I know that these 3-wheeled race cars (bikes?) were popular in England, but I want to search for more photos and history, and I don't know what to call them. Can someone help me out? Have any cool reference and photos? I'm sure other people are interested in these hot rod hybrids. The old boy on the right (FYI: the new version is called "T-rex", made in Canada):
Oh yea... get ahold of av8... he sent me some cool pictures of one he'd like to build... fun stuff, and I bet they corner like a by-gum! Sam.
Haring, I dig those too. This probably isn't what you are looking for, but its a great link anyways. Check it out. There are some 3 wheel cars there.....although most are not what you'd call race cars. I love this one. Heres a link to it: http://www.microcarmuseum.com/tour/velorex.html And a link to the main page: http://www.microcarmuseum.com/index.html
IMO, if you could make one of these work there would some real benefits. Every time you only have 3 wheels on the ground the DMV classifies them as motocycles. You'd get a lot of brakes, as far as street legal stuff, that you can't get away with in a 4 wheeled car. Now you just have to come up with some way to make the rear single wheel not look so weak and laim.
morgans...i thought i was all alone. 2 speeds, dog clutches, chain drive, air cooled, no gas pedal (just a lever on the steering wheel)...
There is a new car company called ZAP that is making a three wheeled "cars". A dealership 2 blocks from my work has 'em. Check 'em out. http://www.zapworld.com/cars/xebra.asp
Nope - but when we couldn't afford one we built this..... and then these... and did this with them... I will NEVER get better!
Wow, those are homely little critters, but looks like you had a ton of fun! Fur Biscuit -- what is a "dog" clutch?
Those are awesome, kind of like a stripped-down Moke with one back wheel. Did you mould the bodies yourselves? Is the plug still around somewhere? I'd love to hear a bit more, please!
A little off topic from the vintage 3 wheelers but very cool anyway. A updated vertion of the 3 wheeler, http://www.sub3wheeler.com/images.php?page=complete Check it out, CBB
Those V twin powered ones are really funky, so therefore I dig them. Does the body lean into turns like a bike or is the cahssis rigid?
This alcohol-burning Morgan belongs to Jeff Jacobson in Connecticut. He runs in vintage races with it, and frequently blows off much more fearsome machinery.
This one showed up at the Harvests Classic in Luckenbach last year... ...pretty frickin' cool if you ask me.
Are those all front wheel drive, or are some driven by the single rear wheel? I like 'em. I'd like to see a really fat rear single tire to beef up the look though.
OK - just a little bit, mind! The original was just an old scrap Mini cut down to the floorpan, tube framework clad in steel - built and back on the road in three weeks after spending a colossal 98 english pounds. Including 2 new tyres. The later ones were a fibreglass monocoque, still have the moulds, and rubber suspended all round on with a little steel subframe bringing up the rear. Built a few before moving onto flatheads - an obvious progression I guess...
Morgans are all rear wheel drive, BSA's were FWD. Fat rear tyre and rear wheel drive can be trouble. There's a fine line when cornering a trike between lifting an inside front wheel, and flipping the whole shebang over. I'd want the rear to let go first! With FWD, it's kinda self regulating - lift the inside wheel, lose traction, slow down, and the wheel comes back down. Still had a couple of scary high speed spins in the past. I'm older but no wiser now.
I like the fact that they AREN'T beefy. At most angles, the rear tire disappears under the rear. To me, it gives the impression of a mechanical-age hovercraft of the type depicted in early science-fiction. Maybe I'm crazy. I don't like motorcycles with fat rear tires either. I like hot rods with tall, skinny bias ply tires. My '32 truck has 4" wide 1940 16" steel wheels all around with 7.50 and 6.00 blackwall Firestones. Anything fat is too contemporary for my tastes, but I understand we're you're coming from.
Hayduke, thanks for those awesome photos! Most everything I've found on the Inter-nets so far has been tiny and lackluster. Looking at the other bikes in the background makes me think that Luckenbach show was a real stunner.
Check out what VW is up to with trikes . . . http://www.vwvortex.com/artman/publish/volkswagen_news/article_1647.shtml
one wheel in front just seems way to unstable for a car but I really dig the one rear wheel. I'd love to drive an old morgan, and have often thought about building something similar from an old bike. Be real easy with a small front wheel drive car, but I'd rather have rear wheel drive.
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