Trike vs Sidecar
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Grand HDF Member
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 3,870
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From: Alberta
Trike vs Sidecar
Given the same motor, how do you figure a trike would perform compared to an FLH with a sidecar? I understand the skill set to operate a sidecar is obviously far more than to operate a trike, but for actual performance of the vehicle how would they compare? Anyone here ridden a late-model combo any amount of miles?
Tourer
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 460
Likes: 20
From: Manitoba, Canada
I have been riding an FXD with a hack for the past 2 years - haven't ridden a trike - out of my price range and I wanted it for my dog so I'd rather have her beside me.
I think a trike would be an easier ride. With a sidecar you have to hold 'opposite pressure' most of the time to stop the bike from turning toward the sidecar, even if the sidecar is properly set up. (Everything depends on the slope of the road and the direction of the wind.)
Turning away from the sidecar, you can out-corner a trike but turning toward the hack, you have to be careful or you become a 2-wheeler again
I like my hack because I have so much storage space - more than the trunk of a full-sized car. The down-side is that your riding buddies will always be asking if you can throw 'this' or 'that' in your sidecar for them.
I think a trike would be an easier ride. With a sidecar you have to hold 'opposite pressure' most of the time to stop the bike from turning toward the sidecar, even if the sidecar is properly set up. (Everything depends on the slope of the road and the direction of the wind.)
Turning away from the sidecar, you can out-corner a trike but turning toward the hack, you have to be careful or you become a 2-wheeler again
I like my hack because I have so much storage space - more than the trunk of a full-sized car. The down-side is that your riding buddies will always be asking if you can throw 'this' or 'that' in your sidecar for them.
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 2,960
Likes: 1,993
From: CA
I've put a lot of miles on bikes with sidecars, and a few on a trike.
Both have their pros and cons. A trike will handle the same in left and right turns, but with a sidecar the handling is different between lefts and rights. Braking and accelerating are different too. I think a trike would be faster on a twisty road if pushed to the limits, but an experienced rider on a hack might be close.
As for needing to hold "opposite pressure", a number of sidecar companies (but not HD) offer electric camber control you can adjust on the fly, making it easy to hold the rig straight on cambered roads.
When it comes to cargo capacity, there's no comparison, sidecar wins by a lot.
Both have their pros and cons. A trike will handle the same in left and right turns, but with a sidecar the handling is different between lefts and rights. Braking and accelerating are different too. I think a trike would be faster on a twisty road if pushed to the limits, but an experienced rider on a hack might be close.
As for needing to hold "opposite pressure", a number of sidecar companies (but not HD) offer electric camber control you can adjust on the fly, making it easy to hold the rig straight on cambered roads.
When it comes to cargo capacity, there's no comparison, sidecar wins by a lot.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 27,097
Likes: 4,676
From: Frozelandia, Minnysota
A trike is going to have overall better performance than a sidecar rig if horsepower is similar, regardless of bike age. I haven't tried to keep up with one, but a good trike rider can outrun a Touring Harley in twisties (the two wheeler hits it's lean limit and grinds metal, not an issue with a trike), and a sidecar rig would never keep up with the 2 wheeler, rider skills being equal. If you want to know more about sidecar performance, Kevin (DK Custom) is real knowledgeable.
Sidecars hold more of course, are safer I think for small children (I put a seat belt in mine for my grandson when he was 5), and depending on the model, can be a more comfortable ride for the passenger, though their visibility is limited on the driver's side. On the negative side, they get worse gas mileage - not the weight, they have a lot more wind resistance - and on some a sidecar windshield can divert air and rain at the driver. Trikes and hacks will both build shoulder muscles on winding roads.
At some cornering speed turning away from the sidecar, G forces will lift the drive wheel, and it can turn turtle forwards, most unpleasant for the driver, and worse for the monkey, if one is riding in the car. Some hacks will do this before they keep up with a trike. Also, if you like doing donuts, obviously that doesn't work well turning into the hack, but again, spinning too fast away from the hack, it'll flip over the car forwards. I almost found that out the hard way playing in snow... They might be more stable in turns from the car if the hack wheel was midships to the bike, but they're always set farther back closer the rear wheel. Put a lot of pressure against the hack side, and they rotate over the longer axis, between the front and side wheels. You don't want to do that.
Sidecars hold more of course, are safer I think for small children (I put a seat belt in mine for my grandson when he was 5), and depending on the model, can be a more comfortable ride for the passenger, though their visibility is limited on the driver's side. On the negative side, they get worse gas mileage - not the weight, they have a lot more wind resistance - and on some a sidecar windshield can divert air and rain at the driver. Trikes and hacks will both build shoulder muscles on winding roads.
At some cornering speed turning away from the sidecar, G forces will lift the drive wheel, and it can turn turtle forwards, most unpleasant for the driver, and worse for the monkey, if one is riding in the car. Some hacks will do this before they keep up with a trike. Also, if you like doing donuts, obviously that doesn't work well turning into the hack, but again, spinning too fast away from the hack, it'll flip over the car forwards. I almost found that out the hard way playing in snow... They might be more stable in turns from the car if the hack wheel was midships to the bike, but they're always set farther back closer the rear wheel. Put a lot of pressure against the hack side, and they rotate over the longer axis, between the front and side wheels. You don't want to do that.
Road Warrior
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 1,806
Likes: 13
From: Texas Hill Country
Road a sidecar rig for several years. Now riding a trike. I would never go back to a sidecar rig. They have made good changes to trikes as far as handling goes. True, not near the storage space, but the other benefits make up for it. Worst problem with the sidecar rig is the short life of the rear tire. 5,000 mile and it was gone. Hard to take a long trip like I do without having to replace it. Had to get one in New Mexico, and the dealer didn't know how to take the sidecar off to change the tire. I had to show them how it was done. LOL
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