New Moto Guzzi Door Mats Available Now
Howabout a Piaggio MP3? Rides and leans like a 2 wheeler.
Then, of course, we have THIS 3-wheeler, the Polaris Slingshot...and I have ridden in one, but never drove one...and they are...HUGE!!!
Much easier to put a sidecar on and take off later if you wish than a trike.
Before you get too crazy with the welder, you should probably take her around to a few dealers and have some test rides. Driving a trike is in no way related to riding a bike. The physics are the opposite, and mile for mile a trike is a lot more WORK to drive. It takes a lot of upper body strength and brute muscle to get around the curves.Also, try to ride several different designs. I don't mean "red". There are straight axle, live axle, differential, posi, limited slip, IRS . . . . a lot of options. you will like some less than others. The conventional v reverse trike is also an intersting twist.She may like one type over another, or she may realize that trikes are not for her. It's better to find that out before you start the project. Once she knows what she likes it will be easier to figure out how to get there fom here. Many juristictions won't allow a homebuilt to be licensed for the street. Many people decide that the potential for a fatal design flaw or structural failure isn't a risk they want to take with their loved ones and prefer a professional conversion. But regardless of your direction, a bought trike will be less expensive than building your own. And unfortunately, trike cost and trike quality are joined at the hip. A $3k conversion package will suck -- simple live axle suitable for a chain drive. At $9k you can begin to get into the kit for an IRS kit for a Goldwing or BMW, but nobody makes one for a Guzzi. At $20k you can begin to get into nice, turnkey rigs. Up above that figure is the farkled-out glitzmobiles.I built a trike. It took three years of dedicated work to get it from the bowl of my pipe to the license office for certification. I brought along EVERY paper to show the provenance of EVERY part. I had letters of certification for critical welds. It was a tedious process.3 years to getting it rolling qualified me for another year of ironing out the bugs and backing out of mistakes. Then I put it on the road and broke it regularly for the next two years. Now, 6 years after starting it, I've put 2550 trouble-free miles on it. That part can be satisfying, but I still refuse to give anyone a ride on it. No back seat, even. I just don't want my homebuilt to kill a passenger.
As my main bike is a Victory, my dealer had one of those in. The SO hated the look of it. She hates all inverted (two wheels at the front) trikes.
I rode in one also. Big and ugly. Just don't get the fascination with those things. I think if I was even considering a Slingshot, I would start shopping for a small, convertible sports car.
I wonder if my local HD dealer has one of the smaller trikes available for test rides....
