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Old 02-06-2010, 05:51 PM   #1 (permalink)
MetroMPG
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: 1000 Islands, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 22,527

Blackfly - '98 Geo Metro
Team Metro
Last 3: 70.09 mpg (US)

MPGiata - '90 Mazda Miata
90 day: 54.46 mpg (US)

Even Fancier Metro - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage top spec
90 day: 70.75 mpg (US)

Appliance car Mirage - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage ES (base)
90 day: 62.14 mpg (US)
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I was an aero/HPV/velomobile nerd way back when... (found some old drawings of mine)

Yesterday I found these old pictures of two concept (and one real!) recumbent concept trikes I made up. I don't even remember doing them.

(Back in the old days, before there was such thing as Photoshop, if you wanted to imagine how a concept might look, you actually put it on paper. Amazing, but true!)

It surprised me to find these, because I'd still love to make/buy a recumbent/faired trike. I don't remember being interested in them as a kid.



Have a laugh at the (lack of) steering geometry. (And lack of clearance to actually steer much.)

Sorry about the blurriness of this one... It's front-wheel drive with rear wheel steering!



Speaking of FWD/RWS, the drawing below is of the actual trike that I made when I was 12 (OK, I "designed" and had my grandfather weld for me out of a cut up bike):



I have a photo of me riding it, but I couldn't find it.

Yes, front wheel drive with coaster brake (rear of the bike flipped upside down). That's a caster type arrangement on the left rear, and tiller steering on the right rear (the front half of the bike).

It was actually really fun to ride... unless you got going too fast. Especially fun to ride on packed snow/ice!

__________________
Project MPGiata! Mods for getting 50+ MPG from a 1990 Miata
Honda mods: Ecomodding my $800 Honda Fit 5-speed beater
Mitsu mods: 70 MPG in my ecomodded, dirt cheap, 3-cylinder Mirage.
Ecodriving test: Manual vs. automatic transmission MPG showdown



EcoModder
has launched a forum for the efficient new Mitsubishi Mirage
www.MetroMPG.com - fuel efficiency info for Geo Metro owners
www.ForkenSwift.com - electric car conversion on a beer budget
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