Test driver writes off £85,000 Morgan sports car by crashing it into garden wall a mile from factory

A brand new, handbuilt £85,000 Morgan sports car has been spectacularly written off just a mile from the factory.

The swanky motor had been out for a test drive after mechanics noticed it was making strange noises – and ended up parked half way through a garden wall.

Dramatic pictures show the Aero 8‘s front left wheel arch completely buckled after it ploughed through a brick wall into a parked campervan.

Devastated dad-of-one Will Jones, 44, who owns the RV, was hoovering inside his home when he heard a loud bang at around 8.45am yesterday (Wednesday).

He assumed it was the bin men but was gobsmacked when the sheepish Morgan mechanic knocked on his window and showed him the damage to his beloved camper.

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Will, a graphic designer who lives with wife Tonia, 45, and their daughter Isabella, seven, on Madresfield Road in Malvern, Worcestershire, said: “I couldn’t believe it.

“This mechanic came to my window about 10 minutes after I heard the bang to apologise.

“He said they were doing tests on a new car on the test track when they noticed a funny noise coming from the rear. Their test driver had taken it onto the road and somehow it had smashed into my drive.

“It is a complete write off. The flex in the body work has taken the top of the roof away from the front of the windscreen.”

It is also feared the 4.8-litre V8 roadster – which has a top speed of almost 170mph and can go from 0-60mph in 4.5 seconds – has written off Will’s £18,500 campervan.

He added: “We were going on holiday in three weeks’ time in the campervan. We were planning to go to Hadrian’s Wall. My daughter is home educated and it was a history trip.

“But I don’t know what we will do now. The insurance people think it’s a write-off. It hammered into the van.

“Pieces of stone from the wall were thrown about three metres. It would have gone into our house if the van wasn’t there.

“My wife and I are both self-employed and holidays are a big deal. We saved up for two years to buy our van and now it’s ruined. I’m a bit annoyed.”

Next-door neighbour Janet Jones, 53, said: “I woke up and heard a large bang. I thought it was a postman and jumped out of bed and by the time I got outside the driver was out.

“He wasn’t hurt. He looked quite in shock. The airbags had blown. He said he felt the prop shaft had dropped and then it veered to the right and crashed. I’m thankful no-one was hurt walking down the road as it is so busy.”

Morgan said: “We are currently carrying out our own investigation procedure. We can confirm the car was based at this factory.”

Morgan has 170 employees who build just 900 cars by hand per year.