Pre-war Morgan 3-wheelers.
Mike, formerly of this Isle but now living in Australia, got in touch and sent in the first of these interesting old photographs. He's owned a few Morgans over the years, so is obviously a fan of Malvern's finest export. The Morgan shown was built around 1930/31, and has a JAP V twin engine for propulsion. Due to their light weight these Morgans have a very respectable turn of speed, and are popular today in VSCC sprints and circuit meetings. The Morgan, which was registered OV 3049, was sold in 1966 for £150 ...
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Happily a quick look online at the DVLA site shows that this car, actually registered as a 1931 example, is still on the road, and still sporting this distinctive number plate (is it me or do re-issued numbers on old cars look terrible? better than a Q plate obviously, but...). The 3 wheel Morgans were designed and built to mainly appeal to motorcyclists who were looking for an affordable alternative to their motorcycle. Being a trike had its advantages, notably that they fell into the same tax bracket as a motorcyclist, so offered some of the comforts of a 'normal' car (albeit little in the way of weatherproofing!) but at a reduced rate. Their lively performance meant that the motorcyclist needn't lose all of the excitement of the open road, something that switching to an Austin 7 might have imposed upon them, at least in standard fettle. A former owner of just such a car sent over his recollections, and they now feature on this page of the Motoring Memories section.
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2. Dave's 1936 Morgan.
Dave dropped me a line with the following two photos, although not a JAP-engined Morgan like the example above, this page seemed like a suitable place to add his photos on to. They were taken circa 1959, Dave says it had the Matchless V twin engine, and was built in 1936. It is seen here outside his parents' house, in Welling, Kent. It was registered COJ 561, a Birmingham series first used in September 1936. Thanks for allowing me to show them on the site.
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3. Another Morgan-JAP.
Tom kindly emailed over this next image of a JAP-powered Morgan, One of several photographs given to him 35+ years ago, by the Morgan's owner, it shows the racey three-wheeler with its owner, parked in the corner of a quiet field. The Morgan's registration was OC 8570, a Birmingham series that ran from May 1933 to March 1934 only, suggesting that this car dates to the beginning of 1934. The registration no longer shows up on a search of the DVLA database, so sadly it has probably been scrapped or broken up for parts.
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An earlier Morgan, possibly a Grand Prix model dating to the mid 1920s, is also featured in the vintage photograph section of the site.
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Return to Old Vehicle Photos Page 6.
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