We got rid of three-wheelers back in the day for one very obvious reason: they're dangerous as all hell.
The inherent instability of three wheels, with a lone wheel in the front, combined with high horsepower and torque from two- and four-stroke motors, meant a lot of people ended up in the hospital. And, after a host of accidents, crashes, and public calls for banning the machines, nearly every manufacturer stopped making them.
But that hasn't stopped the public's interest in, nor their ability to turning four-wheelers into three-wheelers. Thus, they're still around for the ambitious and danger-seeking-minded like the guys from the Shred Eighty YouTube channel who grabbed a converted three-wheeler and four-wheeler to play around, race, wheelie, and most obviously, nearly crash.
The machines in question are a 2016 Honda TRX450R and a 2006 Honda TRX450R, but converted by TPC Trikes into a three-wheeler ala the Honda Sport ATC.
Now, the obvious thing to do with these machines is, well, shred them, as is the channel's title. And you can see the guys just absolutely going ham behind the bars of these machines. Wheelies are had for days with the two, though the four-wheeler apparently hates staying straight.
They then take the ATVs and race the two, with the three-wheeler taking the first win, as well as the second. Though, the guys do say later that they think the three-wheeler might have "a little more snot," i.e. more power than stock. The thing to do next in a very scientific comparison? Donuts.
Now, the four-wheeler is pretty easy to slide, as you have two contact patches at the front to keep everything all hunky-dory. But a three-wheeler tends to tip once you get it moving sideways, and that's exactly what happens a few times.
It's pretty easy to get it sliding, but maintaining the slide proves difficult, especially when you start to add more power and speed. At that point, along with handlebar inputs, the three-wheeler wants to get up onto its outside wheel and start tipping over. That, thankfully, doesn't happen, as the cold, hard pavement wouldn't be great on the rider's body. But you can see why the original three-wheelers were so dangerous, as the tipping point is just immediate.
The rest of the video follows the guys as they navigate running a snowmobile across water, but I won't spoil what happens then. You'll just have to watch.
