Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Morgan Three Wheeler & Super 3 Chassis upgrade kit for pre 2014 M3W

Ah, the bullet-proof engine... not

Chris from the factory has just picked up my three wheeler so it will be heading south in the morning to get its new chassis. Hopefully it's a case of "third time lucky" and not "third light for the cigarette". Either way I'll not be sticking my head above the parapet till it gets back.


Chris doing something moderately unnatural to the three wheeler.

"I'll not be sticking my head above the parapet till it gets back."

Quite, you don't want to upset anyone in Malvern just at the moment Calum......and neither would I, in your place.

Wasn't really what I had in mind Paul, just carrying on the WW1 references. I'm sure I can still manage to spoil Mark Evan's day at some point over the next couple of weeks!

What a reliable and solid tractor unit MMc has purchased to bring your 3W home.

Hope you're back on the road soon for some more adventures Callum.

+1

Calum, your description of the penetrant crack detection process is good.
I used to be the one checking rolls prior to installation in a steel mill.
I used a penetrant kit to test for cracks in the drive tang end.
It was a relatively well machined area in bare metal.
The method will only detect cracks of a "reasonable" size and the "seed" cracks just starting may not be found. I took photos of the " developed" test area to cover my arse!

The idea solution for the M3W chassis would be to reweld the joints in the affected and nearby areas adding the strengthening fillets at the same time. Remember, afailed joint can result in a neighbouring joint being affected.
No compromise with poor welds by visual inspection tolerated.
The coatings on the chassis should be removed completely by a non aggressive method...chemical preferably to prevent peening/ deformation that hides cracks.
Perhaps a full replacement of chassis?
This would allow the old one to be thoroughly checked and then " rebuilt" as a replacement?
I do not have a M3W so cannot comment on the feasability of access to check/ weld as an upgrade so apologies if I am oversimplifying things.

The new chassis is not the same than the 2012/2013
Several parts have changed
NVH is fixed
Regulator is fixed on the chassis
The rear parts are new
No Panels under the MTW

I have 2 concerns:-
1
a) Do we (or for that matter MMC) know for sure that the new built-in stiffener will cure the problem of fatigue cracking in the early chassis's once and for all?
b) By the same token do we (or MMC) know for sure that the cracking problem is not going to manifest itself in the later chassis's?
Unless extensive testing and/or computer simulation has been carried out by MMC (which I doubt), I believe both the above have not been around long enough (or covered enough miles) to prove they will be OK in the long term.
A cracked chassis could result in the car swerving either into a ditch or into oncoming traffic.

2) My other concern is the high number of timing belt breakages (many at below 10,000 miles) when this would obviously bring the car to a halt with no warning.
If this were to happen in the outside lane of a busy motoway the results could be disastrous.
I would have thought that it would have been fairly straightforward to have the camshafts driven by spur gears which was common practice in the British motorcycle industry and lasted the life of the motorcycle. It may be a bit noisyer but this would have been a small price to pay for greatly increased reliability and safety. S&S would also not have incurred the costs and time required to develop the belt with Gates.

Whilst I have had tremendous pleasure completing the 9,000+ miles so far on my car, my pleasure is now turning the into trepidation at the prospect of one of the above bringing about my premature demise.
And all this from a car for which we all paid a considerable amount of money, in good fath, from a reputable manufacturer, assuming all the bugs would have been ironed out before it went to market.