http://jalopnik.com/this-planned-electric-three-wheeler-looks-fantastic-and-1818561069

If they produce it, find a NA importer, and price it under ~$15,000, I definitely want one. 

A 30hp 2 cyl 4 stroke would be perfection though. 

Nice looking car. Not so much retro as an authentic looking early 60s vehicle.

That's laughably incomplete   Kevin's designs are closer to manufacturing than those are.

If we're talking about pie-in-the-sky 3 wheelers, I'd rather have a VW GX3.

Quote from: MrH on September 20, 2017, 08:00:29 AM
That's laughably incomplete   Kevin's designs are closer to manufacturing than those are.

If we're talking about pie-in-the-sky 3 wheelers, I'd rather have a VW GX3.

Yeah it's very early in development, but per the article there's a pretty big team behind it. The appeal is in the simplicity.

Quote from: MrH on September 20, 2017, 08:00:29 AM
That's laughably incomplete   Kevin's designs are closer to manufacturing than those are.

If we're talking about pie-in-the-sky 3 wheelers, I'd rather have a VW GX3.

Boo for the backhanded compliment




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As cute as this is (I like it), the model is OK - I could prolly make something similar and more feasible in about a week. The thin roof is really the part that stands out as being "too fake"

It wasn't meant to be a backhanded compliment.  Yeah, the pencil thin roof just immediately stuck out as something that shows they haven't thought about this beyond aesthetics at all.  Your designs have a lot more consideration.

Kevin's designs take into account a proper car's crash requirements. 3 wheelers aren't constrained by tough crash/safety standards. It's not something you want to drive on the highway, but perfectly fine in urban areas or rural roads.

I kinda like this one...



The mid-sixties look.

How could this possibly work in the modern world? 



No air bag? Analog gauges? No dash pad? Can they even make stainless steel or real chrome trim anymore? No place to plug in your phone? NO CUP HOLDER!!?? 

Quote from: shp4man on September 20, 2017, 09:10:59 AM
How could this possibly work in the modern world? 



No air bag? Analog gauges? No dash pad? Can they even make stainless steel or real chrome trim anymore? No place to plug in your phone? NO CUP HOLDER!!?? 

And crank windows.  People wouldn't stand for that anymore.

Quote from: shp4man on September 20, 2017, 09:10:59 AM
How could this possibly work in the modern world? 



No air bag? Analog gauges? No dash pad? Can they even make stainless steel or real chrome trim anymore? No place to plug in your phone? NO CUP HOLDER!!?? 

3 wheels = not a car.  Safety regulations do not apply.

Quote from: MX793 on September 20, 2017, 09:26:28 AM
3 wheels = not a car.  Safety regulations do not apply.

Thank goodness someone else gets it. 

They look awesome but I'm not sure there's a market. Guess we'll see. If the price was low enough I might consider it. Maybe. Probably not...

Quote from: MX793 on September 20, 2017, 09:26:28 AM
3 wheels = not a car.  Safety regulations do not apply.

Ya. Was just trying to be funny, but would the average cell phone addicted American car buyer want that safety/other stuff?

Quote from: shp4man on September 20, 2017, 12:20:06 PM
Ya. Was just trying to be funny, but would the average cell phone addicted American car buyer want that safety/other stuff?

Nothing about this is for the average American car buyer. You want safety/other stuff, there's actual cars for that.

The thing about going full retro like this is: you're just a poseur.

If you're going to give up the modern safety and convenience of a modern car for style, you may as well buy an actual classic.

Whats driving a trike even like anyway?  I get this thing will be low in power, but it looks like it is also incredibly narrow.  Wouldn't it tip over at even the most basic of spirited driving?

Quote from: Xer0 on September 20, 2017, 01:07:24 PM
Whats driving a trike even like anyway?  I get this thing will be low in power, but it looks like it is also incredibly narrow.  Wouldn't it tip over at even the most basic of spirited driving?

The Renault Robin was infamous for this; but reverse trikes are apparently pretty stable. Granted, most are lower than this appears to be.

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 20, 2017, 01:12:12 PM
The Renault Robin was infamous for this; but reverse trikes are apparently pretty stable. Granted, most are lower than this appears to be.

I had to look up the Robin and a flipped one was within the first 9 Google Image hits 

Can Am trikes are pretty stable. Ugly as hell, though.

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 20, 2017, 01:12:12 PM
The Renault Robin was infamous for this; but reverse trikes are apparently pretty stable. Granted, most are lower than this appears to be.

Reliant, not Renault.

Quote from: Xer0 on September 20, 2017, 01:07:24 PM
Whats driving a trike even like anyway?  I get this thing will be low in power, but it looks like it is also incredibly narrow.  Wouldn't it tip over at even the most basic of spirited driving?

A trike with one wheel in front is inherently a rollover hazard in corners because every time you turn a corner your contact patches on the front and outer rear tires establish a roll axis. Your front tire has to provide a counter-force against the car's inertia, but if the centre of gravity is large/high enough the car rolls over to the outside of the turn.

A trike with one wheel in the back generally won't have that problem with the added wheel in front. On the other hand all things being equal it will probably be more susceptible to break oversteer.

Quote from: shp4man on September 20, 2017, 01:25:53 PM
Can Am trikes are pretty stable. Ugly as hell, though.

The Can Ams also have undefeatable stability control and their power steering weights up so they are really hard to turn sharply at speed.

There's no steering column in that rendering.


Also the thin roof is worrysome, not just for safety but it comes together in a weird way that I don't think would be manufacturable.




The 2nd body shape is better anyways. Reminds me of a trike version of a DB4 crossed with a Henry J.

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 20, 2017, 12:37:32 PM
The thing about going full retro like this is: you're just a poseur.

If you're going to give up the modern safety and convenience of a modern car for style, you may as well buy an actual classic.

Weak and passé argument that holds zero merit with me. I like what I like.

Consumer Reports will test this, roll it over, and not recommend it. 

Quote from: 93JC on September 20, 2017, 01:27:48 PM
Reliant, not Renault.


A trike with one wheel in front is inherently a rollover hazard in corners because every time you turn a corner your contact patches on the front and outer rear tires establish a roll axis. Your front tire has to provide a counter-force against the car's inertia, but if the centre of gravity is large/high enough the car rolls over to the outside of the turn.

A trike with one wheel in the back generally won't have that problem with the added wheel in front. On the other hand all things being equal it will probably be more susceptible to break oversteer.

Could swear I typed Reliant. Autocorrect maybe?

Yeah, that's the ticket. I was autocorrected...

Quote from: Rockraven on September 20, 2017, 01:37:03 PM
Weak and passé argument that holds zero merit with me. I like what I like.

I kinda like it too.

But take that base price; whatever it ends up being (and $40,000 is a lot more likely than $15,000- look at the Morgan Trikes), and compare it to what sort of classic you could get for that price.

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 20, 2017, 02:25:21 PM
I kinda like it too.

But take that base price; whatever it ends up being (and $40,000 is a lot more likely than $15,000- look at the Morgan Trikes), and compare it to what sort of classic you could get for that price.

But a real classic would not be an eco-friendly EV.

Quote from: MX793 on September 20, 2017, 02:28:04 PM
But a real classic would not be an eco-friendly EV.

Even better!