How powerful does a motorbike need to be to have a sidecar?

Question

cos i wanna get one

Answer 1

It is hard to put an exact engine size to this question because different styles of motors have different torque and horsepower, but I cannot imagine using anything under 500 cc.  More importantly, please do not go any further with this idea without reading the book "driving a sidecar outfit."

Driving a sidecar rig is completely different than riding a solo motorcycle.  It pulls to the right on acceleration, pulls to the left on deceleration and to handle properly the rake of the front forks should be changed.  It is also important that you load it properly, if only carrying one passenger they should be in the sidecar; if carrying two passengers, not a good idea, the heavier of the two goes in the sidecar.  Allow yourself a lot of time to get used to it, also find out how it is supposed to feel, most new sidecar installations take a lot of adjustment to get the toe-in settings correct.  If the alignment settings are not correct the vehicle will wander all over the road and be very unsafe, this is critically important.

Answer 2

It is not so much the actual power as the gearing and torque. The type of frame has to be taken into consideration as well, there are many bikes that you could not safely fit a sidecar to.

Answer 3

I've ridden a little Kawasaki LTD400 with a sidecar. A lot depends on the sidecar itself. They come in all shapes and sizes and weights. You can get them for Lambrettas and Vepas etc so if one of them can pull one a decent little 250 wouldn't have any bother.

Don't fit it yourself if you've never done it before. They're an absolute t**t to get set up right. They take a bit of getting used to as well.

Answer 4

At LEAST a 750.  Sidecars add serious weight and drag.  Add the weight of the passenger, too.

Answer 5

anysize really but as mentioned 250 is a good start...

Answer 6

bigger the better,although there's more to sidecars that bolting a extra wheel to the side of your honda 250.if you intend to do some serious touring things like brakes,tyres,suspension & gearing need to be taken into account.

riding one is a very different experience from riding a solo bike.the outfit has be steered rather than leaned into corners.throttle control is critical,full on when turning left,full off when turning right.resale value of secondhand outfits is difficult to judge as the market is so small.however sidecars do have stong & enthusiastic following.contact squire-watsonian for further advice!

Answer 7

depends on the wieght and size of the side car.. a small 1 seater thats light  a 250cc might just about manage it, but i would say  more 500cc and above.

My self i wouldnt concider anything under 550cc and you may also need to replace the front forks with leading link forks to cope with the extra wieght.

Riding a bike with a side car is a diffrent riding style and needs some  diffrent skills - i would recomend yo ask people who have riden them for tips on how to handle  the bike n ide car- else you could find yourself  ploughing up  peoples gardens insted of going round bends!

Answer 8

250 cc minimum. I had a 650 years back, that did ok but slowed it down a lot. Many scooters have them and they are not large capacity but I would not go lower than the 250 suggested.