Who knows about adding an E-assist to a senior citizen tricycle?

Mom-in-law lives in a beach community. Lots of bike trails with zero hills. Lovely place. She's not as good on her beach cruiser as she used to be. She's often commented how she likes the trikes that some folks use in the area, especially because the little basket on the back could hold her art supplies.

So us kids have a line in on a used Raleigh Tristar like this:



I'm thinking it would be great if we could make it easier on her by adding an E-assist to it somehow. The caveat is the bike needs to be easy to charge, and able to live in a humid environment. It would stay in the garage when not on the road, so no rain or beach sand use.

Any tips? I know I can just grab a front-wheel hub motor conversion off Amazon and be done, but I'm thinking I need more real-world input first.

Be very careful with that style of trike. We bought one for my father (70 year biker) when he had a stroke and he said that it kept wanting to flip over in turns. They steer more like a car than a bike since they don't lean. Sharp turns are no bueno. 
 

My father bought a Catrike Villager (yes, pricey) but he put 15,000 miles on it between the age of 85 and 88. Well worth the investment. They are very stable, and the Villager is perfect for seniors. 
 

(^not my Dad)

There's a Catrike Owners Group on Facebook. Many people have added e-assist.

Hmmm, definitely don't want her to tip over. But that reverse trike is getting into used golf cart price territory just for pedal power alone. Might have to take a few test rides on the used trike to see how tippy it is. And have her test out one of her friend's trikes on the island. Luckily us kids had already decided it wouldn't be a surprise gift.

There are several companies that offer a kit to do this.  ebikekit.com, electricbikeoutiftters.com are 2 I have used.  For this trike it would be front wheel drive, get the smallest watt motor they offer.  

The other issue with recumbent trikes is getting on and off them, mostly off after a long ride!

The timeline moved up. Dad-in-law just went ahead and bought the Raleigh Tristar. It is sitting in my workshop right now. Bro-in-law is now researching e-bike kits (leaning towards pedal assist from what he told me). I think we can have it done by Christmas. The hard part will be keeping everyone involved focused on the goal versus researching everything to death.

What? No one has suggested a pulse jet yet?

If you want to jam an ebike motor onto it, you'll want one for the front wheel hub here- there are kits for pedal-assist motors, but it's up to you if the time it takes to install (and the loss of regen or always needing to pedal) is worth it.

Check out Grin Technologies for kits and options- they're expensive, but it's not without good reason. They'll literally give you everything you need including software and support, and I'm pretty sure a stock Baserunner and a ~36v front hub is just what you're looking for here. 

Baserunner Product Page.

Former pro bike mechanic here. I urge caution as e-assist can easily put a rider at speeds that are perilous on an upright delta trike like that. Regardless of which wheel is driven, the dynamics of these trikes are not necessarily safe even at modest speeds. Too much speed, too much steering input or a sudden bump, and the rider high-sides off the trike. The shop I worked at did a lot of e-assist installs but we regularly refused to do them on upright deltas. I second the notion of working with the fine folks at GRIN and would inquire whether they can give you something that will allow a custom maximum speed and set that very conservatively. I would only install something that relies on torque sensing and would not install a throttle. I also heartily recommend a tadpole recumbent trike. The dynamics are infinitely better, they're far more comfortable, and even though they're expensive, they hold their value well. And they're far far cheaper than a trip to the hospital. Good luck...