Update (with video!): Pedal powered Buick driver beats court charge!
 

"Spectators giggle as prosecutor points out dangers of operating fake Buick"

Good news! Remember the thread Toronto cops bust pedal-powered Buick? They had their day in court this week, and came out victorious!

Via the Toronto Star:

http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/410165
There's an embedded video with a little more new footage in the link above.

And the original video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSwig1tgUtY

It's not updated yet, but there's a promise for more information on the art gallery employee's blog:

http://mercerunionhall.blogspot.com/...page_name=BLOG

Whoo Hoo! That's awesome that they defeated the charge! Maybe we'll see more people-powered vehicles hit the streets now :thumbup:

EDIT: Lol! I love this quote:

I would love to do something like that, my state defines a bicycle as having pedals, and two or more wheels that are 16" or larger, no limit on size, or weight, or number of wheels, or number of seats, as long as all passengers have a seat and foot rests.

I wonder why your state specifically chose the 16" wheels? Is it not a bicycle if it fits those requirements, yet has smaller wheels?

So little children's bikes (typically with 10" or 12" wheels) don't need to follow the same bike laws (letting them able to ride on the sidewalk and such) ;)

At least, that's my best guess :p

that is correct, it makes other vehicles "play vehicles", like skate boards, kick scooters, and the 16" is total tire hight, not wheel size, so a kids bike with 14" wheels would still most likely qualify as a bike, it's a weird way to defining a bike, I know.

was it on here where someone pointed out that no one has ever been killed in a pedal car?

I wonder: Since the pedal-car is allowed to be driven around public streets, did the drivers have to get insurance for the car? Imagine if it was involved in a collision... it would open the door for the drivers to be royally sued.

hmmmm, that would be interesting, i dont think the lack of insurance could be held against them due to it not being a motorized vehicle, after all they cant hold it against you if you dont have insurance on a regular bike (or can they ? hmmm)

cool!

that would be fun to make, but i think i would choose a lighter vehicle. what about a stripped-down VW bug convertible? lots of fiberglass parts are available for them. with enough gears, you should be able to get up to enough speed for city driving. the front beam already has good enough brakes. they are also dirt-cheap to license and insure.

i know here in arkansas, theres not many vehicle laws. lots of loopholes. hand signals are still legal for day time driving. although some LED's and a small battery would take care of turn signal/brake light duty.

while it would be unsafe, yes, i feel its safer than a motorcycle, bike, or a T-bucket hot rod.

if anything, it would be cool to take to car shows!





yes, i'm diggin up old threads. i like to read :D

Old threads, but I got a good kick out of these.

If I had a LOT more time, and a lot LESS to do, I'd think about it. Nifty :)

A homemade velomobile with an electric motor could be fun. The trick is to keep them narrow enough to share the road or fast enough to keep up with traffic. One way to reduce width in a two seat is to position the passenger seat a few inches behind the driver seat to off set the hip placement. For those who want a set of plans of a sports car body check the archives of Motor Trend for the paper model Mercedes Benz C-III and Aero Corvette. Use the streamlined fastback version of the C-III especially if you want rear facing seats for the children.

An update on the paper model plans: the Mercedes Benz C111 Mk2 plans are in the August 1973 issue of Motor Trend and the Aerovette plans are in the January 1974 issue. Many of the larger libraries will have these issues in their archives. Often pages may be printed from microfilm for 25 cents a page. Plans for other vehicles can be downloaded directly from paper model sites. Paper Replika alone has 400 automotive plans available.