Part 4: Design Goals1. All new parts besides donor motorcycle
2. Ground Clearance for daily driving
3. Side-by-side seating for two
4. Roomy cockpit for large drivers, comfort, and adjustable seats (no contortions required)
5. Windshield
6. Wide track and extended wheelbase for stability, at the same time keeping the dimensions as compact as possible.
7. Simple bodywork
8. Locost - no custom machining, race parts, aluminum/carbon fiber etc.
9. Enclosed cockpit for safety and ability to add top/curtains
10. Use as many donor motorcycle parts as possible, keeping complete frame/drivetrain.
11. Front Cycle Fenders
12. All street legal requirements for a motorcycle (lights, fenders, etc.)
13. Good looks while achieving all other design criteria
14. Wet weight below 1450 lbs (145hp)
Here's what the sketchup design looked like:
I later modified the front and some other aspects to this:
As you can see, the final product turned out very close to my designs. Some may argue that it doesn't really meet #13, but you should have seen some of the earlier designs
. It either looked like a helicopter, a pickup truck, or a motorcycle with a car tacked on to the front of it. All of these I wanted desperately to avoid. Everything else has been achieved, although I have not yet added the windshield or top, and I still haven't weighed it. In my opinion, it does look better in person than any pictures I have been able to take of it so far.
Weight distribution was as far forward as possible, without putting the passengers on top of the front suspension. The wheelbase was determined simply by the packaging and constraints of the components, including the radiator and underfloor cooling intake in the center of the vehicle.
Most of all, it had to be something I could finish. An ambitious project, to be sure, but not too amibitious that time and money would run out before it could be completed. Initially, it was to be done last summer, but of course you know how those things go.
On the Locost front, it certainly fits the bill. No, I haven't added it all up yet, but I do have a stack of receipts. Nothing on the car/bike/trike (how will I be referring to it?) was over $300, including the donor motorcycle after I sold all of the excess parts.
Comments welcome. Next up, Tools and Materials...