No MGs in LeMans.

[Speeddemon555]

MG will not send their works 675 prototypes to LeMans this year. Also the Morgan will not be entered into the 24 hour race because of the ACO's rejecting their entry. Look for the Morgan to be in the selected FIA GT championship races.

[paul-collins]

Ah, you scared me. I thought you were saying that Intersport had withdrawn!

[Fab]

Originally posted by paul-collins
Ah, you scared me. I thought you were saying that Intersport had withdrawn!

Me too ! Stop the heart attack threads titles, please ! (phew !)

[rdjones]

Originally posted by Fab
Me too ! Stop the heart attack threads titles, please ! (phew !)

ditto.......

[pirenzo]

Why is it of no consequence that the factory MGs aren't going, yet you'd all be shocked if Intersport didn't go?

[Fab]

Originally posted by pirenzo
Why is it of no consequence that the factory MGs aren't going, yet you'd all be shocked if Intersport didn't go?

We're all shocked that work MGs are not coming, but we already knew it. Reading the title of SpeedDemon, I thought that the Intersport had withdraw their own entry, that's why... but there's no offense !

[pirenzo]

None taken. I was just a bit bemused that's all. I didn't know until now that the Factory MG's weren't going, and i thought it was the same for you guys and you all seemed to have ignored the fact that they weren't going, instead appearing more worried about the Intersport car. But now i see why, it was just my ignorance, i haven't been keeping up to date enough....

[paul-collins]

Yeah, it's a timing thing. Since the list was released a week ago, we've thrashed out that MG's semifactory team should have at least showed up at Sebring. Then, of course, Dyson's withdrawal had thrown us, leaving just the one MG - and the title made me think we were in for another!

Of course, if I had've been absolutely literal, I'd have posted that I thought the title meant all the Judd-MGs (Domes, Courage, etc) were gone, too. But that just seemed silly.

[Fab]

Originally posted by paul-collins
Of course, if I had've been absolutely literal, I'd have posted that I thought the title meant all the Judd-MGs (Domes, Courage, etc) were gone, too. But that just seemed silly.

Let's make a thread saying 'all LMP 900 withdraw' ! And let's count the heart attacks (Ayse, at least) !

[Aysedasi]

How about - all the 996's withdraw instead.......

[Heebeegeetee]

Thank gawd the Morgans not going. What a heap of junk that thing was last year. Nearly as embarrasing as that tractor that Marcos sent, a few years back. I mean, how many times do you want to be lapped, in a race?

[concrete block]

Heebeegeetee, shame on you! Specialist manufacturers such as Morgan, Marcos and TVR represent all that's best (or what's left) of our Great British car industry. Bring on the Porsche GT3s!

[Fab]

Originally posted by Heebeegeetee
Thank gawd the Morgans not going. What a heap of junk that thing was last year. Nearly as embarrasing as that tractor that Marcos sent, a few years back. I mean, how many times do you want to be lapped, in a race?

They were not so bad, and did a good job the time they were on the track... they were beyond of some Porsches !

[Fab]

Originally posted by Aysedasi
How about - all the 996's withdraw instead.......

The purpose was a heart attack, Ayse, not to rejoy yourself !

[Aysedasi]

Originally posted by Heebeegeetee
Thank gawd the Morgans not going. What a heap of junk that thing was last year. Nearly as embarrasing as that tractor that Marcos sent, a few years back. I mean, how many times do you want to be lapped, in a race?

I think shame on you too. The Morgan was by no means the slowest GT car out there and, for my money, the team put in a very credible performance which should have justified an entry over and above all those darned Porsches.

All of the GT cars will be lapped many many times during the 24 hours. I don't see that as any real part of the criteria for selection. Put three decent drivers in that car and it would undoubtedly have outperformed some of the rent-a-driver driven GTs.

[Heebeegeetee]

I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand all that ‘plucky Brits on a budget, God we’re so unlucky, if we weren’t so unlucky we coulda been contenders’ nonsense that we Brits seem to do so well. That Morgan was dreadful, but the Marcos a few years back was even worse.

Listen. If a British team goes to Le Mans, or any other race, for that matter, with a well sorted team, a prepped car, and the intention/ambition to achieve the best result they possibly can, I am their biggest supporter. But when they turn up with some outdated, thrown-together-at-the-last-minute piece of junk, and rumble round so slow that they could hurt someone, I am not fooled. They’re con-merchants.

I went to scrutineering that year, and saw the Marcos LM road car. The door fit was so bad it was scraping the gel coat off the rear wings. And it was 911 money. Honestly, even Jem Marsh wouldn’t drive the thing. He was in a Morgan!

On track it was dreadful. It looked, sounded, and handled like a tractor. That was the year that the McLaren won. Now that was a proper car, and a proper team, too.
A month or so after the race, Car magazine ran an article on the plucky little Marcos team, accompanied by moody b&w photos of sha**ed out mechanics at 3am etc etc. Oh, purleeeze! I bet they were tired. They probably hadn’t slept for a fortnight, which is when they probably started to build the thing.

What is it about us and losers? Why wasn’t the magazine in the pit of that winning McLaren team? They were privateers, too. Or the Harrods McLaren. What a great performance Derek Bell put in.

A couple of years back, my MG BGT (hence the nickname), overheated leaving Le Mans in a heat wave, so I pulled over and joined a group of other cars, all with the bonnets up. Then I noticed that every single car was British. From the gorgeous E Type Jag to the current model TVR. I tell, you we are good at some things, but I wish we were more honest about our failures.

Now if you want a real story about plucky Brits in a David and Goliath scenario, dig up the facts on when the MGB raced at Le Mans in the sixties! From struggling to qualify, to 11th overall after the first hour, I think it was, one year. I think in three Le Mans efforts, the cars had required a total of two bulbs, a fuse and a jubilee clip. Those were properly prepared cars, ran by a bloody good team. Car magazine has never had a good word to say about the MGB, though!

Seriously, the Morgan was a joke, and the ACO show their professionalism when they refuse to allow no-hopers to attend.

[Aysedasi]

Well you're as entitled to your opinion as anyone else here.

Fact is, there are plenty of us that don't share it.

By the way, are you sure Jem Marsh never drove the Marcos in 1995?

And if you believe the KKK McLaren in 1995 was a pure privateer effort, well........

For a lot of us, the Morgan was far from a joke and their performance actually proved it.

My opinion.

[MGF]

I thought that the little Morgan did quite well for its first Endurance outing... The ACO ae bang out of order in snubbing them in such a manner.

Same with MG..... I mean its ok to have a couple of WR's there that couldnt get out of their own way let alone be challengers to the LMP GT/900 class.... c'mon ACO... what the heck are you doing????

[Aysedasi]

Having been to Le Mans every year since 1986, I've seen and heard the outcries and outrage so many times before. I'm afraid that it just something you have to accept. Besides, its clear that there are those who agree with the ACO - in some respects at least.

[Heebeegeetee]

Originally posted by Aysedasi


By the way, are you sure Jem Marsh never drove the Marcos in 1995?

And if you believe the KKK McLaren in 1995 was a pure privateer effort, well........

I'm talking about the road cars in the paddock. I was very surprised to see Jem Marsh arrive in what I think was a Plus Four Morgan, 'till I saw the build quality of what he was producing...

And I know there was much debate re the amounts of assistance the various McLaren running teams had recieved

But I still stand by what I say. Particularly about the Marcos.

Incidentally, although I was there, I don't recall the Morgan running for long, but a friend has told me he thought it did have a good spell. Apart from being dog slow, and looking awful, how did it fare?

(I must confess I took little notice)

[kdr]

i thought the morgan out-qualified a couple of ferraris, a spyker, possibly a porsche as well.

it was definitely running in small hours...18 hours its listed as lasting. i'm sure i saw the team at 5am in pitlane still with the doors up.

[dscwall]

Plucky Brits at Le Mans, that would be the Morgan sir! Class winners in 1962!

[ensign14]

Whether the Morgan was a joke or not, at least someone was trying to enter as a manufacturer. Not buying another bloody 911.

[Aysedasi]

According to the ACO, 181 laps, the last of which was done after 16 hours and 48 minutes. It clearly wasn't the slowest car in the race, running faster than 2 of the 3 Ferraris. It outqualified the No. 74 Ferrari Modena, the Spyker (Richard Hay was over 3 seconds faster than Peter Kox), the Alphand Porsche and the No. 71 JMB Ferrari Modena (by over 10 seconds).

If that's a joke, I think the Morgan boys had the last laugh in 2002.

[Fab]

I would like to confirm Ayse and Kdr facts and impressions : times are here, Morgan were absoloutely in the pace for a middle place in the GT race last year, and they did quite well for teur brand new outing in May 2002 for PQ (was there, and the car was good for a brand new car). The quality was impressive, according for LM/ACO specialists that I interviewed on the subject, and I'm sure the car could have been reliable and efficient in 2003.

We'll never know if ACO was wrong or not to not enter the car, and for which reason, in 2003. But for me, they HAVE to be here in 2004, working hard as they intend to do in 2003. We will we surprised by this car, and as an old fan, I was myself last 2002 May : I thought it was a joke initialy, just for the gallery... and it was definitely not...

See lap by lap reports : Morgan did well, leaving behind experienced cars...

Is the car 'nice' : question of taste. Is the car a sportscar : don't know the definition, but regarding the times, it will definitely for me.