Hey Hack's... I have a nice 1975 R90/6 that I'd like to know if i can convert to a driven hack set up? Is it possible to achieve this feat? Can a R90/6 become a driven hack machine? Please let me know...It's that or trade the bike for a Ural.
There is a company in Germany that makes a 2wd drive train for BMW rigs, RichardNL has a awesome 2wd GS rig, IMHO the ultimate off road rig. The down side, prices start at about $16K not counting bike or tub. 2wd is fun for people looking for trouble or do extreme off roading, but 1wd will do 90% of what 2wd will do. An R90 would make a sweet rig. What are Your riding priorities? off road? freeway touring? tearing up the back roads?
Windmill, So you make a good point. I will use this for around town commuting and state wide touring on pavement, so 2wd is probably not needed. However, living in CO it would open up a little more of the year round riding to me in the event I got caught out by a snow. But 16K is 4 times what I paid for the bike...not really a good economic decision in the current climate! jwrover
Windmill is right, an Airhead makes an EXCELLENT year-round sidecar rig!!! I still miss mine... With a decent set of dual-sport or knobbies my Airheads took me through many a winter up in snowy Wisconsin, including several winters commuting through the snow daily up in Green Bay. I rode the R75/6 rig every day that last winter that I worked there, including several with substantial snowfall. My first two sidecar rigs were based on R75's, the last one was a R100, but with the correct gearing and tire choices, and matched to an appropriate sidecar they all worked equally well. If you can still find them, I prefered the Avon Gripster dual-sport tire for winter use to fit the 18" rear wheel on the bike. It has a good combination of grip and decent treadwear. My second choice for a winter drive tire is the Metzler Sahara-3. For the front tire, I would look for a decent trials tire. Not sure what is still available in the correct sizes, but they are all pretty much the same in my experience. Nice and grippy, but at the cost of treadwear. But that is a sacrifice I will make for traction and safety. I tried a Bridgestone TrailWing on the front one winter, but was not impressed with the snow/slush traction. A sidecar with a motorcycle tire/wheel will do MUCH better in snow/mud/etc. than one with a car tire on the sidecar. Less resistance to the muck that you are pushing through... Type of tire doesn't really matter out there. And, if you are thinking about a Ural for the mechanical reverse gear in the transmission, there are two companies that offer that upgrade/modification for the BMW Airhead transmissions as well. I had Motoren Israel's reverse gear conversion in my R100 rig because of my disabilities, and it worked very well. The R90/6 has nearly the same power as the later R100 bikes, so you should be fine there for a moderately sized sidecar. If you don't already have them, I would consider going to dual-disc front brakes for extra stopping power, and maybe upgrading to the later 2-piston Brembo style calipers for even better braking. I found the swinging ATE caliper brakes to be a bit anemic and troublesome to keep working properly. The Brembos are strong and bulletproof.
So It looks like the "driven" idea might be out of reach price wise and unnecessary for my needs. I've started looking around for sidecars. It looks like the best value for money that fits my budget would be the "Cozy Rocket" or something along those lines in the used market. any suggestions of a good place to shop? Thanks again guys! Great help and info! jwrover
For winter riding in the snow on average roads, 1wd is thoroughly adequate. 2wd only becomes necessary for deep heavy snow, or long steep hills. 2wd is like 4wd/awd, it is indispensable when you really need it, but how often do You really need it? That said, I wouldn't want a rig without it. For compact snow, and ice, I found the the Avon triple duty sidecar tire works very well on the front. The Kenda 335 ice racing tire is incredible in snow, and can be studded.
Might be a tad light for the R90/6. Check some of the dealers @ sidecar.com or even here, in Vendors... you 'prolly want another ~100 pounds or more out there. Dr. Jim put some good google search info in the sticky - you could look for all kinds of sidecars for sale using terms like "sidecar site:craigslist.org" in the search
Even if you are on a budget, I'd look for something a bit more substantial than a Cozy. I'd also look for or build a subframe to attach the sidecar to the bike, rather than bolting directly to the bike. Spend some more time looking at the threads here - sidecar types and attachments for airheads has come up a number of times. I'd look for a Dnepr, Chang or Ural sidecar, or a Sputnik or Jupiter, or a used hack from from one of the American or British builders, or a Velorex/Jawa if you pay attention to the axle, wheel and mounts.
I've had a Cosy. WAY too small/light for a R90. If on a tight budget, look for a Chang Jiang or Dnepr sidecar. Some more bucks handy - a Ural. Of course, you never know what will turn up used. Sarge P.S. Search Tempest is your friend. (Lets you search all Craigslist listings within X number of miles from your home.) http://www.searchtempest.com/
