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1932 Morgan Super Sport

Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan founded the Morgan Motor Company in 1910. By this point in history, H.F.S. Morgan had developed the first independent front suspension, and had designed and built a car for his own personal use. It was a single-seat three-wheeled runabout with a backbone chassis and coil-spring independent front suspension. The driveshaft ran through the backbone tube to a two-speed transmission, and sent the power to the rear wheels via a chain drive. The utilitarian vehicle had no body, band brakes, and tiller steering. Three additional examples were built and shown at the 1910 Motor Show at Olympia in London. Although popular, only a few orders were received. It was determined that a two-seater version with bodywork, windscreen, crank starting, and wheel steering would appear to a wider audience. In this guise, the three-wheeler runabout found the interest it was seeking.

One of the main appeals of the three-wheeled cars in the United Kingdom was that they were licensed as motorcycles, allowing them much lower insurance and licensing cost.

The Morgan three-wheelers were powered by many different engines over the years, with the first prototype using an air-cooled Peugeot powerplant. MAG, JAP and later a 993cc Ford four-cylinder were placed in the front, sending the power to a single rear wheel.

W.G. McMinnies drove a Morgan Three-Wheeler to victory in the 1913 Cyclecar Grand Prix at Amiens in France, with an average speed of 42 mph over the 163-mile distance. This spawned the 'Grand Prix' models that were in production from 1913 to 1926, later evolving into the 'Aero,' and 'Sports' models. Morgan himself was an avid racer, winning the ACU Six Days' Trial in 1913, in the sidecar class. 1913 was also the year the company entered the MCC reliability trial, which it continued to do until 1975.

One main customer complaint was the difficulty in changing the rear wheel. After World War I, Morgan introduced an easily changed rear wheel. During the 1920s, the Morgan Three-Wheeler was offered in various configurations including the 8 horsepower JAP engined Popular (later called the Standard), bodied in poplar. For customers seeking more performance, Morgan offered the 'Grand Prix.' For those who needed more passenger room, they could purchase the 'Family,' which had two small child seats located behind the front bench.

Morgans continued to be popular and successful in racing until the early 1920s, when E.B. Ware's JAP-engined car rolled at the JCC 200 mi at Brooklands. The accident seriously injured Ware, leading to a ban on three-wheeled cars from many motorsports competition.

The mid-1920s saw the introduction of electric headlamps, front wheel brakes and electric start, 'electric hooter' and double-thickness windscreen. Along with the refinements, the prices continued to decrease, with the Standard's selling for £89 in 1927. The newly introduced Super Sports model, with an overhead valve JAP 10/40 water-cooled vee-twin, was priced at £155. From the late 1920s into the early 1930s, the prices continued to decline, partly in response to the inexpensive four-wheeled cars.

Production of the three-wheeled Morgans continued until the outbreak of World War II.

by Dan Vaughan

Roadster

The Morgan is set-up as a club racer circa 1930s. The track is 12-inches wider than stock. This car has been campaigned at the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix on three occasions, Indianapolis Raceway Park, Meadowbrook, and Mickyard. It has been clocked at 96 miles per hour at Mickyard in Orlando.

More than a motorcycle and not quite a car, the Morgan is the best-known and the finest of the British 3-wheelers. Morgan's were popular during the 1930's in Britain due to a tax advantage that allowed the three-wheeled car to be registered as a motorcycle. Low and purposeful, the Morgan Super Sports J.A.P. engine is slung aggressively in front of a beautifully rounded radiator with its single rear wheel almost concealed.

H.F.S. Morgan, the founder of the Morgan Motor Company LTD, completed his first 3-wheeler in 1909. The factory continues to produce cars and the waiting period for a new Morgan can be as long as six years. The new cars were not three-wheelers, however, as the tax advantage had been significantly reduced, and production of the Super Sports ended in 1952. The hand-built cars retain features found on the original 1909 model, such as their famous 'sliding pillar' front suspension and ash wood sub-frames as in this model.

Still favored by vintage racers today, the Morgan Super Sports was much raced in its day. The John Alfred Prestwich (JAP) engine was a favorite of motorcyclists and was used in many fine bikes including the Brough Superiors. In 1930 Mrs. Gwenda Stewert of France drove a similar Morgan Super Sports at a record speed of 115.66 mph, an astonishing and probably terrifying feat.

by SDAM

by Morgan

H.F.S. Morgan created a three-wheeled runabout with seating for one in 1909. Morgan created the vehicle for his own personal use and to meet his needs. Interest in the little vehicle soon spread and requests were made to produce more examples. After patenting his designs, production commenced. The early examples were mostly powered by a single-cylinder engine; a twin-cylinder version soon followed.

Morgan's first three-wheeler was powered by a 7 horsepower Peugeot engine which was more than adequate to carry the lightweight vehicle. It was built atop a rigid frame and given an independent front suspension.

Two examples were shown at the 1911 Olympia Motor Show. One example was powered by a single-cylinder engine which created about 4 horsepower. The second example had a twin-cylinder J.A.P. engine which doubled the horsepower of the single-cylinder unit. The cars were alluring and attracted much attention, but it soon became obvious that a two-seater would be more marketable.

The following year, the two-seater examples were on display and generated more work than Morgan could handle. To meet the demand, Morgan purchased the necessary machining tools and built larger facilities.

The cars endured much success in races and hill-climbs. After witnessing the success the nimble vehicles achieved, racing enthusiasts were eager to get one for their own. Around 1913, Morgan produced special derivations of his Morgan cycle cars for racing, which were longer and had the seat set lower into the chassis. After McMinnies was victorious at the Cyclecar Grand Prix at Amiens with the specially prepared cyclecar, the vehicle was given the designation 'Grand Prix'.

The next iteration of the Morgan cyclecar was a four-seater version, which Morgan had created for his family's use. Once again, the idea seemed appropriate and soon versions were being made for sale and would continue until 1937.

For many years, the Morgans featured two speeds and a two-chain drive. The engines were from motorcycles, placed in the front, and were either air-cooled or liquid-cooled. Little improvements were needed or made to the vehicle for most of its lifespan. Modern amenities such as starters and electric lamps found their way onto the vehicles, but in terms of the chassis, little changed. During the turn of the 1930s, a three-speed version with one chain drive was introduced.

The F-Series was introduced in 1932 and would stay in production until 1952. These versions had four-cylinder engines courtesy of Ford and a press-steel chassis. Other variations of this design were created during this time, including the F-2 and F-Super.

by Dan Vaughan