Repeat to myself...I'll never buy a trike...I'll never buy a trike

and its cheaper than the new models from BMW, and has an extra wheel to boot.

I think they were trying to copy this car: They're almost identical

Repeat to myself...I'll never buy a trike...I'll never buy a trike...

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....unless I lose a leg, become a paraplegic, etc., etc.

Rusty

Neat little vehicle, but you still need a motorcycle endorsement to drive it and have to wear a helmet in those states where it's required. Those two things will severely limit its potential audience.

I like it but I doubt it would sell for 17K. I see much higher. Of course I have to wonder if the 180-hp 20V turbo in my GTI would fit in it!
I always thought that that engine needed to be in something very small low and light.
I do like how they use the GS headlamps on it too!

Saw this BMW engined 3 wheeler at the Beemer Bash...







So, if it has less than 4 wheels it's considered a motorcycle?

A friend of ours got one of these:

T-Rex three wheeler

RTRandy said:

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That's the Isetta BMW! Weee!!!!

Actually, it has 4 wheels. But only one door. The steering wheel is articulated and swings out of the way when you open the front of the car!

The cars have a one-cylinder BMW motorcycle engine with a 4-speed transmission. The top speed is 53 mph, and it gets 63 miles per gallon.

In 1958 you could buy one for $1,093.

Sweet!

-Xaque-

Xaque said:

That's the Isetta BMW! Weee!!!!

Actually, it has 4 wheels. But only one door. The steering wheel is articulated and swings out of the way when you open the front of the car!

The cars have a one-cylinder BMW motorcycle engine with a 4-speed transmission. The top speed is 53 mph, and it gets 63 miles per gallon.

In 1958 you could buy one for $1,093.

Sweet!

-Xaque-

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I stand corrected about the four wheels. My friend's father bought one when I was in elementary school and I actually got to ride in it. The rear wheels were closer together than the front and my memory had me thinking of it as a single wheel. Loved that car ! I think the steering wheel was attached to the door that swung forward to get out.

Well the VW looks more original than my latest project, well not as commercial anyway...neat vehicle is that VW and some of the others....just finished this:

I thought Isettas had a 600 twin, and that some had three wheels and some had four, although I forget to what that difference corresponded.

The Veg said:

I thought Isettas had a 600 twin, and that some had three wheels and some had four, although I forget to what that difference corresponded.

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[HIJACK]

I'm glad you said that, in my haste to post I butchered the cars history a little, allow me to set the record straight:*

The orriginal model produced by Iso had the two cylinder engine with 4 wheels. These models also didn't have a reverse gear, so if you parked too close to the wall, and couldn't open the single door, you were trapped. Iso ran four or five Isettas in the "Mille Miglia" (1,000 mile) race of 1954. The Isetta finished 1, 2 and 3 on the index of performance and the BMW scouts had to have it...

BMW bought the rights to the car and began to produce it under their name to try to get into the lower priced car market. BMW ditched the Iso engine and used their ("more reliable") 247cc single cylinder motorcycle engine, and later switched to the 297cc engine.

later, under license from BMW, "Isetta of Britian" produced both 4 and 3 wheeled versions. The 3 wheeled versions were popular in Britian as they were taxed at a very lower rate than the 4 wheeled counterparts. Isetta of Great Britain continued to produce four-wheeled Isettas, but only for export to Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.

BMW began exporting Isettas to the U.S. (to a lukewarm response) in 1957.

Overall, the Isetta was successful enough to encourage BMW to produce the 600, which shared the IsettaÔÇÖs front door and a motorcycle engine (2-cylinder 600 cc) and the more car-like 700 (also powered by a motorcycle engine).

It was a popular car, but the entrance of the Mini in the early 60's killed off the Isetta.

*Please excuse any errors. Written history of this car is plaqued by contradictory information. There is the chance that I am wrong about this little car that haunts me in my sleep... If so, please excuse me.

[/HIJACK]

-Xaque-

Never buy a trike

A motorcycle is a single track vehicle, making it easy to avoid potholes and road debris, if you are paying attention and not going too fast. An automobile has two wheel tracks and can often avoid potholes and road debris. A sidecar outfit also has two wheel tracks.

A trike has three wheel tracks and is simply a bad idea.

A trike has three wheel tracks and is simply a bad idea.

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This may be true if you base your motoring experience around potholes and road debris.

Fwiw...

The "trike market" is one of the fastest growing segments of the motorcycle modification industry.

Two generations of motorcyclists are aging, and many don't want to give up riding, so a heck of a lot of them are opting to have their motorcycles triked.

Flash' observation about the three wheel tracks is valid, but enjoyable riding is still a matter of mental habits and adjustments. Those who make the switch soon learn to dodge the potholes easily enough.

Also, several years back I saw a guy on a trike do a hazard avoidance maneuver (barrel rolled into his lane courtesy of an 18-wheeler) on the interstate that cured me of the "trikes are unmanageable" superstition. I was last in a line of three riding at about 50' foot intervals, when the lead rider (on the trike) flicked left and right so fast that I almost forgot to do my own hazard avoidance while overcoming my surprise.

One of my brothers in law has a '93 GL1500 SE that is triked. The car tires on the rear will last forever -- at half the cost of motorcycle tires. It's positive traction, so he does not have to fight the torque issues that occur with most sidecar rigs. Incidentally, last year he was riding with a group that got stymied by a washout of sand across a road down near the coast. While the two-wheelers were all stopped and scratching and plotting, he just motored on through it...

If I had $39k burning a hole in my pocket, I'd be seriously looking at a TrikeTec V2:

89 horsepower, 13 gallon tank, ABS brakes, traction control, tiptronic transmission. Nice stuff.

http://www.socaltrikes.com/v2.html