I've been waiting for the mods to my trike to be complete and passed by an engineer before the three of us set off for a trip. Three of us meaning me, my wife and Mini Foxy Miss Rosy.
Tweety the trike is a Subaru
Brumby 1820cc powered Panther trike previously seen on these pages. The engine was fully reconditioned by Benalla Engine Reconditioners and mated to a Type 3 VW automatic 3 speed transmission. An Alfasud radiator up front warms the legs. We had a small van but it was too heavy for the trike. After much investigation we settled for a Detour camper made in Ironbark near
Ipswich. We chose this model because - it weighed a low 180kgms tare, has brakes, easy access under the raised bed from outside, tough tailgate can handle a 20 litre jerry can, queen size bed AND 2 minute erect time. Not to mention its low cost compared to its opposition.
Vw trikes have a towing GVM of 250 kgms only or 300 kgms with brakes. So we had 120 kgms left for so many items. We selected a new Waeco CF-18 fridge which has been fantastic. A poly trunk for the drawbar (drawbar was ordered 400mm longer) which takes the fridge and porta potti. Awning and side wall. A mini kitchen on the inside of the tailgate comprises single burner butane jet and bench only. We get by. Dry cell 128 Amp battery under the rear floor. 12V hand shower and warmed water from a bucket. A shower tent. All this is still under 300 kgms.
Miss Rosie has comfort. She has her own capsule made from acrylic with air vent and side window.
The Waeco fridge has a built in cut off either at 11.7 volts or 10.5 volts so the large trike battery doesnt go flat. No need for a solonoid wired in.This means a period of 3-4 days of cold refridgeration before power is cut. Thats more than enough time for us at any one place then the running recharges it. The dry cell powers chargers for LED lights, mobile phones etc and will last 10-14 days doing that. We tour for a maximum of 8 days at a time.
Our recent trip took us from
Euroa to
Tumbarumba Cooma,
Batemans Bay, down the coat to Orbost and over Mt Hotham to
home. Apart from Moruya we stayed at free camps and met a lot of travelers.
Owning a
bright yellow trike with extras creates attraction. We dont mind the photos and the questions but often the chatter drags on at every stop. So we alight quickly and keep watch from a distance as we enjoy our cafe stops or make sandwiches. We get interupted eating our meals and some people dont take the hint. When this happens 10 times a day or more it really becomes an issue. Sometimes you just have to be firm. There are many proceedures riding and towing and when distracted by admirers of the machine you end up leaving your gloves on the roof or forget to pump up that tyre.
Triking is fun. You get a paramount view of the scenery. It's even better with a roof, windscreen, wiper and heater. Modern trikes are powered by Ford or Peugeot engines manual or automatic and are good riding machines that often cost upwards of $50,000. A good VW powered trike will set you back $30,000. As for the roof, you'll have to design that yourself and find an engineer to build it, another engineer to approve it and so on.
I'm a member of the Victrikers- trike and spyder riding group. Spyders are reverse trikes- with two wheels at the front and are becoming common.
No shu-roo required on trikes if you have a Foxy. Cheers.
Smokey