Morgan Super Sports, Plus 4, Roadster and Plus 8: Malvern magic

By Simon Hucknall

| 16 Aug 2024

Classic & Sports Car – Morgan Super Sports, Plus 4, Roadster and Plus 8: Malvern magic

In the past five years, the Morgan Motor Company’s staple line-up has undergone its biggest technological shift in decades.

Still imbued with a generous dose of visual nostalgia, the Plus Four and Plus Six have done away with the steel platform that had previously underpinned most models from the Malvern firm since 1936, replacing it with one formed in aluminium, and carrying (whisper it) double wishbones at each corner.

Even the Super 3 three-wheeler is now powered by an inboard, in-line three-cylinder motor, after its earlier exposed V-twin engine succumbed to ever-tightening emissions regulations.

The Morgan Super Sports has a wide front track which aids stability

But what goes around comes around.

What we perceive as a company mired in yore is one that has evolved – in its ethos, as well as its engineering – many times before.

And the four cars gathered here today, their two-, four-, six- and eight-cylinder powerplants representing every production engine configuration from Morgan in the 20th century, plus one from the 21st, tell the tale of a car maker whose identity has moved with the times more than you might credit.

The Morgan’s 990cc Matchless V-twin engine makes a gloriously unrefined sound

The oldest car here – the dinky 1935 Super Sports – marks the final days of Morgan’s three-wheeled products in the previous century, a design template that had served it well since Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan produced the first one in 1910.

Conceived as a simple, low-cost cyclecar attracting around half the road tax of a four-wheeled vehicle, by 1937 the three-wheeler range was far more daring and enthusiast-led, comprising Sports, Super Sports and the four-cylinder F-type models.

The latter’s inboard ‘four’ mirrored the Super 3’s shift to an enclosed triple some 80 years later, though at the time with improved refinement being the goal.

The Morgan three-wheeler’s spare wheel fits neatly into the rear of the ‘barrel-back’

Tony Tebby purchased ‘our’ car in 1970 as a collection of parts, and has painstakingly restored it over a period of 20 or so years.

Originally sold by Maskell for Morgan in Camberwell, London, it sports black over light ivory paint and ‘Double-D’ two-seater bodywork, with its side-mounted exhaust positioned slightly lower than before to avoid drivers inadvertently scalding their elbows.

The basic platform and drivetrain were by then well-proven: a tubular chassis (unique to the V-twins, with the four-cylinder models using Z-section pressings) employing sliding pillars and helical springs at the front, and two quarter-elliptic springs at the rear, one on either side of the single back wheel.

Morgan’s Super Sports is good for 73mph

The transmission was via a propshaft to a three-speed gearbox positioned just ahead of the driven rear wheel, with the final drive by a ¾in roller chain on the offside.

Being a Super Sport, Tony’s car is powered by a V-twin motor, which for me perfectly characterises the three-wheeler Morgans of this era.

JAP had previously been the preferred supplier, but by 1933 a switch had been made to less expensive Matchless units, either water-cooled (as here) or air-cooled and designated ‘MX4’ or ‘MX2’ respectively.

Inside, the Morgan three-wheeler’s ignition and fuel/air-mixture levers crowd its large steering wheel

Mounted ahead of the front axle, but still comfortably inside the forward reach of the front wheels, it’s a miniature work of art.

Made exclusively for Morgan, and displacing 990cc, the 50° V-twin produced a claimed 42bhp at 4800rpm, enough for The Light Car to achieve an outright top speed of 73mph when it tested the Super Sports in 1939.

Even allowing for the packaging and dynamic compromises wrought by having only three wheels, that was remarkable performance for a pre-war car costing a mere £136.

St Christopher, patron saint of travel, adorns this Morgan’s dashboard

Nevertheless, you do need to travel light in a Super Sports.

The spare wheel is recessed neatly into the rear of the ‘barrel-back’, steel-over-ash bodywork, and this car’s tonneau is stowed next to the battery behind the cockpit’s two narrow seats.

But, other than a small space beneath the seat squab, there’s no storage.

The driving position is better suited to those of compact build; even then, the large, four-spoke wheel sits just inches from your chest, with its gaggle of levers and cables presented to confuse a Super Sports novice (such as me).

The Morgan Super Sports has a surprising turn of pace

To fire up, retard the left-hand ignition lever and close the opposing air control, then thumb the electric starter, lifting both levers when the V-twin comes to life.

It’s gloriously unrefined, issuing an offbeat thump that’s somehow apt for this particular blend of car and motorcycle.

There are two pedals – left for clutch, right for the secondary brake operating on the rear wheel – and two floor-mounted levers – left for the main front brake, right for the gears, with a dog-leg first to the right of its gate.

The Morgan Plus 4’s handling can be a bit lively, especially with skinny crossply tyres

The throttle is the long hand-lever protruding from the steering wheel’s hub, which – like a dead man’s handle – needs holding open to make progress.

But you soon acclimatise, steering mainly with your left hand, captivated by the little Morgan’s sprightliness and agility.

Weighing just 954lb, it pings out of bends, feeling stable (a relatively wide 4ft 11in front track helps here) and grippy, despite the rear wheel’s meagre contact patch.

The engine is a delight and, with ample torque allied to high-ish gearing, the Super Sports feels comfortable at a 50-55mph cruise.

‘There have been many incarnations of the Morgan Plus 4, so tucking yourself into such an early example’s cabin is a real treat’

There’s a pared-back purity about the whole, akin to driving something from the veteran era – which is, of course, where its origins lie.

But the writing had been on the wall for the three-wheeled Morgan for some time.

Despite its inherent appeal to impecunious enthusiasts, contemporary cars of the Austin Seven class were similarly priced or cheaper, had decent cabin space and four wheels, with more intuitive, conventional controls.

So, in 1936, Morgan presented its first four-wheeler, the 4-4, with the Super Sports ending production in 1939, and the F-type three-wheeler in 1952.

The Morgan Plus 4’s combined instruments and Bakelite switchgear

The new model was named after its four wheels and four cylinders, and used a steel Z-frame chassis, retaining Morgan’s sliding-pillar front suspension but now with a leaf-sprung live axle at the rear.

Thoroughly contemporary in its design, and available in two- or four-seater guises, the body was built around the ash frame for which the company has since become famed.

It was no road-burner, though, and by 1950 Morgan buyers craved more performance than even the post-1939 1267cc Standard Special engine could muster in what was by then named the 4/4.

The Morgan Plus 4 is a willing partner that encourages speed

The Plus 4 was Malvern’s response, revealed with great fanfare – Motor Sport: ‘Do not miss the new “Plus Four” model’ – at that year’s Earls Court motor show.

With a wider chassis, a 4in-longer wheelbase and equipped with Morgan’s first stab at a hydraulic braking system, the Plus 4 also introduced the Standard Vanguard’s big 2088cc ‘four’, nearly doubling the capacity of that in the 4/4 model that it (temporarily) replaced.

Ambrose Langley-Poole’s immaculate 1953 example is currently on loan to the Bicester Heritage-based StarterMotor, introducing the next generation to classic motoring.

‘Even back then, the Morgan Plus 4’s styling cues – bluff grille, separate headlights, swooping wings and running boards – were all pre-war throwbacks’

Originally exported to the USA, where it was fully restored in 1992, the car was only repatriated last year and has since received a bare-metal respray, an interior retrim and a new mohair hood.

This would have been one of the last Plus 4s powered by the Standard Vanguard engine, with Morgan switching to the 1991cc Triumph TR2 unit at the end of 1953 (changing engine supply being a perennial Morgan challenge then, as now).

It also just predates the interim ‘bean-can’ Plus 4s, with their slightly canted-back radiator grilles and lowered headlamps, before Peter Morgan’s classic and enduring ‘waterfall’ grille design appeared the following year.

The Morgan Plus 4 has twin rear-mounted spare tyres

There have been many incarnations of the Plus 4 in subsequent years, so tucking yourself into such an early example’s cabin is a real treat.

Even back then, this model’s styling cues – bluff grille, separate headlights, swooping wings and running boards – were all pre-war throwbacks.

Once again, a large and near-vertical steering wheel is positioned unfeasibly close to your torso, but the controls are conventional, with tiny, floor-mounted clutch and brake pedals, and a top-hinged throttle, plus a foot-operated headlamp dip-switch (so convenient) and fly-off handbrake.

A large speedo sits next to a combination dial for fuel/water/amps/oil, both set into a wooden fascia.

This Morgan Plus 4 has the popular twin-carburettor upgrade

The Plus 4 feels biddable from the off.

Other than the steering wheel dictating an elbows-out cornering style, making you feel like a latter-day Fangio, the crisp timbre of the Standard ‘four’ is infectious, goading you to stir the gears in the precise, short-shifting Moss four-speed ’box, heel-and-toe changes made easy thanks to well-spaced pedals.

Body control is excellent, with minimal roll, and, weighing little more than 1800lb, it responds cleanly and accurately on turn-in.

I’m pleased that we’re in the safe confines of the Bicester Heritage track, though: this Plus 4’s skinny BF Goodrich Silvertown crossplies make it playful, to say the least, with powerslides on tap out of every bend.

The Plus Four’s low doors and big steering wheel command an elbows-out cornering style

At what point Peter Morgan (taking up the reins after father ‘HFS’ died in 1950) felt the need to harness and preserve the fundamental design and construction of his firm’s products is anyone’s guess.

The 4/4 and Plus 4 were, back then, marketed as contemporary cars, and their powertrains and auxiliary systems were continually developed to ensure regulatory compliance.

Even a decade later, with the launch of the radical (by Morgan standards) Plus 4 Plus, there was a strong hint that he might adopt a more modern approach.

But that project bombed in commercial terms and ever since (save the now discontinued Aero 8 of 2000-2018) the company’s product strategy has unashamedly embraced the past.

Traction can be an issue in the Morgan Roadster, but there is a rich exhaust note to enjoy

Which is perfectly illustrated by our second pairing from Malvern.

Running in cylinder-, rather than age-order, the Roadster arrived in 2004, replacing the Plus 8, as supply of that model’s venerable engine ran dry.

Unlike the Plus 8, the Roadster was also offered as a more family-friendly four-seater, complementing the two-seater we have at Bicester today.

Initially powered by Ford’s then relatively new and advanced 3-litre Duratec V6, as seen in the Mondeo, the Roadster was Morgan’s first six-cylinder model, producing between 204 and 223bhp, depending on build year.

The Morgan Roadster’s simplified, polished-walnut dashboard

‘Our’ car, however, is a later model, fitted with the 3.7-litre, 280bhp Duratec Cyclone V6.

Jim Rowe has owned the car from new and uses it extensively, having enjoyed multiple road trips to Italy.

The dash layout is not dissimilar to that of the decades-older Plus 4, although the switchgear is tidier and more intuitive to use, and the driving position considerably more comfortable thanks to adjustable seats and a steering wheel not borrowed from the Titanic.

The Morgan Roadster’s recognisable badge and ‘waterfall’ grille

The thing is, we are now in a Morgan that produces four times the power of its forebear, yet still employs the same basic chassis design as the Plus 4 we’ve just stepped out of – albeit with a raft of detail revisions.

No question, the Roadster feels blisteringly quick: it’ll blast to its 7000rpm redline effortlessly, accompanied by a strident, cultured V6 bark.

Its mid-range performance is exceptional, too, allowing you to dip into a deep well of torque in higher gears.

But it all feels a bit too much for a car whose underpinnings hark largely from the pre-war era.

The Morgan Roadster’s 3.7-litre Ford V6 musters 280bhp

Even accelerating hard in a straight line on a dry track, the car feels overwhelmed, twitching at every gearchange.

The steering has a little too much power assistance, too, feeling pointy and nervous just off the straight-ahead, though it loads up progressively enough as you apply more lock through corners.

But when you do, the front end feels untidy and detached, sending unwanted kickback through the steering system.

Braking performance, though strong enough, is also hampered by slightly mushy, inconsistent pedal feel.

The Morgan Roadster has comfortable, adjustable seats

Am I being too harsh? I don’t believe so.

In isolation, there’s little wrong with either the Roadster’s chassis or its powertrain; it’s just that the two don’t seem to be compatible.

On the face of it, that does not bode well for the Plus 8, which is of similar engine capacity.

Another of Tony’s charges, this car rolled out of the Pickersleigh Road works in 1988.

The Morgan Roadster goes well, but steers less convincingly

Once again based on the Plus 4’s architecture, the model was unveiled in 1968, Morgan being the first external manufacturer to adopt Rover’s light, Buick-derived 3.5-litre V8, after it was launched in the P5B saloon.

Race engineer Maurice Owen was tasked by the sports-car maker with shoehorning the all-aluminium unit into the existing chassis, and with it came a new collapsible steering column and cooling system, including an electric fan.

There was also a switch from dynamo to alternator, along with myriad detail changes to the electrical system and equipment list.

The Plus 8 takes the Morgan chassis to the limit, but it rarely feels overwhelmed

Originally producing 155bhp, as in the P5B, the Plus 8’s powertrain was developed over the years in line with Rover’s products, with up to 4.6 litres available.

With 20 years of model development behind it, the 3.5-litre engine in Tony’s car not only benefits from electronic fuel injection (replacing the twin SU carbs), upping output to 190bhp, but also the excellent five-speed ’box from the Rover SD1, replacing the earlier Moss four-speed.

It has a 2in-wider chassis than the 1968 model, and a 4in-wider aluminium body (an option over the standard steel), along with an unassisted steering rack and limited-slip differential.

Tony’s car also has SSL front springs with low-friction bushes (a common upgrade).

Rover switchgear in the Morgan Plus 8

This was the Morgan sports car that, for many years, could out-accelerate any other UK production car between 20 and 80mph, such was its torque-to-weight ratio – a potent 217lb ft per tonne – which soon becomes apparent.

Befitting its position at the top of the range, the Plus 8’s hide-trimmed cabin is well appointed, the dark veneered dash inset with a bank of four central auxiliary dials, in addition to the main clocks before you for revs and speed.

The Rover powertrain brings similarly sourced controls (the column stalks most obviously), but everything is laid out logically and you can imagine that spending a day behind the small, leather-rimmed three-spoke wheel would be no great sacrifice.

The Morgan Plus 8’s fuel-injected V8 is full of character

The engine is everything you expect it to be: docile and flexible, but, even at idle, infused with a latent potency that is unleashed the second you prod the long-travel throttle.

You don’t need to work the engine much above 4500rpm to get the full effect and, while it’s not as quick outright as the Roadster, the intoxicating woofle from its V8 alone makes driving the Plus 8 an utter joy.

The shift from the SD1 ’box is quite deliberate, the top of the gearlever cranked over to avoid grazing your knuckles on the lower dash, but you can use it sparingly: it will happily pull cleanly from 500rpm in top.

The Morgan Plus 8 offers excellent grip and feedback

Dynamically, it feels as if we’re exploring the outer envelope of the old chassis’ limits – but not quite exceeding them, as in the Roadster.

Even with uprated springs, the front end shimmies when you attack corners, though overall grip is good.

The steering has plenty of heft, giving you feedback and kickback in equal measure – all par for the Morgan course.

The unservoed brakes (discs front, drums rear) require a decent shove from high speeds, but repay with lots of feel.

In short, the Plus 8’s speed, substance and subtlety make it the most engaging and usable car here by some margin.

The Morgan Plus 8 with its V-twin-engined ancestor in the background

This is a story of two halves: the Super Sports three-wheeler and early Plus 4 were low-cost, enthusiast machines which held their own in the immediate pre- and post-war markets versus contemporary rivals.

The Roadster and Plus 8 cannot be so judged: their handcrafted charm and freeze-frame designs, blended with more modern, powerful engines, largely transcend objective analysis – though in the case of the Roadster, only up to a point.

Which is why, on this evidence, the Plus 8 is the one that gets the balance just right.

Images: Max Edleston

Thanks to: Bicester Heritage; StarterMotor; OxMOG

Factfile

Morgan Super Sports

Sold/number built 1933-’39/820
Construction tubular steel chassis, steel body over ash frame
Engine alloy-crankcase, iron-heads, ohv 990cc 50° V-twin, single Amal carburettor
Max power 42bhp @ 4800rpm
Max torque n/a
Transmission three-speed manual, RWD
Suspension: front independent, by sliding pillars, helical springs, telescopic dampers rear two quarter-elliptic springs, lever-arm damper
Steering epicyclic reduction
Brakes drums
Length 10ft 4in (3150mm)
Width 4ft 11in (1499mm)
Height n/a
Wheelbase 7ft 3in (2209mm)
Weight 958lb (434kg)
Mpg 40
0-60mph n/a
Top speed 73mph
Price new £136 10s (1939)
Price now £50,000*

Morgan Plus 4

Sold/number built 1950-’69/6853
Construction Z-section steel chassis, aluminium/steel panels over ash frame
Engine all-iron, ohv 2088cc ‘four’, single Solex carburettor
Max power 68bhp @ 4300rpm
Max torque 112lb ft @ 2300rpm
Transmission four-speed manual, RWD
Suspension: front independent, by sliding pillars, coil springs, telescopic dampers rear live axle, semi-elliptic springs, lever-arm dampers
Steering cam gear
Brakes drums
Length 12ft 1in (3683mm)
Width 4ft 8in (1422mm)
Height 4ft 4in (1321mm)
Wheelbase 8ft (2438mm)
Weight 1848lb (838kg)
Mpg n/a
0-60mph 12.8 secs
Top speed 85mph
Price new £610 (1959)
Price now £25-45,000*

Morgan Roadster

Sold/number built 2004-’19/2117
Construction Z-section steel chassis, aluminium/steel panels over ash frame
Engine all-alloy, dohc-per-bank 3726cc 60° V6, fuel injection
Max power 280bhp @ 6000rpm
Max torque 280lb ft @ 4500rpm
Transmission five-speed manual, RWD
Suspension: front independent, by sliding pillars, coil springs rear live axle, semi-elliptic springs; telescopics f/r
Steering power-assisted rack and pinion
Brakes discs front, drums rear
Length 13ft 2in (4010mm)
Width 5ft 7in (1720mm)
Height 4ft 1in (1220mm)
Wheelbase 8ft 2in (2490mm)
Weight 2204lb (1000kg)
Mpg 28
0-60mph 5.5 secs
Top speed 140mph
Price new £38,250 (2012)
Price now £30-50,000*

Morgan Plus 8

Sold/number built 1968-2004/6130
Construction Z-section steel chassis, aluminium/steel panels over ash frame
Engine all-alloy, ohv 3528cc 90° V8, Lucas L-Jetronic fuel injection
Max power 190bhp @ 5280rpm
Max torque 220lb ft @ 4000rpm
Transmission five-speed manual, RWD
Suspension: front independent, by sliding pillars, coil springs, telescopic dampers rear live axle, semi-elliptic springs, lever-arm dampers
Steering rack and pinion
Brakes discs front, drums rear
Length 13ft (3962mm)
Width 5ft 3in (1600mm)
Height 4ft 4in (1320mm)
Wheelbase 8ft 2in (2489mm)
Weight 2022lb (915kg)
Mpg 20.9
0-60mph 5.6 secs
Top speed 120mph
Price new £15,435.88 (1987)
Price now £25-50,000*