Morgan’s 3 Wheeler was a surprise hit for the company during the 2010s, particularly in the U.S. which was – and still is – denied access to new four-wheeled Morgans due to safety laws. The company is working on homologating its Plus Four for sale in North America, but to whet our appetites, it’s first bringing across its new trike, the Super 3.
You might recall that the Super 3 was launched over a year ago and is already on sale in Europe. But Morgan has had to make some subtle changes to the 3 we drove in the UK last June to legalize it for the U.S., and even then it had to homologate it as a motorcycle.
Most obviously, the Euro-spec front front-end treatment, where the headlights are mounted on stalks, has been tweaked and the headlights now sit inside the bodywork. Morgan has also modified the taillights and turn signals and added reflectors to keep U.S. regulators happy.
But fundamentally this is the same Super 3 that we first met last year, down to its early jet-age styling and fuselage-shaped aluminum monocoque. That construction, together with the pull-rod suspension, makes it far more sophisticated than the old 3 Wheeler, which was killed off when the old air-cooled S&S vee-twin engine could no longer meet emissions standards. In its place, and this time tucked under the bodywork, rather than protruding from it, is a naturally-aspirated 1.5-liter, three-cylinder Ford engine, again driving the single rear wheel through a five-speed Mazda MX-5 transmission.
Driven: 2023 Morgan Super 3 Makes Supercars Look Overpowered And Overpriced
Compared with the old twin, you’d imagine that a Ford car engine would have zero charisma, but we know from driving the European version that it’s got personality in spades. It makes a great noise when breathing through the optional sports exhaust and pumps out 117 hp (118 PS) and 110 lb-ft (150 Nm), numbers that sound more impressive when considered alongside the 1,400 lb (635 kg) dry weight. Zero to 62 mph (100 km/h) takes 7 seconds, but with the wind blasting you every which way you’d swear it was twice as fast.
The ability to modify and personalize was a big part of the old 3 Wheeler’s appeal and the Super 3 offers even more scope for customization. Morgan says it has over 200 options and accessories available on its configurator including graphics, hard shell panniers, and luggage racks (though there is a small trunk under the rear clamshell). Some accessories have been developed with the help of external companies like Malle London, which is known for its motorcycle luggage and has created 18oz waxed black canvas panniers and a driving jacket. Other collabs include Beeline, whose simple navigation systems are familiar in the two-wheeled world, and phone-mount specialists Quad Lock.
The Super 3 is on sale now at Morgan’s network of 12 U.S. dealerships, priced from $53,937, while looking further ahead, work is still underway on homologating the Plus 4 for North America. Morgan had hoped to have that completed by now, but it looks like the automatic version of the BMW 2.0-powered Plus 4 will be on sale in 2024, and the manual comes later, potentially falling into 2025.
