Morgan reveals all-new Super 3

The Super 3 leaves the era of the biplane where Morgan began 113 years ago and joins the jet age – more ‘50s Comet than a Lear Jet though. That can’t have been an easy update given that the enduring thing about the Morgan three-wheeler is the very thing that makes it so wrong. So how do you modernise something as anachronistic as a tiny bathtub-shaped machine that doesn’t even have the accepted number of wheels for a car, let alone doors or a roof?

Not by changing the time-honoured layout of two wide-spaced wheels up front and a single central driving wheel behind, that’s for sure. Nor by giving it an electric motor – Morgan looked at that a few years ago and, for now at least, has decided against it. What it has given it instead is a whole new monocoque structure and a new petrol engine, but one with an extra cylinder and water cooling, all neatly tucked away under the nose cone.

That’s a big change over the outgoing, 2011-launched 3 Wheeler with its air-cooled V-Twin exposed to the elements between the front wheels. But there’s a precedent here: when Morgan last reinvented the 3 Wheeler in the 1930s, its F-type was fitted with a Ford four-cylinder sidevalve engine hidden behind a grille and under a bonnet. And it is again Ford that Morgan has gone to for the Super 3’s engine.

It’s the 1.5-litre three-cylinder in naturally-aspirated form from entry versions of the Focus and in the Super 3 it boasts 117PS (87kW) at 6,500rpm with torque of 150 Nm (110lb ft) at 4,500rpm. With a turbocharger in EcoBoost form, the 1.5 delivers 200PS for cars like the Fiesta ST but alas that’s not on the cards here, not for now anyway. But a Super Sports 3 makes a nice thought for the future…

Like the outgoing 3-Wheeler, a five-speed manual ‘box from the Mazda MX-5 is used in the Super 3, driving the single rear wheel which is shod with an Avon all-seasons tyre. Incidentally the tall and skinny front tyres under their spindly cycleguards are also Avons, special 20-inch Speedmasters based on the design of heritage motorcycle tyres. The disc wheels look very jet age and have been designed to work with the enclosed inside of the cycleguards for best aerodynamics.

Morgan says a lot of work went into making the most of the three-pot’s sporty character, and we certainly hope that is the case because an insipid buzz would hardly suit the car’s character. Acceleration? Zero to 62mph is quoted as 7.0 seconds, while keep pedal to the metal and you can get what promises to be a very wind-in-the-hair top speed of 130mph.

The overall weight is up, to 635kg, or around 50kg more than the outgoing old 3 Wheeler, but the Super 3 is cleaner and more efficient, managing 130g/km of CO₂ and 40mpg, not that anyone buys such a car for an economy runaround.

A modern Ford engine is never going to have the chromed charisma of a motorcycle V-Twin so it’s probably for the best that it has been mostly concealed under the bonnet. But, crucially, the open grille still means you get a rewarding mechanical eyeful. Head on, the intricacy and craftsmanship of the exposed pull-rod wishbone suspension and cast aluminium structural elements are plain to see.

And what, pray, are the things sticking out the sides? The thing about a water-cooled engine is that it needs a radiator. Morgan has gone for one each side in the form of thin and flat cooling packs that it has dubbed “sideblades”. They incorporate accessory rails that allow for a variety of add-ons like the luggage panniers shown in the pictures. They can also be painted contrasting colours as part of the many livery options available.

The Super 3’s structure is all-new uses superformed aluminium, with elements bonded on much like how the latest four-wheel Morgan chassis are created entirely. Morgan calls it a true monocoque – the firm’s first – with stressed body panels in the cause of light weight and maximum rigidity, but also to eke out the most space for two people and some luggage (there’s a small boot in the tail section). Morgan says the Super 3 meets the same frontal impact crash standards as the Plus Four and Plus Six.

In keeping with the form-follows-function ethos, even the headlight stalks are a structural element, acting as a brace between the upper and lower wishbone pick-up points. As Morgan’s head of design Jon Wells tells us, “No component is superfluous. Every part has a function and in most cases more than one purpose.”

How will the Super 3 drive? There can’t be much arguing with Morgan’s assertion that it has “become a global leader in the dynamic behaviour of three-wheeled vehicles.” Not much to beat there then.

Seriously though, handling should be fun and definitely involving; Morgan says the Super 3 is “fundamentally stable” thanks to keeping mass with the triangle of the three wheels. Pull-road suspension reduces unsprung mass while putting the engine behind the front axle line benefits weight distribution.

The big news in the cabin is… there is now a footwell heater. Also a first for the model is a rake and reach adjustable steering column which should mean that cosy cockpit is more accommodating for different shaped drivers, though Morgan makes no claims about increased interior space. There is also an adjustable pedal box – with the pedals set up for heel and toeing. Morgan says despite the absence of roof and hood the interior is dust-tight and protected from water splashes.

The cabin is simple and minimalist as before but with a nod at modernity in the form of digital instruments, USB sockets and optional mounts for sat-nav, camera, smartphone and cupholder, plus a helmet holder. One carry-over from the previous model is the aircraft style “missile release” starter button.

Other touchpoints in the cabin are similarly metal, not plastic, with particularly smart anodised black or silver finishes around the centre dials. Materials available include waterproof technical fabrics and, the stylish option, saddle leather.

Personalisation has always been the 3 Wheeler’s forte and the Super 3 builds on it by being what Morgan says is its most configurable car ever. There are more than 200 options and accessories, from waxed black canvas panniers and luggage racks to a multitude of different liveries and graphics. Want your national flag and your own “callsign” painted on the side? No problem. There’s a configurator online where you can customise your own Super 3.

Overflowing with ingenuity and character, the Super 3 will be out to beat the somewhat unlikely success of its predecessor; for a while before the new generation of four-wheel Morgans arrived the 3 Wheeler just about single-handedly kept Morgan going.

“We couldn't have imagined just how popular and successful the V-Twin model would be,” Morgan chairman and chief executive Steve Morris tells us. “I am confident that our latest three-wheeled offering is as relevant as ever.”

Sales begin now, with a UK starting price of £41,995, and first deliveries in June. Europe and the US follow later this year and Morgan is promising that Japan, Australia and other world markets will follow.

There are questions – will extra weight blunt performance? Will taller drivers fit? And just how high will an options-loaded transaction price actually go? But while other cars have more wheels, more power, a roof, some doors and a proper windscreen, the unique appeal of the Morgan three-wheeler seems assured. It might be far from the fastest, flashiest or most expensive new sportscar, but it just might be the coolest.

Photography by Joe Harding.