1926 Morgan Aero

Sold for $55,000 at 2014 RM Auctions - Hershey.
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 (known to his friends as 'H.F.S'), completed his first 3-wheeler in 1909. It had a Peugeot V-twin motorcycle engine and tiller steering, and its two front wheels were independently suspended by vertical coil springs, which was a first for a British car. The factory continues to produce cars and the waiting period for a new Morgan can be as long as 6 years. The new cars are not three-wheelers, however, as the tax advantage has 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.

This 1926 Aero model was built with the most expensive engine offered, a Swiss-built water-cooled MAG twin. Just a few examples were built with MAG engines, and just a few examples have survived. This example was repainted and reupholstered many years ago.

By Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2014