THE freshly laid surface at Wick's riverside car park was the perfect setting for a Caithness couple to do a few spins around in their brand new "vintage" vehicle.

It might look like a restoration job but Ian and Elaine Grant's car is in fact a 2020 Morgan Plus 4 with bespoke trimmings that they received recently.

It is the last of the traditional builds as it celebrates 110 years of Morgan manufacturing British sports cars.

The car was made in a traditional coach-building style and comes with an ash wooden frame.

The proud new owners, who live in Thurso, are delighted with their purchase which was a long dreamt of goal and came just in time for Ian to celebrate his 60th birthday.

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Ian explains that from first being given a build slot by the dealer, to choosing the spec and then waiting for the car to be hand-built in the Morgan factory at the foot of the Malvern Hills, it took nearly a year before he and his wife could collect it from the Revolutions dealership in Perth.

Elaine said: “It was very exciting choosing firstly which model of sports car we wanted, and then, after deciding on the Plus 4, choosing the paint, leather and piping colours as well as all the different permutations of extras which go to make each car as individual as its owners."

Some of their sports car extras include mohair hood, stainless steel wire wheels, sun visors, adjustable shock absorbers, wooden Moto-Lita steering wheel, walnut dashboard, performance seats and bonnet strap.

Ian said: “It is also fitted with a sports exhaust made of stainless steel which has been designed to pop and crackle on changing gear."

After many hours of studying paint charts and leather samples, Elaine said: “We decided on a new colour of metallic paint for Morgans called Porsche Prosecco. We then chose mulberry leather seats with imperial piping and a mohair maroon hood."

Ian said: “We also decided to have the headrest embroidered with '110' since this is a limited edition sports car celebrating 110 years of Morgan manufacturing sports cars. I also asked for 110 side badges on the car, with both of these things only being allowed on 110 anniversary models."

Since purchasing the car Ian has discovered that theirs is the farthest north Morgan on mainland Britain, with the next nearest being in Beauly.

Across Morgan’s full range of sports cars including the Plus 4, Plus 8, Aero, Roadster and 3 Wheeler it produces only 700 cars for worldwide distribution and all from its Malvern factory.

To put that into comparison with other manufacturers, a BMW Mini comes off the production line every 60 seconds.

After a few photographs were taken, the couple bid farewell and journeyed back to Thurso in their stylish new Morgan with the top down to take advantage of the summer sun.

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