Morgan Plus 8

Paul Katsus is an Electric Service Consultant for a large electrically utility company. Paul Katsus loves sports cars and sometimes loves to share information on little known car manufacturers and rare car models. One of these is the British car manufacturer; Morgan Car Company which has been building cars for one hundred years. The Morgan Plus 8 model is a sports car built in Malvern, Worcestershire, England by the specialty car maker beginning in 1968. The Morgan Plus 8 gained an instant following and its enduring popularity has been credited with saving the company and keeping the company famous. There Morgan Plus 8 doesn’t look like any other sports car being built today. It is a carryover of the long lost era of basic, road legal race cars. Its appeal lays in the fact it is unique and very British in character.

In its present form, it is powered by a BMW sourced V-8 with 362 horsepower and 370 ft. lb. of torque. With its advertised curb weight of 1,876 lb., it is easy to see why the Morgan Plus 8 is one of the fastest British sports cars. It has an advertised 0-62 mph of 4.2 secs and an electronically limited top speed of 155 mph. On top of all that performance, the Morgan Plus 8 can still return a 32.2 mpg rating on the highway.

Determined US Morgan fans were not deterred by US Emission standards roadblocks to buying their beloved Morgan’s. As a result, from 1974 to 1992 cars were converted to run on propane as a way to pass the strict US emissions standards. In 1993 when Rover Group had re-certified their V-8 engine for use in the Range Rover SUV sold in the U.S. Morgan decided to use this engine in the same tune and with the same anti-emission devices. But, as US safety regulations continue to change, Morgan was again challenged in 2006 to meet stricter structural requirements which were announced by the NHTSA in 2000.  The final nail in the coffin came when the law on airbags would not be exempted for Morgan and their appeal was denied and the importation of traditional (classic) Morgan’s ceased.

Porsche 928

Porsche 928

 

 

Paul Katsus is a car guy like many of us, with a budget that does not match his dreams. One car that Paul Katsus has always wanted to collect was the Porsche 928. Was the first V-8, front engine Porsche ever made. The Porsche 928 was manufactured from 1977 to 1996 (sold In the US until 1994 but continued until 1996 in Europe). The V-8 powered 928 was originally intended to be a replacement for the flat six cylinder Porsche 911. The original premise for the 928 was that Porsche management decided that the six cylinders 911 had come to the end of its product life cycle.  To be competitive with the other high end sports car manufacturers of Europe, a new model was needed.  The 928 was intended to be the flagship of the Porsche lineup and thus commanded a much higher price than the 911. To the conservative Porsche crowd, the styling proved to be divisive, with some believing it too trendsetting and others loving it. The front engine V-8 car was a radical departure and just not Porsche enough for the true believers of the brand. The 928 V-8 produced a modest 240 horsepower when it was introduced. These horsepower numbers grew to 310 hp on the S and S2 models. The S4 model was 316 hp and the top of the line GTS model V-8 output increased to 340 hp.  In the U.S. 85% of all models sold were automatic transmissions, with the remainder being five speeds.

Jensen Interceptor

Paul Katsus is a Service Consultant for Centerpoint Energy based in Houston, Texas. Paul Katsus is not an expert on classic cars but he has done a lot of research on all types of muscle and classic cars. The Jensen Interceptor is a little known British car  produced by the Jensen Motors Company, that produced hand built cars with American V-8 engines. Jensen Motors used Chrysler V8 engines for the Interceptor, starting with the 383 cubic inch with four barrel carburetor. Most were produced with the Chrysler TorqueFlight automatic transmission but 22 were built with the optional 4 speed manual. Both came standard with a limited slip differential. in a conventional Salisbury rear axle. In 1970 the 383 c.i. produced 335 hp, but in 1971 the engine was detuned to run on regular gas and the horsepower dropped to 270 hp . So in 1971, Jensen chose to use the 440 cubic inch V-8.

For 1971, Jensen offered two 440 c.i. engines. The standard engine came with a 4-barrel carburetor and produced 305 hp . The optional engine was a 440 cubic inch engine sporting three 2-barrel carburetors and produced 330 hp. This engine was only offered in 1971 and was the most car Jensen ever produced. There were only 232 cars ever built with the 440 “Six Pack” making this one of the most collectable models ever made by Jensen.

Change came again in 1972,  when the 440 c.i. engine with three 2-barrel carburetors were no longer produced by Chrysler Corp.  Once again a high performance Chrysler V-8 engine was de-tuned. The 440 c.i. engine the detuned  440 was reduced to 280 hp. This horsepower reduction continued throughout the 1970’s as Chrysler continued to offer a high performance 440 c.i. engine, up to 1976 when it only produced 255 hp.

Combined with problems with its Jensen Healy sports car and a world-wide recession in 1975, the company had fallen on hard times. The Jensen Motors Company  was eventually  placed into receivership. The remaining collectable of cars and parts were used by build out the 1976 model year. The production of the Jensen Interceptor ended in 1976.Paul Katsus would hope that this automobile blend of American muscle and hand built British luxury will not be lost to history.

1970 – 1972 Buick GSX

Paul Katsus has followed muscle cars since his early years in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Paul Katsus would like to share some information on a little known muscle car from Buick. In 1970 Buick wanted an entry into the ballooning muscle car market. Being a part of General Motors, Buick searched for what parts  were available corporation wide and came up with the muscle car to be known as the Buick GSX. With the Buick Skylark as a base, they were starting with the same platform as the Chevrolet Chevelle and Pontiac GTO.

For power Buick used a 455 V-8 that produced 350 horsepower and a astonishing  510 lb-ft of torque.  The torque figure topped the listed torque of any other car of the period, including the Hemi Cuda, in fact it was not topped until the 2003 Dodge Viper . The horsepower number was considered underrated with the true horsepower actually 390 – 395 horsepower, with the optional Stage 1, which bumped up the output by 10 horsepower. An outstanding muscle car with luxury to boot. The 0-60 mph came in at 5.8 seconds and had a quarter mile time of 13.8 seconds at 105.5 mph.

Not many GSX’s were built. Introduced in late 1970, 278 standard GXS’s were built and 400 GXS’s with the Stage I  performance packs. In 1971 and 1972 just 124 and 44 units were built. These Buicks are highly collectable muscle cars. Matching numbers cars today will bring more than $200,000 at auctions. Paul Katsus has only seen a few examples of this rare car and suggests if you see one at a car show or auction, snap a picture of a piece of Buick history.

AMX – American Motors Muscle

Paul Katsus has always liked the AMX – American Motors answer to the pony cars of the 60’s and 70’s. Paul Katsus would like to share some information on this little known muscle car. With the popularity of the pony cars, American Motors decided to throw their hat into the ring and  the AMX came out in 1968. Originally the AMX was intended to be a fiberglass car but cost considerations prohibited the implementation of the idea. Designers wanted the AMX to be sleek, stylish, and unique. The back seat was eliminated making it the only car other than the Corvette to have two seats.

Power for the AMX came from a variety of four barrel small block V-8 engines. Standard equipment included: a four speed manual, traction bars, dual exhaust, and wide tires. With the “Go-Package” you would receive a 390 V8, special styled steel wheels, heavy duty suspension, extra cooling capacity, and other high performance improvements. With the 390 V8 the AMX could lay down some serious performance. A 0-60 time of 6.6 seconds and the quarter mile came in at 14.8 seconds proved the car to be very competitive at the time.

The AMX two-seater was only produced for three years (1968-1970) with just over 19,000 units produced. Why was it produced for only three years? Because the demand for two-seater  sport cars was down and insurance companies were demanding excessive rates for high horsepower cars. Today the car is popular among collectors and its value continues to appreciate. The car was attractive, had a range of V8’s, and most importantly it was attractively priced. Paul Katsus and AMX collectors considered the AMX to be under appreciated and under rated compared to other muscle cars of the period.