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{{Short description|One-wheeled device attached to a two wheeled vehicle to make the whole a three wheeled vehicle}}
{{Other uses|Sidecar (disambiguation)}}
[[File:NSU 601 OSL Steib.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|An [[NSU Motorenwerke]] 601 motorcycle from the 1930s fitted with a [[Steib Metallbau]] sidecar]]

A '''sidecar''' is a one-wheeled device attached to the side of a [[motorcycle]], [[Scooter (motorcycle)|scooter]], or [[bicycle]],<ref>Oxford English Dictionary - "b. A vehicle designed to be attached to the (near-)side of a motor-cycle to accommodate one or more [[passengers]]. Occas. attached to a bicycle."</ref> making the whole a three-wheeled vehicle. The combination of a motorcycle with a sidecar is sometimes called a ''rig'', ''outfit'', or ''hack''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Twisted Road: Motorcycle Rentals |url=https://www.twistedroad.com/blog/posts/how-choose-motorcycle-with-sidecar#:~:text=Rig%20%E2%80%93%20The%20combination%20of%20the%20motorcycle%20and%20the%20sidecar;%20also%20known%20as%20%22outfit%22%20or%20%22hack%22%20depending%20on%20the%20region. |access-date=2024-07-05 |website=Twisted Road |language=en}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-12561, Berlin, Fahrrad mit Beiwagen.jpg|thumb|right|upright|German bicycle sidecar carrying a child, 1927]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-265-0003-13A, Russland, Motorräder mit Beiwagen.jpg|thumb|left|German troops on motorcycles with sidecars invading the Soviet Union during [[Operation Barbarossa]]]]
Jean Bertoux, a French army officer, secured a prize offered by a French newspaper in 1893 for the best method of carrying a passenger on a bicycle. The sidecar wheel was mounted on the same lateral plane as the bicycle's rear and was supported by a triangulation of tubes from the bicycle. A sprung seat with back rest was mounted above the cross-member and a footboard hung below.<ref>Sheldon, J.A. p. 42–43</ref>
A sidecar appeared in a cartoon by George Moore in the January 7, 1903, issue of the British newspaper ''[[Motor Cycling (magazine)|Motor Cycling]]''. Three weeks later, a provisional patent was granted to Mr. W. J. Graham of Graham Brothers, Enfield, Middlesex. He partnered with Jonathan A. Kahn to begin production.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

One of Britain's oldest sidecar manufacturers, Watsonian, was founded in 1912. It is still trading as [[Watsonian Squire]]. Automobile producer [[Jaguar Cars]] was founded in 1922 as a sidecar manufacturer, the [[Swallow Sidecar Company]].

In 1913, American inventor Hugo Young, of [[Loudonville, Ohio]], designed a new sidecar which was not rigidly fixed to the motorcycle.  Instead, his invention employed a flexible connection, which allowed the sidecar to turn, raise, and lower without affecting the balance of the motorcycle.  This was a great improvement over the original design, allowing for much safer and more comfortable experiences for both the passenger and driver.  Young opened up the [[Flxible|Flxible Sidecar Company]] (the first "e" was dropped to allow for trademarking the name) in Loudonville, Ohio and soon became the largest sidecar manufacturer in the world (the company closed in 1996).  When the motorcycle craze began to fade in the 1920s due to more affordable cars being marketed, as well as the banishment of sidecar racing in the United States, the Flxible Sidecar Company began producing transit buses, ambulances, and hearses.

Until the 1950s sidecars were quite popular, providing a cheap alternative to passenger cars; they have also been used by [[armed forces]], [[police]] and the UK's [[The Automobile Association|AA]] and [[RAC plc|RAC]] motoring organisations.  {{clear}}

==Design==
[[File:Vespa sidecar.png|thumb|left|Sidecar on [[Vespa]] scooter]]
A sidecar motorcycle is a three-wheeled vehicle with the side wheel not directly aligned with the rear motorcycle wheel, and is usually powered by the rear wheel only.  This is different from a [[Motorized tricycle|motor tricycle]] (trike), where both rear wheels are powered and share a common axle. However, either P.V. Mokharov of the Soviet Union or H.P. Baughn of Great Britain seem to have been the first to employ a driven sidecar wheel in 1929. Baughn two-wheel-drive outfits were so successful in trials events in the early 1930s that there were attempts to have the [[Auto-Cycle Union|ACU]] ban them from competition. A great many companies experimented with two-wheel drive in sporting events and indeed many companies employed them in military vehicles prior to the commencement of World War II. Currently, the Russian manufacturer Ural produces several models with two-wheel drive that can be engaged as desired.<ref name="uralspec">{{cite web | url=http://www.imz-ural.com/downloads/brochures/Ural.Comparison%20Spec%20Sheet.pdf | title=Ural Comparison Spec Sheet | publisher=IMZ-Ural | access-date=January 28, 2012 | archive-date=January 14, 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120114055733/http://www.imz-ural.com/downloads/brochures/Ural.Comparison%20Spec%20Sheet.pdf | url-status=dead }}</ref>
[[File:DneprMT-10.jpg|thumb|[[Ukraine|Ukrainian]] [[Dnepr (motorcycle)|Dnepr mt 10]] with sidecar |alt=]]
The sidecar consists of a frame and of a body. The frame may either be fixed to the bike, or it may be attached in a way which makes the bike able to lean in the same manner as bikes without sidecars.<ref>Hal Kendall p. 98-99</ref> Also, Ural had a reversible sidecar for the European market.

The body typically provides one passenger seat and a small trunk compartment behind. In some cases the sidecar has a removable soft top. In some modifications, the sidecar's body is used for carrying cargo or tools, like a truck's platform. The sidecar is typically mounted so that the motorcycle is closer to the centre of the road, i.e. with the sidecar on the right for right-hand traffic.

==Handling==
[[File:ERanger-Sudan09.JPG|thumb|An eRanger [[motorcycle ambulance]] in southern Sudan]]
A sidecar makes the bike asymmetrical. A fixed mounted rig with right mounted sidecar can go faster in left turns than in right turns because the sidecar prevents it from tipping over.<ref>Hal Kendall p. 109</ref> In right turns, they can tip over if curves are taken too fast.<ref>Hal Kendall p. 67</ref> Some techniques can be used to take a right curve faster without tipping, like usage of the brake on the sidecar, if one is fitted.<ref>Hal Kendall p. 70</ref>

While a sidecar pilot is described as driving rather than riding, the comparison to a car is weak with all but the heaviest rigs. Driver and passenger body position affect higher speed handling, especially on dirt or other uneven surfaces. If the sidecar and bike geometry are not coordinated the combination will be unstable, especially at speed, with [[Speed wobble|shimmy]] upon acceleration or deceleration.

In rigid mounted rigs, leaning the motorcycle by clamping it rigidly a few degrees away from the sidecar is used along with a few degrees of "toe-in" of the sidecar wheel toward the centerline of the vehicle to allow for road camber and provide a balance resulting in comfortable, straight line travel. Most sidecars are also fitted with steering damping devices of either friction or hydraulic type to lessen the effects of sudden inputs, as encountered on rough roads, upon the vehicle's handling.<ref>Hal Kendall p. 40 - "Section 2 - SETTING UP AN OUTFIT: A properly set up outfit is a joy to behold and a pleasure to drive. Conversely, an improperly set up outfit handles like a beast, is dangerous, and sheds tires rapidly."</ref>

==Sport==
{{See also|Motorcycle sport|Category:Sidecar racing}}
[[File:Sidecars Isle of Man TT Race.jpg|thumb|left|Racing sidecars at the [[Isle of Man TT]]]]
Sidecar racing events exist in [[motocross]] (see [[sidecarcross]]), [[enduro]], [[grasstrack]], [[Observed Trials|trial]], [[road racing]] and [[sidecar speedway|speedway]] with sidecar classes. The sport has followers in Europe, the United States, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. The sidecars are often classed by age or engine size, with historic sidecar racing often being more popular than its modern counterpart. Older classes in road racing generally resemble solo motorcycles with a platform attached, where modern racing sidecars are low and long and borrow much technology from open wheel race cars. In all types of sidecar racing there is a rider and a passenger who work in unison to make the machine perform, as they would be almost unrideable without the passenger in the correct position.

Road racing sidecars began to change away from normal motorcycle development in the 1950s with them becoming lower and using smaller diameter wheels and they kept the enclosed "dustbin [[motorcycle fairing|fairing]]" banned in solo competition in 1957. By the 1970s, they were using wide slick tyres with a square car-like profile, the rider kneeled behind the engine instead of sitting on a seat and the motor of choice was generally a 500&nbsp;cc two stroke. In the late 1970s sidecars began to appear with hub centre steering and later the engines moved to the rear of the rider, to lower the centre of gravity further still, making the sidecar very long. Sidecars raced in the [[Sidecar World Championship]] are all hub centre long [[monocoque]] framed machines, the most common being [[Louis Christen Racing|LCR]], ART or [[Windle (sidecar)|Windle]], with 1,000&nbsp;cc four-cylinder four-stroke engines, the most popular being the [[Suzuki GSX-R1000]].

These at club and national level are known as Formula One sidecars, as opposed to Formula Two. Formula Two sidecars are short front engined bikes, which must have a frame made of steel tube and have leading link forks as monocoques and hub centre steering is banned. Engines are 350&nbsp;cc two strokes or 600&nbsp;cc four strokes. F2 sidecars are raced in their own championship but are often on track at the same time as the F1s, but competing for their own points. Since 1990 at the [[Isle of Man TT]], the [[Sidecar TT]] has been solely contested by Formula Two sidecars as Formula Ones were deemed too fast, then lapping at {{convert|108|mph|km/h|0|abbr=on}} average. By 2006 however, F2s were faster than this lapping at {{convert|116|mph|km/h|0|abbr=on}}.
{{clear}}

==Military use==
[[File:The British Army on the Western Front, 1914-1918 Q9001.jpg|thumb|right|British soldiers of the [[Machine Gun Corps]] Motor Branch,  with their Vickers-armed sidecar motorcycle, June 1918]]
During [[World War I]], the [[British Army]] sought to increase the mobility of its [[Vickers machine gun]]s. A gun and its tripod weighed between {{convert|65|and|80|lb|kg}}; cooling water was also required and ammunition boxes weighted a further {{convert|22|lb|kg}} each; each gun required a six to eight man team to carry it.

A solution to this problem was to fit the guns to sidecar motorcycles. This would allow the guns to be moved rapidly between different sectors, and allow them to quickly pursue retreating enemy troops. [[Clyno]] motorcycles were initially adopted; these could carry the gun, tripod, water and spare parts, as well as seven ammunition boxes; they were supported by unarmed sidecar motorcycles that carried only ammunition. A number of different motorcycles were eventually used. A special unit, the [[Motor Machine Gun Service]], was formed to operate them, but the static nature of trench warfare meant the unit was infrequently used.<ref name="Pegler2013">{{cite book|author=Martin Pegler|title=The Vickers-Maxim Machine Gun|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9rKHCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT65|date=20 May 2013|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=978-1-78096-384-6|pages=65–}}</ref>

During [[World War II]], German troops used many [[BMW]] and [[Zündapp]] sidecar motorcycles. On German, Italian, French, Belgian, British and Soviet military sidecars, the side wheel was sometimes also driven, sometimes using a [[Differential (mechanics)|differential gear]], to improve the vehicle's all-terrain ability.

==Regulation==
The sidecar is normally fitted to the right of the motorcycle in jurisdictions where [[Left- and right-hand traffic|traffic keeps to the right side of the road]]; the sidecar's position is reversed in left-side jurisdictions. This matches the usual configuration of driver and front-seat passenger in cars. In the UK, sidecars fitted to the right side are prohibited on motorcycles [[Vehicle registration plates of the United Kingdom|registered]] after August 1981.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1986/1078/made | title= The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 - Section 93 | publisher= UK Government | date= 25 June 1986 | access-date=9 December 2012}}</ref> In Italy, left-mounted sidecars were prohibited in 1924, though the ban was not enforced until 1959.<ref>{{cite book|last=Cloesen|first=Uli |title=Italienische Gespanne Rennen & Straße |year=2015|publisher=Struppen Reisebuchverlag Kastanienhof |language=de |isbn=978-39417-6026-4 |page=152}}</ref>

In the Republic of China (Taiwan), Article 39-2 of the Road Traffic Security Rules prohibits the registration of new motorcycles with sidecars but does not specifically restrict fitting them later.<ref>{{cite wikisource |wslanguage =zh |title= 道路交通安全規則}}</ref>

==Flexible sidecars==
Several flexible sidecars, not rigidly attached to the motorcycle, have been developed. This can help deal with issues of uneven pavement and allow leaning the bike into turns.<ref>{{cite web
| url = https://thekneeslider.com/flexible-tilting-sidecars/
| title = Flexible Tilting Sidecars
| author = Paul Crowe
| date = January 2, 2008
| publisher = TheKneeSlider.com
| quote = The motorcycle and sidecar were upright in the straights but in the turns, all 3 wheels tilted.
| access-date = 2018-11-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| url = https://www.rideapart.com/articles/246410/the-flxible-side-car-a-different-angle-on-sidecar-design/
| title = The Flxible Side Car: A Different Angle on Sidecar Design
| date = November 17, 2016
| author = Panhead Jim
| publisher = RideApart.com
| quote = The combination allowed the sidecar to lean with the motorcycle, something that no other sidecar could do.
| access-date = 2018-11-06}}</ref>

==Bicycle sidecars==
Sidecars have sometimes been fitted on bicycles. The "Watsonian" brand was popular  from the 1930s to the 1950s in the UK.  The Philippine [[Cycle rickshaw#Philippines|trisikad]] is a type in current use.

==Manufacturers==
[[File:Moto Guzzi closed sidecar.jpg|thumb|Sidecar with enclosed cabin]]
[[File:Tourists pose on motorcycles with sidecares in Paris.jpg|thumb|Tourists on a motorcycle sidecar tour of Paris pose for a photograph]]
Although sidecars have become much less common since the mid-1950s, a number of manufacturers worldwide have continued to produce sidecars for many popular motorcycles and scooters.

{| border="1" class="wikitable" style=white-space:wrap
|+ Active sidecar manufacturing companies include
! Manufacturer
! Country
|-
|Inder Exports<ref>{{Cite web |title=Inder Exports Manufacturers of Side Cars, Trailers, Any kind of tools..... |url=https://www.inderexports.com/ |access-date=2023-06-04 |website=www.inderexports.com}}</ref>
| align="center" | India
|-
| Inder Auto industries<ref>{{Cite web |title=Inder Sidecar |url=https://www.indersidecar.in/ |access-date=2023-06-04 |language=en-US}}</ref>
| align="center" | India
|-
| Cozy{{citation needed|date=August 2014}}
| align="center" | India
|-

| Divjot exports{{citation needed|date=August 2014}}
| align="center" | India
|-
| [[EML Sidecars]]
| align="center" | Netherlands
|-
| [[Chang Jiang Motorworks|Hongdu]], Shineray and Zhuzhou
| align="center" | China
|-
| [[Watsonian Squire]]
| align="center" | UK (England)
|-
| [[IMZ-Ural]] and VMZ for [[IZh]]
| align="center" | Russia
|-
| Premier<ref name="Premier Sidecars">{{cite web|url=http://www.premiersidecars.com.au/|title=Premier Sidecars|access-date=7 May 2013}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=May 2013}}
| align="center" | Australia
|-
| [[Louis Christen Racing]]
| align="center" | Switzerland
|-
| [[Wasp Motorcycles]]
| align="center" | UK (England)
|-
| [[QD-Mobiles Oy]]
| align="center" | Finland
|-
| [[Motorvation Sidecars and Trailers]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Motorvation Motorcycle Sidecars & Trailers|url=http://www.motorvation.com/|website=www.motorvation.com|access-date=2020-04-30}}</ref>
| align="center" | USA ([[Sibley, Iowa|Sibley, IA]])
|-
|Agam India
|India
|-
|
|}

==See also==
* [[Cossack motorcycle]]
* [[Outline of cycling]]
* [[Motorcycle ambulance]]
* [[Riders for Health]] a charity which provides the "Uhuru", a sidecar ambulance, to communities in Africa
* [[Outline of motorcycles and motorcycling]]
* [[Tricar]]
* [[Tilting three-wheeler]]
* [[Motorized tricycle (Philippines)]]

==References==

===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===Sources===
* {{cite book
| title = Oxford English Dictionary
| url = https://archive.org/details/oxfordenglishdic0006unse
| url-access = registration
| edition = 2nd
| year = 1989
| publisher = Oxford University Press}}
* {{cite journal|last=Sheldon|first=J.A.|date=13 January 1955|title=Origin of the Sidecar|journal=The Motor Cycle|publisher=Ilife & Sons|location=London|volume=94|issue=2701}}
* {{cite book
| title = Sidecar Operation Manual
| author = Hal Kendall
| edition = 1st
| year = 2003
| url= http://www.bokblad.se/sidecar/SidecarManual.pdf
| publisher = The United Sidecar Association (USA)
}}
* {{cite book
| title = Motores Clasicos en Cuba
| author =  Onelio García Pérez
| edition = 1st
| year = 2008
| url= https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Motos_cl%C3%A1sicas.jpg
| publisher = Own work 
}}
* {{cite book
| title = Motores clásicos en Cuba 1899-2007
| author =  Onelio García Pérez
| edition = 2st
| year = 2022
| url= https://www.amazon.com/Onelio-Garc%C3%ADa-P%C3%A9rez/dp/B0B5PXSQFV?ref_=ast_author_dp
| publisher = Own work 
}}
* {{cite book
| title = SIDECAR EN CUBA
| author =  Onelio García Pérez
| edition = 1st
| year = 2020
| url= https://www.hobbiesenred.com/pdf/sidecarcuba.pdf
| publisher = Own work 
}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Sidecars}}

{{Motorcycle components}}
{{Bike equipment}}
{{Sidecar World Champions}}
{{Motorcycles}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sidecars| ]]
[[Category:Vehicles introduced in 1893]]