Went to put fuel in the car today down local Asda pulled up behind a new Sym I think it was MP3 500 looked really nice so I got out of the car and spoke to the rider,he said he bought because he could drive it on a car license(which I didn't realise) so I told him about our online club and that he should have a look,he thanked me and drove off

Piaggio... not Sym...

I don't agree with being able to ride it with only a car licence, as if you want to ride a bike on the road do your bike test, if not fuck off.

They have to be a certain model I believe to drive on a car licence some thing to do with wheel spacing , hand brake foot brake ?

Or something and the other.

Anyway my view is it is a motor cycle of discription not a car with different skills required that are covered in the CBT.

I've seen a car driver riding off on one for the first time cutting up car drivers failing to perform a life saver
Observation check or even no idea what one was and cutting through slow traffic in between artic's on their blind side in a situation were if the article driver pull forward he would have splattered him

Nice to have this loop hoop hole in the law but at least do a CBT

JohnP, are you being contentious or do you really think that?

Due to the UK's peculiar licensing laws, the Piaggio MP3 is classed as a Tricycle which include vehicles such as Reliant and Bond amongst others. Because of its three-wheeled design with its front axle width over a set minimum limit, it’s actually classed as a Tricycle and can therefore be ridden on any road with a car licence (provided you passed your UK driving test prior to 19th January 2013).

Due to the design conditions it also has to have a foot brake... (go figure?). Trikes like the other Piaggios and Yamaha's Tricity do not meet this criteria and therefore are covered by bike license conditions.

Without this class of vehicle I would not have been able to drive my Bond Bug 700ES on my full bike license back in 1973.

PS. On the plus side... it's one more cager who will realise the shite riders have to put up with and will be a better driver for it.

The MP3 models which are classed as tricycles and can be ridden on a car licence (and without a helmet) are the LT models which have a wider track.
The standard ones are motorcycles.

I think what he is getting at is your more likely to drive a bond bug or robin like a car as ya enclosed and have a steering wheel etc, puts you in the safety zone mentally and that car driver feeling, on a trike, it has the look and feel of more of a bike, ya in the elements, wearing helmets etc so your more likely to ride it like a biker wether you drive a car or not, but if you only drive a car and come to ride the bike that mentality of a car driver sticks with you when you ride the 3 wheeler, if that makes sense.

My (late) uncle got his driving licence pre-war without need for a test. He only ever rode a motorbike/scooter, never a car, although his licence covered him for both. He went on successfully to teach his wife and daughter to drive cars without ever driving one himself. Scary or what? I think our current car test is far too lenient and should be brought into line with the bike test, with professional instruction compulsory.

I've only recently joined this Forum but am amazed to see that so much foul language is allowed by the admin team. Don't people who swear, either orally or particularly in print, realise that they cause offence to many and totally negate any point they try to make by using infantile language?

rjc1944 wrote:Don't people who swear, either orally or particularly in print, realise that they cause offence to many and totally negate any point they try to make by using infantile language?

Why should a word cause offence?
Strange that it does, I find these ones particularly offensive: Tory, Conservative, Westminster, Powell, Thatcher, Farage.

The Law is crazy but it works both ways......
If you passed your bike test before 2001 (I beleive) you have B1 entitlement and can drive any 3 or 4 wheeled car with unlimited power as long as the unladen weight is under 550kg
So you can drive a lot of Kitcars which come under the weight.
How about an Ariel Atom?.....



I've used this loophole for years, I've driven Plastic Pigs, Microcars, Reliant Kitten (The 4 wheeled version)
I currently drive my Renault Twizy electric car on the B1 Licence

Andy


Andy