesla for everyday use now).

Personally, I feel the car can be ideal for any type of use. Just remember it is a hand built car and learn to love its idiosynchrosies :-)




sealtt

Original Poster:

3,091 posts

158 months

Thursday 18th June 2015
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Thanks for sharing. What's the reception like & public reaction in the Morgan?

People wanting to prove something? Kids pointing? People taking photos? People letting you pull out? People deliberately not letting you pull out / overtake / etc? Lots of people offering to swap their XYZ for your car? How fast you had out of it? Etc

ukshooter

501 posts

212 months

Friday 19th June 2015
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Always lots of photos being taken. They best ones I got some copies of. was in Paris on the 100th anniversary weekend of Bugatti and was chased by some photographers that saw the car and wanted to get some photos.

Never had any bad reactions. Here are some of the Paris shots




sealtt

Original Poster:

3,091 posts

158 months

Friday 19th June 2015
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Wow, love it! Truly blending old and new styling!! Are the seats actually yellow?

Good to hear it's positive, as you might imagine, being a young male and with an L405 Vogue and f430 spider, I can certainly end up getting some less than positive reactions from people and even get the odd nasty comment. Usually not a big deal, but can sometimes be tiring and frustrating. That to me would be a real positive if the Morgan would get a better reaction from the public, would let me relax more. The Range Rover is normally ok, but f430 can at times just get too much.

Love the photos by the way, so what colour spec is your car in the pics? What spec are you going for on the series 5 by the way? I've been most interested in the blue launch colour, looks great. I'm hoping to go to MMC in August and see it in person at their open day.

Edited by sealtt on Friday 19th June 02:06

ukshooter

501 posts

212 months

Friday 19th June 2015
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Yes, the seats are slightly yellow! :-)
Body colour is a textured matt black paint.

Personally I don't like the dark blue on the show car but I generally feel with gloss paints that the lighter colours work better than the darker.





markcoopers

595 posts

193 months

Sunday 21st June 2015
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In terms of reactions, in general i get mobile pics and video taken and on the whole +ve. Yes i get let out of junctions and have been asked to park at the front of hotels. However if you drive with some determination overtaking etc….then you will get the same reaction regardless of what you drive, weather you are in the right or wrong.

Petrol stations are normally an interesting time with people asking the normal q's, how fast, how much, what is it/is it a kit car? or My mate has one and isn't it made out of wood? To be honest i don't mind this one bit, but recently i have caught 2 sets of people actually laying over the car or with feet on the running boards taking pics…….this pisses me off!

sealtt

Original Poster:

3,091 posts

158 months

Sunday 21st June 2015
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WOW, the yellow is very eye catching hehe. Good fun though.


Thanks for your further thoughts, that would drive me crazy seeing someone lying on it ... hope it didn't cause any damage.

NDA

21,573 posts

225 months

Wednesday 1st July 2015
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sealtt said:
Hello,

Having had a love of the Aero 8 design since I first saw it at Geneva a number of years ago, the newest iteration due to be released later this year has got to the point of looking so incredibly good that I almost have to buy one!

I currently drive a F430 Spider and had been planning to upgrade it to the 458 Spider in the next 12 months. The 458 being the best sports car I've ever driven, and I have had my heart set on it for ages. I have a Range Rover for daily duties - which I absolutely love! - so this is a second car purely for fun & enjoyment on a nice day with a friend, my fiancee or daughter in the passenger seat along for the ride to enjoy the noise, (a little bit of attention!), the looks, the performance and just overall experience of being out on the roads on a nice day in something special.

So my questions... well, what are these Aero 8 cars like to drive? Do you think it is going to suit my usage well? Is there any car you would compare it to? Would it be a real disappointment as a driving experience for someone who loves driving mid-engine Ferraris? Also what's the public response like? Although pretty good, the Ferrari is not always 100% positive.

- Seal
I have the new Plus 8 (which is the same engine and essentially the same chassis) and love it.

The Aero will not have the uber tight handling of the Ferrari, the electronic gizmos of the Ferrari, the stopping power... However it is an excellent car with unique looks (the look down the long bonnet is a fabulous view), it handles extremely well (very different to the 'traditional' Morgans) and the finish is good too. For fun on a fine day you can't beat it.

The public response is excellent - a Morgan is non threatening (the fools!) and brings a smile to everyone.

Take a test drive in one. A five star review on mine. smile

sealtt

Original Poster:

3,091 posts

158 months

Sunday 5th July 2015
quotequote all
NDA said:
I have the new Plus 8 (which is the same engine and essentially the same chassis) and love it.

The Aero will not have the uber tight handling of the Ferrari, the electronic gizmos of the Ferrari, the stopping power... However it is an excellent car with unique looks (the look down the long bonnet is a fabulous view), it handles extremely well (very different to the 'traditional' Morgans) and the finish is good too. For fun on a fine day you can't beat it.

The public response is excellent - a Morgan is non threatening (the fools!) and brings a smile to everyone.

Take a test drive in one. A five star review on mine. smile
Hi, I just went out and drove a Plus 8 today, the new one with BMW V8, and after the test drive all I can say is that you are the owner of a FANTASTIC car!

What a lovely thing to drive, just for the pleasure of going out on a nice day and enjoying driving along, so rewarding and what an awesome noise! It really made me think the new Aero 8 is going to be a fantastic purchase and I would love to have one in my garage.

I am just going to take a couple of weeks to think whether I'd get more out of having a 2 seater car or if it would be best to get a 4 seater - like a Ferrari California - instead. We have a young daughter, so opportunities to go out can get a little limited, so need to think a little more about it.

NDA

21,573 posts

225 months

Sunday 5th July 2015
quotequote all
sealtt said:
Hi, I just went out and drove a Plus 8 today, the new one with BMW V8, and after the test drive all I can say is that you are the owner of a FANTASTIC car!

What a lovely thing to drive, just for the pleasure of going out on a nice day and enjoying driving along, so rewarding and what an awesome noise! It really made me think the new Aero 8 is going to be a fantastic purchase and I would love to have one in my garage.

I am just going to take a couple of weeks to think whether I'd get more out of having a 2 seater car or if it would be best to get a 4 seater - like a Ferrari California - instead. We have a young daughter, so opportunities to go out can get a little limited, so need to think a little more about it.
Like you, I have a Range Rover as the family barouche. So I need a fun car for me, rather than for the family.... something entirely different.

The 8 is a lot of fun and a thing of beauty.

Get one. smile

jonny finance

926 posts

206 months

Thursday 9th July 2015
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Agree with most comments made especially regarding a different Automobile ownership proposition with major joy coming via looks, sounds and third party reactions...

Think compared to any other car brand, Morgan cars have possibly the most loyal, loving gang of worldwide owners going with universal warmth and admiration wherever you go. This is in turn can lead to a touch of the old 'misty eyed can do no wrong syndrome'. For me one BIG consideration, that you should get your head around, is the way they drive.

I was drawn to an Aero Supersport which looked liked nothing else and being brutally honest drove like nothing else.. I had dreamy notions of wafting about on a sunny weekend, drinking in the whole British sports car thing etc.. The Aero felt like basically what it is - An early era body stuck on a near racing car platform with the bottom half feeling as stiff and hard as granite and the top resembling a flexing wooden shed caught in a force 9 storm. This in no way made it unexciting or a bad car - just so different from anything I had driven or owned and comparing to a Ferrari is like comparing synchronised swimming to bog snorkling!

I sold the car (and do genuinely miss it). The day after the new owner phoned me up enquiring 'Were they all like this'?? he was amazed that it drove the way it did and reckoned it was trying to kill him.. In fairness I always maintained the faster you went the better and more resolved it became. A beast that needed taming!! All in my humble opinion..

All good fun

PhilRS

264 posts

231 months

Thursday 23rd July 2015
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Before you buy go to talkmorgan.com, read the threads carefully, and try to estimate the ratio of number of problems reported by Aero owners over the total number of Aero produced. If you are expecting trouble-free motoring, walk away: Morgans are not over-engineered, the factory is not always fast to deliver the needed parts and dealers expect "tinkering" owners with great patience and a love for the marque and its culture.

My S1 was the most unreliable car I have ever owned.

sealtt

Original Poster:

3,091 posts

158 months

Sunday 26th July 2015
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PhilRS said:
Before you buy go to talkmorgan.com, read the threads carefully, and try to estimate the ratio of number of problems reported by Aero owners over the total number of Aero produced. If you are expecting trouble-free motoring, walk away: Morgans are not over-engineered, the factory is not always fast to deliver the needed parts and dealers expect "tinkering" owners with great patience and a love for the marque and its culture.

My S1 was the most unreliable car I have ever owned.
Thanks for the advice, important to consider, especially as the nearest dealer is 2hrs+ away from me - a 4hr-5hr round trip!

vpr

3,709 posts

238 months

Sunday 26th July 2015
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I've owned 2 Aeros and I still have one amongst a fair few other unusual cars but NOTHING gets the public admiration of the Aero. Quite unbelievable, people asking what it is and telling me it's the most beautiful car they've seen etc.

Obviously I get the odd "Clarence" remark buy I enjoy driving my Aero more than anything and even if it visually resembled a Austin Maxi or a Ferrari California I'd still love it just for the way it drives.

johnxjsc1985

15,948 posts

164 months

Tuesday 1st December 2015
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On Discovery Turbo now the Areo being built