MEET THE OWNER – GARY WATERFALL AND HIS MORRIS ITAL 1.3L

A few months ago, Gary Waterfall acquired a very rare British Leyland product of the early 1980s – “I sold an Escort Cosworth after owning Ford RSs for nearly 30 years and bought the Ital: I love it”.

Back in the late 1970s, British Leyland planned a facelift. Their budget was a very limited £5 million, but the publicity made much of the new model’s connection with Ital Design Studios. In reality, despite the change of name on the orders of BL’s chief executive Sir Michael Edwards, the Morris “Styled in Italy; Built in Britain” was not created by Giorgetto Giugiaro.

However, the excellent www.aronline.co.uk quotes the former BL Public Relations Officer Ian Elliott – “why spoil the story with facts, we thought!”. In addition, the facelift was essential for the lucrative business car market. The Guardian of the 7^th July 1980 noted how companies were granting more and more employees a choice of model, rather than simply using them with a vehicle.

So, if a commercial traveller was to select the latest Morris rather than the Ford Cortina ‘80,’ then it had to look appealing. With its new grille, head and tail lamps, the Ital looked set to maintain the Marina’s popularity - a nine-year production run of 1.25 million. This was despite a hilariously awful television launch commercial on par with “Do the Shake & Vac” in terms of quality.

The Ital offered the fleet and private buyer a large boot, a very familiar mechanical layout and, compared with its predecessor, upgraded transmission and more comfortable seats. The starting price was £3,736, with initial engine choices consisting of the new 1.3-litre A-Plus and the 1.7-litre O-series units. By autumn 1980, BL also offered a 2-litre Automatic.

Autocar believed the new Morris to have the potential to be “a reliable car representing excellent value”. Furthermore, on the 4^th October 1980, The Daily Telegraph reported that the Ital’s popularity had caused BL to abandon plans for a four-day week at Cowley. Many drivers preferred the A-Plus unit to the larger engine models, and an early edition of Bullseye even featured a Morris Ital as a star prize. Doubtless, the contestants regarded it as super, smashing and great, and more practical than a speedboat.

Sales of the saloon ended in early 1984 with the launch of the Austin Montego; the Estate remained available until the autumn. Nearly 40 years later, Gary’s Morris is a fascinating reminder of when a bottom-of-the-range Ital was devoid of reclining front seats, grab handles, and a handbrake warning lamp. Such equipment levels were typical of entry-level medium-sized cars of that era, and at least the ‘L’ specification gained you a ticket pocket on the sun visor.

Most importantly, Gary is utterly enthused with his Ital –

It is absolutely superb to drive, comfortable, and plods along nicely, although the brakes aren’t all that efficient compared to modern-day stuff. Some people think I must have been out of my mind to sell an Escort Cosworth and buy an Ital; others think it brilliant that I did just that. It gets as much attention as my previous RS’s - of course, everybody’s dad had one or was a lot of people’s first car.

The Ital marks an essential chapter in BL history – it is the last Morris-badged car - and is also part of British social history. It is also rarer than many a Jaguar or MG and deserves to be celebrated.

With Thanks To: Gary Waterfall