Companies like Polaris, Vanderhall, and Morgan have gone to great lengths to breathe life into the three-wheeler segment in recent years. Idaho-based Grind Hard Plumbing set out to build something cooler than the factory-designed three-wheelers. It’s a giant, monster truck-inspired trike with a ride-in tractor wheel, among other crazy features, and this one-of-a-kind machine is getting three-wheel steering for good measure.
Grind Hard Plumbing started the project from scratch instead of modifying an existing three-wheeler. The rear subframe comes from a Humvee that the builders had lying around (as you do, right?), the engine is a Volkswagen-sourced TDI four-cylinder turbodiesel, and the rear wheels are wrapped by massive, 46-inch tires. But the real party trick is up front: It’s a 54-inch steel wheel designed for a tractor, and in this application, it’s going to house the driver’s seat as well as all of the controls. Making this happen required cutting out quite a bit of metal.
The backbone is a tubular frame that gives this trike the kind of home-brewed, post-apocalyptic vibes we’d expect from a vehicle built to star in a TV show about zombies. Piece by piece and weld by weld, it all comes together surprisingly well.
In the latest episode, Grind Hard Plumbing turns its attention to the steering and the suspension. The goal is to give the trike three-wheel steering in both directions. The front wheel needs the ability to turn in the opposite direction as the rear wheels for a tighter turning radius, and the three wheels need to be able to turn in the same direction to pull off a crab walk. This is an off-roader developed to tackle incredibly challenging terrain, after all.
It gets wilder: Running three-wheel steering will allow the driver to sit at either end of the trike.
With the rear steering hooked up, at least temporarily, Grind Hard Plumbing will turn its attention to finishing the rear suspension system, building the front steering system, and linking the three wheels together. There’s no telling when the project will be finished, but it sounds like it will be worth the wait. “The driving experience is going to be the farthest from normal of anything we’ve ever built,” the shop said.
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