Winning 1962 Morgan +4 Race Car

This 1962 Morgan Plus 4 2-seater (Chassis #5303) was originally sold by Lou Spencer in Los Angeles, and remained a California street car until the late 80’s when the second owner bought it with the intention to vintage race. A chassis-up restoration was performed as detailed below and extensive aluminum panels were added which remain bare and polished today. The car was raced with many west coast groups, anda previousowner bought it in 1991 after viewing it at Greg Solow’s shop in Santa Cruz. He took the car to the Midwest where has had the following among its many race and show successes:

•4-time winner of the SVRA all-Morgan Can Tab Cup at Summit Point

•Back-to-back outright winner of the SVRA Group 3 race at Summit Point

•Winner of the All-Morgan Race at the Meadow Brook Vintage Races

•Awarded the Peter Helleck Award at the Meadow Brook Concours

•3rd Place from 400 cars at the 2008 Mid-Ohio VGP race car concours

•Best of Show Award runner-up at the 1996 National Morgan Meet

This highly developed Morgan is now offered. The components and craftsmanship are top notch and it is among the cleanest and fastest Morgans in the country, if not the very best.

The extensive history of the car is offered below as stated directly by the seller:

“Chassis #5303 Morgan Plus 4 two-seater was originally sold by Lou Spencer in Los Angeles. The car was used by the original owner for weekend drives and enjoyment. It was a totally rust-free car. In the late 80’s a surgeon from the San Francisco Bay area, Ed DeMayo,purchased #5303 in order to vintage race. The car was lightly modified at that time for vintage racing and the first race for the car was on May 14, 1988 at the HMAS Sonoma Classic at Sears Point.DeMayo then decided to restore the car for serious vintage racing and at the same make the car partially streetable. A chassis up restoration was performed by some of the best fabricators on the west coast, one of which had Indy car experience, Willie Stryker who had built the famed Huffaker-Genie Sports Racers.. A new tub was constructed by Steve Miller and paneled in aluminum. At the same time the constructors fabricated a super sport type hood along with an aluminum nose and scuttle. The inner wings were fabricated out of aluminum and were anodized black. The owner also had metal side screens and a new top constructed to fit the original windshield. When racing, however, the current racing windshield was used. This was a rather cumbersome arrangement and I think the owner never really drove the car on the street due to its high state of tune.

The owner then raced the car in the following sanctioning bodies: VMR, HMSA, VARA, VR, and CSRG. In the early 90’s the next owner, Ed Berre,flew to Santa Cruz, California to see the car at Greg Solow’s shop. Greg is a noted Morgan racer and engine builder. It was obvious that the craftsmanship and detail was beyond reproach. The car was then purchased and taken back to the mid-west to vintage race. The first race for the new owner with the car was at the SVRA Mid-Ohio Grand Prix in 1991. In about two years the car was again disassembled and new all aluminum wings purchased from the Morgan factory were fitted since during its first restoration the original steel wings were utilized. The owner continued to race the car successfully for many years. The car has won many races and placed well in concours competition. It won the Can Tab Cup four times at Summit Point Raceway, which is an all Morgan race sanctioned by SVRA. Two years in a row it won outright the SVRA Group 3 race at Summit Point, which consists of all cars in its class, not just Morgans. The car also won the All Morgan Race at the Meadow Brook Vintage Races at Waterford Hills and the same year was awarded the Peter Helleck Award at the Meadow Brook Concours. In 2008 the car placed third in the race car concours at the Mid-Ohio Vintage Grand Prix where 400 cars were present. The car also finished second in the Best of Show Award in the 1996 National Morgan Meet.

Throughout its vintage race history the car has been prepared and maintained by a highly recognized restoration and machine shop. In the past few years the car was raced sparingly due to other commitments by Berre. The SVRA continually expands Group 3 to include cars that are newer and more technically advanced than a Morgan Plus 4 and have more modifications, however, the car consistently places in the top five with an old average driver! It is the belief of the owner that a car should look as good as it goes. The car is unique in the Morgan vintage racing world for its preparation and attention to detail. In fact, the car was featured in the first edition of Melvyn Rutter’s magazine, “The Morgan World.”

The car has been prepared as an all out vintage racer but still conforms to most vintage racing groups specifications. In the mid-west the car has raced with VSCDA, SVRA, and HSR and of course in California has raced in many sanctioning groups. Although it could be converted to street use, in fact, it should be considered a vintage racer and not something to drive on the street unless one wants to scare the neighborhood children and dogs! The amount of money that has been spent on development of #139 can never be recouped in its sale; however, it has provided its owner with many years of pleasure and memories that are priceless.”

Technical Features of the Car:

1. The car has installed a 4.10 BTR rear axle with a Quiafe limited slip differential.

2. The car has currently installed a TR4 engine built by Abacus Racing of Virginia Beach. Its equippedwith dual Weber DCOE 45 carburetors, Erson Cam, Ported and Polished head, Moldex crank, Carillo rods, and Venolia pistons. The exact specs of this engine can be provided along with dyno sheets as it develops over a 190 horsepower.

3. Gemmer steering box.

4. All aluminum body, wings, and scuttle.

5. Custom-made Dayton wire wheels with heavy duty hubs and heavy duty spokes. They are 15×6.

6. Fuel cell.

7. Halon fire system.

8. Custom made SS headers.

9. Aluminum radiator.

10. Alfin rear drums.

11. Lawrence tune aluminum valve cover.

12. All Syncro Moss gear box rebuilt by Billy Bellinger in England. The gear box was formerly serviced by John Smith, the Morgan engineer in England who was a Moss box specialist. However, John passed his business to Billy Bellinger.

13. MSD ignition system utilizing a Mallory distributor. The MSD is equipped with a rev limiter that uses various chips to set the rev limit desired.

14. Spare parts include extra master brake cylinder, extra rear brake cylinders along with extra front racing pads plus many miscellaneous new, unused racing parts.

15. A passenger seat along with lap belt can be quickly installed in the car for track rides.

16. The shock absorbers were custom built through track testing with Koni of North America.

Since current owner acquisition in 2014, the carbeen invited to West Coastpremier events such as Sonoma Historics, Monterey Historics, and Coronado Historics. This is a "condition 1" car which Vintage Racecar Magazine valued at 100K in their 8/15 issue. This car is very competitive and certainly has the ability to run at the sharp edge of the pack.