# Any 3-wheeled cars sold in USA? **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [March 18, 2024, 10:22pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557 "2024-03-18T22:22:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:22pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/1 "2024-03-18T22:22:00Z")
Got to wondering if there’s ever been any 3-wheeled cars sold in the USA? I don’t recall ever seeing one. If you purchased a 3-wheeler made elsewhere, would you be allowed to register it for use in the USA? > **[Reliant Robin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reliant_Robin)** > > The Reliant Robin is a small three-wheeled car produced by the Reliant Motor Company in Tamworth, England. It was offered in several versions (Mk1, Mk2 and Mk3) over a period of 30 years. It is the second-most popular fibreglass car in history after the Chevrolet Corvette, with Reliant being the second-biggest British car manufacturer for a time. > The Robin was first manufactured in October 1973 as a direct replacement for the Reliant Regal. These models feature a 750 cc engine, but in 1975, the ... ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:25pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/2 "2024-03-18T22:25:32Z")
Someday soon…more like never: ![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/0/d/0df87a734a5e84eaf87ee8796690e9e052b2ae7e.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Mustangman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mustangman/32/44130_2.png) [@Mustangman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Mustangman)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:25pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/3 "2024-03-18T22:25:49Z")
3 wheel vehicles are motorcycles, not cars. And yes, lots of 3 wheel vehicles have been sold over the years. ![](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/5/e/5eeb4f1fd7b37ec9409d5a4f6101758533686bb1.jpeg) The Corbin Sparrow ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:35pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/4 "2024-03-18T22:35:30Z")
> [@Mustangman](#): > > 3 wheel vehicles are motorcycles, not cars. That makes sense to treat them the same a motorcycles. I presume that means the driver of a 3-wheeler must possess a motorcycle drivers license if the state requires that for driving motorcycles. It seems like a 3 wheeler would be prone to tipping over. If that happens I suppose the driver just gets out tips it back onto all 3 wheels. ---
**Author:** ![Mustangman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mustangman/32/44130_2.png) [@Mustangman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Mustangman)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:43pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/5 "2024-03-18T22:43:24Z")
The licensing requirement isn’t key to the 3 wheel “car.” A 3 wheel car does not need crash testing, airbags, seatbelts and a ton of other safety items required of automobiles, only those required of motorcycles. That is why the Corbin Sparrow, the Elio, the Aptera and others were created as gas-sipping alternatives to the trucks and SUVs. The Sparrow at least got built. The very first gasoline powered car built by Karl Benz was a 3 wheeler. Many 3 wheel cars were built through the first few decades of car production… and then resurrected after the war. The Isetta was first built as a 3 wheeler and later made a 4 wheeler. The Reliant Robin, irrespective of its success, is a very poor design. The single front wheel and 2 back wheels is fundamentally unstable. Braking and turning will dump it on its side. Two front and single rear is the correct way to do a 3 wheeler. ---
**Author:** ![Nevada\_545](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/nevada_545/32/41232_2.png) [@Nevada\_545](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Nevada_545)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:45pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/6 "2024-03-18T22:45:37Z")
In another thread it said that no one would buy a new car without modern safety features and air conditioning. They have been selling these new vehicles with a wheel missing for years. ![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/5/3/5340d574ff387c637b7c243b4324c779b00fddae.jpeg) No airbags, no A/C. ![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/c/a/ca9a365c810f254296de7faf63650855fdccc9b9.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Mustangman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mustangman/32/44130_2.png) [@Mustangman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Mustangman)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:50pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/7 "2024-03-18T22:50:33Z")
> [@Nevada\_545](#): > > They have been selling these new vehicles with a wheel missing for years. And for a TON of money! $22K to almost $40K. I’d rather have a Miata. ---
**Author:** ![wolyrobb](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/wolyrobb/32/45497_2.png) [@wolyrobb](https://community.cartalk.com/u/wolyrobb)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2024, 1:27am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/8 "2024-03-19T01:27:35Z")
The Morgan Super3 and the Polaris Slingshot fall under a different category as Autocycles, in most states you don’t need a motorcycle licence to drive one and can legally drive one on the street. Morgan will also bring back the Plus4 but for now the super3 is the only US offering. Haven’t seen a price but it’s more of a novelty or track car. ![Super3](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/0/7/0769d851d0a9c25e07bef249e907ee7974fc1c87.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![db4690](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/db4690/32/2583_2.png) [@db4690](https://community.cartalk.com/u/db4690)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2024, 1:50am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/9 "2024-03-19T01:50:06Z")
A guy I know put down a deposit for a 3-wheel gasoline-powered Elio years ago I believe he got his money back and bought a sensible car . . . Some kind of Scion, I believe ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2024, 1:05pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/10 "2024-03-19T13:05:57Z")
> [@Nevada\_545](#): > > They have been selling these new vehicles with a wheel missing for years. My brother has a young-ish relative (by marriage) who bought one of those vehicles for commuting long-distance, via expressways, to work. Just before he took delivery, he was bragging to my brother about how much money he would save on gas, and my brother asked him… _What are you going to do when winter comes, and on days when it’s rainy?_ At that point, the relative admitted that he had never considered weather conditions before he bought it. Whoops! It is his nice weather vehicle, and he only uses it in Spring and Summer, on dry days. ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2024, 1:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/11 "2024-03-19T13:11:22Z")
> [@Mustangman](#): > > single front wheel and 2 back wheels is fundamentally unstable. Braking and turning will dump it on its side. Two front and single rear is the correct way to do a 3 wheeler. That reality is just one of the many factors that led to the demise of the _Davis Divan_, a post WW II three-wheeler. Over the space of 2 years, they produced only a handful of cars. > **[Davis Divan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davis_Divan)** > > The Davis Divan is a three-wheeled convertible built by the Davis Motorcar Company between 1947 and 1949. The brainchild of used-car salesman Glen Gordon "Gary" Davis, it was largely based upon "The Californian", a custom three-wheeled roadster built by future Indianapolis 500 racing car designer Frank Kurtis for Southern Californian millionaire and racer Joel Thorne. After building two prototypes in 1947, Davis embarked on an aggressive publicity and promotional campaign for the car, which inclu... ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2024, 3:12pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/any-3-wheeled-cars-sold-in-usa/194557/12 "2024-03-19T15:12:11Z")
Here are several, including the two mentioned above; three if you include the vaporware Elio. Some of the others might not be currently available either, like the Evergreen and Santarosa.