For more than a decade, Morgan has only offered models with an odd number of wheels in the United States. That’s set to change in 2025, as the company confirmed a recent rumor and announced it has cleared the regulatory hurdles standing in the way of an American-spec Plus Four.
At first glance, the Plus Four that’s a few weeks away from disembarking on our shores looks almost exactly like its predecessor, and that’s the point. Replace the LED headlights with conventional ones, and your eyes could trick you into thinking you’re looking at a roadster from the 1940s. However, it’s a totally different story underneath. The Plus Four is built on an aluminum-intensive architecture named CX-Generation that’s much lighter than the steel chassis it replaces. Morgan designed it in-house, and equipped it with a double-wishbone suspension system for more precise handling.
The interior also looks vintage, with the exception of a gear selector that sticks out like a smartphone at a gladiator fight in Ancient Rome. Using a BMW-sourced transmission seemingly requires using the brand’s ubiquitous lever, which looks odd in the Ineos Grenadier, too.
Gear selector aside, buyers are encouraged to customize their Plus Four by choosing from a wide panoply of colors and materials, including Scottish leather. Every car is built by hand, so Morgan can offer various customization options without having to set up a standalone department. There’s no such thing as a regular-production Plus Four, according to the company, and every example built will be a one-off.
Power comes from the same turbocharged, 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine found in the European-market model. Provided by BMW, and called B48 internally, it’s also found in the 2 Series, 3 Series, Z4, and several Mini models. It delivers 255 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque across the pond, though specifications for our market haven’t been released, and it’s linked to an eight-speed automatic transmission.
The company stresses that it calibrated the engine and the transmission in-house, so the Plus Four shouldn’t feel like a 230i with an old-school body. While performance figures aren’t available yet, the Plus Four is obviously geared more for driving feel than lap times and 0-60 dashes. Then again, at just 2,200 pounds, it should still be pretty quick. Buyers who want even sharper handling can order the optional Dynamic Handling Pack, which bundles single-way adjustable Nitron springs and a rear roll bar. AP Racing brakes on both axles come standard.
On sale now, the 2025 Morgan Plus Four starts at $84,995 excluding applicable taxes and destination, and it’s available through the company’s 12 American dealers. Deliveries will start in early 2025. Act fast if you want one: Morgan is only allowed to sell up to 325 examples annually.
Here’s why. Morgan took advantage of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act’s replica-car rule to bring the Plus Four to the U.S. The law allows brands to sell a replica of any car that was available in our market over 25 years ago. The old Plus Four was sporadically offered stateside until 2005, so it’s good to go. Getting the proverbial nod of approval from regulators was difficult, however, and the green light came with a catch.
On the plus side, it’s fully street-legal, wasn’t thrown into the Show and Display vortex, and can even be registered in CARB states as long as production stays below 325 units. If, say, 326 examples end up in the U.S. next year, Morgan would need to make the Plus Four compliant with federal safety norms.
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