Motorized tricycle

Early engines weren't as compact or lightweight as modern ones, and clutches, and electric ignition were still new ideas being incorporated.

The addition of engines to tricycles was covered in a motor supplemenet to Cycling magazine in 1899,[1] from which the following are taken : There were many more makes, and then variations with tandem seating to allow a passenger.

The balance of friction patches and rolling resistance also means that tadpoles tend to oversteer and deltas understeer.

A common arrangement is to fit chopper-style ("ape hanger") front forks to a VW Beetle engine and transaxle, popular because it is largely self-contained on a single subframe.

Similarly, the engine, transmission and rear wheel may be taken from a large motorcycle as a single unit, and used in the construction of a tadpole trike.

Mass-manufactured motor tricycles include the Piaggio MP3; the Piaggio Ape (Italian for Bee) delivery trike (delta); the Harley-Davidson Tri Glide Ultra Classic; the BRP Can-Am Spyder (tadpole); the Polaris Slingshot (tadpole); the Campagna T-Rex reverse trike; trikes used by municipal authorities in the USA; and, historically, vehicles such as the Scammell Scarab railway dray, a common sight around post-war British railway stations.

They usually have a sheet-metal body or open frame that rests on three wheels, a canvas roof with drop-down sides, a small cabin in the front of the vehicle for the driver, an air-cooled scooter version of a two-stroke engine, with handlebar controls instead of a steering wheel.

The motorized versions are popular for their low cost, because they are put together from salvaged motorcycles and often do not require the operator to have a driver's license.