1963 Morgan Plus Four Plus Coupe

The H.F.S. Morgan was established at the dawn of motoring. In the early 1950s, Peter H.G. Morgan joined the business which then took over fully when his father passed away in 1969. Peter Morgan carried on the traditional Morgan values while guiding the company through the ever-changing 1960s and beyond, eventually turning it over to his own son, Charles, in 1999.

In the 1960s, the Morgan company introduced the Plus Four Plus (or Plus 4 Plus). This modern-styled vehicle was the company's only departure from traditional styling. This 'bubbletop' two-seater coupe was introduced in 1963 and rested on a chassis it shared with the Plus Four chassis. It retained all the virtues of Morgan's roadsters with the addition of all-weather capability. It had sleek bodylines with a unique roof treatment in a similar fashion to Jaguar's XK120 Fixed-Head coupes of the 1950s.

The fiberglass coupe body was supplied by EB Plastics of Tunstall, Stoke-on-Tent, which had already been producing a coupe of its own, the Debonair.

Along with a strengthened Plus Four chassis, it also shared its forebear's 105 horsepower, 2138cc Triumph engine and mechanicals. Weighing just 816 kilograms, the Plus Four Plus had a top speed of 185 kilometers per hour (115 mph).

This Plus Four Plus has been given a restoration. It was the car that was put on the Morgan stand in 1963 at the Earls Court (London) Motor Show. It is the second Plus Four Plus of the 26 produced in total and the actual car depicted on the Charles Morgan-designed factory sales brochure for the model.

Unfortunately, the Morgan Plus Four Plus was not warmly greeted by Morgan traditionalists. Although production continued to 1967, just 26 examples were ever built, just over half the anticipated production run of 50 cars. Ten examples were sold new to the United States.

Although not intended for motorsports, Peter Morgan drove a Plus Four Plus to a class victory at the September 1964 Morgan 4/4 Club's annual sprint meeting.

This example is finished in red over gray vinyl upholstery. It is an original right-hand drive model with UK registration 'DUY 997B'. It was eventually dispatched from the Morgan works on November 30, 1964, to Bowman & Acock in nearby Malvern. It passed through three recorded keepers in the UK until the 1970s, when it was exported to the United States by Don Simpkins of MM & M Imports of Derby. The Plus Four Plus remained with Mr. Simpkins until circa 1995, followed by Winn Rosch of Ohio, Larry Nelson, and Win Sharples, proprietor of Cantab Motors in Purcellville, Virginia, who kept the disassembled, but complete, vehicle within indoor storage above his workshop floor.

Allen Smith acquired A5504 in 2007. After a thorough evaluation, correspondence, and research, Mr. Smith had A5504 totally restored to Concours-worthy standards. The painted body was mounted onto a new chassis sourced from Morgan (the original chassis remains with the car).

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2017