Recumbent - Has anyone here tried to transport a trike in a Ford Focus ZX3/ZX5 hatchback?

Title tells all...

I've heard many people fitting their trike inside a Toyota Matrix/Prius, just not sure about the Focus.

Not yet. But if my trike ever has a breakdown while my husband is out of town, I will be trying to cram it into the Focus hatchback that my FIL owns.

My trike can be broken down in less than 5 min and crammed into the back of a Smart. I've never trided it though. Have a feeling that it would be something like Tetris. :p

Take all three wheels off the trike, seat off, maybe even tail rack.
Suspended trike could probably fold if you disconnect the rear shock from rear swingarm.
It all depend on how much of a packrat you are.

I could fit two Vision R40 recumbent bikes inside my 1990 Mazda 323 hatchback, with enough room to spare to carry weekend getaway luggage and have my wife sit comfortably in passenger seat, granted she is a pixie, 5'1".

I was able to load my Greenspeed into a Toyota Echo, which I think is similarly sized to the Focus. Actually the hatchback would probably make it easier.

Note that the Greenspeed I have has a frame that folds -- pop off the seat and fold the trike in half. So I think it depends on the trike you're talking about.

If you can't put a single trike into a car, you're doing something wrong.

Assuming these are all hatchbacks with fold down rear seats, there should be no problem fitting at least two trikes.... because back when I owned a really small 88' Civic, it was possible to fit my trike and my mountain bike in the back and still shut the hatch. With a bungee holding down the hatch, it was possible to fit a trike, a SWB and my mountain bike. And all without disassembly.

More recently, I put 3 DF bikes and 4 BMX into a borrowed 06' Civic that is not a hatchback. These were Freecycle donor bikes for my next build and it was possible to stack everything by removing wheels and pedals.

:)ensen.

i transported my trike on a 98 infiniti a few yrs ago. I had roof carrier, then made a frame out of 2x8s and u clamped that to the roof carrier and went for hundreds of miles with absolutely no problems

Give me an hour and bunch of tools and I could fit a trike into the engine compartment. The real goal is how hard is it to cram into the back, and whether the car will remain clean.

I have a Scion xA as well as a Toyota Yaris 3 door. I can fit my Catrike Trail inside the xA without disassembly or collapsing the boom, but it requires the front passenger seat to be set forward all the way and bolt upright, not very comfortable for a passenger. I cover the boom & cranks with a heavy duty nylon stuff sack to protect the inside of the car. A plastic boot rack protects the folded rear seatbacks. I have to remove my rack trunk bag and rear light, but the rack remains. Rear wheel goes in first and lodges between the passenger seatback and doorpost; chainrings lodge into left rear of the hatch.

The Yaris, which is essentially the same interior dimensions, is a bit too small to fit through the hatch and a bit too long to fit without shortening the boom. I tried pulling the boom out and laying it over the seat (encased in the stuff sack) but it tended to bend the chain tubes, so I don't do it that way anymore.

When I first bought the trike, it went in upside down with the front wheels off, pedals off, and the boom between the front seats. That's not really an option now that I have mirrors, computers, and other accessories on the handlebars.

It is easy to slide my Catrike Road into our '04 Subaru Forester. It goes in chain ring first (remember to set the chain on the large ring so the teeth will not do any damage) and I pop the flag staff in half to clear it under the cabin ceiling. Front seats remain in the normal position for two adults. If I have to carry a lot of other gear or a second bike, I have made a rig for the trike that clamps on to our Draftmaster, which we mainly use for the Rans Screamer, and the trike sits happily on the hitch on the back of the car.

Mike

I tried putting a AB Tadpole in my ZX3 Focus and it didn't fit well. I had to take the back wheel off if I remember right.

My Catrike Pocket fits into my Mini Cooper-S easily. I just take off the rear wheel and lean the front passenger seat forward. I have done it with 2 people in the car, but it gets pretty tight as my trike has a luggage rack that is above the rear wheel.

My wife and I can get both of our Catrike Road's into our 2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring, and the hatch will close. No trike disassembly required, other than taking the flags off. Both have rear racks.