8 new Corvettes go missing from Kentucky car plant, but the conspicuous muscle cars are all found

Very likely you are right about late '70s Corvettes (or any GM or Ford product). The engines were solid enough but the craftsmanship was shoddy. There is also no doubt that a ZR1 would be an exhilarating ride! But - where you and I are differing is on the definition of "sports car". My Morgan, while its engineering was primitive (and we're not even going to discuss Lucas electrics ("the Prince of Darkness")), it was exhilarating in its own way.

The concept of a sports car is that it's fun to drive and agile - and the case of my Brit sports cars, has its own unique sound. I'd get up early, just drive my Morgan to feel the wind beat the heck out me and hear that puppy roar! And at 1600 pounds wet and about 150 horsepower (and very close to the pavement - and the suspension is so rigid that supposedly you can run over a nickel can tell whether its heads or tails), it held its own against most anything and it got more attention than anything else out there, despite its quirky 1930s design.

Back in the late 60s, I used to race in rallies in a totally stock MGB-GT and well, I never won anything but 1. I never crashed it and 2. I left the course involuntarily a bunch of times - but I had a whole bunch of fun!

That's what a sports car is like. I had a Honda S2000 for several years and it was lifeless: it was supposed to be a sports car but it never felt like it. The sound was muffled into nothingness and it was too heavy. Modern car companies don't build sports cars, in my humble opinion. Probably the lawyers won't let them.

I hope that you did not take my comment about a 2025 Corvette being "like a Morgan or 1979 Vette." as intended to be offensive. On the contrary, my intention was only to point out that the differences are vast. Okay, maybe I did disparage the '79 Vette a little but Zora Duntov would have rolled in his grave if he had seen the late '70s Vettes. I felt badly that you got stuck with a '79. I never have owned a Corvette but I did get to enjoy a modified '67, 427 Vette engine in my Camaro. I could not agree more with you more though about the benefit of owning an actual sportscar. While I have not had the pleasure of owning a Morgan, some of my fondest driving experiences are behind the wheel of a close Morgan cousin, my beloved old MGA that I had in my youth. It wasn't the fastest car, nor was it the best handling of all of the cars that I have owned. That and your Morgan are the embodiment of the soul of "sportscars" After your posting, I may just have to get another true sportscar. Maybe a Morgan? I have never rode in one. Maybe a Super 7. My MGA had aluminum doors, hood and trunk lid and only weighed 1600 pounds. It even had wooden floorboards. This was a very useful feature as I will explain. By the time that I owned the car, the exhaust had burned a hole in the floorboards near my right leg. As you noted, the electrical system in English cars was designed by the Prince of Darkness so among other things, the heater blower did not always work. A well aimed jog through a puddle provided steam heat from water or slush hitting the exhaust. The column of steam would rise through the hole, eventually dissipating out the ill fitting side curtains. It was when the curtains were stowed and the top was down that the car came into it's own though. It was a car that was more fun per pound than any other car I have owned. I have owned some fast 1/4 mile cars, raced Alfa Romeos and Formula Ford and even put an aluminum V8 in the old MG before eventually parting with it. It was faster and handled better with the V8 but it was not more fun than it was with the original, tractor inspired, long stroke MG four-banger. There is something about a sportscar that can never happen again. I think that you nailed it with the lawyers comment. I often marveled at just how light the doors on the MGA were. A child's tricycle probably has more strength and if broadsided, the door would likely yield to the tricycle. The object is to not get hit in a "sportscar" though.

The 2025 Corvettes are exhilarating marvels of modern engineering but not a "sportscar like a Morgan" Which is better or more fun? I think that Jay Leno has the right, if not the only solution to this. One needs to own one of each, along with a bunch of others too.

Cheers FRiend

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.