Wheel covers vs. potholes

[Aptera#965]

Most pictures seem to depict questionable wheel clearance. Upon closer inspection it doesn't look that concerning after all IMHO:

http://members.cox.net/dante1/aptera_groundclearance%20copy.JPG

Should be enough to clear most potholes don't you think?

Could be wrong :eek:
http://members.cox.net/dante1/pothole.jpg

[3-4-me]

Those aren't potholes...


They're dinosaur tracks:rolleyes:

[Yanquetino]

Hmmm. I dunno yet about the clearance. Yes, the wheel covers would clear those dinosaur tracks, but I am not so sure when it comes to a "standard"-sized curb. It seems pretty close to me! I'd hate to smack a wheel cover into one when pulling into a parking space. (That's one of my pet peeves about our Z3: we have scraped the bottom of its front spoiler on curbs in the past. :mad: )

[Aptera#965]

I'm betting that the visibility out the windshield/side windows are so good that you'll be able to see your front wheels well enough to hopefully avoid those kinds of mishaps :)

One idea might be to trim the wheel cover to provide more clearance from curb rashes and such, then perhaps attach something like a "rubber skirt" to maintain the intended aero.

[in4mer]

curb feelers, anyone? big chrome things, like we saw granddad putting on his brand new oldsmobile, so as to not scuff up those shiny chrome wire wheels?

[3-4-me]

curb feelers, anyone? big chrome things, like we saw granddad putting on his brand new oldsmobile, so as to not scuff up those shiny chrome wire wheels?
Curb feelers? That's an old school fix.
How about proximity sensors?
I'm inclined to believe you'll be able to see out the window, like Aptera#965 stated earlier.

[LQUAN]

Center wheel is a potholes-magnet - potholes, roadkills, and everything else. How do you avoid hitting debris left at the center of the lane. We can avoid center lane debris easily with 4-wheel vehicle, but how do you deal with 3-wheeler. I suspect a lot of dangerous emergency lane changes to avoid picking up roadkills into the center wheel housing. Not to mention oil slick that are left at the center of the lane waiting for that first rain in the season! Center wheel is never a good idea. You gonna be changing that center tire very often... You win some, you loose some.

[c0mp13x]

Center wheel is a potholes-magnet - potholes, roadkills, and everything else. How do you avoid hitting debris left at the center of the lane. We can avoid center lane debris easily with 4-wheel vehicle, but how do you deal with 3-wheeler. I suspect a lot of dangerous emergency lane changes to avoid picking up roadkills into the center wheel housing. Not to mention oil slick that are left at the center of the lane waiting for that first rain in the season! Center wheel is never a good idea. You gonna be changing that center tire very often... You win some, you loose some.You avoid that center lane stuff the same way all previous 3 wheeled motorcycles do, stay alert (with your fish-bowl like Aptera front vision) and make adjustments. Most of the pot-holes I see here in SoCal are under where the truck tires ride, on either side of the lane, not the center.

As for roadkill here in the city, we have a bigger problem with small sofas and ladders falling off of over-loaded trucks than the occasional coyote that gets tagged...

[Aptera#965]

As for roadkill here in the city, we have a bigger problem with small sofas and ladders falling off of over-loaded trucks than the occasional coyote that gets tagged...

Yeah, over the summer it was BBQ's I kept seeing dropped in the freeway, not to mention the occasional off-shore racing boat.

Unbelievable how irresponsible some people are.

[3-4-me]

Center wheel is a potholes-magnet - potholes, roadkills, and everything else. How do you avoid hitting debris left at the center of the lane. We can avoid center lane debris easily with 4-wheel vehicle, but how do you deal with 3-wheeler. I suspect a lot of dangerous emergency lane changes to avoid picking up roadkills into the center wheel housing. Not to mention oil slick that are left at the center of the lane waiting for that first rain in the season! Center wheel is never a good idea. You gonna be changing that center tire very often... You win some, you loose some.
Having driven my threewheeler for 5 years, I have a little experience in the matter.
It's like riding a mountain bike or motorcyle. You learn to pick your line. I never had a rear wheel flat.
I did feel the oil a few times taking off from a light. Nice little burn out.:D It was never a problem on the freeway though.
I drove it in the pouring rain before too without a problem.

[LQUAN]

Yeah, over the summer it was BBQ's I kept seeing dropped in the freeway, not to mention the occasional off-shore racing boat.

Unbelievable how irresponsible some people are.

Once I ran over a single seat sofa on the freeway in the midle of the night.

[BryanSR]

I had a FULL SIZED Frige fall out of a truck in front of me on the Santa Monica one morning on the way to work a FEW years ago.
Semi Tractor recaps remnants are everywhere now too.

BryanSR

[KarenRei]

Center tire, I'd be more concerned about snow/ice in cold areas. It disappears the fastest on the edges of the lane, where everyone's tires are, but lingers in the middle.

[Aptera 1103]

Once on the way to San Diego we ran over a chunk of metal that had just been kicked out from the wheel of the 18 wheeler in front of us. I remember it bouncing on the freeway in front of us. My wife and I did our best to duck below the windshield of her 1975 MG Midget (top down of course). As luck would have it we hit the chunk of metal just as it landed on the ground. It jammed itself under the car and scraped the underside of the car as it wedged itself under the left rear suspension. My wife brought the car to a stop on the shoulder on three wheels! Once we unpacked the trunk, found the jack, we pried the metal from underneath the car. Fortunately there was only minor damage to that little MG. Some how the metal missed the brake and fuel lines.

Once we got over our shock of what had just happened we continued home to San Diego, tough little MG. Thus far that has been my only ride on three wheels. Can not wait for the next one, this time the trip will be planned :rolleyes: