how to Build 3WD

I am building my second 1F2R three wheeler and I want it to be all things to all people. But I live on a very steep hill with a 1/4 mi driveway. In the winter you need a good 4x4. So 3 wheel drive on a 3-wheeler may work. I have come up with 2 plans :

1- hub motor

2- starter motor rubbing on the outside of the tire or geared like on the brake rotor outside

So either way the HP and duration would be very low. Mostly for snow and only when you cant go in 2wd ,like 2 mi max. 5 min? All "I" need is to run it the 1/4 mi up my driveway. So any Ideas on the electric front? 12V? Or like KERS on F-1 race cars

I didn`t love the friction drive in the snow idea, but it was simple. If made tight enough to the tire it might work. If I used a car starter motor I think I would try to use the Bendix of the starter to some how engage the drive,so it would only turn when you need it. Although, with the one way clutch it solves the problem of engagement of the gears at speed. 10 MPH. A good thought. 

I was afraid the hub motors wouldn`t work well because of the slow speed heat build-up.

The price of the components are a tad high too. What would it take to make a controller for a 12V starter using a 12V battery? I have lots of used starters around here and winter is coming. My trike weighs 1200lbs with With me in it there is 400lbs on the front wheel (1F2R). It is powered by a 72 hp Subaru 3 cyl with 5 speed transmission driving the rear wheels.

See this pic :

The trike works well. I don`t want to redesign it. I want something that, like snow tires, you put on in the winter take off in the summer. Or more likely something you put on when you need it. It could be 20+ lbs of unsprung weight bouncing along. Oh and under $100 would be nice.

I would think that there won't be much weight on the front wheel, and wouldn't provide much traction anyway.

Can you have a limited slip or locking differential? Depending on how often it snows, it may be better to just use tire chains or aggessive tires.

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Sell ​​old car to buy a new one

I own a 2004 Palio 1.2 Nv sports in Bangalore. Recently I headed to KHT motors (Tata Fiat Dealership) to look at the Punto 90 hp. I was very impressed by the car. Rock solid and a lot of fun post 2000 Rev mark. As there is some exchange bonus being offered at Fiat to the tune of 15 k. I asked the old car evaluator to take a look at my Palio. 

The number he quoted horrified me. 80 k including the exchange bonus!

This is for a car that is running 5 new tires, a brand new Battery and in pretty much top shape. 

This got me thinking is buying another Fiat really worth it? Pity considering that the 90 hp really is a good car.

You will always get pathetic resale value from the dealer if you try to sale it to them .What they will do is sale it at open market at a higher price -hence they make 2 fold profit one on your old car and also on the new car. Try selling the car outside of the Dealer you will get a better price .

Guess what, this is the fate of almost all who approached dealers for an exchange. 

I am sure that your valuation was actually done by a third party dealer and not actually KHT. The dealers usually outsource this part of the business especially dealing with seconds, etc.. I feel it's because of these dealers, that valuation, in general, drops down. 

You should try posting it on Carwale, m sure it'll fetch a good price:-) I too had visited concorde mtrs @ dairy circle to enquire abt the exchange offer. Dealer quotes - 1,80,000 for 2007dec, 23Km run car. The car is out n out serviced by concorde motors only. So decided not to part with my car. Just thought I would add that this phenomenon is not unique to Fiat. Look at the resale value of old cars of similar vintage from other marquees. Look at what Zens & Esteems are fetching. See what the old Accents command in the market. 

The resale value for a fiat is bad, but definately not that bad. I bought the same 2004 Palio 1.2 NV Sports (60k) last year for 1.70 lakhs. You should be able to get around 1.5 lakhs atleast depending on the condition of your car.

This is because of the lack of service stations and spare availability as not every road side mechanic is capable enough to tackle the fault aroused.

Actually used cars in Bangalore (read KA regn cars) command a higher value than the rest of the country. Mainly due to the higher road tax and also due to the lower humidity leading to minimal rust formation. Again for Palios  service options are one of the best compared to other cities, be it TASS or others.

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Mazda to stop making rotary-engine vehicles

Mazda will stop making cars with its signature rotary engines after a 45-year production run that included powering the first and only Japanese car to win the 24-hour Le Mans endurance race.

Poor sales and the high costs of meeting modern emissions standards have made rotary engines uneconomical to produce. Mazda Motor Corp. said Friday that the latest edition of the Mazda RX-8 will go on sale Nov. 24, targeting sales of 1,000 vehicles, but will end production in June 2012.

The Japanese automaker, based in Hiroshima, introduced its first rotary engine car in 1967 and is the only automaker in the world that makes rotary engine vehicles. Such engines have fewer moving parts and are quieter than comparable piston engines but are more expensive to manufacture and consume more fuel.

The RX-8 is the only model in Mazda's lineup with the rotary engine. Mazda's decision underlines how consumer tastes have changed to preferring green vehicles over sporty ones. Mazda spokeswoman Michiko Terashima said research and development on the rotary engine will continue, leaving open the possibility that it could make a comeback. But production is now not making sense when considering the costs of meeting safety and emissions standards for new vehicles, she said.

Mazda sold only 2,896 RX-8 cars last year, with 1,245 of them in North America and 963 in Japan. Cumulative sales of Mazda vehicles with rotary engines total about 1.995 million as of the end of August, according to Mazda, which also makes the Miata sportscar.

Mazda Chief Executive and President Takashi Yamanouchi recalled the victory of Mazda's rotary engine at Le Mans 20 years ago, and called the rotary engine "iconic." Mazda's car overtook a Mercedes in the last three hours of the legendary race.

"Although R-X production is ending, the rotary engine will always represent the spirits of Mazda, and Mazda remains committed to its ongoing development," he said.

Mazda, which has lost money for the last three fiscal years, is struggling to assert its brand as the relationship with longtime partner Ford Motor Co. weakens.

Mazda does not have flashy green technologies in its lineup that its bigger Japanese rivals do — such as the hybrids at Toyota Motor Corp. or electric vehicles at Nissan Motor Co. The fading away of its prized rotary engine — although largely symbolic — is yet another blow.

Dearborn-based Ford bought 25 percent of Mazda in 1979, raising it to 33.4 percent in 1996. But Ford began cutting ties in 2008, and last year lowered its ownership to 3.5 percent.

I'm very sad read this stuff. I know that the Mazda engineers have been fighting the corporate types at Ford ever since they took over. It was their identity and now it is gone. 

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1948 Crosley Pick Up Truck For Sale - $900

Thought I'd post this here before I put it on Ebay...

I picked up a truck in Utah and have been getting it back together, replacing as many of the missing parts as I could find.

To see the pick-up truck that I sell, can be seen in http://91fb0c79.linkbucks.com

I didn't post pictures of the engine, radiator, etc, but it does come with all the running gear. It's still missing the rear bumper, an inside door handle, windshield wipers, the emblems, the under door sheet metal, the front and back glass and some random stuff. It has the seats, a heater, all running gear, original gas tank, the headlight buckets (not on in the pictures) and a set of gauges. And the glove compartment is intact!

Best part is that it was converted to the 9" hydraulic drum brakes at some point. It's also got wind-up windows in the doors instead of the bomber-style sliders. It's an old farm truck that had a hard life- it's got plenty of dings and dents. the family that had it said that they thought the grandfather might have bought it new - they'd had it since at least the early fifties. They started 'restoring' it a while back, which meant they pulled the engine and a bunch of other parts and then misplaced some of them.

They did get as far as reupholstering the seats- they actually look pretty good, even though they were done probably 10 years ago. There is rust in the floor, but the fenderwells and bed are surprisingly solid.

I'm looking to get $900 for it as is, or I'd go $800 if I can keep the gauges I put in. It's a neat truck... it needs a lot of work, but it'll be a cool project for somebody.

Call me at 916 612 two - six - one - three if you're interested.

Hmmm. I'm really hoping NOT to store this car all winter, but let's talk if I've still got it next year! That said, I will deliver it within a state or two for gas money- and the toyota gets almost 20MPG when hauling!

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