Vintage Sidecars
Here are some pictures of vintage sidecars from some American sidecar companies you may never heard of.
This is a Sweet Chariot Sidecar. It was built in Portland Oregon. It had a solid axle and the body was mounted on rubber dampers. The sidecar frame could be turned over to make them a left hand mount if needed. It had a small tire to absorb road shock. Made in the 1980's I think.
This is a Thompson CycleCar made in San Fernando, California by aerospace engineer Frank Thompson Zuch from 1971 to his death in early 1985. It was a small sidecar and had a front lid (option) that opened up for ease of entrance and exit. $400 base price. Weight 100 lbs, 115 lbs with suspension option. He built his first sidecar and put it on a neighbor's new 1970 Yamaha 650 4-stroke. It was put on display at the "Cycle World" motorcycle show at the Los Angles Colosseum.
Frank worked out of his home. Around 1981 he bought a huge "Iron Man" machine for his rear detached garage that punched holes in & bent thick 1" or so wide steel. This allowed him to make his own fittings without the expense of jobbing them out to another factory.
He also cast cement mixed with lead shot about an inch thick for his sidecar floors in his garage. These were installed as an option so empty sidecars would not lift. "Crude, but effective." The Cyclecars were VERY light, and this was a big Cyclecar drawback when empty.
A new Cyclecar may be built some day by DMC Sidecars to use as a scooter sidecar as they are a very light weight sidecar.
Thompson Cyclecar sales brochure.
This is Asa W and wife. He purchased the second Thompson Cyclecar made on November 20-1971, serial number 0002. It was mounted on his Honda 750. That is him pictured on the sales brochure. Thank you for the great pictures Asa.
This Thompson Cyclecar is made from aluminum. It has a water soluble coating. It was purchased at a motorcycle swap meet in Monterey, California for $100.00 in October 2015. I am guessing that it was the prototype (plug) that Frank built to make a fiberglass mold from. Thank you to Larry S. for the picture and information!
This is a 1980 Thompson Cyclecar on a 1976 Honda 360T. The owner purchased it new in 1980 then after setting it up went to take it for a test drive and crashed it into his car in the driveway. You can see the smashed maker light on the front side. He then parked it in his shed where it sat till Rick P. purchased it from the late owners estate in 2017. The bike just has 88 miles on it! The sidecar maybe 20 feet!
See more about Thompsom Cyclecar company below.
Thompson Cyclecar also made a Cricket Sidecar for BMX motocross bicycle racing.
The information and pictures below are by Eric King. A big thank you to him!
I use to work for Frank when I was in High School. We hooked up when I was a paper Boy for him. I had a Bicycle with a home made Sidehack on it. We talked and I got him to make a bicycle sidehack for the BMX craze at the time. I also worked at his shop making the CycleCars. He didn't always make it in his garage. He rented a small shop in downtown San Fernando, CA. We created a BMX Team made up of Me Eric King, Howie Idelson, Steve Etheridge and Larry Johnson. I and my monkey Howie when on to win the American Bicycle Association (ABA) Championships for 1975. I have attached a few pics...
Hope you enjoy. Eric King, 2017.
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This is a 1957 Sears Scooter Sidecar made by an Aircraft Co. Thank you to Larry S. for the picture and information!
Moline Sidecar, Ultra Model.
This is a GoldWing with Moline, Ultra Sidecar restored by Johnny P. in Houston Texas. Moline Sidecars were built in the 1980's by Shirley Moline in La Luz New Mexico. It had a front hood that opened for easy entry, bucket seat with head rest, 7.8 CF trunk with exterior door, torsion bar suspension with gas shock, and convertible top. The Moline Ultra Sidecar specifications: came standard with black paint, two side marker lights and two to three taillights depending on model year. Frame was 1'' x 2'' steel tubing, fiberglass body 81'' long, tire 4.80 x 12. You could order options like chrome bumper, color matched paint & pin striping, carpet, head light, etc. Base price $3400, with options and color matched paint about $3800. They were still in business as late as 1989.
A convertible top was a factory option.
This Moline Ultra belongs to Keith W. who sent me many of these pictures and the Moline sales brochure which he got from Doug Bingham. Many thanks Keith.
This shows a new Moline Ultra Sidecar frame and suspension with mounts.
This is Shirley Moline looking over one of her new Moline Sidecar frames at her factory in La Luz New Mexico in the late 1980's.
Large trunk in the Moline Sidecar.
The Moline sidcar was a close copy of the Moturist Sidecar made in the Netherlands and imported in to the USA by Arlette Motorcycle Sales in Cedar Park Texas up to 1985.
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Zephyr Sidecar
Zephyr Sidecar frame.
Zephyr Sidecar seat and dash board.
Zephyr Sidecars were manufactured by a boat company in Richmond California in the 1970’s. It was a large sidecar. Had a dash, one head light and tail light. The windshield was a piece of 1/8'' Plexiglas. You had to get in the sidecar by climbing over the back of the sidecar but it was comfortable when you were seated. The hard part was climbing back out and down the rear.
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International Sidecar
This sidecar was made by International Sidecar Corp in St. Paul, Minnesota in the late 1960's. The fiberglass body came in two tones, red & black and black & white. Body width 24'', lenth 79'', weight 108 lbs.
The below 3 pictures by Michel M. shows a great looking customized International Sidecar.
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International Sidecar owned by Tim. Thank you for the picture!