Let me preface this post by stating a few things as I know this post is going to ruffle some feathers
1. the 3 wheeler is loads of fun to drive, is great fun to look at, and draws huge crowds and smiles wherever it goes.
2. I don't regret the purchase of my 3 wheeler at all, regardless of the issues i'll get in to in this post.
3. I'm new to the morgan community so some of this might be par for the course as it pertains to morgan and their cars but as a newly indoctrinated morgan owner I'm quite disappointed in several things as they relate to my 3 wheeler and it's fit and finish/quality control
Now that that's out of the way I wanted to get back to the subject of the post as I think it's a valid question, is the morgan 3 wheeler a car that is painstakingly built by skilled craftsmen to the highest standards (as morgan says on their own site) or a hastily created and built kit car that is sold at a premium?
While that statement is sure to upset many, I wanted to pose a related question on whether the issues 3 wheeler owners are having as it relates to fit and finish or the engineering issues (bevel box, control arms, etc) are acceptable for that of a $60,000 hand crafted automobile or that even a $60,000 mass produced automobile? While it's not fair to directly compare the 3 wheeler to say a $60,000 BMW 5 series due to the economies of scale an the fact that BMW and Morgan are two very different car companies, I think it is fair given how much simpler the morgan is mechanically and cost of it's parts and R&D (compared to the insane of amount of electronics, airbags, production facilities, crash testing, advertising, etc, etc, etc of a new BMW) to hold morgan to a high standard as it relates to fit and finish as a large part of the $60,000 cost of the 3 wheeler is the premium of being hand crafted and dialed in.
I bring that question up as in less than a month of ownership i've had a myriad of issues with my 3 wheeler as it pertains to fit and finish as well as some mechanical. Most are small issues/annoyances, and some are larger but I keep coming back to the question of would any of these issues be acceptable for any other new $60,000 automobile?
Below is a list of issues i'm currently experiencing with my 3W
Boot Lid Weather Stripping the weather stripping was improperly installed so that at a certain point on the boot lid there's not enough cushioning so that when it's closed it rubs against the painted body thus wearing off the paint on both the boot lid and the body where they come in contact. This issue was there from the day we picked the car up at the airport in the states. I've since had to put rubber adhesive furnitures pads on the boot lid so it doesn't keep rubbing more paint off. Have still not gotten a proper response to the issue from morgan or my dealer. Below are a couple pictures for reference
Shift Knob only a week in to ownership and my shift knob went from being solidly on the gear lever to feeling wobbly and hardly attached. this morning i unscrewed the knob to see how it was attached and found the threads where beaten up and when trying to put it back on there isn't a point where to knob screws on tight, just spins and wobbles continuously. Below are a few pics from this morning as well as a quick video of the issue from before i unscrewed the knob
Bevel Box Having to make excuses to passengers in my car about the sketchy rattles and noises of my new morgan that's supposedly built to the highest standards by skilled craftsmen is a bit embarrassing for both Morgan and myself. The fact that Morgan has not fixed this issue perplexes me and that they continue build cars with these compromised parts/engineering (regardless of what "batch" your car might of gotten) and to ask owners to take a wait and see approach to see what hand of cards they are dealt seems insane. This problem needs to be solved and finally put to bed and not looked at with the attitude of that some boxes are just hit or miss. These are the kinds of issues you have with a kit car that you are speccing and building yourself, not of a manufacture who has designed, engineered, and tested a car.
Floor Mats my floor mats don't quite fit properly in their respected places. It feels like the mat (pre leather piping) was the proper size and then the leather trim was put in place making the mat just a tad too large for it's place on the floor causing it to bubble/ripple when trying to make it fit. again, these are things that boggle my mind when i comes to making it through PDI and no one catching
Arrival Condition of Car Car was filthy on the inside. Dust, shop debris, sawdust,excess grease on bolts in cockpit, etc. Not sure if the burden of a detail falls on the factory or the dealer/importer but the fact that it was sent out in that condition blows me away. again, remember the comparison to purchasing a $60,000 bmw, would you ever get this service from a dealer/mfg?
I'll hop off my soap box now and stop complaining now but i felt the need to vent for a bit and see what everyone else's thoughts and expectations were.
Again, I think the 3 wheeler is a great car in principal but the execution of it has me very disappointed.
And for those who will say I should just go out and buy a BMW if I love them so much, I actually did 3 years ago and have enjoyed it thoroughly.
Blake sorry to have read your tale of ownership to date. The shift lever issue is one I've experienced he knob doesn't screw on directly but is attached with a couple of grub screw, if you split the knob into two (it unscrews) you'll see what I mean. Do this on a table as you might lose he grub screws. This is a standard morgan shift knob, I've changed mine for MX5 after market gear knob.
Hope you get these issues resolved quickly to your satisfaction Blake.
Your comparisons with the Beamer are very even handed I thought and you are prepared for the "incoming". There is a prevailing "Emporers New Clothes" nucleus around that seems to think that "shoddy" workmanship is totally acceptable in a handbuilt vehicle but don't like to say. I personally think it's an excuse, if Aston Martin engines are still handbuilt I bet their failure rate isn't too high.
Enjoy your (s)miles
2009 4/4 Henrietta 1999 Indigo Blue +8 2009 4/4 Sport Green prev 1993 Connaught Green +8 prev
You might have to play hard ball but my plus 8 had was back at the factory for two weeks being put right. Its now a much better car. Normally your dealer is responsible for cleaning the car prior to collection.
On the general rant, contrary to Richards opinion I don't think you can compare a Morgan to a BMW nor should you. It's not a case of the 'Emperors new clothes' IMO its just that we know these foibles exist but accept them in order to avail ourselves of and enjoy the uniqueness and character of these cars. You know that for the sum of the parts of the two cars you get more in the BMW. You have touched upon it yourself: volume allows so much more. With a Morgan (or similar - not that too many similar still exist) it's more than the sum of the parts.
If it were not so, why don't you buy another manufacturers three wheeler trike that gives such great visceral pleasure? There aren't any. Why don't I buy a 911 convertible instead of an Aero 8 or a plus 8? Because it doesn't excite me, because it doesn't stir me. It's a different experience.
It's a thrown about cliche but a company like BMW probably spend as much designing their ashtrays as Morgan do their M3W. Whilst I don't know that for a fact I'm pretty sure it's not far from the truth. The point being, selling 1000 cars a year means they'll never be able to spend anywhere near what the big boys spend in R&D. If you expect them to, we will never have affordable niche cars. We will never have Morgans (or had TVR's or Nobles) all of which are reknowned as good characterful cars but flawed with the 'handbuilt' effect.
If we didn't 'accept' the issues, or at least accept that it will take some time to work through them, we would all be driving mainstream Golfs or as per your example BMW's. Without sounding too harsh, if you want reliability and superb fit and finish, buy a mainstream manufacturers car. If you want character and soul (and accept the accompanying issues) buy a Morgan. I for one like having the choice.
i'll take a look at the knob in just a bit and see about the split. where exactly does it split?
b
Blake about 10mm up from the bottom of the gear knob you'll see a line, this is where it splits, as I said before be careful not to lose the grub screws.
Just remembered mine is off the car so I'll take some pictures tonight so you can see how its assembled.
Last edited by asbojohn; 08/04/1307:02 AM. Reason: Just remembered
I can see why you are a bit brassed off but on the other side I have been putting mine right since 1987 its on going . You just get one thing correct and then another pop's up . Thinking of calling mine The Forth Bridge to be honest I like trying to sort out SOME of them it keeps me alert.
Hi Blake, Thank you for your valuable contribution to the forum. It's a debate that I have read many times on these pages: Buy a mainstream "brochure" car and take it back to the dealer when the tiniest thing is wrong, or a Morgan where you set yourself up for a lifetime of "niggles". It's more like buying a boat: you just expect to have issues and maintaining it is part of the process. We have all become spoilt with the idea you you can buy anything, use it without ever bothering to find out what how it works and then chuck it away when it goes wrong and buy another one. Those of us who venture "off piste" and buy oddities (like a 3 wheeler!) can't expect the same level of "perfection" as machine-produced product. However, it is fair to expect the highest level of craftsmanship with be-spoke products, but it is not fair to expect "perfection". As Boshly has pointed out, the financial equation is very very different for a company like Morgan. The list of small swedish yacht manufacturers that have gone down in the last three years is painful to see: but the "mass-manufacturers" are fine.. It's valuable to Morgan for you to point out to your dealer the problems, in a constructive way. Learning to accept that you will be doing some work on the car is all part of the Morgan Experience - in the boat world it's called "messing about in boats". Enjoy your vehicle: no-one cares about the paint or the gear knob - they just marvel at the quirkiness of it, and your boldness in sinking your money into such a thing.. Oliver S.
