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anybody here uses car tires on their sidecar rigs?

f14rio

New member
anybody here use car tires on their sidecar rigs?

I have a Bonneville with about 4kmi. the tires are getting a bit long in the tooth already. I guess there are car tires in this size. maybe not.

I understand why they wouldn't use car tires on a 2 wheeler but a trike or a sidecar, i'm guessing should be okay. i'm thinking they should be less expensive and last longer.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29251424@N00/6922676486/
 
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I'm running a 135/15 car tire on the rear of my BMW rig and and 125/15 on the sidecar. They last a long time.
 
I'm running 195/50 x 16 on all three wheels of my rig, they last much longer than motorcycle tires, however I'm also using auto rims (off a Mini )

There are some concerns when running car tires on bike rims they are slightly differnet diameters

Wheel size 15" ________ 16"_________ 17"_________ 18"

car rim dia 14.968"______15.968"______17.189"______18.189"


mc rim dia 15.08"______15.978"______17.08"______18.08"

For some more info see here

http://www.hpsidecars.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=867&highlight=car+automobile+tires
 
car tires on sidecar rigs?

I am so glad that my R1100 w/sidecar was built originally with three auto tires on it. I've ridden it since purchase approximately 10,000 miles and can see no tire wear at all. I also ride a Triumph T100 and were I to hack it I would definitely look into car tires for it. At the very least, I would fine tires with a flat profile on the tread. I thinking that that's probably all that would work on the Triumph. I understand that they tend to last longer as the flat profile puts more tread on the pavement.
 
I'm also using auto rims (off a Mini )
I'd be really interested in learning how you did this - assuming they didn't bolt right up. Thanks.

I've been running a 165/65R15 on an R1200CLC wheel on the rear of my tug for quite some time, and had a 195/40R17 on the stock wheel before that. My experience is it's no problem BUT I would never do this on a regular bike. I think the tire on my rig is the same as vintage VW Bugs use. Nice, flat profile and good, deep tread. Ride feels good and it improved my mileage as well. Right now I have the stock/standard tire Hannigan ships on the tub and an ME880 on the front wheel of the bike. I'll probably grind that out in 5K miles or less, but the other 2 will last a long time.
 
I'd be really interested in learning how you did this - assuming they didn't bolt right up. Thanks.
Claude Stanley made an adapter for me for the rear wheel, a good size chunk of AL that uses the stock lug bolts to attach to the rear final drive and then has lugs for the Mini wheels

http://www.freedomsidecars.com/index.html

I couldn't find a picture of just the adapter, but here it is with the wheel mounted. The front end was custom made and I changed the sidecar hub out to a Toyota rear hub that had the same bolt circle.

More info here

http://hpsidecars.com/Projects/MikeCurrin/A%20Little%20More%20on%20the%20Side1.pdf
 

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http://sidestrider.com/suspension.htm Running custom suspension from Side Strider on my Velorex 562 sidecar, lets me run a 4.80 by 12" tire on my hack!

velsusp1.jpg


Doug Bingham of Side Strider makes his optional suspension super strong, has performed flawlessly for years on my Harley-Davidson Twin Cam 88 FXD.

WikieupCrew.jpg
 
I'm running a 135/15 car tire on the rear of my BMW rig and and 125/15 on the sidecar. They last a long time.

bmw euro, I'm curious about the brand and source for the tire you are running. I am running 155/80 BF Goodrich on the rear, using a C Stanley Motorsports adapter that mounts a VW wheel. I'd like to switch to a narrow cross section car tire up front, on 15 inch rim if necessary.

Best,

DG
 
bmw euro, I'm curious about the brand and source for the tire you are running. I am running 155/80 BF Goodrich on the rear, using a C Stanley Motorsports adapter that mounts a VW wheel. I'd like to switch to a narrow cross section car tire up front, on 15 inch rim if necessary.

Best,

DG

On my K100RS EML, I have Nankang 135R 15 front, 145R 15 rear, and Michelin 125R 15 on the boat. I've seen some Continentals in these same sizes.
 
I'd be really interested in learning how you did this - assuming they didn't bolt right up. Thanks.

I've been running a 165/65R15 on an R1200CLC wheel on the rear of my tug for quite some time, and had a 195/40R17 on the stock wheel before that. My experience is it's no problem BUT I would never do this on a regular bike. I think the tire on my rig is the same as vintage VW Bugs use. Nice, flat profile and good, deep tread. Ride feels good and it improved my mileage as well. Right now I have the stock/standard tire Hannigan ships on the tub and an ME880 on the front wheel of the bike. I'll probably grind that out in 5K miles or less, but the other 2 will last a long time.

Hey Chiba:wave
At 6K my front ME880 (bias ply) only show 2/32" wear!
I looked for a CLC wheel, but broke down and bought the adapter and 15" wheel from Claude for the rear. I see the same improvement as you with the taller 15" over the lo-profile 17".
 
bmw euro, I'm curious about the brand and source for the tire you are running. I am running 155/80 BF Goodrich on the rear, using a C Stanley Motorsports adapter that mounts a VW wheel. I'd like to switch to a narrow cross section car tire up front, on 15 inch rim if necessary.

Best,

DG

DG,
Check with Claude, he can put you in touch with "Stroker" who builds wheel conversions to fit GS's. He may be able to build a K model, the axle is the same part #, but all the brake hardware is different. If the hub width is the same it may work as is with using the K hardware.
Search "Stroker Wheels" over on ADVRider Hacks Forum.
 
Lots of miles on car tires

I have a Bonneville with about 4kmi. the tires are getting a bit long in the tooth already. I guess there are car tires in this size. maybe not.

I understand why they wouldn't use car tires on a 2 wheeler but a trike or a sidecar, i'm guessing should be okay. i'm thinking they should be less expensive and last longer.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29251424@N00/6922676486/

Hi, I have outfits in the US, Europe and South America. They all have car tires all the way around. Good handling, mileage and traction. Go for it if you have the proper rims.

Coach
 

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Claude Stanley made an adapter for me for the rear wheel, a good size chunk of AL that uses the stock lug bolts to attach to the rear final drive and then has lugs for the Mini wheels

I couldn't find a picture of just the adapter, but here it is with the wheel mounted. The front end was custom made and I changed the sidecar hub out to a Toyota rear hub that had the same bolt circle.
Thanks for that. Claude put my rig together! I'm not the least bit surprised he makes an adapter for this application - I'll give him a buzz about it.

Hey Chiba:wave
At 6K my front ME880 (bias ply) only show 2/32" wear!
I looked for a CLC wheel, but broke down and bought the adapter and 15" wheel from Claude for the rear. I see the same improvement as you with the taller 15" over the lo-profile 17".
It took several months of patiently scouring eBay to get the wheel, and I was lucky to be able to sell my stock wheel quickly & recoup most of the cost.

I'm at 5k on my front ME880 & it's starting to slide through hard cornering ... time for a new one :)
 
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