Top 5 Craziest Custom 3-Wheelers
For a majority of the world, the OEM 3-wheeler waved goodbye in 1988. In the years since, countless custom efforts have been created by talented builders the world over.
However, we can only marvel at the trend of converting a super sport street bike (commonly referred to as a crotch rocket) into a 3-wheeler!
The logic here is that the wide open spaces of the desert are conducive to the high horsepower output of a multi-cylinder race-tuned street bike.
What some of these things must handle like is beyond us but we’re here to pass along some of the insanity.
#5) Kawasaki Ninja 900:
We dig the knobbies all around and the clean lines of this build. It’s just a darn good thing the builder had the presence of mind to extend that swingarm as he did; it doesn’t take much imagination to picture it being tricky to keep the front-end on the ground.
# 4) Yamaha FZ1
Again a great color scheme and an extended swingarm to keep the machine from flipping onto its back a smart design choice- the perfection of its stance is proof of a lot of hours machining.
# 3) Honda CBR
We have to confess the black and white tones of this one are undeniably attractive. Add to this that black aluminum Honda frame and those meaty rear paddles and this one must be a very interesting sand shredder indeed.
# 2) Yamaha YZF R1
Sure the 1000cc Yamaha R1 is a pretty insane starting point for any build (much less one on 3-wheels), what makes us wonder about the sanity of the operator of this one is that front end. The paddles in the rear and extended swingarm hint of sand duning but the front looks to remain stock- including the rider-forward positioning demanded on the World Superbike Racing circuit. How this things corners in the sand, we can’t even venture a guess.
# 1) Almost Stocker
What makes this build our # 1 choice for the craziest of these converted crotch rockets is the geometry. While the other entries on this list boast widened stances and extremely lengthened swingarms for maximum stability, this ripper almost looks like it could have been a stock trike circa 1987. Full knobbies and a stretched out stance to reach the bars over that hulking gas tank make us think saddling up on this machine to ride some trails should include liability wavers and proof of health insurance.