Yamaha Tesseract Concept

by Matthew Newill on October 8, 2007

Yamaha Tesseract Concept

Tesseract
The Tesseract from Yamaha is a concept bike which has 4 wheels. Yet, it still looks like a bike. The bike is a hybrid which sports both a V-Twin engine and an electric motor. Supposedly it is the same width as a regular bike and can stay stood up when not in use. It's a cool concept idea and one that will be interesting to see built.

Via: Autoblog

 


  • pyro

    HOLY ….!! can i have pleese? :)

  • Bransby

    It has 4 wheels, but is the same width as a regular bike? Could someone please explain further, doesn’t sound quite right to me.

  • http://www.gadgetvenue.com Matthew

    Good question ;) From looking at the picture I wonder if they are comparing against the width of the handle bar… meaning about 1.5 to 2 feed wide.

  • Chaz

    The widest part of a bike is its handle bars, so if the wheels don’t stick out further then the end of the grips, then it’s no wider then a standard bike.

  • Bransby

    Gotcha. Still, getting through traffic involves a fair bit of weaving, this doesn’t look prone to good weaving. Not wishing to be cynical, these things crop up every now and then, the bmw bike with a roof, and I’ve seen other bikes around with two front wheels, but you have to say, whilst innovation in design is undoubtedly a good thing, your archetypal motorbike has two wheels and no roof for a damn good reason. I’ve been riding bikes since I was 16, and the advantages are: ability to get through traffic far quicker than a car, generally cheaper to run than a car, and more manouverable than a car (obvously there are other things to list, but those are the basics for me) and I have to say, if you want four wheels: buy a car. What’s the ADVANTAGE of this thing? Isn’t it just a glorified quad bike?

  • brian

    Bransby, Just be sure to never be open to new ideas. I’m sure you know the best way to do everything.
    Brian.

  • Bransby

    As it happens Brian, I do, thanks for acknowledging my genius.

  • Philscbx

    I suspect the wheels lean into the turn, the width is a no brainer, being where the rider sits is like a motorcycle body.
    What’s to explain? It has 4 wheels. They are spaced apart to stand on it’s own.
    The disc brakes look quite strong to haul it down quickly.
    Doing chores with a standard 4 wheeler Quad is at best archaic if one has never tried it. This unit looks more agile and smoother with independent suspension.
    This might do well in Europe in Holland on the streets, but it will never happen here in the states.
    I see 4 wheelers on the streets over there all the time.
    It’s a bit strange, and gutsy.

    Hopefully the fenders angle back more, or you will be covered in mud in a turn.

    A typical quad has tires not meant for road travel at high speeds for any distance. 40 down a dirt road is average. We use them for difficult chores on steep hills loaded down pulling a trailer with fire wood.

    This is not that kind of machine obviously pictured here. But I like it.
    I really dought it was meant to replace the R1 as one seems to think.
    I’m betting the electric motor is for assisted advanced steering. The V-Twin is likely a water cooled 650 – 750cc. The kids will kill for it. It has Transformer written all over it.

  • http://www.gadgetvenue.com Matthew

    4 wheelers (quads) are around fairly often in the UK. I probably see one or 2 a week darting around the streets. I dont think they have been road legal in the UK for too long (maybe 2 – 3 years).

  • Philscbx

    I also just today stumbled on my photo’s while in Sweden. 4 wheeler’s parked downtown Gothenburg on the sidewalks. Not necessarily the 4×4 type drive. Just like in Amsterdam. Licensed similar to a scooter to be used on the sidewalks and bike paths.

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