Morgan 3 Wheeler: Double Freak - Sports Cars
The small town of Malvern in Worcestershire has been home to this builder for over a century, or rather 102 years. It hasn't been long since the roads here were used for testing. Morgan... Perhaps that's why Malvern residents are amazed these days when Aero SuperSports flies past their home with an apocalyptic soundtrack. With Morgan 3 WheelersHowever, this is different.
Its noise resembles an artillery explosion, and each time it makes everyone turn around to see where the noise is coming from. But capturing the attention of the whole country, 3 Wheeler stunned them with its clearly inappropriate appearance: it looks like motorized bath.
Morgan has always been a cult following as well as a car manufacturer. To the brand's loyalists - and there are thousands of them, believe it or not - the traditional "Moggy" remains the pinnacle of automotive design and engineering. And despite all the attention given to the Aero 8 and its successors - in addition to the GT racing support program - the vast majority of Morgan's business is still based on the traditional Plus Four, 4/4 and Roadster models.
3 Wheeler is a fusion of old and new Morgans. The inspiration is clearly the tricycle engine the company started with, but this model is no mere copy. Like Aero and its brainchild, the goal of 3 Wheeler is bring new clients... This is not a sack of flour Morgan, she was the first to admit it. Many manufacturers sold kits to assemble three wheels with advanced components, and last year Morgan learned that a finished version would be released in the United States called the Liberty Ace, promoted by Harley Davidson Vtwin ... Steve Morris, director of manufacturing at Morgan, and Tim Whitworth , the CFO, flew to the States to find out if the rumors were true and that they liked the idea so much that they convinced the board of directors to buy a company that had this brilliant internal development trick. project.
Eight months later, with some modifications, the Morgan 3 Wheeler went into production. The up close view is impressive. The fear that this is a damaged car disappears in front of its clean lines and numerous details. Matt Humphreys, head of design, admits that the 3-wheeler, with its "reverse" character, is engine and suspension on display, it was a real challenge.
The design is typical of Morgan, albeit on a smaller scale: steel frame and light-alloy panels on the frame made of ash. No doors, no roof and no windshield and the cabin is almost empty except for the seats and instruments Morgan calls "aeronautics." The launch button is also aircraft-styled, hidden under a flap chosen, according to Humphries, because of its resemblance to a switch for dropping bombs on fighters.
But it is in the mechanical part that 3 Wheeler gets really interesting, with some features that make it unique. IN Vtwin da 1.982 см air cooled S&S, an American specialist who usually builds engines for non-standard, super-equipped cars (Morgan considered using a standard Harley engine, but found that it was not suitable for the task). The two large cylinders have a volume of almost a liter each and have the same angle with the crankshaft, firing within a few degrees of each other. This means that even if couple maximum "continuous" 135 Nm between 3.200 and 4.200 rpm, actually couple real from 242 Nm... Mark Reeves, CTO, admits that the hardest part was harnessing this force and eliminating its vibrations.
The engine is paired with five-speed manual transmission taken from the Mazda MX-5, connected to a second bevel gearbox that moves a belt connected to the rear wheel (simpler chain solution). There is no need for a differential at the rear because the single tire Vredestein sport da 195 / 55 R16 it is attached to a custom hub.
Officially, 3 Wheeler is not a car. It is part of an archaic group tricycles motorized. This means that it does not have to comply with all the rules set for cars, including the mandatory front panel. Even if the windshield is missing, a helmet is not required. But you need aviator goggles or big sunglasses to see anything at 100 km / h.
At idle speed, the engine makes itself felt with a fat hum. It looks like a real Harley. It is an irregular pulse and slow enough to allow you to count beats, but as the speed increases, it takes on a sour tone: a passerby likened it to a .50 caliber. Try to imagine Easyrider without Steppenwolf: this is the sound of 3 Wheeler.
Driving a car is child's play. There's no better way to describe driving than "intimate," especially if there's a passenger next to you. The pedal set is narrow and legroom is minimal to say the least, but the clutch is progressive and – unlike almost all other motorcycle-powered specialty cars – the drivetrain has enough torque to provide a smooth ride at low speeds.
The gearbox is as clean and tidy as the MX-5, although occasionally sigolio coming from the slipping belt. But Morgan assured us that this flaw would be fixed in the final version.
Do we want to talk about brakes? To be where they are, you need the power of the Maciste to make them work. The brake booster does not exist and Morgan claims that the center pedal is intentionally stiff to keep the wheels from locking up due to the lack of ABS. After a while you get used to it, but I still prefer softer pedals - they are easier to modulate. Brakes are disc front and single drum rear.
It's time to unleash 3 Wheeler in the hills surrounding Malvern. With a combination 115 CV e 480 kg Morgan boasts an excellent power-to-weight ratio, even if a little chubby driver is enough to upset him. It's certainly fast, even if most of the speed sensation comes from the fully open cockpit.
The time is indicated for this 0-100 km / h is 4,5 seconds but you have to have good clutch and accelerator control to touch it without creating smoke in the rear wheels. At high speeds, traction is not an issue and the engine, which has a fairly limited increase in power (it's useless to push it past 5.500rpm), gives you a lot of fun with close gears. The only thing that prevents you from laughing out loud is the risk of swallowing a handful of midges.
Lo steering it's great: it's light, straight and oozes in as the narrow front wheels scan the terrain. New to this tricycle is the ability to slip around corners on the driver's side, with excellent visibility of the suspension and front wheels, so you'll have no more excuses if you don't touch the rope point. Grip at the limit is ample and certainly more than you'd expect from such thin tires, even if the Morgan is intentionally prone to understeer. At low speeds, the rear end is more responsive, but as the pace increases, the transition from grip to flotation becomes more and more sudden and difficult to control. After all, the fastest way to get around a fast turn is with a three-wheel traverse.
Despite its vintage inspiration, the Morgan 3 Wheeler appeals to the modern public: you can almost use its full potential without putting your driver's license at risk. With her, 100 km / h seems to be double. 35.000 euro they're not tiny, but there is still very little for the unique driving experience it offers.
