Springtime is great for seeing unexpected CCs! My first thought pulling up to the pump was ‘oh yaay, another molested VW’, but why was the muffler so different? Why the galvanized metal? Was it a trike made from a Type 3 with the flat engine?
Then I saw the rest of the car and it dawned on me. Someone made a trike out of a Pontiac Fiero! I was hoping for a shot of the rest of the trike and my patience was rewarded!
I was trying to figure out what was going on here mechanically, so I stuck ‘Fiero trike’ into some search engines. Somehow turning Fieros into trikes is practically a movement.
Well, why not? Fieros are worth a lot less than air cooled VWs these days and I don’t think too many will decry this sacrifice.
Personally I’d rather just drive a convertible, but since these folks do not appear to be ATGATT enthusiasts that would help with the inconvenience factor.
Paul posted on these a few years back, but I’ve never seen one in the flesh. Looks like you bagged a rare find!
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/a-gallery-of-fiero-trikes/
As a motorcyclist and Fiero enthusiast, I’m shocked and appaled, a vehicle that’s so much less than the sum of the parts.
I’ve never liked trikes, a motorcycle with training wheels is sacrilege, although vintage sidecar combinations get a pass.
I don’t want to be pass judgment on the enthusiasm of others, and I admire the ingenuity involved but don’t ask me to get enthusiastic about this travesty.
I remember back in the late ’60’s/early 70’s, when VW “Chopper” trikes were the rage. The old Harley Servi Car made a better looking example, but they were woefully under powered. As a motorcycle rider of almost forty years, I could never see the appeal of a trike, the act of leaning into a curve is the essence of the appeal of a motorcycle. As convertible fan of the last ten years, I derive enough “wind in the face” enjoyment while still being comfortable. It seems that a trike of any kind misses on both marks. Although I suppose your bike riding friends wouldn’t let you ride in the pack with your Miata!
What’s worse is the reverse trike. I got a ( mercifully] short ride on the back of one and the constant sideways jolting was painful. And, yeah, there is no leaning in and the joy of carving is just not there. Just get a Miata if you want the wind in your face. Nice recycling of a Fiero though!
Seems like the Polaris Slingshot is about as good as it’s going to get in that regard.
At one point, I owned both a Kawasaki Vulcan and a Tracker with the soft top that could either be removed or the front unlatched and folded back. I found I preferred the Tracker more and more. I liked not having the wind beat on me for hours & being more visible to distracted drivers. The cruiser wasn’t much of a corner carver, but cruisers are the only bikes I can put both feet on the ground with.
There’s a Corvair trike about an hour from us that we passed on our trips back and forth as we moved last year.
Then there’s this, that showed up this morning on a tractor forum I’m on…
Wow, they’re livin’ large!
Must be a Deere thing.
Seeing the back of the Fiero within this context, with the wheels of the three-wheeler sticking out on either side, drives home just how diminutive they were.
Reminds me of this thing I saw once
Is there a simple guide to the legality of this sort of conversion? What standards and inspections are applicable?
Good question. My guess is a Fiero since that’s the only VIN. OTOH, maybe it’s possible to register a homebuilt motorcycle without a VIN.
So long as the DMV gets a VIN from ‘something’…