Description
Less than 15, 000 miles from new, with comprehensive service history
4. 4-litre BMW V8 engine and six-speed manual gearbox
Presented in Stingray Gray with Light Tan interior
Rare example of Morgan’s distinctive new-generation sports car
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION
Morgan has always done things its own way, and nowhere is that better reflected than in this striking Aero 8, which blends the marque’s traditional craftsmanship with moderntechnology.
First registered on 1 April 2008 and presented in Stingray Grey, with a Light Tan interior and Black hood, it’s a Series 3 model and therefore features a restyled front end that did away with the ‘cross-eyed’ look of earlier cars.
The Morgan was sold new via Berrybrook, near Exeter, and had only two owners between 2008 and 2022. Its service record not only proves how well maintained it’s been throughout its life, it also shows how sparingly it’s been used. Its first three services were carried out Morgan itself in Malvern, and by 2011 it had covered 4135 miles.
For the next 11 years, it was looked after by Bristol-based main dealer Williams Automobiles Ltd, and by the time its long-term owner last serviced it in 2022, the mileage had only risen to 10, 162.
Since then, the Morgan has been serviced by Brands Hatch Morgans Ltd in Kent, and most recently by Lotus Silverstone in May 2025. On top of the usual work, that included an air-con service and two new hood catches.
Beneath that long bonnet is a powerful 4. 4-litre BMW V8 engine delivering 330bhp. It provides epic performance and its soundtrack is enhanced by the factory side-exit exhausts, which were fitted by a Morgan dealership – as was the rear diffuser.
The styling is further enhanced by the 18in multi-spoke RAYS alloy wheels, with yellow AP Racing calipers showing through from behind, while the specification includes cruise control and a turned-aluminium dashboard. A Becker Grand Prix radio/ CD player has been retro-fitted, too.
Now being offered for sale at the Classic Motor Hub, this well-specified and superbly presented Morgan Aero 8 has still covered less than 15, 000 miles from new. With only about 200 Series 3 cars having left the Worcestershire factory, it’s a rare, distinctive and highly individual choice of British sports car.
MODEL HISTORY
When it made its debut at the 2000 Geneva Motor Show, the Aero 8 was Morgan’s first new design for more than 30 years, and marked a bold step for this most traditional of car-makers thanks to its use of a bonded aluminium chassis and a BMW engine.
The styling may have contained traditional styling cues, but beneath the skin there was independent suspension all round via double wishbones and inboard dampers, plus AP Racing brakes. That specification meant the Aero 8 offered a huge step forward in terms of its driving dynamics, and the 286bhp BMW engine – driving through a six-speed Getrag gearbox – could propel it from 0-60mph in less than five seconds, and on to a top speed of 160mph.
The Series 2 Aero 8 arrived in 2004 and offered more interior space, as well as more power from the 4. 4-litre V8, which had been boosted to 330bhp. This variant soon morphed into the facelifted Series 3, while the 2007-onwards Series 4 gained a 362bhp, 4. 8-litre BMW engine and the option of a six-speed ZF automatic gearbox.
Numerous other variants were added to the Aero 8 range over the years, included the fixed-head AeroMax and the targa-roof Supersports, and the new Plus 8 used the same platform when it was launched in 2012. As for the Aero 8 itself, that was revived between 2016 and 2018 for the updated Series 5.
Having won its class at Le Mans in 1962, it was fitting that Morgan twice returned to La Sarthe – in 2002 and 2004 – as part of the Aero 8’s motorsport programme. The new model also raced in the British GT Championship, and further afield at Sebring and Bathurst.
For all its advanced technology and motorsport pedigree, this was still a Morgan at heart, using traditional techniques. As Morgan itself put it in the handbook for the Aero 8: ‘Your car is as individual as you are.’
