Yahoo Lifestyle First Drive: The Morgan Plus Four Is Coming to America. Here’s What to Expect Behind the Wheel.
The Plus Four is coming to America. No, not the short trousers occasionally worn by golfers, but the retro-style roadster from the Morgan Motor Company. After being absent from the U.S. market for a quarter of a century, the Plus Four (previous iterations were branded as “Plus 4” or “+4”) arrives at Morgan’s nine stateside dealers later this year. Will this traditional British sports car be worth the wait?
Morgan has been hand-building cars in the United Kingdom’s picturesque Malvern Hills since 1910. The Plus Four sits at the core of its revitalized range, between the bonkers, three-wheeled Super 3 and more powerful Plus Six, and accounts for around two-thirds of the 850-or-so Morgans assembled every year. What’s now the Plus Four model was relaunched in 2020, and the latest iteration of that has just benefited from new tech and dynamic upgrades as it prepares for its U.S. comeback.
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Modernity hides beneath its aluminum skin, but the Plus Four features styling that harks back to a bygone age. Its bug-eyed headlights, flowing fenders, flat windshield, and detachable door screens have changed little since the original Plus 4 of 1950—and Morgan aficionados wouldn’t want it any other way. Those in the know will spot new LED lamps and a subtle rear diffuser, but most folk simply assume you’re driving a classic car.
The Plus Four uses a bonded aluminum chassis, with its cold-formed body panels mounted to an ash frame. Open the two-piece, center-hinged hood and you can see the vehicle’s wooden structure—along with the rebadged BMW B48 engine: a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder mill that musters 259 hp and 295 ft lbs of torque from 1,550 rpm.
Factor in a curb weight of just 2,293 pounds and the Morgan’s performance is markedly modern, such as the ability to cover zero to 62 mph in 4.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 149 mph. Drive goes to the rear wheels via either a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic gearbox. Only the latter will be homologated for the U.S. market, however, so that’s the transmission we’re testing here.
Picking up the Morgan at the famous Pickersleigh Road factory provides an impressive reminder of what sets these vehicles apart. As you watch long-serving craftspeople skillfully cut and sand pieces of wood and metal, then gradually hammer and bolt together a complete car, it feels like stepping back in time. There isn’t a welding robot or even a computer screen in sight. For anyone who buys a Morgan, a visit to Malvern for the factory tour—where you can see your own car being created—should be mandatory.
The sun is shining over southern England, so job one is to lower the Plus Four’s soft-top roof. In Morgans of old, this was a finger-pinching, knuckle-skinning job that involved many metal poppers and several curse words. The latest roof still requires that you climb out of the car and release a couple of catches, but the entire task takes less than a minute.
Step over the wide sill and you’ll drop down into a supportive seat. The simple, flat fascia houses five analog dials, a cluster of metal buttons, and a small LCD speed readout. The switches for the Sennheiser Bluetooth audio system and heated seats (which are absolutely scorching) are hidden underneath, next to your right knee. Quality feels robust, although the prominent BMW gear lever and cheap-feeling plastic shift paddles do grate a little.
Practicality isn’t the Plus Four’s strong suit, either. Stowage spaces, such as door pockets and cup holders, are notable by their absence, while larger bags must be squeezed onto a narrow shelf behind the seats. Planning a road-trip? You’ll need the optional luggage rack.
Our tester comes with the new-for-2024 Dynamic Handling Package, which includes stiffer springs, adjustable Nitron dampers, and a rear anti-roll bar. Priced at £1,995 in the U.K. (so reckon on $2,500 when the car crosses the Atlantic), the optional package is more a must-have selection, as it totally transforms how the Morgan drives. Without it, the Plus Four is fun in a rudimentary and slightly scrappy kind of way. But the upgraded setup lends it real poise and precision.
On the twisting, undulating lanes that are the natural habitat for any British sports car (the wild Plus Four CX-T off-roader excepted), the Morgan feels in its element. Sitting almost atop the back axle, you aim its long, louvered hood at the apex of a corner, then trim your line with the throttle. Body movements are calmer than before, there’s less sense of inertia and its balance is easier to exploit. In short, it’s joyous, uncomplicated fun.
We’d prefer a manual gearbox for the full analog experience, but the four-pot BMW engine has so much grunt that you rarely feel inclined to rev it out; fourth gear has enough bandwidth for many rural roads. The automatic transmission is intuitive when left to its own devices, too: relaxed in Normal mode, then progressively more alert and eager to kick down in Sport and Sport Plus. Real-world performance is such that the pricier Plus Six—with six cylinders and 340 hp—seems a tad over-endowed.
The Morgan also sounds fantastic in Sport Plus mode, whooshing and gargling when you accelerate, then unleashing a volley of detonations on the over-run. The soundtrack has clearly been enhanced by switchable baffles in the twin tailpipes, but the result can’t fail to make you smile. Much like the Plus Four itself.
Ominous clouds are massing overhead, so it’s time to put the roof up before a long drive home. Sure enough, once we’re on the freeway, it starts to rain—slowly at first, then torrentially. Wind noise is cacophonous at speed, the three tiny wipers are struggling to clear the view as droplets of water force their way through a gap where the windshield frame and door screen meet. It’s a reminder that, for all the progress Morgan has made, this car still comes with a few compromises.
Then again, if you want an easy life, buy a Porsche Boxster. The Plus Four defies rational analysis, lending every journey a sense of adventure. And with the Dynamic Handling Pack fitted, it no longer feels like a car whose charisma outweighs its ability. The best things come to those who wait, and Americans won’t need to wait much longer.
Click below for more photos of the Morgan Plus Four.
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