Morgan : New 3 Wheeler to debut at Geneva

Keith Adams

Morgan Threewheeler
2011 Morgan 3 Wheeler

Morgan is making a dramatic return to its roots, by unveiling the motorcycle-engined 3 Wheeler at the forthcoming Geneva Motor Show. The car, which will cost from around £30,000, will go on sale in the UK in 2012. The new 3 Wheeler looks like the pre-war original but is thoroughly updated, with new technology, materials and engines, and is powered by a brand new S&S V Twin.

Around 30,000 examples of the original model were built between 1909 and 1953. However, while the new version retains the old school looks, Morgan has thoroughly updated the design. For a start, power is now delivered to the single rear wheel by a 115bhp V Twin built by specialists S&S, which is mated to a five-speed gearbox sourced from Mazda.

Thanks to the fact that the 3 Wheeler weighs in at around 500kg, Morgan predicts that the car will complete the 0-60mph sprint in 4.5 seconds and hit 115mph. The car features an aircraft-style cockpit, including details like a bomb-release starter button. It’ll be seriously configurable with a wide variety of interior and exterior options, including the cute RAF-style paint job as shown in the accompanying images.

Keith Adams

37 Comments

  1. Fantastic! I might put my name down now in the hope that, by 2051, when I get to the top of the waiting list, I’ll able to afford one!

  2. I think this looks stunning, partly as it is so elegant, but mostly as it is so simple. It looks like so much fun – 100bhp in a car that weighs so little will be a hoot and it is probably one of the cheapest Morgan cars ever. I would love to have a go in one.

  3. This looks perfect – I have long lusted after a 1930s 3-wheeler on which the style of this is based. However, get rid if that horrible black filter cover on the nose of the engine, it’s ghastly!

  4. Does it come with a optional Lewis Gun? I’d love one. I bet it’s a hoot to drive. Does the German market get a red one?

  5. That black air cleaner cover is the old standard S&S, beloved of thousands of American bikers. You do, at least, know there will be alternatives to it – just drop by your local chopper shop. I was surprised to notice that the motor isn’t just an old S&S Evolution motor. It appears to be something different that wouldn’t fit into a Harley Davidson frame.

  6. I like the quirkiness of this – definitely a niche product to make Morgan a bit of extra cash. I’m sure there are some enthusiasts who will love this… Good stuff!

  7. Fantastic! A sports car for our time! I do not know what the CO2 gm/k figure will be but I think it would be less than a Toyota Prius!

    A fantastic sports car with less fuel consumption and much fun to drive – that is what we need nowadays and not sports cars which weigh more than two tons. This car has a better power to weight ratio than a early Lotus Elise.

    I hope Morgan will have a big success with this model, but will you be able get such a vehicle registered in countries like America or Germany?

  8. How cool is that?. A great paint job etc. – I love the exhausts :).

    I’ve always thought that cars should be fun to drive and this looks like it would be an absolute blast !

  9. Just fabulous! Great looks, some modern engineering married up to traditional coachbuilt assembly and responsive steering that will ensure it can “turn on a six pence piece”, metaphorically.

    A great concept that I hope will also offer the same degree of personalising potential as the 4-wheeler 4/4 and Plus 8 currently do. Just as important, let us not forget about a loud, barking exhaust note to add the icing on a very special cake. Bring it on!

  10. @David 3500
    Yes, we need a Big Deep Thumping Barking Note like an old BSA Goldstar, none of this Screaming Banshee Nonsense – if this site had sound you would hear the noise I am making!

    The funny thing is I’m reading some reprinted Biggles books at the moment and it’s just making me want one more.

  11. @Delboy
    That’s easy! Don’t crash it, avoid all Q7/X5/RRs etc. and drive it like you would a classic car or a motorbike, with due care and attention – no need for Nanny NCAP if we all did that.

    Mind you, an ‘Invalid Scooter’ probably offers better crash protection but, at least, you’d die in a blaze of glory in a Morgan Trike.

  12. Oliver :
    Fantastic! A sports car for our time! I do not know what the CO2 gm/k figure will be but I think it would be less than a Toyota Prius!

    A fantastic sports car with less fuel consumption and much fun to drive – that is what we need nowadays and not sports cars which weigh more than two tons. This car has a better power to weight ratio than a early Lotus Elise.

    I hope Morgan will have a big success with this model, but will you be able get such a vehicle registered in countries like America or Germany?

    It’s really complex and depends on the State but the American ‘Gearheads’ on Autoblog US love this car. They have had loads of problems getting hold of cars like the Atom and the KTM Boomarang and making them legal.

    I’ve been blogging on that site for a bit now to learn about the car industry/culture etc. and there are some serious car enthusiasts over the pond who don’t all drive huge V8 pick up trucks – quite a few love cars like this, probably the same people who bought MGBs and Triumphs in the past.

  13. @Keith B
    No, it’s his sense of humour. ‘John’ is a Danish BMC enthusiast – you should go to his website and see his collection, http://www.bmc-freak.dk/. He has the most fantastic garage/collection and a huge knowledge of Mini’s a new and old.

    He’s just taking the ‘Mickey’ Danish-style but sometimes his comments are misunderstood in the translation.

  14. Delboy :
    It is funny that, when cars like this turn up, nobody cares about NCAP ratings.

    I was trying to block that out of my mind ;-). However, there is no NCAP for motorcyles so that’s how I will justify it’s existence to myself!

  15. I just hope the hidden back wheel is a modern super bike style one… and not the same as the fronts!

    Can you specify wider wheels on the front? I hope so or corners will be a bit erratic!

  16. Dr Bobby Love :
    I just hope the hidden back wheel is a modern super bike style one… and not the same as the fronts!

    Can you specify wider wheels on the front? I hope so or corners will be a bit erratic!

    Not erratic. Accomplished.

    Modern cars leave you with no sense of achievement.

  17. What a pity that Triumph don’t make a V Twin. Would it be too much of a break with tradition to fit the Rocket 3’s 2.3 litre triple instead of that Harley Davidson lump?

    It would be like the transformation from Triumph TR4 to Rover V8 power which came with the Plus 8.

  18. Just waiting for the Top Gear road test comparing this with something like a Tri-Tech Honda-powered Messerschmitt KR200 replica – this could all get very silly and un-PC…

    Shame it hasn’t got more retro instruments, eg Caerbont analogue mechanical.

    Think I’d feel a lot safer and more comfortable in a Grinnall Scorpion.

  19. What is the handling like on something with this kind of wheel arrangement? Have any AROnline readers actually had experience of it? Presumably, it’s a bit weird.

    We know what three wheels are like when arranged the other way round (i.e. Bond and Reliant). Is this an improvement on that, or just as lethal?

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