Recruit one of these to Birmingham?

With gas prices the way the are these days, it would be great to drive a Birmingham-built 3 wheel vehicle to work each day!

No, I’m not talking a trike-bike like the Birmingham PD is using around town, but rather a fully enclosed vehicle that could be used during Alabama’s summers and winters, rain or shine. In fact, some have removable tops for open air feel. None require helmets, even though they are registered/titled and insured as motorcycles.

With the Barber Motorsports Park (the track itself, test facilities, driver training, and motorcycle heritage), Alabama’s success in the automotive assembly business, and America’s need for more fuel efficient vehicles… how about something like these vehicles for the industrial development sites adjacent to the Barber facilities?

• http://www.aptera.com - my favorite look and one of only a couple with side/side seating + all electric
• http://www.carver-worldwide.com - currently available!
• http://www.monotracer.com (a 2-wheeler from Switzerland, but obscenely expensive)
• http://www.clever-project.net (somehow related to BMW but designed in the Netherlands)
• http://www.rqriley.com/xr3.htm (a hybrid “kit car” from Arizona)
• http://www.blackjackzero.com (a “kit car” from Britain)
• http://www.fuelvaporcar.com (a very sharp looking 92mpg car not yet in production… company based in Canada)
• http://www.zapworld.com/electric-vehicles/electric-cars (2 models… see both the odd-looking sedan and the sharp looking “Alias”) – Corporate HQ in northern California but manufactured in China
• http://flytheroad.com (based in southern California) – looks a lot like the Carver

Here are some other wannabe’s – not ready for primetime, but perhaps with some of UAB Engineering school’s help, who knows?

• http://www.ecomobile.com – an old school version of the monotracer listed above with outriders
• http://www.tiltingvehicle.com
• http://www.rqriley.com/doran.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CityEl

OR, convince someone to dig one of these out of mothballs…

• http://www.didyouknow.cd/whatsnew/mercedes.htm (by Mercedes, circa 1997)
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_GX3 (VW’s concept car from 2006)
• http://www.3wheelers.com/gmlean.html (actually GM’s attempt in the 80’s when we only THOUGHT gas was expensive)

Before someone tells me how unsafe these things would be on Birmingham streets and highways, check out a review of three-wheel vehicle handling characteristics. Now, if only I can convince my wife to let me buy one *and* allow one of my children to ride in it with me when I drive them to school in the morning. Hmm.