It’s not only the styling of the Morgan Motor Company’s cars that’s a throwback to an earlier, simpler age. So is the 108-year old factory, something we get to see in a very unusual way thanks to this neat FPV (first-person view) drone video.
Morgan was founded in 1909 in Malvern, England, and moved to its current Pickersleigh Road site in 1914. The site has expanded a little over the years, but it’s not that much different to what you would have seen had you taken a tour while Adolf Hitler was polishing his tanks ready for a work trip to Poland.
The video follows the same route taken by up to 30,000 visitors on guided tours every year before the COVID-19 pandemic, but rather more quickly, and from a loftier vantage point. It starts at the original 1914 workshop and winds its way through each of the factory’s production areas, which are housed in different buildings cascading down the hill.
We’re shown around the chassis shop, where the aluminum base structures are first fitted with running gear, head into the assembly area where the aluminum body panels are attached, then briefly through the sheet metal area, and into the wood shop.
Related: Morgan Will Launch All-New Three-Wheeler On February 24
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At around 1:15 we see a technician shaping the wood for the rear fenders using a jig that is rumored to be around 80-90 years old, though no one at the factory seems to know for sure because there’s no one left alive who remembers it first being used.
The camera glides over various Plus Four and Plus 8 Morgans, and also the off road-focused CX-T, while giving us a sneaky glimpse, Morgan says, of a coach built special in the trim shop. But there’s no sign of the 3-Wheeler, whose workshop is off limits.
Morgan killed off the S&S V-twin-powered 3-Wheeler and is preparing to unveiled an all new trike later this year. The new 3-Wheeler will use a three-cylinder Ford engine and is expected to update the design to reflect a more mid-century theme incorporating styling cues from the EV3 electric 3-Wheeler project that was axed in 2018.
This short video is worth a watch for a fascinating glimpse inside the world of Morgan, but you might find yourself equally impressed by the ability of the women in the trim shop to remain dead still when there are a bunch of drone blades spinning just inches from their heads.
