10 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT... MORGAN 4/4 AND PLUS 4

Morgan made its name with three-wheelers, but four-wheelers arrived in 1936. These were powered by an 1122cc Coventry Climax inlet-over-exhaust engine built for Morgan under licence by Triumph, though a 1098cc option was offered to fit below the 1100cc class for racing. The new car was called the 4-4 in recognition of the fact that it had four wheels and four cylinders. After WW2 this name was still pronounced as four-four, but the way it was written changed to 4/4.

Towards the end of the 1930s, the engine supply was looking dodgy as Triumph was struggling financially and Coventry Climax decided they would concentrate on fire pumps and no longer supply engines to other motor manufacturers. So Morgan contracted with Standard (who would take over the Triumph name in 1944) to supply a slightly modified version of their Standard Ten 1267cc block with an OHV head. This unit was then called the Standard Special, and it started to appear from