Morgan - Nostalgia, or not !
hillman
on 2 November 2014
I read in the Telegraph that Morgan has started to make the three wheeler again - or did so a number of years ago.
www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/11203463/Three-w...l
During the 1950s one I my work-mates refurbished a Morgan three wheeler and modernised it; one of the things was converting the brakes to hydraulic and increasing the drum size etc. He spent about two years working on it and returned it to showroom condition. On the first run he made in the car he planned to fill the tank with fuel at a garage on the main road so he stopped on the crown and waited for an opportuinty to turn in. A Jaguar driver didn't see him and ran into his back, buckling the car considerably. He considerably lost heart at the thought of doing all that work again so he sold it on.
Comments
Sofa Spud on 2 November 2014
It's much better retro than the Aero 8, at least.
The New Mini, the VW New Beetle and the Fiat 500 are mass-produced retro-pastiche designs whose odd styling can only be 'justified' by making reference to the originals that influenced their design.
The Morgan Aero 8 is a similar, but less successful reto-pastiche of traditional Morgans, a bit ironic since Morgan still make the originals as well.
Which brings me to the 3-wheeler - a proper modern interpretation of the original 3-wheeler. Whether that's a good idea or not is one thing, but it does look right and would probably be quite fun to own if you have your own private road network!
daveyjp on 2 November 2014
I've seen a couple of the new three wheelers, RAF decals and all. The couple in one were having a miserable time on the motorway as it was tipping it down.
hillman on 3 November 2014
Practical it isn't, but on a fine summer day, a Sunday before 06:00 (when people are still in their beds) it could be fun.
The following article suggests that the rear wheel is driven by a toothed belt. I don't know how practical that is but people who had the early models (before the 50s) remarked that the rear wheel was chain driven; a long chain and prone to breakage. They reminisced about walking back down the road and looking for the chain.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/car-manufacturers/morgan/10535837/2014-Morgan-3-Wheeler-review.html
bathtub tom on 3 November 2014
Nothing wrong with a toothed belt drive.
Harleys use them. There's several kits to convert primary chain drive to belt on 'bikes and there's plenty of them spinning camshafts (I recall seeing a kit to convert BMC 'A' series timing chain to belt).
They're also quieter and don't need lubricating.
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