Quote:
Originally Posted by ConnClark
So far all Aptera have produced as far as safety is claims, marketing, and a limited computer simulation.
The reverse trike makes it more stable in braking which is a good thing but not everything. Lateral stability will still suffer from the trike design. The only way to improve it is to move the center of mass up toward the two front wheels. Unfortunately the more you do this the less control and directional stability the back wheel provides. If you move the center of mass too far forward the car will flip over when applying the brakes.
|
So far Aptera hasn't produced squat and it could be they never will, rendering this discussion more or less moot as it pertains to Aptera. However as it pertains to trikes in general, seems to me you are really groping for some reason- any reason- to declare trikes unsafe. My suggestion to you would be to never buy or ride in one then.
As far as stability, it is rather simple to make a trike get comparable if not superior stability vs quads, by getting the track, wheelbase, and cg right. For the bulk of what a street vehicle encounters trikes are a perfectly suitable configuration. They are more susceptible to "tripping" i.e. if you find yourself sliding sideways and hit a curb at speed, the trike will probably be more prone to tipping over. At least that's what I've read.
There's a good book on vehicle design and trike stability in
Amazon.com: Alternative Cars in the Twenty-First Century: A New Personal Transportation Paradigm (9780768008746): Robert Q. Riley, Wroshik Chee: Books .