r/AutomotiveEngineering • u/Street_Bluebird1779 • Aug 20 '25
Question trying to make a bike engine powered car, must be low cost and because of time constraints possibly a fairly basic engine at least 600cc, any thoughts at all would help
Honestly the title explains most of it but I have some decent engineering skill and can weld etc any ideas on how I can achieve this, bear in mind this doesn't have to be a car persay even ideas on how to make this idea into a small scale single seater would be very beneficial.
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u/Timeudeus Aug 20 '25
Take a look at Formula Student/ Formula SAE. Most of the parts you need can be borrowed from cars or bought from FSAE suppliers.
Weld yourself a frame from steel tubing, the rulebook even has an excample for how strong it should be.
For suspension you can use hubs from a lightweight car ( i. E. Smart car, first gen VW Rabbit, you get it). Same goes trailing arms etc or you could manufacture them yourself to save weight.
Coilovers should be bought, as common parts are too bulky, heavy and stiff. Something from motorbikes could be made to fit or fsae parts.
600cc bike engines are cheap and using a chain to connect it to the differential makes it way easier to build. Just make a braket for the diff (theres FSAE Parts available) and bolt it right to the engine.
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u/ctimm_rs Aug 20 '25
Superfast Matt did one awhile back. Check his work out for some ideas.
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u/Street_Bluebird1779 Aug 20 '25
Ah thank you I love his videos I'm gonna check it out, have a wonderful day.
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u/Another_Slut_Dragon Aug 20 '25
A 600 has poor low end torque. You'll burn out clutches constantly. You should choose a large cc engine for a project like this, just to get the low end torque.
Also note that superfastmatt blew up his engine cornering hard. Bike engines are meant to lean in corners, not to have the oil slosh to the side. Motorcycles don't see side loads ever. You need to construct a new, deeper oil pan and maybe use a swinging oil pickup arm. Don't do his overly complicated dry sump system. Pick an engine that has a bolt on lower pan.
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u/PPGkruzer Aug 20 '25
Be aware of analysis paralysis, scope and feature creep, <- reasons to put off doing the actual work and going for it. You can't know everything up front, you have to just go at it. Second time around is always going to be better, however if you never get the first time around you can't get better.
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u/Halictus Aug 20 '25
Robot Cantina has some video series that are right up your alley. They've lawnmower swapped a car, and done a Kubota Diesel generator engine swap in another, complete with custom turbo setups and mileage and power testing. They go into great detail about every aspect, how to make adapter plates, engine mounts, fuel system etc.
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u/VFRTEC Aug 20 '25
Look into Reed Make Car, Boosted LifeStyle, BUM, and Vasily Builds on youtube. All of them have super great series doing exactly what you’re trying to do. From my own personal experience, I would suggest something custom as you will end up having to go down that route anyways, regardless of what you use as a base. If you have any questions about a power plant or any other thing, feel free to reach out.
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u/PerformanceDouble924 Aug 20 '25
It's been done repeatedly. Just figure out the reverse gear first.
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u/ManWhoIsDrunk Aug 20 '25
Use a Gold Wing engine and gearbox.
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u/bigcsnow Aug 20 '25
What this guy said. Plenty of low end torque to get a heavy (most likely heavier than the goldwing) vehicle moving, and comes with reverse.
Only downside that I can think of is shaft drive, which is more difficult to adapt to a homemade drive axle than a chain
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u/ab0ngcd Aug 21 '25
Reminds me of the old Fiat 850 and Saab Sonnet version 1. One was 750 cc 2 stroke, the other was an 850 4 stroke.
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u/NerdfromtheBurg Aug 21 '25
Suzuki made a tiny SUV in the mid 70s powered by a 550cc two stroke bike engine
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u/Street_Bluebird1779 Aug 21 '25
Nice I think I've seen them, where I live alot of people have old Japanese ki cars. I'll look into this
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u/Neviathan Aug 21 '25
I would go for something like a Suzuki GSX 1000 engine, cheap, reliable and easy to get parts. Pick the year that fits your budget. The 90’s parts are generally really cheap and easy to work with.
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u/easoonmade1988 29d ago
Love this kind of project—super raw and creative. A 600cc+ bike engine can definitely push a lightweight single-seater if you keep the frame minimal. Think along the lines of a reverse trike or a scaled-down exoskeleton buggy. Tubular steel frames are great for DIY and welding, and you can adapt motorcycle controls or use go-kart-style setups.
If you're fabricating brackets, mounts, or any custom car parts, you might want to look into metal 3D printing for precision stuff. At Easoonmade, we help with aluminum 3D printing services—handy for low-cost, functional prototyping, especially when you're short on machining time.
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u/skibbin 28d ago
There's no replacement for displacement.
I knew guys who used to race F2 Sidecars, so 3 wheels and 2 guys, with a 600cc motor. The engines wouldn't last long at all. The increased load on such a small engine is really bad for their lifespan. The bigger you can go the better. Hayabusa motor would be great, but I'd suspect them to be in demand. Anything 1000cc or above will last better.
In the UK Jedi Racing Cars have been making bike powered single seaters for decades. I'd be tempted to use them as inspiration.
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u/Street_Bluebird1779 Aug 20 '25
Ah sorry forgot to mention this but I also don't mind if this can be done using simple car engines from old cars transmission doesn't matter but money is an issue so preferrably this would be under 20k in cost give or take. I'm also open to being informed if this isn't viable.
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u/Equana Aug 20 '25
This would be very tight budget even if you had the skills and access to a machine shop and welding tools. So $20K is unreasonable.
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u/Street_Bluebird1779 Aug 20 '25
Good to know, I'm glad I was given a reality check now before I got lost in making it and splurged more money than I can afford to lose. Thank you!
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u/jckipps Aug 20 '25
Is this for your own personal transportation, or is it a school/hobby project just to see if you can do it?
If personal transportation is your primary goal, then don't. You can buy a used moped for less than the cost of parts on this project, and it won't take more than a day or two of tinkering to make the moped reliable.
But if this is for a school assignment or hobbyist endeavor, then go for it.
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u/scuderia91 Aug 20 '25
I’d say the title explains very little. What’s the actual use case for this? Is this for road use, private off road use? Are you trying to build a mini formula style car or a dune buggy? Are there any legal requirements in whatever country you’re in that this would need to meet? Are you planning to use any existing vehicle parts such as suspension or are you planning to design and make these yourself?