Have you met the Maruti 800's three-wheeled Chinese cousin?

No this isn't a Maruti 800 driven over a center median by a drunk driver.

In China a company named Jinan Qingqi Motorcycle Corporation produced the three-wheeled version of the Alto (800 in India) briefly in the 90's. The 'Qingqi Alto Trycicle' was manufactured with a 125cc, 12KW motorbike engine, CarNewsChina says, is "powerful enough to outrun a goat." The central front wheel could not have grabbed more eyeballs than its 75-80k rupees starting price.

Three-wheeled cars are very popular in rural China and many car companies, despite stability issues at high speeds that pose serious safety concerns, continue to manufacture them. They serve as economical workhorses for traders in the week and double up as a family car on the weekends.

Sadly rural Chinese customers will have look in other places, as Jinan Qingi has moved on from the Qingqi Alto Trycicle to make handsome looking motorcycles.

[Source - CarNewsChina.com]