So you think you want a sidecar

So you think you want a sidecar
By: Jerry Hooker

Around thirty five years ago, I started looking at sidecars as a means of transporting my growing family. With a wife, an eight year old daughter and a one year old daughter, the solo BMW was definitely not “family” transportation. Not wishing to reduce my riding time, a sidecar made good sense in terms of total family enjoyment.

I began looking at sidecars in 1974 and had inquired about the Bender Florin which was being manufactured in Denmark. It was a remake of the original Bender’s made in the 1950s and used all of the original sheet metal dies and tooling.. It's suggested retail price of $942.50, was well beyond my means. In October of 1975 I received a letter from the manufacturer indicating that because of the soft sidecar market, a few units left in California were being sold at the attractive price of $ 630.00 each. I could not resist.

With the assurance that comes with ignorance, I looked at attaching my new sidecar to my trusty 1972 R75/5 BMW. I was able to purchase a sub-frame from a company in Iowa, called the Iowa Sidecar Company. The sub-frame has provided very stable attachment points for the sidecar. It's main purpose is to distribute the stresses to both sides of the frame to minimize any harm to the bike. It has worked well. The BMW seems to have been a good choice for the sidecar even though BMW no longer makes cycles for sidecar use, nor do they warrant them with a sidecar. With a stock steering damper, good front end control is maintained. I changed my rear shocks to Koni, with 150 lb. springs which have provided better suspension. I also replaced the fork springs with heavier ones.

I was totally ignorant about sidecars. I knew no one who owned one or had ever driven one. I was on my own. Learning to drive the rig was a long and often exasperating experience. I chewed up rear tires at the rate of about every 1000 miles. Alignment was all trial and error. I am now very comfortable that my alignment is as good as I can get it. I judge this by even tire wear, but mostly by straight tracking down the road. It is effortless. Handling is great on the straight-aways and cornering is extremely stable. I have found that alignment is all about compromise. There are many factors including whether there is a passenger, the surface and crest of the road and not to discount the torque of the Beemer engine which wants to pull everything slightly to the right. I usually ride solo so my setup favors that condition, but adding a passenger does not change things much, other than acceleration and gas mileage. Solo, I get 35-40 MPG. I haven't checked it with a passenger lately, but it has gone as low as 25 MPH fully loaded, in up and down terrain. I usually and easily cruise the expressways at 65-70 MPH.

Piloting a sidecar rig in the twisties is all work. There is no lean or effortless flow through the corners. The arms and shoulder muscles take a lot of abuse since it is all about steering the front end into the corners. The straight stretches of road are effortless often requiring only gentle pressure on the bars. The corners can get a bit frightening with a sidecar, but more than a few solo riders have also entered corners and had the fear put to them. Left hand turns are great since our friend, centrifugal force helps to keep the sidecar down and tracking through the turn. Right hand turns are an entirely different matter. If one’s speed is too great, the sidecar is likely to rise up precariously creating a condition know as the dirty underwear syndrome, which all new sidecarists experience. With a passenger or ballast in the sidecar the right hand turn lift effect is reduced, but not eliminated.

So why would anyone want a sidecar rig? From my own experience, I would like to offer the following pros and cons:

Hey this sidecar thing is great!

1. Very few people you know have one
2. Sidecars are as old as motorcycling and an integral part of it’s history.
3. You get lots of smiles and no one gives you the finger.
4. For the most part, even a poor rider does not fall over.
5. You don’t need bungee straps, just throw everything in the hack.
6. The sidecar provides great visibility unlike a solo machine.
7. When the wife gets bored, she can read a book.
8. If you ride a lot, you get good at changing tires.
9. In desperation you can sleep in the sidecar.
10. If the ladies don’t find you handsome, at least they will know you’re handy.

Hey this sidecar thing sucks!

1. Forget about leaning into the corners and feeling the rush as your knee scrapes the
pavement.
2. Don’t even think that you are going to squeeze into the smallest parking place.
3. There are times you definitely wish that you had a reverse gear.
4. How the heck are you going to fit a truck a car and the rig into the garage this
winter.
5. If you ride a lot, you change a lot of tires
6. If you have old fashioned drum brakes you need to start thinking about your next
stop after you leave your last.
7. What do you mean, the drive spline is worn out again, and the clutch is slipping?
8. It seems like I just stopped for gas and now I’m on reserve again.
9. When caught in a storm, can you say bathtub?
10. If the ladies think you’re handsome it’s a lie, they just want on your rig.