People have been predicting the end of big engines for nearly 4 decades .In 1973 at the time of the first oil crisis (oil went from $3/bbl to $30/bbl in a matter of days), Americans were supposed to have fallen out of love with V8s. Most didn't. When I bought a V12 Jag 24 years ago I did so before they became impossible to own. I thought that by now we'd all be driving electric cars or ones driven by tiny, high-revving motors. In the meantime, fuel prices have continued to rise and there is a greater range of large, powerful engines on the market than ever before. They are also much more efficient than they used to be. We have seen commercial V-10 and W8/12/16 engines come on the market. The Chrysler V10 in various versions has gone into a load of pick-up trucks as well as the Dodge Viper and Bristol Fighter (has anyone ever seen one of the latter, by the way?).
You might be right, but there are an awful lot of big engined cars still being produced out there. It may be a minority market, but it exists, despite all the dire warnings from pundits, who are unable to quantify emotional appeal. It is emotional appeal which draws us to Morgans, not a desire for a sensible family car. You may remember we were about to enter an ice age in 1970, based on global temperature trends. There was a memorable TV documentary about it. My crystal ball remains extremely cloudy. Owen. ----- Original Message ----- From: MICHAEL CALLAGHAN To: mogtalk2 Sent: Monday, August 13, 2012 12:32 PM Subject: Re: [mogtalk2] RE: Chips - non mog- now +8 hi chaps, well I had an old +8 years back when I was in my 30,s and i hated it, rover v8,s are great engines for sure but the are just wasted in a morgan, these days with sky high fuel costs and the green thing I think that v8,s will just become old hat, What I was looking for in a car this time round now at 55 was a car that would not cost a arm and leg to tax, insurance etc, so thats the german sports cars out, I did not wish to spend weeks on end cutting out rust sports so that takes out the old e types etc. I don,t like MG,s so it was back to morgan, I ended up with a 2 year old 4/4 with the ford sigma engine in, OK its underpowered even for a morgan, but it comes with low tax insurance and good mpg just over 45 mpg, so i can drive it without it eating my wallet, also V8,s are on all the dealers forecourts and not selling, and if its bad today it will be very bad tomorrow, the days of the big engine cars are coming to an end sad to say. michael From: Tim Harris <[email protected]> To: mogtalk2 <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, 13 August 2012, 12:17 Subject: Re: [mogtalk2] RE: Chips - non mog- now +8 Two things for which +8s are justly renowned: they sound absolutely gorgeous, and they have simply prodigious quantities of torque. Two things about which you may (or may not) be mildly concerned: The handling is somewhat ponderous compared to the smaller cars, which is an advantage if highway cruising/touring is your bag, less so if you like flinging it round the twisties. The only other downside is the fuel consumption, which compared to the 45mpg+ of the newer +4s is a bit disastrous, with sub 20mpg not being uncommon when driven enthusiastically. They are also enormously valuable these days, second hand prices are sky high - which may or may not be a good thing, depending on how fat your wallet is. I've actually only driven one once, the feeling of being shoved along on an unstoppable wave of torque was really quite something. As Colin says, if you drive one once, you will know immediately what they are about. Tim ------------------------------------------- View posts on The Mail Archive http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ [http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/] Modify Your Subscription: https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=22459785&id_secret=22459785-4a39ddf8 Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com
