1937 Morgan 4-4 '38 Le Mans specification

5 July 2014, 15:59. DLJ looks fantastic lined up along the pit wall, gleaming in the sun among the other beautiful cars. The stands are packed, flags are fluttering, and from the far side of the track I stand nervously waiting for the flag to drop on Plateau 1 at Le Mans Classic 2014. Getting the little 4-4, restored to its unique '38 Le Mans spec, running well has been quite a journey. Despite a dramatic-looking fire in the pit lane during qualifying, we're finally here. Savour the moment: there's nothing better than Le Mans, and we may never get the chance again. Come on DLJ, let's see what we can do...

The Morgan Motor Company introduced the 4-4 (four wheels, four cylinders) in 1936 to counter falling three-wheeler sales. Like its predecessor it proved itself in motorsport straight away, taking Premier Awards on the Land's End and Edinburgh Trials. It had an 1122cc Coventry Climax engine, a four-speed Meadows gearbox and a Moss rear axle in a low-slung chassis with independent front suspension. Weighing just 11cwt, it offered excellent performance and roadholding. Late in 1936 it covered 75. 01 miles in the MCC one-hour high-speed trial at Brooklands, and it was soon outperforming the Singer and MG works trials teams.

In 1937 the factory entered a special 4-4 in the RAC Tourist Trophy, held for the first time at Donington Park. Cycle wings saved weight, and the rear was reworked to take a 24-gallon tank in place of the usual 9. Twin quick fillers poked through the tonneau, and a single sloping panel carried the spare wheel. It gained a side-exit exhaust with a new nearside bonnet, 17" Dunlop 'Easi-Clean' wheels and an Aero screen. Running 3rd in class after 83 laps, it suffered a stub axle failure and lost a front wheel, dashing what would have been an unexpected class placing.

In the summer of 1937, Miss Prudence Fawcett, the 23-year-old daughter of a prominent Sheffield solicitor, flew to the Le Mans 24 Hours aboard the Duke of Kent's private aeroplane. Having inherited her family's passion for sporting cars, she decided that she too would race at Le Mans! By January 1938 she held the necessary licences and had lodged an entry. Her contacts at The Winter Garden Garages in London were then negotiating a concession to sell the 4-4, so a Morgan was proposed. HFS Morgan was reluctant at first. Once assured it would be a private entry rather than a works one, he offered the Tourist Trophy car, now with redesigned stub axles and larger 1. 5" brakes. A Morgan was going to Le Mans!

The car was entered in the under-1100cc class, where it stood a better chance and had to cover 200km less than the 1500cc cars. A special 1098cc Coventry Climax engine with 8:1 compression and a freer-flowing exhaust produced around 50bhp. With an altered final drive, the car was believed good for about 100mph. To meet the regulations, a fold-down mesh screen was fastened to the bonnet.

At 3:20pm on 18 June 1938 the 4-4 lined up for the start, having qualified midfield in a class of seven Simca Huits, a Fiat Balilla, two Singer Nines and two MG PBs. Geoff White, Prudence's co-driver and Sales Manager at The Winter Garden Garages, took the first stint. At 4:00pm the flag dropped, Geoff and 41 other drivers sprinted across the track to their cars, and the Morgan got away cleanly. Prudence took over after 25 laps. Sticking to the agreed pace and pit schedule, the 4-4 ran beautifully, and after 20 hours it led its class by four laps.

Then the power began to fade. A burnt valve was suspected, but little could be done, so the car was sent back out to nurse its way to the flag. One by one its rivals reeled it in. The Morgan finished 13th overall from just 15 finishers, and 5th in class: a fantastic achievement nonetheless.

Buoyed by the result, Prudence vowed to return in 1939 to contest the biennial Rudge-Whitworth Cup and hoped to buy the car from the factory. Her mother took one look and forbade it: quite unsuitable for a society girl! The 4-4 went back to the works, and later that year it finished the Tourist Trophy, 7th in class after a water leak.

Despite the gathering uncertainty in Europe, the ACO confirmed that Le Mans would run in 1939. With factory backing, The Winter Garden Garages entered the same car, with Prudence named as entrant. To make it more competitive, the '38 body was replaced by a doorless one with a sleeker tail and a different grille, and the mesh screen was dropped. The engine was bored out to 1104cc and fitted with three SU carburettors. The 1938 car was, in effect, lost to history. Running in the under-1500cc class, it finished 15th overall and 2nd in class, behind an HRG and ahead of a Riley Sprite.

"DLJ", chassis 379, is not the 1938 car. That car survives and still races in its 1939 guise, and seeing the two side by side makes a fascinating contrast. Nor is "DLJ" one of the Le Mans Replicas introduced in February 1939 as a homage to the '38 car; closer though they are, differences remain. Since its restoration, "DLJ" is the only Morgan 4-4 that reflects how the car was set up for the 15th running of the 24 Hours in 1938.

Like the original, "DLJ" was built in 1937. It retains its original log book, registration number and Moss axle. Its original Coventry Climax engine is now at the correct 1098cc and freshly refreshed after five Le Mans Classics. The period Meadows gearbox has a story of its own: from the Morgan archives we found it was fitted to chassis number 5, the first production 4-4 sold to the public.

After years in a sorry state, "DLJ" was the perfect basis for a restoration to Le Mans '38 specification, with an eye on Plateau 1 at Le Mans Classic. The work was entrusted to Morgan specialists Techniques. They had built a replica of the '39 car, then repeated the process when the original '39 car was found in the United States. Between 2012 and 2014, everything needed to bring "DLJ" as close as possible to the '38 car was carried out. It could not have been in better hands.

Since 2014 "DLJ" has raced at the Goodwood Revival, with the VSCC and with Motor Racing Legends Pre-War Sports Cars, and at five Le Mans Classics. It has taken class placings with the VSCC and MRL, and at Le Mans it has regularly finished first Morgan home and inside the top ten on Index of Performance. With its smaller engine it will never be quickest in a straight line. But it is so sure-footed, wet or dry, that it carries more speed through the corners, making for an entertaining game of cat and mouse with the bigger cars, often rewarded with class placings.

The car comes with a spare Easi-Clean wheel, a spare gearbox, assorted race spares, and history files covering the restoration, invoices and results. HTP papers were renewed in January 2026 and the engine is fresh. For anyone dreaming of Le Mans Classic, or simply of racing among great pre-war contemporaries, "DLJ" offers fantastic value and is ready to deliver ear-to-ear smiles once more.