Morgan Midsummer is a bold barchetta designed with Pininfarina

We inspect the new limited-edition Morgan Midsummer, an Anglo-Italian celebration of craft, tradition, innovation and eccentricity that is one of the most striking sports cars of recent times

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina
(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

The Morgan Midsummer is a very special seasonal treat. The result of a collaboration between the venerable British sports car manufacturer and the legendary Italian design house Pininfarina, the Midsummer is described as a barchetta, a truly handmade vehicle that is as much about celebration of material and form as it as about the joy of driving. 

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

For Morgan, the project brings together a number of running themes. For a start, the manufacturer’s parent company is now the Italian firm Investindustrial, a portfolio-driven conglomerate. A pairing with a well-established Italian icon like Pininfarina seemed like a good fit.

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

In addition, the act of expanding the Morgan design remit offers another perspective on a timeless form. The UK-based company is unapologetic about its commitment to a sports car shape that disappeared from our roads half a century ago, pointing out that it also does left-field high tech (the electric XP-1 prototype) and the outlandish Plus Four CX-T off-road racer, as well as the minimalist Super 3, even if the latter is built alongside the ash-framed, classically styled Plus Four (recently overhauled), at the Morgan factory where ancient tooling sits alongside modern methods.

Meet the Morgan Midsummer, a celebration of ‘eccentric elegance’

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

To the untrained eye, the Midsummer might look like more of the same. In the flesh, it really is a very refined piece of design indeed. Just fifty examples will be built (unsurprisingly they have all been spoken, thanks to advance previews for favoured customers), each of which will be graced by Pininfarina’s exquisite hand-formed aluminium body.

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

This in turn is wrapped around the teak frame that gives the cabin its visual structure. Unlike in regular Morgans, where the wood is buried within the body and trim, the Midsummer leaves the teak exposed. Made up of 400 individual layers, it forms an enclosure that is both nautical and modernist, evoking a post-war Italian speedboat or one of Carlo Mollino’s furniture pieces.

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

The word ‘barchetta’ means ‘little boat’ and was often applied to open post-war sports cars. The Midsummer’s open bodywork is pared back and minimal, with the sweeping wheelarches filled by large disc wheels. Small race-style individual windshields emphasise the visceral experience of driving, heightening the sensation found in all Morgans; this is very definitely a fairweather machine.

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

More than anything else, you wouldn’t want to let the exquisite interior get rained upon. Meticulously trimmed and detailed, the combination of teak, leather and a body-coloured dashboard with new analogue dials is both timeless and simple.

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

For the Italians, you get the sense that the project has been a chance to indulge in some naked Anglophilia. Described by Pininfarina’s Giuseppe Bonollo, SVP Sales & Marketing as a ‘new masterpiece emerging from the seamless synergy between our teams and the shared passion of both brands’, the Morgan Midsummer is blend of ‘British heritage with the timeless Pininfarina design’. 

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

It’s also the first production car to bear the 'Pininfarina Fuoriserie' badge, meaning ‘out of series’. This celebration of ‘eccentric elegance’ has been bestowed with a very non-automotive name, one that not only celebrates the best time of year to use the car, but also a nod to Midsummer Hill in the Malverns, the spiritual landscape of Morgan, as well as a dash of pagan celebration. 

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

For Jonathan Well, Morgan’s chief design officer, the project has confirmed the flexibility of Morgan’s design language, showcasing how the brand can evolve in years to come, as well as indicating that limited editions are not just the preserve of global supercar makers.

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

‘Midsummer – whilst also being Morgan’s first exterior-form collaboration – represents a significant milestone in our product design history,’ Wells says. ‘Our product portfolio offers an intriguing diversity; from the elegance of Plus Four and Six to the adventurous Super 3 and CX-T. As we look towards broader visual experimentation across our model range – it has been an enriching experience to collaborate with Pininfarina.’

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)

Morgan Motor Company, Morgan-Motor.com, @MorganMotor

Pininfarina, Pininfarina.it, @Pininfarina_official

Morgan Midsummer collaboration with Pininfarina

(Image credit: Morgan Motor Company)
TOPICS

Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.

Read more
The new Morgan Supersport
The new Morgan Supersport encapsulates the enduring appeal of a classic sports car
Maserati GranCabrio
Maserati GranCabrio blends drop-top performance with effortless elegance
Ferrari 12Cilindri Spider
Ferrari drops the top on its mighty 12Cilindri super coupe to create the elegant Spider
The Bentley Blower Jnr by Hedley Studios
Wallpaper* takes the wheel of the Bentley Blower Jnr for a rich automotive experience
MA-01 Maserati Biturbo Shamal by Modena Automobili
Modena Automobili transforms the 1990s-era Maserati Shamal into a cutting-edge restomod
The Longbow Speedster
Automotive startup Longbow is taking a shot at making a lightweight, all-electric sportscar
Latest in Transportation
Syd Mead, Future Pastime, 534 West 26th Street, New York
A new exhibition in New York presents the visionary artwork of the late Syd Mead
The fifth generation Toyota Prius
Why the Toyota Prius is the stealthiest and most discreet automotive choice you can make
Aston Martin Vanquish Volante
Aston Martin looks set to make a bigger splash with its new Vanquish Volante
Rolls-Royce Black Badge Spectre
Pure electric power in a velvet glove: meet the new Rolls-Royce Black Badge Spectre
smart #5 Summit Edition
The mash-up between Mercedes and Geely continues with the multi-functional smart #5
BMW X3 M50
Pretty on the inside: the BMW X3 M50 is a characterful but confrontational SUV
Latest in News
A still from Wong Kar-wai’s In the Mood for Love (2000)
Prada and Wong Kar-wai dream up a cinematic restaurant in Shanghai
Syd Mead, Future Pastime, 534 West 26th Street, New York
A new exhibition in New York presents the visionary artwork of the late Syd Mead
riverrock frank lloyd wright house
Frank Lloyd Wright’s last house has finally been built – and you can stay there
Design Space LA art fair
Basic.Space launches its first IRL shopping event – in an empty West Hollywood mall
the lavery london restaurant review
At The Lavery, Anglo-Italian cooking caters to London’s design obsessive
perfume bottle archive Cristalleries de Nancy
This perfume bottle archive was nearly lost. Now, it offers a rare whiff of fragrance history