Mine don't last long. Eight hundred, not a thousand. I have seen "car" tires on the rear of motorcycle/sidecar rigs but those bikes were newer and larger to accept that tire. There was a time, when the side hack was off the bike, I hope that Desire doesn't find out I called her a hack, and I tried to ride Charlie without the sidecar. I had a chopper with a raked and extended front end and at slower speeds it was kind of tricky, but not totally unsafe. Maybe it was the totally used up rear tire that was flat and square or maybe the rake and trail of the front end, but I won't try that again. Charlie and Desire are meant to be together. Let no man come between them.
I tell that story to stimulate others to tell their experiences and add ideas.
Dinner, gota go. Bill
Car tire is a deep rabbit hole. One best address by brand and model years of the bike. What would work on older Harley's are no longer on the market.
What works on the 2009 and up touring frames became more expensive with HD change to different wheel sizes. The HD 16 inch it was easy.
IMO I do not want another sidecar that does not use a car tire. Converting my small Velorex to a car tire was the best move I ever made and worth the cost and effort.
Both my rigs run Car tired on sidecar and rear of the bike. If the sidecar is taken off I swap back to a motorcycle tire on the rear of the bike.
Good Morning Mr. Monkey: I kinda knew you'd answer. And I may have exaggerated a bit on the mileage I get out of a Dunlap 16" whitewall. I really don't pay much attention to what is installed, brand or width. I must take the wheel off of the bike, 99 roadking, and take it to my local tire service guy. I ride almost daily and so it seems as though I replace the rear every few months. The contact patch is small; for awhile.
I also mentioned the rake and trail. Are all motorcycles w/ sidecar required to change the steering geometry to accommodate the hack? I know what it was like when I had a stock triple tree. And I know how much better, albeit safer, it is with a Champion raked tree.
The sidecar is a Spalding. Made by Spalding Engineering Co. SECO Lubbock, Tx.
dinner was a spicy noodle soup with chunks of beef.
Factory Rear 180/55/18 replacement for use with sidecar. 195/65R 16. The 180/55/18 is a narrow sidewall tire . when you go to a 195/65/16 they come out to with 10ths of an inch in height and the car tire is 6 tenths wider.
It can be done on a 99 but would require a wide swing arm mod that is not cheap to do.
That's what I want to hear! That's why I post.
Smitty, please school me about swing arm modifications. It makes perfect sense to me.
thanks for reading and responding
The 2009 an up Harley touring bikes got a new frame. It allowed the use of a 180 rear tire and 49 MM forks latter
Aftermarket swing arms allow wider tries. The problem is tracking it down and all the work to properly install.
By time you by new wheel,rotor get brakes lined up belt alignment . To cost is nuts.
More to come.
Bob , Am I understanding that if I can get a 09 swingarm w/ a wheel/hub, make the brake work there will be room for a flat [car] tire? What size car tire? This has got me excited. I love a good project. It's so good it can't be that easy though. Nuts and bolts, exchange the parts: it doesn't always go as planed in my experience. I think your right. it's a good idea but the cost is nuts.
more to come?
09 swing arm will not direct bolt on 99. The frames are different. Aftermarket companies make wide tire swing arms.
I had to take mother in law to hospital yesterday. That is why I bailed out of here so fast. Spent all nigh there. Soon As I get things settled down here We can get more into this.
I do appreciate your knowledge and willingness to share. My best wishes and hopes for you and your Mother.
Mother in law will be in Hospital at least 3 days. So we will be busy. 50 miles each way back and forth.
This is a link to help start the education on Fat tire work.
800 miles on a rear tire is just unacceptable. The tires on the old frame were around 8,000 to maybe 11,000 for most on two wheels
Of course sidecar would reduce that a lot . But not to 800 miles. There is a problem somewhere that needs to fixed.
There is no doubt the 2009 and up frame would allow provide a lot better tire life either with and easy to do car tire on rear or the factory 180.
A wide tire conversion would be expensive and take work to get right.
Post some pictures of the worm out tire. What air pressure do you run in them. More information may help the riders here find an answer.
If you have too much toe in it would scruff right off but still feel OK. Just my idea. I keep my toe in to a minimum. I don't know anything about your rig but it's a HD. I would have alignment checked.
Alignment,Tire air pressure .lean angle something is clearly not right.
Ignorant question, but maybe this is the thread where it makes sense...
Does increasing toe in wear both the rear tire and the hack wheel tire more?
I currently have my Africa Twin with factory rear 150/18 tires all the way around. Since I have fixed the frame/subframe issues somewhat, I tend to drive it pretty hard on both the street and rocky dirt roads.
Handling is pretty fantastic with just a little trail and one of Chuck's leading links. Toe in is currently just under 3/4" with almost no pull to the right at 75mph.
Front tire made it about 18,000 miles before I decided to pull it with about 30% tread left and burn it off on the rear.
Hack wheel tire has 26,000 miles on it, with some tread left.
Last rear tire went through 2 of the 4 belts at 3,653 miles.
I guess I am wondering if I lessened the toe-in a little, would I really see longer rear tire life? I sure like the whole going down the road straight at 75 mph bit, though. Life is full of compromises, ain't it?
3,653 miles on rear pusher:
Dane @ben-franklin, it would be good to know exactly what tires you are running on the front wheel, and on the sidecar wheel. The mileage you are getting out of the front tire, and the sidecar tire are very acceptable, to the point of being VERY good.
BUT...the mileage you got out of that last rear tire...all of 3,653 miles, and had gone through two of the 4 ply of belts, that is absolutely not acceptable, and yes...I do know that you are tearing up the deserts of AZ, and sneaking in NM to tear up that landscape too, and that you slide the rear of that sidecar rig around on the rocky trails of the Southwest, and have as much fun as any sidecar driver could have. That is what you built that rig for, and you are finally getting your money's worth out of it.
Another BUT....I have told you all along that using that Mitas e-07+ is the wrong tire, or...tyre. Now that you have finally installed a Mitas e-07 (non +) tire on that rear wheel, I would like for you to get at least 7,306 miles out of it, which is double what the last one got.
Okay, you use your sidecar rig for a much different plan than 99 % of us do, and I didn't even bother adding in the .314159 % , as it wasn't worth mentioning them (dang it...I mentioned them)
Regarding your question, as there was a question in your post above...I would leave the toe-in alone, as the bike drives straight and true, and you are happy with the handling of it. "IF" you were to make any change at all to the toe-in, I would simply reduce it down to 1/2" of toe-in, rather than the current 3/4" of toe-in.
What you need......I say, what you need....is a second sidecar rig. One that has more street cred, so that if you wanted to go from Skunk Hollow, AZ to a sidecar rally in Pennsylvania, or Idaho, etc...you don't have to change tire halfway through that journey. Keep running the Mitas e-07 (non +) on the rear wheel, but buy a street cred sidecar rig for longer journeys, like going up to visit Chuck, or Mike Paull, or Bruce on Canoe, B.C., or Drew in Pennsylvania.
That's all I have to say about that 
Two Million Mile Rider...All 7 Continents
Exploring the World in Comfort
