New Bill Could Shut Down the Polaris Slingshot and Similar Three-Wheelers

If passed, a new bill could spell trouble for manufacturers that produce three-wheeled autocycles that are currently legally classified as motorcycles. As reported by Hagerty, U.S. House Resolution 3385 has been introduced by Representative Derrick van Orden, and it narrows the definition of a motorcycle (in section 571.3 of title 49 in the Code of Federal Regulations) considerably, requiring manufacturers of vehicles like the Polaris Slingshot or the Morgan Super 3 to either extensively redesign their creations. The changes would be so significant that the vehicles would likely no longer be feasible for production, and for small, U.S. manufacturers like Polaris and Vanderhall (the latter produces the Carmel), this could spell the end of their most important products.

What Changes Could Be Coming to the Law

The current federal definition of what constitutes a motorcycle is rather broad: a "motor vehicle with motive power having a seat or saddle for the user of the rider and designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground." This allows manufacturers like Polaris to provide a car-like seating position and controls without the rigorous testing that four-wheeled cars are usually saddled with. The new bill would exclude any three-wheeler with a steering wheel, requiring the use of handlebars for steering and braking. It would also mandate that the seat or saddle be of the sort that the rider "sits astride," and these rules would mean such comprehensive changes that the abovementioned autocycle manufacturers would need to redesign almost everything about their vehicles.

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If they were to add a fourth wheel, their USP would be gone, and they'd need to conform to even more stringent car regulations. If they were to redesign the seating and control solutions, the relative convenience of their operation would be nullified, too. Different states currently have different definitions, with Minnesota, for example, defining autocycles as three-wheeled vehicles that the user sits in, rather than on, and that have a steering wheel. This new law would essentially change the laws, making the existing three-wheelers we've mentioned illegal to operate.

New Bill Faces Pushback

Hagerty reports that the Motorcycle Industry Council has expressed "strong opposition" to the new bill in a letter to the heads of the subcommittee debating the new legislation, arguing that it could "eliminate an entire category of innovative American-made products from commerce and jeopardize thousands of domestic jobs." Manufacturers have also argued that this new bill could deprive consumers of choice.

The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade has referred bill H.R. 3385 to the full Energy and Commerce committee in the lower house of Congress, so there is still a long way to go before the bill is approved, with amendments and clarifications likely.

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