Why Does My Tricycle Feel Like It's Pulling to One Side? How to Ride a Trike & Electric Tricycle.

Why does my tricycle feel like it's pulling to one side? Hey everyone, I'm Dustin. I have nearly 20 years of experience in the bike and e-bike industry. Today we're going to answer the question, why does my tricycle feel like it's pulling to one side? All right, right here I've got two electric tricycles from sixthreezero, the Simple Glide 500-watt Recumbent and the Simple Step-Thru 750-watt fat tire e-trike. Now, on most tricycles, non-electric tricycles, they don't have what's called a rear differential. Now what this means is when you pedal a tricycle, you are only supplying power to one of the rear wheels. So if you have a standard tricycle, more than likely it does not have a rear differential. What a rear differential does is it will distribute the power to both rear wheels evenly. It's like what we have in a car to provide power to both of the rear wheels in a car. Now, for cost savings purposes, most regular trikes do not have that. Some e-trikes do not as well. Now, we offer both e-trikes with and without a rear differential. They're not always necessary, depending on the riding, and honestly, they save some cost in the production of the trike. Now, with that said, the first time that you get onto a tricycle, if it doesn't have a rear differential, it may feel like the trike is pulling in one direction. Now that's because you're only getting power to one rear wheel, so in theory, it's probably going to make the trike feel like it's trying to veer off. Now, as you get comfortable steering a trike, you will understand that you have to keep the handlebars straight. If you don't, the trike will veer off to the side and it won't go straight on its own.

Now, if you do have a rear differential and you're getting power to both rear wheels, in theory, it should be able to drive in a straight line you still have to hand keep the front tire straight, but because you're getting power to both tires, it's not overpowering on one side versus the other side. So, I guess that if you got on one with a rear differential, you're not going to feel that difference. Now, again, getting used to a tricycle without a rear differential just takes a little practice. You can look at all of our rides on our YouTube channel and you'll see most people can get up and figure it out within the first five or so minutes. But it's important to know that trikes, regardless of having a rear differential or not, feel different than a two-wheel bike. So if you're new to it, don't give up. You'll get used to it, I promise, but it's not going to be like riding a two-wheel bike. And that's very important to remember so you don't get discouraged. So, that's a big reason why you're going to feel like your trike is going to the side. The important thing is just countersteer and over time it will feel more natural for you to hold the handlebar steady as you're riding. Now, if you have been test-riding trikes or you have a trike without a rear differential and you've owned it for a while and you just feel like you cannot get it to go straight, I would say look at some options with the rear differential then. It should, in theory, keep it rolling straighter. Now, again, they're going to cost a little bit of money, but it may be a good option for you, depending on how you can handle the steering.

Now, if you have any other questions on the topic, please reach out to theteam@sixthreezero.com or call us, at 310-982-2877. We've also got a whole other large selection on our website of trikes and e-trikes. In addition to that, we offer a 30-day test ride on your e-trike policy. If you don't love your e-trike in the first 30 days, send it back. No questions asked, no money out of your pocket. In addition to that, we're gonna warranty everything for up to one year. If anything goes wrong in the first year, we take care of its parts and labor. And lastly, be a part of our community. Our Facebook group has thousands of members. Join the group before you purchase. Talk to existing riders so you can get comfortable that you made the right choice. Then when you have yours, post in the group, and make friends. And of course, then download our app to track your rides and compete on our leaderboard. So thanks for sticking around and don't forget, it's your journey, your experience. Enjoy the ride.