The trike (motorcycle) continued

[phat46]

just another idea, remember the OLD first Honda cars? They were 600 CC's. Were they air cooled? Probably not automatic though....Anyone ever used a snowmobile type "transmission" on something like this?

[GPster]

just another idea, remember the OLD first Honda cars? They were 600 CC's. Were they air cooled? Probably not automatic though....Anyone ever used a snowmobile type "transmission" on something like this?

Oh goody! some more ideas. I'll check some of that out but my first concern would be that maybe snowmobiles don't have reverse. My latest instinct was to go with the GEO/Suzuki line and find a junked out Suzuki motorcycle for the front end and frame neck with numbers (and title) and go at it as a motorcycle converted to 3 wheels instead of a car with no body no numbers and not enough wheels. I could go this way with Honda also but I don't know of engine sizes and FWD automatics. I am checking these ideas against our local shopper for availability because if any of this becomes a reality I don't want to get into bidding wars and shipping and waiting. Just looking for ideas of stuff to think about and look at and see if I want to make it work. GPster

[unklian]

Usually,anything less than 4 wheels is considered a bike for licensing.

The air cooled VWs are pretty simple for making a trike,
and they did make some sort of automatic transmissions.
Some Bugs came with what they called "Autostick" and some
of the later Vanagons had automatics.

With the IRS,you could move the rear wheels back a little,to improve weight distribution.OR maybe switch to mid engined like on the 914.
The longer wheelbase would be more stable.
On the regular transmissions,it's easy enough to flip the ring gear to convert to mid engine.No idea if the automatics are the same.Someone on the Transaxle forum on shoptalkforums.com would know.

[GPster]

Usually,anything less than 4 wheels is considered a bike for licensing.Some Bugs came with what they called "Autostick" and some
of the later Vanagons had automatics.With the IRS,you could move the rear wheels back a little,to improve weight distribution.OR maybe switch to mid engined like on the 914.The longer wheelbase would be more stable.On the regular transmissions,it's easy enough to flip the ring gear to convert to mid engine.No idea if the automatics are the same.Someone on the Transaxle forum on shoptalkforums.com would know.

In Ohio there is a 2 wheel and a 3 wheel motorcycle license. The VW bugs that I'm aware of with automatic transmissions had  systme similar to the OLD Chrysler deal where there was still a clutc pedal for starting up but it allowed you to shift gears by just moving the lever from low range to high range. I don't remember the years of the rear end break-off but I think Only the early ones with the swing axels and the bells for the axel housings could you change the ring gear and the automatics might have been newer than that. For a handicapped rider I wouldn't want her to have to take her hands off the handle bars while moving to shift. GPster

[58 Yeoman]

The VW 'semi-automatic' transmissions came out in in '68, and I believe that they had the double jointed axles, if not in 68, then in 69 for sure.  The semi was a stick transaxle with one gear missing, I think first, so it was a 3 speed.  It still had a clutch, but also a torque converter, but there wasn't a clutch pedal.  Put your foot on the brake, and when you touched the gear shift lever, a microswitch disengaged the clutch, so you could put it into any of the three gears; you didn't have to start out in first.  You had to let go of the lever for the car to move; many people couldn't break the habit of letting the lever go, so the car wouldn't move.

If I remember correctly, there was also a vacuum canister which would operate a servo the disengage the clutch.  Kind of a complicated little deal, but I would imagine that you could flip the ring gear on the trans, as it was still a 'manual' inside.  I never got into the transaxles, manual or auto.

[GPster]

The VW 'semi-automatic' transmissions came out in in '68, and I believe that they had the double jointed axles, if not in 68, then in 69 for sure.  

That's the indicater that the ring gear can't be flopped. GPster

[phat46]

I had a Type 4 that was fully auto, and fuel injected too. It had the pancake, or suitcase type moter.  Funny story about that car, I guy I worked with drove it for a while then said it wouldn't start. I was into sandrails at the time so i bought the Type 4 and a bus (for the trans) from him for $100. the bus had a rod through the case and the type 4 wouldn't start. I dragged them home with the intentions of stripping them for parts. I was messing with the Type 4 and noticed that the gas gauge was on empty, yup you guessed it, i added a gallon of gas and it fired right up, sold it for $250, and the bus for $200!!!!  

[GPster]

Had a chance to look quickly at a GEO Metro today and it appears that the transmission (automatic) was behind the engine and the differential was beside this. This seems to make a long (wide in transverse) package and I thought most transverse packages had the engine with the transmission beside it and the differential beside the transmission. Give me an idea where I can get educated on the difference and what cute little names are used to distinguish between them. My basic idea of narrowing the tread width by using shorter axels would be shot  with the power train being as long (wide) as this one appeared to be. GPster

[DRD57]

re: snowmobiles and no reverse.

2 stroke golf carts can go forward or backward with no reverse. Basically, you turn off the engine then start it back up in the opposite rotation and the vehicle goes backwards.

My brother had a golf cart that he was going to hot rod with a snowmobile engine swap. Sadly it was traded for something else and never got completed.

[Arnold]

re: snowmobiles and no reverse.

2 stroke golf carts can go forward or backward with no reverse. Basically, you turn off the engine then start it back up in the opposite rotation and the vehicle goes backwards.

My brother had a golf cart that he was going to hot rod with a snowmobile engine swap. Sadly it was traded for something else and never got completed.

There were Mercury Outboards in the early 60's..6 cylinder..Mark 75? comes to mind that ran forwards and backwards.Start them in reverse too.

[GPster]

I wonder if an instruction manual at Jiffy Lube or Wal Mart has pictures of the drivetrain from the bottom showing where the drain plugs and filters are? if I could see a book like that it might give me some ideas. My neighbor has a little mechanics' shop in his garage But I'd need to be nosey everyday and see what he's working on. I'm not above (below) checking underneath cars in parking lots but I would at least like to have some aim. GPster

[phat46]

They do make snowmobiles with reverse, some of the big "touring" two up models, but you're unlikely to find a used/wrecked one, they are ridden more "sedately" than the one up sport models.  

[purplepickup]

There's lots of snowmobiles and ATV's with reverse and a snowmobile clutch and tranny could easily be adapted to any small engine that could drive the belt.  There's quite a few reverse add-on units for sale pretty cheap too.     Here's one on ebay for less than $12 right now.  

There's an ATV salvage yard just a few miles north of here.  I'm sure there's others around.  With a little scrounging I'll bet you could find some parts to build a trike at one of those places.

[GPster]

Well the girl was in our dinner group again tonight and nothing was mentioned. Maybe I'm more anxious to have answers than she is to have questions. I'll keep looking but my thought is she might want something a little more road worthy tha a golf cart or a wheeled snowmobile but I've been wrong before. GPster

[Crosley.In.AZ]

Boss Hoss builds trikes. They have automatic trannys in them.