Sounds interesting, but I wonder if I'll be able to afford one if they ever make it to market?
Motorcycle.com - Kawasaki developing leaning 3-wheeler - possible Slingshot competitor?
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Sounds interesting, but I wonder if I'll be able to afford one if they ever make it to market?
It is an interesting concept, just not sure how practical that would be and really what real benefit it would have in the real world. It would be fun though
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Not a lot of meat in that article but it looks interesting. I think the leaning action could appeal to motorcyclists who are used to leaning to corner whether it assists the turn or not. As the owner of a 1985 Kawasaki GPz750, I've always been impressed with Kawasaki engineering. In 1985 they had a mono-shock swingarm, inline 4-cyl with 4 carbs, a 4 into 2 header with crossover, and other technology that was ahead of it's time for many years. The body styling could make this an awesome vehicle or a dud. I'm interested to see what and if they come up with.
BKL you bring us a lot of interesting stuff. Thank you again, sir!
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Looks to be a rear engine design (25 in the drawings) I wonder if they are planning on using a motorcycle engine
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Assuming it ever gets produced, I wonder who will be the first to drop a Heyabusa engine in it?
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Just watching the advert...I can't see it WORKING with geometry?
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Assuming it ever gets produced, I wonder who will be the first to drop a Heyabusa engine in it?
Why would you do that instead of using a "Kawasaki ZX-14" drive train which is a 1441cc power plant to start?
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If it powers a bike to over 200 mph in stock trim, I'm sure this one would be a hell of a lot of fun riding even if it did slow down to about 175 mph
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If it powers a bike to over 200 mph in stock trim, I'm sure this one would be a hell of a lot of fun riding even if it did slow down to about 175 mph
A well known Kawasaki Land Speed Racer told me it takes 200hp on a ZX-14 or similar bike to pull a 200lb rider 200mph in a measured mile. Not sure how much the 3 wheeler will weigh compared to a ZX-14 or similar bike but 200hp should move it along quite well.
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It is an interesting concept, just not sure how practical that would be and really what real benefit it would have in the real world. It would be fun though
fun might be what it is most about - with the front tires staying vertical and only the cabin/riders and rear tire leaning it would probably feel like going around corners on a roller coaster does for the occupants but I suspect it would not have much impact of the actual cornering ability of the vehicle in fact with the back tire leaning it might actually have less traction than it would if it stayed flat to the ground
now, having said that if all it does is make the ride more fun that isn't necessarily a bad thing after all the fun factor is one of the main reasons we like our toys
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A well known Kawasaki Land Speed Racer told me it takes 200hp on a ZX-14 or similar bike to pull a 200lb rider 200mph in a measured mile. Not sure how much the 3 wheeler will weigh compared to a ZX-14 or similar bike but 200hp should move it along quite well.
As we all know from the top speed attempts people here have made in the Slingshot the aerodynamics can have a huge impact on speed - the top speed of this thing if they ever make it will probably depend a great deal on the body work the wrap it in
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This is the leaning 3-wheeler I wanted , but I bought the Slingshot after these guys (http://www.flytheroad.com) never made it to market. They licensed the leaning technology from Carver in the Netherlands, but Carver ended up being sued over safety of the leaning tech which may have also been at least part of the reason the Persu Mobility V3 never made it to market.
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This is the leaning 3-wheeler I wanted , but I bought the Slingshot after these guys (http://www.flytheroad.com) never made it to market. They licensed the leaning technology from Carver in the Netherlands, but Carver ended up being sued over safety of the leaning tech which may have also been at least part of the reason the Persu Mobility V3 never made it to market.
thats a fascinating looking concept, but really don't care for the fact that its a closed cockpit - to me the number 1 thing about the Slingshot or for that matter motorcycles in general that I absolutely love is the openness, the connection I feel with everything around me - heck even a convertible cant give that same feeling
Dont get me wrong, I love seeing the technology and would love to drive all of the exotic super cars, but as fantastic as they might be it will never be able to fill that love I have for riding in my Sling
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I would have given my left testicle to have the chance to ride this bike just once before I die. (Truth be told, I'd probably give em both)
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I would have given my left testicle to have the chance to ride this bike just once before I die. (Truth be told, I'd probably give em both)
just looked it up - - they say no one ever drove it above 100 mph
"Dodge press releases and spokespeople gave various hypothetical top speeds ranging from 300 mph (480 km/h) to as high as 420 mph (680 km/h), which analysts thought were probably calculated with only horsepower and final drive ratio alone, without accounting for drag, rolling resistance, and stability. These estimates, and the more conservative 250 mph (400 km/h) a designer suggested could be possible, were debunked as implausible, or physically impossible, by the motorcycling and automotive media. No independent road tests of the Tomahawk have ever been published, and the company said that in internal testing it was never ridden above 100 mph (160 km/h). Hand-built replicas of the Tomahawk were offered for sale through the Neiman Marcus catalog at a price of US$555,000, and up to nine might have sold. As they were not street legal, Dodge called the Tomahawk a "rolling sculpture", not intended to be ridden."
frankly I would keep the nuts if I were you
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It's not a Kawasaki, or even a three wheeler, but this BMW lady sure can ride
https://www.tampabay.com/news/…i-275-chase-troopers-say/
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the fact that Kawasaki is even considering this must mean they think polaris was on to something. Do they consider the slingshot market worth going after? You would think this would give polaris some confidence in moving forward.