A highlight of the Autosport International show last week was the launch of the Morgan Motor Company’s new GT(N) racer. A development of the Morgan Aero 8, the new race car is the first production competition model to have been conceived, built and homologated by the Morgan factory team.

The Aero 8 GT(N) uses a 4.4-litre Heini Mader-prepared dry-sump M62 BMW V8 engine, giving a claimed 500bhp-plus at 6900rpm, via a six-speed sequential gearbox. Other developments from the road car include an FIA-certified roll cage and a carbon composite hard top. The most obvious visual differences are a full front splitter and a carbon fibre rear wing. The kerb weight is 1008kg.

According to Christopher Lawrence, Chief Development Engineer and 1962 Le Mans class winner for Morgan, the car is “possibly the most significant racing car ever produced by Morgan and certainly the most competitive at the factory gate”.

The Morgan Aero 8 GT(N) has been fully homologated by the FIA and approved by the ACO. There are currently no plans for a works team, but a fully race-prepared model can be bought from the factory for around £180,000 - in, apparently, just four weeks from order.