We just featured the Piaggio Ape the other day, but this is vintage Italian three-wheeler posted at the Cohort by monteverde3 cannot be denied. Noe that’s what I really need to haul a load of compost for the garden. I could probbaly squeeze right through the garden gate with it. I suspect that this trike-truck has a lot of experience with that sort of thing. Here’s a more detailed description:
This Moto Guzzi, a company more famous for its bikes, was featured at hemmings.com a few years back, so I’ll lift the description from there, as monteverdi3 didn’t offer one at the Cohort:
It’s powered by an almost horizontal 500 c.c. single cylinder thumper with a five speed plus reverse transmission shifted in a conventional “H” pattern, not sequentially, like most motorcycles. Ignition is by magneto, with a generator/battery arrangement for horn and lights. Ercole is Italian for Hercules and the nearly one ton load capacity (830 kg/1826 lbs.) might to live up to the name. The body dumps, hydraulically.
The accessory cab, made by a company called Ariasi, comes complete with full doors and a roll back fabric top insert. Does this qualify it as carrozzeria coachbuilt ?
It’s just shy of being street legal with some minor wiring glitches to work out. Will plans to use it for occasional errands to town when weather permits.
I did a post on a 1951 Moto Guzzi 500cc Falcone, so I’m going to bet that the engine and transmission are the same. 
So it probably looks like this, more or less. A shame to cover up such a piece of visual art, but here it is exposed.
More: 1951 Moto Guzzi Falcone 500
Another indication that the modern American pickup truck is an absolutely ludicrous piece of kit for 98% of daily use.
+1 this is so genius…
The engine from Falcone is only partial used in the Ercole.
The difference is the gearbox, the Ercole uses a seperat gearbox.
Quite a different engine set up.
Amen to that! My ’83 Ford Ranger 4X4, with swapped in 302, C4 trans and 9″ rear end with disc brakes, is as big as a half ton should be. And it handles everything I throw at it with flying colors. Today’s full size trucks are a joke, surprised a CDL isn’t required.
Actually, to max out a RAM 3500 dually, you do need a Class-A CDL.
I could see these working around the farm nicely, but for going down the road with a passenger at 65 MPH, I think I’ll keep my Chevrolet.
You’re right on that score, matador. As cool as this trike is, it’s all done at about 30 m.p.h. It’s geared incredibly low to help that thumper deal with the nearly one ton maximum load rating (830 kg/1826 lbs.)
And although it may be slow when compared to a modern pickup, it’s positively supersonic compared to a horse and wagon. 😉
Absolutely. Yes, it can haul more than my 1987 Chevrolet can. But, which would I rather be in all day? Which will do better in an accident? Which one can haul 1000# at 75MPH?
I think it’s neat for what it is- compared to a horse, I’d take one of these in a heatbeat. But, I’d like to see something that’s more capable. I really liked that Isuzu 3-Wheeler shown yesterday.
I don’t know how it would be to operate, but it sure looks neat!
I understand what you’re saying – the new F-150s tower over my 45 year old F-250 – but don’t we all have some things just because we want them? Who among us is willing to part with every non-essential thing in his life?
“Our basest beggars are in the poorest thing superfluous.”
I get the cliche that modern trucks are a bloated caricature of supposed real trucks, blah, blah, blah, get off my lawn, but seriously, does this look like a reasonable alternative for any first world country in 2015? You must be joking
Oh, it’s certainly not–but it’s just interesting to consider that a three-wheeled vehicle, probably weighing less than 1000 lb total and with a 500 cc single-cylinder engine, has a higher load rating than many modern trucks, weighing 5 times as much, with a V8 of over 10 times the displacement.
Stuff-carrying, distilled.
I wonder whether taxation/regulations drove the use of three wheels and small displacement… it’s been covered numerous times here at CC, that’s what this looks like to me. Vehicles in NA would look pretty different were we under similar constraints.
I remember being totally blown away when I realized my VW bus had a 1 ton cargo rating!
It’s not only taxation/regulations. Italian farmers use a Fiat Panda 4×4 to climb steep and slippery slopes with tight corners. Because those are the most ideal vehicles for them in that specific setting.
Personally a big V8 engine combined with a wheelbarrow kind of payload blows me away.
It was an interesting idea and elegantly in-tune with its environment and the users there. It is still silly to compare it with a truck that needs to be able to operate on US highways and interstates safely.
Here is the modern equivalent that it should be compared with.
https://www.deere.com/en_US/products/equipment/gator_utility_vehicles/traditional_utility_vehicles/t_series/tx_4x2/tx4x2.page?
Your absolutely right about the Guzzi-motor, Paul. Here’s a shot of the one in my friend’s Ercole. Nowhere near as pretty as the one you featured but it runs great.
Incidentally, the racket inside the cab when this thing is running is absolutely mind numbing. Ear plugs or other hearing protection is a necessity! And thanks for picking my photo for a Cohort Outtake.
P.S. It’s completely street legal now.
Though this clearly isn’t a stand-and-drive vehicle, it leads to a thought … Why didn’t someone like Divco think of using motorcycle controls? You could do without pedals entirely.
The ground-level cab in this machine would be especially easy to step out of when carrying milk bottles or packages, and there would be room for a sort of desk in the front part of the cab. Ideal for a route business.
For years I’ve had a small truck (that has grown) and a car. This would do most of the truck stuff it would be parked right now with all this wet weather. Have gone to 4wd for a reason. Love it.
This is cool. I can only imagine the sound of that single fat cylinder pounding as it struggles to get a one ton load underway. Awesome!
The configuration – if not the manufacturer – was very popular in Israel until the 70s. Most were coverted BSAs like the one below.
Or like this (pic by Shoshana Simon)…
_SWEET_ ! .
More pix & comments please .
-Nate
Shaft driven DOHC like Hispano/Wolseley engines of yore, I like it. Would it carry 54 bins of apples like my current ride? No but perfect for small jobs.
I saw a lot of these types of trucks when we were in Greece during the late 60s. I imagine they’re cheaper to license and operate. We were camping along the sea, and we’d hear a lot of these trucks during the day. They sounded like a bunch of bees.
This guy gives a nice rundown of a newer, cabin-less example.
Very cool, M.B. The cab was, indeed, an option. The one on my buddy’s rig was made by a company called Ariasi. Does that make it a coach built Ercole? 😉
Anthony Quinn’s Ercole from “La Strada”, the movie that was mentioned in this video……
The Moto Guzzi V-Twin engine they’ve used in the bikes since 1966, was initially developed to be installed in these 3 wheelers. 700cc, so they had a little more poke than the 500.
These do make a lot more sense for most users; 6,000 lb trucks to haul 200 lbs of passenger is a bit much…
“IJzeren Hond”, an Iron Dog. The generic term for this kind of motor-trucks. My parents remember them very well from the post-war years.
That must be the Ercole Super Lusso version with that fancy full cab. Guzzi made a number of utility trikes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moto_Guzzi_Triporteurs including the famous military 3×3 from the 60s powered by the ancestor of the modern Moto Guzzi V-Twin
“Autoveicolo da Montagna 3 X 3.” Holy Cow! That one bizarre contraption. Makes the Ercole seem conventional in comparison.
Italy is famous for its sleek, low slung and powerful cars, right?
No. Italy is famous for designing, engineering and building the widest range of motorized equipment and vehicles on earth.
Imagine crashing that! Better yet….don’t imagine it.
A John Deer mule does much the same job. Or if you want some real utility go for a Bobcat with trailer. You could load it then haul it with out breaking a sweat!