Last Update 5/2/10
Advantages of a Reverse Trike:
In the United States, I've been informed that three-wheeled vehicles, weighing under 1,500 pounds, are classified under Federal regulations as a motorcycle. In Texas where I use to live, and probably in most other states as well, they require a special motorcycle rider designation on your automotive license to drive a motorcycle or trike. Some states require helmets to ride these trikes, but others don't. Especially if it is a sit-down type and has a rollbar.
One benefit in the City of Houston at least, is that motorcycles can use the 'HOV' (High Occupancy Vehicles) lanes along with cars to bypass rush hour traffic. So a 2-wheel motorcycle or 3-wheel trike has the benefits of saving gas, and getting you on the HOV lanes. In Houston, a lot of people ride a motorcycle to work for just that reason, as it saves a lot of time on their daily commute. The HOV lanes are walled on both sides which is an added benefit. They are wide enough that if you break down other traffic can get around you, but you don't have to worry that someone will pull out in front of you which is great!
Even with people that ride motorcycles, only a few are interested in riding trikes. At least the kind with one front wheel and two rear wheels. I guess some designs are better than others, but I never got a feeling of safety in turns at higher speeds riding a standard trike design, and this is one area where the reverse trike can really shine. A standard trike design has too much of the weight on the single front tire, not enough on the two rear tires that have to handle the cornering forces, a narrow rear track, and a high center of gravity = bad physics. Of course they are going to be unstable and easy to flip over. This Campagna T-Rex design states on their site; "Lateral acceleration: 1.9g" !!! In other words it can easily out-handle a new Corvette or probably any other street driven car! How many standard 2F1R trike designs can pull even 1g on the skidpad?
So depending on how you design your Reverse Trike, you can have a vehicle with amazing handling capabilities, and according to what engine choice you make, there's no reason you shouldn't have a vehicle that's exciting to drive and gets 50 MPG or better. They don't state mileage figures on the T-Rex site as it's designed to be a high performance trike, but there's no reason it couldn't get 50 MPG or more with the right engine in it. They claim a "Dry Weight: 900lbs". The only real draw backs I see to the T-Rex design is that it's $42,000+ number one; it's an open air vehicle (not water proof); and a draw back for some of us at least, it's a manual shift - with no automatic available as it uses a motorcycle engine.
Here's a good explanation on the handling characteristics of different 3-wheel designs called Primary Factors That Determine Handling & Rollover Characteristics and written by Robert Q. Riley. When I talk about Reverse Trikes, I only use this term as a nomenclature to differentiate the difference between a trike with 2 front wheels - one rear, versus the trike design most people are familiar with that has one front wheel and 2 wheels in the rear. Both designs are technically trikes, because the term 'trike' just means a vehicle with 3 wheels. Some may argue that there is no such thing as a Reverse Trike. I coined the term Reverse Trike just to make a distinction between the 2 styles of trikes, because there are a lot of differences specifically in handling capability between the designs as most RT owners are well aware of.
Of these Reverse Trike designs in general, most appear to be good to extremely good handling machines. They put pretty much all cars on the road to shame when it comes to going around corners. All the cars that most people can afford at least! Some can readily out handle motorcycles in the corners too! They draw lots of attention, which can be a good thing or bad; just depends on how fast you're going! But what if you could have a turn key vehicle for a reasonable price that out handles probably anything you'll ever run up against, gets good mileage, it's easy to drive and gets ALL the looks? Advantage = YOU!!!
One thing I'd recommend though if you go shopping for a RT is to check your State regulations regarding RT's. Not all States recognize a RT as a motorcycle, and according to what I hear from members, there are specific design limitations that can cause it to be classified as a car in your State rather than a motorcycle. If your RT is fully enclosed such as a Tri-Magnum, your State may classify this design as a car, where the same basic design being open they might classify as a motorcycle. If it has a windshield which a fully enclosed would, then they may require that it have safety glass in all windows. Some States classify a RT as a car regardless because it has 2 front wheels, and they don't care that it's a 3-wheeler. Their regulations state anything with 2 front wheels falls in that category. Can you successfully argue the fact or claim exemption to that rule, I don't know, but if people send me this information I will definitely post it on the site as I get it.
Common Law Copyright 2004'-2010' by reversetrike.com - All Rights Reserved.
