and now we wait for the COC

Jeez!!!!!!!!! Morgan amazes me............. getting the weight right to meet regulations is a basic! As it comes out of the motorcycle/tricycle category and into car, it will need to be tested to provide the CO2 and fuel consumption figures too.

This should have been sorted out well in advance of advertising the car to the public and accepting deposits and I see they have fallen into the same trap with the uprated Roadster. There's a full page advert in the latest Octane for the 3.7L which states "Car pictured; Pre production Roadster 3.7 litre V6 awaiting approvals. Fuel economy and CO2 figures un-available at time of print"
3.7L Roadster advert

Which puts it in the same road tax band as the 3 litre Roadster

It's just ridiculous that the 3 wheeler weighs as much as that. Every other 3 wheeler made weighs in around 350 - 400 kgs, or less. As I mentioned earlier, I wonder how Morgan has managed to build the car so heavy. If you look at stuff like Caterham Sevens they weigh in at around 550kgs and that is with a 4 cylinder water cooled engine, full windscreen/wiper assembly, full diff. unit/drive shafts, extra wheel/brakes etc.

Surely one of the attractive points of the 3 wheeler [at least for me], is the fact that it can be taxed at minimal cost, and the weight issue has just blown that out of the water!

It seems as if Morgan haven't progressed from the blacksmiths school of engineering in the last 75 years?

I've posted elsewhere that IMHO they are focusing too much on PR and not enough on getting the development schedule right and I stand by that.

Weight is the most basic perameter for a three wheeler and they've announced the results as customer cars are in build.

To me it is almost beyond comprehension that it wasn't finalised before the car was signed off.

The letter from my dealer has asked me to confirm whether I still want the car in view of the weight issue,and gives me the option to cancel the order.Not very positive is it ?

Who actually makes the decisions at the factory regarding production vs marketing ?

I'm sure the car will be great and we'll all forget the hassle in due course but that doesn't negate the fact that they are doing a mediocre job of introducing new models.

If you cancel will you get the deposit back? With so many orders the MMC has a useful stock of cash to help get over the (alleged) slow down in sales.

When I ordered an Aero Mk 1 after the Geneva show, I had order number 560 - or thereabouts, in reality I was offered a build slot in the 50s which was one of the reasons I swapped the order to a +8. A 90% cancellation rate made me nervous.

If the cancellation rate is similar on the M3W I hope that that will not bring in cash flow problems.

As far as i can recall, the weight of the M3W has always been quoted at over 500kgs so I can't really see that as being a reason for cancellation with return of deposit?

I'm pretty sure that it will be a success, although perhaps not as much as it seems now. It's a lovely thing and at one time I was tempted, but perhaps would have waited for the Mk2.

I have just been looking at some of the Italian rules. It seems a tricycle has a category of its own (Art. 53. Motoveicoli. b.) motocarrozzette) and can weigh up to 1000 kg and carry up to 4 passengers including the driver.

For the sake of more information I will ask or local Motorizzazione agent how they are taxed and examined. This should be easy because we have quite a few three wheelers in Italy. It seems that one needs a full motorcycle licence to drive one however. In a recent case a quad driver received a heavy fine and lost his (car) licence because he did not have a motorcycle licence.

I know this one has the two wheels at the back but I don't think it makes any difference for the regulations.

And there is me thinking the driving licence requirements were now the same across Europe... Silly me!

In the UK, the traditional Morgan 3 wheelers are a B1 vehicle on the driving licence. You get all of B if you pass a manual car test, so B1 (light vehicles, 3 and 4 wheels, not exceeding 550kg) is included. My reading therefore is although the new three wheeler is overweight, it's still less than 550kg so still B1.

You used to also get B1 if you passed a motor cycle test, but not since 1997 or so.

MOT wise - this is going to be a killer after 3 years. Weight wise, the test needed is a group 4 - car test. But I've never seen the needed add on for the hoist at other than a group 3 (trad 3 wheelers are this) testing station. Finding a suitable testing station could be fun.

I do know someone early on the waiting list, whether he can get his reclassified I don't know. Most of the mods I know he wants to do will save weight (very experienced 3 wheel racer).

I suspect that DVLA will not allow individual lightened cars to be classified as anything other than what they have been produced as.

It would be very interesting to know just where the weight is in the car, It can't be the engine, the body is ali, the wheels shouldn't weigh too much, the gearbox is a bit of a lump, but that on its' own shouldn't drastically effect the overall weight. Is the chassis made of solid iron?

Paul - you may well be right, but if anyone can I'd say my friend has a chance.

As far as I can tell, the 'extra' weight is in the chassis. The chassis of a traditional three wheeler is unbelievably sketchy and offers no crash resistance to the sides or rear at all. My belief is the new chassis is more extensive and does give some protection. The wishbone front suspension is quite a lot heavier than sliding pillar too.