GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: Morgan teases production-spec EV3

British sports car-maker Morgan will reveal a near production-ready pure-electric version of its 3 Wheeler at the Geneva motor show next month.

Teasing a single image of the EV3 Morgan plans to unveil, the pure-electric production car will be the first electric vehicle since the car maker was established back in 1909.

Following from the experimental Morgan PlusE concept car that was shown back in 2011, the new EV3 is said to have benefited from the lessons learned about that car’s significant weight problem.

That’s why the new EV3 prototype weighs in at just 470kg - 55kg lighter than the 2.0-litre V-twin petrol 3 Wheeler it’s based on.

The production car will come with a 56kW/129Nma rear-mounted motor that drives the single rear wheel. The motor has been developed by electric and hybrid specialist Potenza Technology.

This, says Morgan, is enough to allow the EV3 to sprint to 100km/h, from standstill, in just 8.5 seconds. Top speed, meanwhile, is limited to 160km/h.

Powered by a front-mounted lithium ion battery that takes around four hours to charge from empty, the EV3 will offer a range of around 240km, although Morgan says it is working to improve the battery performance and charging times for the final car.

Said to feature all-new styling inspired by the time-travelling DeLorean from Back to the Future, the car maker already claims to have 10 orders for the EV3, with production of the pure-electric sports car expected to begin in the latter half of this year, and Morgan hoping to make one car a week.

It’s not known when we’ll get the EV3 in Australia, nor how much of a premium it will command over the $97,500 (plus on-road costs) the petrol 3 Wheeler costs.