A Low-Cost Three Wheeler Design Concept Kit

[fuoriserie]

I've been wondering for a while if the Velorex Oskar is a good starting point for a real Concept Low Cost Three wheeler Kit Design or not....
Link to Velorex info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velorex
http://www.microcarmuseum.com/tour/velorex.html
http://www.erik.gjermundsen.net/Velorex.htm

It has a steel tube chassis and a cloth body and it uses small capacity engines, from 200 to 300cc engines, maybe not feasable today, but good enough at the time.

If you update the Concept and design a modern version of the Velorex, this new project would come close to my idea and uses a Honda CX 500cc engine :

https://www.flickr.com/photos/7965618@N08/sets/721...

I can see something with a single or twin or three cylinder motorcycle engine...

What do you all think ? I like the idea of a lightweight textile body over a steel tube chassis...

[Stuart Mills]

Imagine the use of ;
http://www.tensilefabric.co.uk/

[dom9]

I haven't checked out those links in detail but would teh fabric be much lighter or cheaper than say single ply carbon?

I like this concept a lot... We need more nippy, frugal commuter cars! It's not like I take people/ luggage to work everyday!

If I can get my dog in the pax seat then I am all good

[fuoriserie]

Stuart Mills said:

Imagine the use of ;
http://www.tensilefabric.co.uk/

Thank you for the link...

[ugg10]

Why not just get rid if the steel frame and make a composite sandwich monocoque. This does not have to be expensive if you use woven fibreglass cloth and structure poyeurathane foam, optimising the number of layers and orientation of the skins is the trick.

There was an attempt to make a seven chassis like this by a couple of boat builders (sculptural engineering I think, also built the larini which became the gtm ballista, one of my favourite kit cars shame it did not do too well), this was also used in a formula student chassis as well. This is standard boat building techniques and great for low power cars.

[fuoriserie]

dom9 said:

I haven't checked out those links in detail but would teh fabric be much lighter or cheaper than say single ply carbon?

I like this concept a lot... We need more nippy, frugal commuter cars! It's not like I take people/ luggage to work everyday!

If I can get my dog in the pax seat then I am all good

I have no idea if single ply carbon is cheaper, but maybe someone knows more about it and will post some info for us.

A nyppy and fun frugal commuter is a nice idea....

[fuoriserie]

http://specialtyfabricsreview.com/articles/0808_sw...

The BMW GINA Concept Car Fabric.

A similar fabric:

http://www.asahi-kasei.co.jp/fibers/en/roica/index...

Edited by fuoriserie on Thursday 3rd July 22:26

[fuoriserie]

http://www.materialconnexion.com/Portals/0/PDFs/ca...

The company that supplied the fabric to BMW for the Gina Concept Car.


http://www.materialconnexion.com/Home/Work/tabid/7...

[fuoriserie]

http://flickrhivemind.net/Tags/microcars,threewhee...

Some interesting retro designs...

[fuoriserie]

ugg10 said:

Why not just get rid if the steel frame and make a composite sandwich monocoque. This does not have to be expensive if you use woven fibreglass cloth and structure poyeurathane foam, optimising the number of layers and orientation of the skins is the trick.

I like the idea, do you mean something like this:

http://www.autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&tit...

[fuoriserie]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40iD9rQSKew


Nice video of the new Morgan three Wheeler build

[fuoriserie]

Inspired by the Elio Motors 3wheeler:
http://www.eliomotors.com/

you could build something similar by using a Daewoo Matiz 3 cylinder engine ?

http://500.5053.com.cn/daewoo/en/documents/Matiz/s...

You do get a reverse gear and that is important, it's light enough and the donors are inexpensive....

Some interesting techinical info here:

http://500.5053.com.cn/daewoo/en/documents/Matiz/s...

Engine diagrams:

http://500.5053.com.cn/daewoo/en/documents/Matiz/s...

Edited by fuoriserie on Saturday 19th July 10:07

Edited by fuoriserie on Saturday 19th July 11:18

[ugg10]

fuoriserie said:

I like the idea, do you mean something like this:

http://www.autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&tit...

Only quickly scanned the article bu that just looks like they uased foam to make a former then wrapped it in a standard monolithic fibreglass body, I suspect there was some sort of frame underneath to take the mechanicals. Nicework though.

I was thinking that you can replace the frame/fibreglass skin usually used in kit cars with a skin/foam/skin preformed structure. Typically the skins may be three ply's of woven fibre at 60 degree orientation with a centre core of structural polyeurathane foam, Roacel is the really good stuff but expensive but others will do, you can even get thermoform ones so you can mould them. So long as the three layers are well bonded together you end up sith a very light and very stiff structure onto which you can then hang a front and rear frame for the suspension/engine.

One of the formula student cars had this type of monocoque and IIRC Scupltural Engineeering (Larini kit car that beame the GTM Ballista, one of my all time favourites that was a real shame it did not do well) looked at making a seven chassis this way quite a few years ago.

It comes from boat building techniques and is similar to the aluminium skin honecombe structures used in some race cars but with scope to use curved shapes.

[fuoriserie]

ugg10 said:

Only quickly scanned the article bu that just looks like they uased foam to make a former then wrapped it in a standard monolithic fibreglass body, I suspect there was some sort of frame underneath to take the mechanicals. Nicework though.

I was thinking that you can replace the frame/fibreglass skin usually used in kit cars with a skin/foam/skin preformed structure. Typically the skins may be three ply's of woven fibre at 60 degree orientation with a centre core of structural polyeurathane foam, Roacel is the really good stuff but expensive but others will do, you can even get thermoform ones so you can mould them. So long as the three layers are well bonded together you end up sith a very light and very stiff structure onto which you can then hang a front and rear frame for the suspension/engine.

One of the formula student cars had this type of monocoque and IIRC Scupltural Engineeering (Larini kit car that beame the GTM Ballista, one of my all time favourites that was a real shame it did not do well) looked at making a seven chassis this way quite a few years ago.

It comes from boat building techniques and is similar to the aluminium skin honecombe structures used in some race cars but with scope to use curved shapes.

I'd like to try this method someday....Thanks for the info....