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A brief note on nomenclature
The official term for a motorcycle with a sidecar is a combination and the most widely used term amongst sidecarrists is an outfit. In America the terms rig and hack are used. A sidecar is commonly called a chair because the first ones were wickerwork and chair-shaped. |
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Build or buy?
It's pretty much the same arguments for making a sidecar outfit as for making a bookcase, building a garage or baking a cake: do you have the skills, time and enthusiasm to undertake it yourself or do you have the money to pay an expert to do it for you?
If you're new to the game, it is much quicker and easier to buy a new or used outfit and take it from there, but DO take someone with you who knows about sidecars!
Suppliers of new combinations are few and far between these days: Ural, Jawa and Chang Jiang sell complete outfits while Watsonian-Squire, F2 Motorcycles (Simply Sidecars), Merlin, Lumley Engineering and Wasp all offer a fitting service.
If you are an old hand, you probably don't need this page!
It's pretty much the same arguments for making a sidecar outfit as for making a bookcase, building a garage or baking a cake: do you have the skills, time and enthusiasm to undertake it yourself or do you have the money to pay an expert to do it for you?
If you're new to the game, it is much quicker and easier to buy a new or used outfit and take it from there, but DO take someone with you who knows about sidecars!
Suppliers of new combinations are few and far between these days: Ural, Jawa and Chang Jiang sell complete outfits while Watsonian-Squire, F2 Motorcycles (Simply Sidecars), Merlin, Lumley Engineering and Wasp all offer a fitting service.
If you are an old hand, you probably don't need this page!
Choosing a motorcycle
It is probably true to say that there is no motorcycle to which a sidecar cannot be fitted, but there are some guidelines to make the choice a bit easier. For modern, European traffic a machine of at least 350cc would be sensible. (There are thousands of 125cc bikes in Sout-East Asia pulling sidecars, by the way.) A larger machine has a stronger frame, which is an important consideration when fitting a sidecar. If the bike has a full loop frame, then well and good; if it has an open frame with no bottom loop a subframe needs to be made and fitted. Naturally, larger chairs need larger tugs.
50cc Di Blasi Tea-Tray Special
It is probably true to say that there is no motorcycle to which a sidecar cannot be fitted, but there are some guidelines to make the choice a bit easier. For modern, European traffic a machine of at least 350cc would be sensible. (There are thousands of 125cc bikes in Sout-East Asia pulling sidecars, by the way.) A larger machine has a stronger frame, which is an important consideration when fitting a sidecar. If the bike has a full loop frame, then well and good; if it has an open frame with no bottom loop a subframe needs to be made and fitted. Naturally, larger chairs need larger tugs.
50cc Di Blasi Tea-Tray Special
Choosing a sidecar
There is far less chioce now than in the past. There is also less choice in the British Isles because we drive on the left and in the UK the sidecar must be fitted to the left of machines registered on or after 1st August 1981.
Classic sidecars were classified as single-seaters, child/adult and double adult, corresponding to the number of passengers, who were usuually arranged fore-and-aft. Nowadays chairs are generally single-seaters or two-seaters arranged side-by-side.
Think about the number of passengers you want to carry and about luggage space. Do you want a sporting outfit or is the combination for a family? How much weather protection do you want? Open-topped and enclosed sidecars are available.
It is worthwhile looking at Ebay or Google images to see what is out there. Sidecars have few moving parts and, if properly maintained, can remain serviceable and safe for decades.
There is far less chioce now than in the past. There is also less choice in the British Isles because we drive on the left and in the UK the sidecar must be fitted to the left of machines registered on or after 1st August 1981.
Classic sidecars were classified as single-seaters, child/adult and double adult, corresponding to the number of passengers, who were usuually arranged fore-and-aft. Nowadays chairs are generally single-seaters or two-seaters arranged side-by-side.
Think about the number of passengers you want to carry and about luggage space. Do you want a sporting outfit or is the combination for a family? How much weather protection do you want? Open-topped and enclosed sidecars are available.
It is worthwhile looking at Ebay or Google images to see what is out there. Sidecars have few moving parts and, if properly maintained, can remain serviceable and safe for decades.