Y-shaped motorcycle is a different kind of hybrid
Gizmag is gushing over the 2008 Can-Am Spyder roadster that was recently unveiled by Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP), the Canadian motorcycle, ATV and snowmobile manufacturer.
(Credit: BRP)Unlike other hybrid vehicles that tout stealth, satellite navigation or energy efficiency, this vehicle claims to be the offspring of a motorcycle and a sports car.
The three-wheel motorcycle has rear wheel drive, with two wheels at the front and one at the back. The trike is powered by a Rotax 990 V-twin liquid-cooled engine with a five-speed manual transmission.
It has antilock breaks, traction control and dynamic power steering as on a car. The Y-shaped chassis has a center steel beam, which BRP says is welded for better structural stability.
The motorcycle sports car hybrid, which will come in "Full Moon" (silver) and "Millennium Yellow," will be available in twelve U.S. states (Ariz., Calif., Colo., Fla., Mass., Md., Mich., Minn., N.J., N.Y., Va., and Wis.) and four Canadian provinces (Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and British-Columbia) by the fall of 2007. Specific dealerships will be announced in April. BRP plans to add the rest of the U.S. and Europe over the next four years, according to the company's announcement.
Candace Lombardi is a staff writer at CNET News.com
On the other hand, It rides like nothing I have ever been on/in before. It is one fast little machine and it corners better than any two wheeled motorcycle ever could. This is because of the two wheel stability in the front end and the extremely low center of gravity. People have been riding three wheel bikes for years. The design that is used by Harley (again in 2009) and by others with one wheel in the front creates a vehicle that is rough to handle around corners and over bumps. The two wheel in front design on the other hand does the exact opposite. Campagna claims that the T Rex can handle turning g-forces of 1.3 G's. I believe this is true.