For a purely physical reason, three-wheeled motorcycles with two of them at the back, known as Trikes, have a tendency to overturn. That was the big problem they encountered in the '80s, and that is the problem that Kairos seeks to solve. An electric trike of the 21st century that has technological advances to prevent this from happening.
And we are used to seeing three-wheeled scooters like the Piaggio MP3, the Peugeot Metropolis, the Yamaha Tricity and, of course, speaking of motorcycles, the powerful Yamaha Niken. But they all have something in common, and that is the configuration and placement of the wheels. Two of them in the front axle and another in the rear.
With this type of configuration and thanks to the systems they use, they manage to turn almost as if a motorcycle were turning. But the original trikes had a problem, and that was that the rear axle did not tilt. That is what the Kairos, which is still in the design phase, aims to do.
The Kairos would not be 100% infallible, but in case of a fall it has a system to prevent further damage
This new scooter would not only be peculiar for recovering the concept of two wheels behind, but also because it could tilt. But even so, two wheels at the back and one at the front could compromise stability, and to solve this they have used compensators that are on the sides of the motorcycle. These are two mobile elements that, depending on the curve and inclination, would move up or down in order to give stability to the front axle.
But there is more and that is that these counterweights, which they have called MLE (Mobile Lateral Elements) would have an extra safety function. And if the fall were unavoidable, they would finish extending to touch the ground before any other element of the vehicle and thus prevent the fall.
Another important point they have worked on is safety in the event of a frontal impact. Instead of opting for an airbag like the Honda GoldWing, they have created an element in which the driver is always supported and that in the event of an accident would serve, in theory, to absorb part of the energy generated and keep the user safe. In this way, the impact against the handlebars and, in theory, being thrown would be avoided.
The project is underway and the test unit is scheduled to be ready in the first quarter of 2025. If you are thinking of getting one of these Kairos you will have to wait longer, since the plans speak of 2028. In addition, it is not expected that be cheap, since right now they estimate that RRP could be around 30,000 euros.
By the way, if you're wondering how the whole system would work, there have been other tests of it many, many years ago. So many that this prototype with a tilt system that would be the embryo of the Kairos, is from 1991.
