Geo Metro Harley 3-wheeler
 

Thought I'd share this thing I ran into on CL. Guy needs to finish it.

1995 GeoMetro Harley Tryke

http://images.craigslist.org/00707_k...aJ_600x450.jpg

http://images.craigslist.org/00a0a_i...00_600x450.jpg

http://images.craigslist.org/00E0E_4...Nw_600x450.jpg

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That is super cool...

Thanks for posting.


:)

>

The poor (and dry) man's Morgan 3wheeler :thumbup:

That's an interesting project to say the least. I have been thinking about the viability of Harley-Davidson engine swaps into cars for a long time...

This person is going to build them selves an eilo in 1/4 the time if that and for less money than the real thing.

There are a few companies supplying V-Twin engines similar to the older Harley-Davidson ones. That would be so easy to find one suitable to the Elio.

I don't get the part were they say needs a front suspension and subframe to make it work. Are the pictures of the car that is for sale or a different one?
There is an Dodge Stealth near me tagged to be towed for abandonment. Makes me want to buy that at the auction and try something similar.

That's cool. The big twin should be able to drag that around with no trouble.

Too bad about making it into a single-seater. But that brings it around to something along the lines of a Corbin Merlin.
http://www.picautos.com/images/corbin-merlin-02.jpg

I've thought about something kind of like this using a big Briggs twin, or the Kohler liquid-cooled twin diesel.

Here's a Motoguzzi V-twin on a VW transaxle.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/member-fr...4-guzzi-vw.gif

I wonder about that new Honda parallel 1000cc twin in the African Twin.
Maximum power: 70 kW (93.9hp) @ 7500 rpm
Maximum torque: 98 N.m (72.3 lb-ft.) @ 6000 rpm
The whole motorcycle is just over 500 pounds, probably a light motor. I think just keeping it single RWD and mounting the motor behind the seat and cabin would be the way to go.
Something like this http://angloisrael.com/reversetrike/...larator23s.jpg

I see we already have a similar thread on this
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...s-23029-6.html

The old Brazilian motorcycle company Amazonas used an entire VW Beetle drivetrain, engine AND transaxle, for their big cruiser.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9RcC5YFUSw...as+eSporte.jpg

The way I understand it they just welded the diff spiders and welded a sprocket to the right side. I have no idea how the shifter worked but as I recall reverse was intact and worked - pretty handy when you have a bike so big that people at the bus stop stand up and dig for change when it goes by.

You could put something like that into a three-wheeler. Air cooled for minimal plumbing, all the engineering is done, MOUNTAINS of go-fast parts if you want to roll that way, and a nice, low installation to keep the CG down around the floor.

I recall a cycle mag in the early '80s- I think Cycle World- relentlessly criticizing the bike for it's size. They did concede some praise after one with a hot-rod VW engine compared favorably to the V-Max at the drags.

Fast forward a few decades to now and of course cc's = scrotum capacity; I don't recall any such criticism heaped upon monstrosities like Boss Hoss' and other factory bikes LARGER than the Amazonas. Go figure.

Interesting. I've been considering to try a similar setup, but with a Harley-Davidson engine instead.

Hersbird -- Nice kabinenroller. Do you have a link to the source or more info?

cRiPpLe_rOoStEr -- I think Harleys are expensive compared to VW engines, but I can't find supporting evidence. Here's Von Dutch's effort— a VW flat four in a shaft-drive Harley XA frame.

http://www.nationalmcmuseum.org/wp-c...4-682x1024.jpg
http://www.nationalmcmuseum.org/american-pickers-vondutch-xavw-hits-museum/

Nice pinstripes. 2CV-based stuff in Merry Old England.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/member-fr...-p1000641n.jpg

I got it off reversetrike but the links from there to the company seem dead.
Reverse Trike Club & Street Driven Quads

Indeed, but a Harley-Davidson engine would still be reasonable for some projects, as it's one of the few EPA-certified air-cooled engines still around. Anyway, a V-Twin would still have a more homogeneous cooling than the flat-4, considering that both engines would be longitudinally-mounted, and the fewer moving parts are also advantageous. Pumping losses might also be smaller. I would still consider to fit a Twin Cam 96 into a Kombi instead of the EA-111 water-cooled inline-4 used in the late ones...

The EPA tentacles reach into Grande do Sol?

Here's a Harley in a sandrail:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMPj6TGLoGA

Here's a 5-liter V-twin made with Pratt & Whitney pistons and cylinders:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnrzZQVtkeM

...as compared to a radial engine made from VW pistons and cylinders that's also on Youtube.

No, that was just for reference about it being compliant to current emission standards, making it a reasonable option for engine swaps where emissions-compliance is enforced. For example, I would have a hard time trying to license my dad's Impreza if I slapped a VW flat-4 into it, but a Twim Cam 96 with EFI would be OK...

Frank,

You read the exact same article I did - you might even recognize the "bus stop" phrase, that's where I plagiarized it from.

Do you remember that at the drags the bike kept skipping the 1-2 shift, so to get the best time they started in 2nd? Or to make it handle the higher power they upgraded to a bus clutch?

It's amazing, the details that stay with you. I haven't seen that magazine - let alone that article - in about 30 years.

Yup, that's the one. It was in that issue or a subsequent one where they said the bike should have it's own zip code. :rolleyes: