1962 Morgan Plus Four

From the mid-1900s through the 1930s, the Morgan Motor Company built a car that had three wheels. The Morgan 4/4 introduced in 1936 was its first four-wheeled vehicle and it continued to follow the traditional coachbuilding methods of fitting steel or aluminum bodies over an ash frame. The Morgan Plus 4 that followed had a similar appearance to its predecessor but incorporated several notable improvements including a strengthened frame, longer wheelbase, revised suspension, and hydraulic brakes

The Morgan Plus 4 was introduced in 1950 and produced through 1969, and then re-introduced in 1985. The Plus 4 was a larger, more powerful, and faster version of the company's popular 4/4 model. Power was from a 2088cc inline four-cylinder engine sourced from Standard Vanguard upon the model's introduction. With the Vanguard engine installed, the Plus 4 was placed in the over-2-liter class for racing purposes, forcing it to compete against cars of much larger capacity. As a result, the 1,991cc Triumph TR2 engine was made available in 1953. Throughout its production lifespan, the Plus 4 received several updates while retaining its classic styling cues.

The 1960s models were powered by Triumph-sourced inline four-cylinder engines borrowed from the Triumph TR3, and later the TR4. The overhead-valve engines were paired with a Moss 4-speed manual transmission, Girling hydraulic front disc and rear drum brakes, and the Morgan sliding-pillar independent front and semi-elliptical sprung rear suspension. The wood-framed and hand-formed steel-bodied roadster was created in the finest Morgan handcrafted tradition and British sports-car heritage. The interiors featured a woodgrain instrument panel and steering wheel, and leather seating.

At the 1962 24 Hours of LeMans, Lawrence and Richard Shepherd-Barron drove their Plus 4 to 13th place overall and a class win in the GT2 category.

by Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2017