Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing New plus 4 first impressions

Congratulations on the new car Dave.

I have been for a short run in an M3W and one of the things that I noted straight away was that the suspension was much more compliant than our Plus 4, and we have the Suplex kit fitted.

When I first got the car, factory fitted with GAZ adjustable dampers, it took about 2,000 km to run in the kingpins and bushes. For the first 1000 km or so the steering would not even self centre after a turn. Now it is perfect.

As we got the car from the factory the front end was quite rigid but it turned out that they had fitted some incorrect springs at the front and the rear springs were not up to standard. We finished up touching on nearly every speed hump and we discovered that the ground clearance under the rear gearbox cross member was less than 9 cm. All springs were changed under warranty and whilst the ride was much more compliant at the front the car suffered from more body roll in cornering. I suspect that whilst the front springs fitted under warranty gave us the correct ride height they were still not optimum. I then decided to fit the Suplex Front suspension ‘Refinement System’. The car now has a reasonably compliant front end and does not suffer from excess body roll in cornering, in fact it is excellent. Fitting the Suplex kit will help and whilst it may not suit someone who likes a really sporty ride and steering it is ideal for someone who enjoys fast touring whilst not sacrificing good handling and comfort.

Our car currently has 5 leaf rear springs, which will ultimately be changed for something better, a panhard rod and the GAZ dampers (set on 3 clicks with no load and 4 clicks if touring with luggage) at the rear. At the the front the Suplex system and brake reaction rods.

I think it is a limitation of the sliding pillar front end and also the extra weight of the car by comparison to the M3W that makes the difference in ride. I would say that as your front end gets a few miles it will become better, and you will become accustomed to it, but it will never be as compliant as the front end of the M3W with its double wishbone front suspension.

PS. I run 25 psi all round. I thought 22 psi made the car feel a little squirmy in cornering.