Originally Posted By Edgar 1969 4/4
Peter, the post was not meant to be controversial rather to see if folks who adopted the rear 5 link suspension system would also embrace the front wishbone suspension system.
If you change the rear suspension you are going some way away from the trad Morgan system which I imagine most folks seem to have bought into i.e. a retro type car with retro handling characteristics. So that being the case why not go the whole hog and change the front if better handling is what you want from your Morgan. Of course I understand that cost is an issue but then again the rear 5 link system is not a cheap upgrade such as a panhard rod.

I'm just interested to understand if those folks who want better handling would change the complete suspension system and completely move away from what many people like about their Morgan, that it is essentially a "modern" classic car with the handling characteristics (charm?) of an old car.

As I received the car from the factory it was almost dragging on the ground due to poor quality springs and incorrect springs in the front end. After it was "fixed" under warranty I had a hard ride and a lot of body roll.

The cost of the wishbone front suspension was a bit much for me at the time but I did decide to fit the Suplex front springs after a certain amount of consultation with PJB and others.

The body roll and ground clearance issues have been resolved but I still get a very hard ride from the rear due to the 5 leaf springs that were fitted under warranty.

I have been following developments of rear suspension and asking a lot of questions. I would never claim to be a suspension expert but I have developed a good understanding of the issues involved as far as my car is concerned.

At the end of the day the current Morgan is a vastly different car to the cars of the 50's. The engine is much more powerful, the gearbox and transmission adequate for the engine, as are the wheels and tyres used. The suspension and to a fair degree the chassis is not. (Changing the chassis is not really a practical proposition but, if you happened to have a spare trad body lying around it would not be impossible)

I don't expect a trad Morgan to out-handle a modern sports car (or the Aero 8) but it is still a sports car and I do expect it to out-handle the family shopping trolley, I don't particularly like having some German SUV hounding me in the corners. Also we do some fairly long trips on a regular basis so comfort is important for us. That is the reason I am spending the money.

Peter

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