Three Wheel Cars: Our 3VG DIY Car Leans Toward the Future

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Then again, a vehicle such as ours presents a number of distinct practical advantages. Because it's registered as a motorcycle, license fees, taxes, and insurance costs are a fraction of what they'd be for even a small automobile. Similarly, many federal requirements- which often add to the cost of a car-simply don't apply in this case.

A Brief Explanation 

To make the vehicle function correctly, a suspension system had to be developed that would absorb road shocks and support the car while allowing it to lean into corners with full steering control. For several reasons, we chose to use a triangular wheel arrangement ... with the single roller to the rear. This effectively solves the stability problem inherent in a two-wheeled vehicle, yet still permits the entire chassis to camber, because that one rear tire provides a natural pivot point.

And, perhaps not so obviously, this "backward tricycle" concept eliminates a number of potentially troublesome considerations by simply making them irrelevant! For example, by getting rid of the fourth wheel and relying on one-wheel drive, we've eliminated the need for an expensive, energy-sapping differential (which is universally used to balance power between driven wheels through turns), along with the "extra" suspension components common to conventional autos. Not only does the absence of these parts reduce the vehicle's overall weight, but it also cuts down the rolling resistance of its tires.

In addition, the single-rear- wheel layout provides near-perfect weight distribution for a rear-engine vehicle, and-if properly designed-has an inherent cornering stability that's superior to those of many four-wheeled cars.

Better still—aside from the features that make the prototype totally different from any other vehicle—our trike's construction isn't at all unusual (especially by competition-car standards). It's built around a multitubular chassis (made of chrome molybdenum and mild steel components) that uses a network of diagonal bracing to induce rigidity ... and provides additional beltline and overhead protection in the form of substantial main side rails and a center roll bar.

The body-because its aerodynamic shape required specific contours-is made of fiberglass ... which is a strong, lightweight material that can be formed in the workshop, at a reasonable expense, with fairly conventional equipment. Since the shell is similar in shape to an aircraft fuselage (with a small frontal area that minimizes fuel-robbing wind resistance), the seats are arranged in tandem with a small luggage space behind. (Access to the passenger compartment is gained through a sliding canopy that locks in any desired position, from fully opened to fully closed.)

The single-rear-wheel layout is-we discovered-compatible with a number of different powerplants, including those used in motorcycles. But instead of merely mating the rear half of a cycle to our chassis (that route is viable, but both engine ventilation and efficient utilization of space can pose problems), we chose to use a 16-horsepower, 730-cc, two-cylinder industrial engine ... driven through a continuously variable automatic transmission.

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