I like this design for a commuter:
I like this design for a commuter:
This one is called XR3:
This surely isn't a simple quick build but should be super efficient.
In case you have considered a "lean machine":
I'm not sure I'm smart enough to make this work right out on the first attempt.
so, for anyone convinced a FWWD drivetrain is the way to go, ill offer up a 99 neon DOHC engine with all accessories, 5 speed, wiring, and ECU for 100 bucks outside charlotte nc.
me personally, im hunting for a twin cylinder horizontal shaft engine that I can adapt microsquirt to. im thinking kohler.
Sooo Grae, you've been thinking about this awhile hmm?
Graefin10 wrote: <img src="" /> Side view:
Who was it that was selling a Formula Ford chassis?
nicksta43 wrote: Sooo Grae, you've been thinking about this awhile hmm?
Yeah, I sure have. If anyone wants lot's and lot's of inspiration go to google images 3 wheel car, & pickup truck. I'm sure you have seen the Aptera and the T Rex. If you had those two along with one of the faster roomier 3 wheel pickups you could have all your transportation needs covered. Well that is unless you wanted a 3 wheel "motorcycle" & airplane/car.
In reply to Graefin10:
Seems like a lot of screwing around to have all of the disadvantages of a motorcycle with none of the advantages of a car.
In reply to Trans_Maro:
You know how it is, some people like to screw around and some people don't.
I know all too well, I'm one of them :)
There's a CX500 in my garage that's in the middle of being turbocharged.
It still won't be fast or handle well but I'll have the only one.
In reply to Trans_Maro:
As soon as this thread was posted, I went browsing for a CX500... 
JamesMcD wrote:Graefin10 wrote: My Photobucket may not be working right (or maybe the operator isn't working rightI'm thinking something similiar to this would be well-suited to using a Goldwing engine behind the seats.
A conventional car has a list of advantages over a motorcycle or trike. I think part of engineering a trike is deciding how important to you the following things are. As in, do you engineer a solution or do you accept a motorcycle-type limitation: 1. Hot weather - air conditioning? 2. Cold weather - heater? Encapsulation? Big impact on 1. above 3. Rain? 4. Snow? 5. Safety 6. Visibility 7. Luggage capacity
I'm not dissing motorcycles, but cars have advantages in all those areas. Different answers above will imply some very different trike solutions. And different users will have very different answers to 1-7.
Another big variable is location, as others have said. Weather protection means very different things in Seattle versus Phoenix versus Buffalo. And safety probably means very different things in Los Angeles versus Des Moines.
I like this thread, even though I will never build a three-wheeler. I like minimalist solutions. And smaller cars means less pavement covering the country, with more lanes = less congestion, and smaller parking lots.
David
Practicality doesn't count in something that compliments aviator goggles.
Can't split lanes on a trike or in a car.
WAY less smiles per gallon in a car or on a trike.
That's all I can think of....
Just like Cadillac Eldorado is not the answer for everyone needing a car, motorcycles and 3wheeled vehicles aren't the answer for everyone.
I think ' Warren v' summed it up above. Some of us won't build a 3 wheeled vehicle but we would grin from ear to ear if we were allowed to put on some aviator goggles and head off down the road in a well engineered example. The rules of the build include a realistic road speed and very good fuel economy. That's all I need to want to build one.
Can't split lanes on a motorcycle around here, unless you want to die and/or be ticketed.
I like the Sub 3-wheeler and Tanshonomi's design for his Cyrobuka. Unfortunately both are single seaters but they're the sit-inside type that I prefer over the sit on top type. (I'm assuming there's a term for that I don't know...)
Sub 3-wheeler:
and the Cyrobuka:
In reply to dculberson:
So you don't have to figure out how to make those cars, think about them differently....
Roughly- take a Locost 7 chassis, and take the narrow body version, and make it straight back from the front suspension. Behind the now more narrow roll bar, that's where the fabircation of the bike can be.
Or, do the same for a Midlandia.
OR take a midlandia, turn the passenger area around 180 deg, keep the FWD in the front, and keep narrowing to a single wheel.
The Middie design would be the most straight forward- just run the design dead straight from the nose back, and you have a pretty darn well engineered chassis.
In formula vee style you could probably combine a running motorcycle, acvw front suspension beam, a seat and a few chunks of steel into a trike in a weekend. Doing it with an Opel, chevette, or Miata front suspension would only be slightly more difficult.
Development of my horrible looking concept continues
Frame weighs 45lbs using mostly 1" od x .065 tube. No brackets/tabs though but .065 tube is overkill. Also uses lots of bent tube for fun. Hey it's a concept
That could be hilariously fun if it were FWD and you could control the torque bias of the center diff.
After reading the No comments thread with the link to the CLASSIC go3wheeler thread which brought me to this thread I then saw this Cheap Formula Ford chassis thread which seemed to need to be mentioned here. Yes, I wasted a LOT of time yesterday.
Graefin10 wrote: This one is called XR3:
This surely isn't a simple quick build but should be super efficient.
Had me till I saw that Kubota. Very poor choice due to weight.
Also with the Kubota and batteries in front of the front axle I bet this thing does stoppies like nobody's buisness.
Edit: I saw this was from 2007. Not a great choice then but a better option than most for the time.
I think this is a great option. The biggest cost is the batteries.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/ryZVhaZl_-k
You could easily put this on a recumbent trike, and due to DC being really congested, the speed limit is low in most places, and parking is a bitch, you would have the quick way to get around.
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