Lot Ended
Description
Few owners, the current for 40 years; only 2,500 miles on rebuilt
engine; a super little Eight that runs like a sewing machine; nice original
number plate; affectionately known as Maurice
With the benefit
of hindsight, October 1938 was probably not the best time to launch a new car,
but one can excuse Morris for not foreseeing the full extent of the carnage
that Herr Hitler was about to unleash on the world.
As things panned out, the war turned out to be a profitable time for
Morris who mass-produced tens of thousands of trucks and frontline combat
vehicles for the British military, their new 8hp Series E saloon also remaining
in production for military and essential civil use.
Looking
radically more modern than the previous Eight, the Series E had an
American-style ‘alligator’ bonnet with a wonderfully Art Deco ‘waterfall’ front
grille, no old-fashioned running boards and headlights modishly incorporated
into the wings rather than bolted on top of them – a first for any British car
at the time.
Okay, it was still pretty similar to
the older model underneath, but the 918cc side-valve engine now produced 29bhp
(up 6bhp from its predecessor) and the gearbox now had four ratios instead of
three which gave it a top speed of 60mph. Most importantly, it was well-built,
reliable and great fun to drive.
Briefly
available in open tourer form before the war, the Series E was only sold as a
two- or four-door saloon when full civilian production resumed in 1945. By the
time production ceased in 1948, just over 120,000 had been made.
First
registered in Gloucestershire in September 1947, this delightful two-door spent
its first 40 years in that county, being owned for most (if not all) of that
time by the Williams family of Newnham from whom our vendor acquired the car in
May 1986 and took it across the county border
into Worcestershire.
At this point Maurice
(as the Eight is affectionately known) had been in storage for around 15
years and was still in pleasingly original condition, with just under 70k miles
on the clock. Mr Williams’ son had already begun to lightly restore the car, an
invoice showing that the engine was fully rebuilt by CM Hacker Ltd of Cheltenham
in September 1981, but had never actually finished the job and got Maurice
back on the road.
Our vendor took over where he
had left off, sympathetically restoring the bodywork as required and getting it
repainted in the original black-over-red. The original interior was left
well alone and has that lovely patina that only comes with decades of careful
use.
A much-loved family member, Maurice has been
in regular light use ever since and we are told that he has always been kept in
tip-top running order, being used on various family weddings, prom nights,
holidays and other special occasions. Old MOTs show that he has only
covered some 2,500 miles during our vendor’s 40-year ownership, always being
kept in a nice dry garage when not in use. Invoices show that he got a new set
of Avon tyres in 2002 and a new battery in 2025.
As you can see in the photos, Maurice is in great shape for an
80-year-old and has been starting promptly and running very nicely indeed as we
have moved him around on site, with healthy oil pressure. Supplied with an
original owner’s handbook, he also retains his original Gloucestershire-issue
number plate, GDG 984, which is transferable and doubtless has a value of its
own.
Only reluctantly for sale due to the
advancing years of the owner, Maurice now only needs a caring new custodian who
can continue to preserve him for future generations to enjoy.
Consigned by James Dennison – 07970 309907 – james.dennison@brightwells.com