What's the possibility of mounting up a side car to my F3-T.... Has anyone ever done

Printable View

05-13-2018, 03:45 AM
fatenhappy

1 Attachment(s)

What's the possibility of mounting up a side car to my F3-T.... Has anyone ever done

And no you are reading this correctly .... What's the possiblity of mounting up a side-car to my F3-T ... Anyone ever done it?

I'm a 66 year old lower left leg amputee .... love riding, always have. February just gone this year, I splashed out and bought my latest ride, a 2017 F3-T in the SE6 variant ... so all paddle shift auto - fantastic.

My wife has had MS for the passed 35 plus years.... (and in any case, being an ex nurse she is far from partial to motorcycles at all at any time ... In her words .... she has seen first hand all the damage that can come from them) ..
Despite this I have always quietly tried to coherse, poke and and gently 'push' her towards relaxing and join me on any of the bikes over the years, but always to no avail.

Taking this into account I've still always had it in the back of my mind to some how, totally include Cathy as much as possible with this current ride as well. I was 99% sure when buying 'any' traditional bike, the pillion set up even physically for her could not work.

My quandry also right now is Cathy's MS is to the stage where she cannot self support very well and is extremely tentatively of taking more than just a couple of steps at all, unsupported. So this has still been going over and over in my mind and for no particular reason, even more so of late.

Then just the other day and again for no particular reason, I thought ... I wonder if it would be possible to mount up a side car to the new Spyder ... To me this would be the perfect solution ... Previously and to tell the absolute truth, I had not even vaguely given any side car option a thought. I guess you just very rarely see them about, if at all these days.

Leading up to this revelation I now have Cathy to the stage where she would be keen to come along (so she now says) if I can find a way. To me the side car thought would be fantastic as all I need her to do would be sit in there and let the day go past and 'enjoy the ride' :joke::clap::yes::ohyea:

Anyone had any experience with this type of 'adaption' for the Spyder ...Cheers and thanks in advance
05-13-2018, 07:10 AM
fatenhappy

3 Attachment(s)

I am taking this so seriously that here are a couple of bits and pieces that say to me ... here in Australia 'the side car project' could very well be a goer .... and definitely doable ....

So I went through the workshop manual 'Chassis' area as well as had a good squiz on the net ..

IMO so far, plenty of chassis to work with and the 'proposed approximate scale dimensions also say the same ...

The maximum width for a registerable vehicle here in Queensland Australia is 2440mm or 8 feet in the old money ...

My initial current calculations put my proposal at really close to 2170mm in width .... The stock length of the F3-T is 2596 mm or 8.83ft (again in the old money) ...

I am also attaching a few of my references ...

All input yea or na as long as constructive appreciated !
05-13-2018, 07:27 AM
IGETAROUND

What's the possibility of mounting up a side car to my F3-T.... Has anyone ever done

What a great idea; but what an engineering nightmare. Can it be done; I would think yes. Should you do this; not quite as certain about that answer.

Wonderfull thought and idea; if you can pull it off Im sure your bride Cathy would enjoy getting in the wind as much as you do. Good luck on your project. Send pictures if it comes to fruition.

Al in Kazoo
05-13-2018, 08:22 AM
Grandpot

My first thought was similar to that of Fatenhappy. The two units together would be very wide, to the point of dangerously wide .
05-13-2018, 10:00 AM
BLUEKNIGHT911

WIDE

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grandpot

My first thought was similar to that of Fatenhappy. The two units together would be very wide, to the point of dangerously wide .

:hun: .....Have you seen the Polaris Slingshot .....it's wider than a Corvette !!!!!!! ......... Mike :thumbup:
05-14-2018, 04:11 AM
ofdave

Sidecar rigs involve much more than just sticking on a sidecar.
There are alignment considerations. The sidecar wheel is not lined with the rear wheel of the tug. It becomes a trike if it is. Lining it with the rear on a Spyder would make it car-like. Not saying that's bad. We who comment do not know.
Given two wheels in front to start with on a Spyder, the yawing during acceleration and deceleration will likely not be an issue.
There is a very active sidecar forum at advriders. It may be worth asking this question there to get answers based more on experience than conjecture. Or contact one of the sidecar manufacturers like Claude at Freedom Sidecars. He's active on that forum and very knowledgeable.
05-14-2018, 04:49 AM
ThreeWheels

I'm thinking the beast would be wider than a car.
Also, you'd be throwing the VSS a pile of fits.
You might get the two pieces to fit, but I can't imagine it would be safe, or even easy to drive.
It's great that you have a significant other, and it's terrific she wants to get out with you.
Have you considered any of the other alternatives ?
A slingshot, or Trex ?
An interesting new vehicle is the Vanderhall Venice. I don't know if they're available by you.
Good Luck. Let us know how you make out.
05-14-2018, 05:41 AM
fatenhappy

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThreeWheels

I'm thinking the beast would be wider than a car.
Also, you'd be throwing the VSS a pile of fits.
You might get the two pieces to fit, but I can't imagine it would be safe, or even easy to drive.
It's great that you have a significant other, and it's terrific she wants to get out with you.
Have you considered any of the other alternatives ?
A slingshot, or Trex ?
An interesting new vehicle is the Vanderhall Venice. I don't know if they're available by you.
Good Luck. Let us know how you make out.

All I can say is the golden moto ... If you don't have a go you will never know ... stay tuned ... If I stuff things up then so be it ... (but that's not going to happen either ... that's not being cocky, its just being confident)
05-14-2018, 08:58 AM
finless

Some states may not allow it as now you have 4 wheels!

Bob
05-14-2018, 09:26 AM
bscrive

Bob,

He is in Australia, but it is a good question for him. Will the laws in Australia allow you to have 4 wheels. It probably would not fall under the law for trailers, since it will carry a passenger. Something to check before you get too far into it.

Brian
05-14-2018, 09:28 AM
UtahPete

Interesting idea. Worth 'having a go' if you've got the tools and skills to make it happen. I imagine tire scrub on the sidecar on turns would be considerable, but anything can be overcome with enough time, money and determination.
05-14-2018, 01:32 PM
Aesculapius

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThreeWheels

Have you considered any of the other alternatives ?
A slingshot, or Trex ?
An interesting new vehicle is the Vanderhall Venice.

I don't know about the others, but have you ever tried getting out of a Slingshot? I'm an able bodied shy of 50 somewhat decent shaped guy and I have to basically roll out of the damned thing. I do agree that there will most likely be some nanny issues to sort through once the nuts and bolts are put together. Yaw effects should be less than the conventional setups on the two wheelers, but then you are looking at four different wheel tracks.

I like the Vanderhall suggestion...Do they come with an automatic?
05-14-2018, 01:54 PM
ofdave

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aesculapius

I like the Vanderhall suggestion...Do they come with an automatic?

visit their website and get all the answers
https://vanderhallusa.com/
05-14-2018, 02:58 PM
Aesculapius

Quote:

Originally Posted by ofdave

visit their website and get all the answers
https://vanderhallusa.com/

Thank you for the suggestion, never would have thought of that myself. They're all automatics BTW.
Slingshots are 5 speed manuals.
And the Trex uses a BMW sequential 6 speed manual, while the V13R uses a Harley 5 speed.
05-14-2018, 04:54 PM
Spyder 42

Speaking of AdvRider.com; there’s a BMW R1100RS and Ural tub done in a Claude Stanley frame for not much money. The BMW is set up more like a tour bike and the Ural tub has a side pass through. Might be cheaper, in the long run, to buy a used rig. If it doesn’t work out, sell the rig and you still have the Spyder. Alter the Spyder and you pay a second time to undo the sidecar.

http://advrider.com/index.php?thread...#post-35019711
05-14-2018, 10:14 PM
NautiBrit

Have you considered a trailer rather than a hack? The engineering would be much simpler and width would not be an issue.
05-14-2018, 11:49 PM
BLUEKNIGHT911

Side car vs. Trailer

Quote:

Originally Posted by NautiBrit

Have you considered a trailer rather than a hack? The engineering would be much simpler and width would not be an issue.

:hun: .....Did you miss the part about " for His wife " .............. it would be illegal even if She would agree :lecturef_smilie::lecturef_smilie:.....Mike :thumbup:
05-15-2018, 05:48 AM
OlJim

Not to change the subject......

Quote:

Originally Posted by NautiBrit

Have you considered a trailer rather than a hack? The engineering would be much simpler and width would not be an issue.

Say this in Quartzsite Az. at the big RV show they have every Spring.
https://scontent.fsea1-1.fna.fbcdn.n...U5MDAifQ%3D%3D
05-15-2018, 11:57 PM
NautiBrit

Quote:

Originally Posted by BLUEKNIGHT911

:hun: .....Did you miss the part about " for His wife " .............. it would be illegal even if She would agree :lecturef_smilie::lecturef_smilie:.....Mike :thumbup:

Try googling "passenger trailer" and apply a little vision. It's not a difficult concept to grasp.
05-16-2018, 12:09 AM
UtahPete

Quote:

Originally Posted by OlJim

Say this in Quartzsite Az. at the big RV show they have every Spring.
https://scontent.fsea1-1.fna.fbcdn.n...U5MDAifQ%3D%3D

Where there's a will there's a way!
05-17-2018, 06:00 PM
oldgoat

I would most definitely consult with the registering authorities before starting your admirable project.
11-24-2018, 07:20 AM
fatenhappy

Definitely no adventurism or constructive analysis found here … yet again !
11-24-2018, 08:13 AM
JKMSPYDER

I don’t think anyone is trying to discourage you. They are just asking to check with the local traffic laws in your state and with some of the manufacturers that make sidecars. You would hate to get well into this with time and money and then find out it is illegal or mechanically difficult.
11-24-2018, 03:04 PM
ARtraveler

Quote:

Originally Posted by fatenhappy

Definitely no adventurism or constructive analysis found here … yet again !

I would not let that stop me if I really wanted to try it. You have read some advice from some very good mechanical people. Most of the advice worth thinking about. They also laughed at Tesla and Edison. The early electric guys. Not the new car.

And, it looks like you know a lot about the subject. :yes:
04-23-2019, 10:26 PM
Fat Baxter

I would imagine the front wheel in front of the sidecar would kick up a lot of crap. Riding in the rain would be interesting for the sidecar monkey. You might have to get creative with some sort of mudflap or other debris mitigation.