Motorbike Trikes - A Brief Look

Georgeyboy writes on May 31, 2011 3:15 PM

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Motorbike Trike - A brief look

Motorbike Trike, Motortrike, Mototrike, Motorcycle Trike – whatever you want to call it, whenever you see one you normally get hit with some sort of visceral envy coupled with an unhealthy side of whiplash as you turn your head at a break-neck pace to take a look. There is no denying that motorbike trikes are really, really cool and while they may appear to be a specialist indulgence, we figured it would be nice (read: awesome) to look at the breed and show it to you, our beloved Get On groupies and see what you think!

Motor-trikes

Motor-trikes tend to be custom built by specialist engineering companies but they have also been built around the chassis of an existing bike using a conversion kit. There are two kinds of wheel configuration that are used; tadpole or delta. Delta is the more popular option with two wheels on the back and one in the front and tends to be less stable under breaking. Tadpole on the other hand is more stable when breaking and tends to slide in corners instead of rolling.

The other key differentiator is the power; some mototrikes have car engines while others are powered by a motorcycle engine. This throws up a host of different rules and regulations on motorbike trike licences and road tax brackets, but the bottom line is that certain rules (like helmets being compulsory) get dropped. This is not to say you shouldn’t wear one if you are riding a motorbike-trike, but you just don’t have to by the law.

With all that said and done, we’ve got some really cool snaps of various trikes in all their beautiful variety and eccentricity for you to have a look at. Enjoy!