Side Car Designs

The Aerial square four has four air cooled vertical cylinders in a square configuration (two in front and two behind). The rear cylinders are shielded from cooling air by the front cylinders giving them a tendency to overheat when the engine is heavily loaded. For that reason, I wouldn't pick the Aerial for a side car application. If you are determined, try locating an Aerial riders club.

I agree with your comments completely. Careful design of wind deflectors can mitigate but not fix the problems of cooling the rear cylinders, but summer temperatures and standing in slow moving traffic will always be a problem.

I spent some time on this problem with a friend 40 odd years ago, the fix we came up with was not quite so easy to do as it will be today, we placed a larger capacity battery in the sidecar for the electrics and made some small ventilators, switched by hand, on and off.....

Today the ventilators are easy to buy finished, probably many times more efficient too than what we fabricated! I forget what the working voltage was, I do remember that someone "tuned" the charging a bit to increase the charge to the battery, but details have slipped my mind!! It was a problem then even to find affordable small motors...

A further problem then was a way to monitor the temperature to decide when extra cooling was needed......and where to mount the sensor!!!

God did we have problems!!!!

I forget who it is, but there is a CR4 member in the UK that builds his own sidecars....perhaps someone else remembers who it is. You location was not completely clear for me, France or Canada?

andy, very good info, i am in Maryland, usa

OH!

I will still try and remember who it was who made his own sidecars.....maybe he can help via email...

Have a good one.

Lucky you - luved the look of " squariees" Did you get it recently? How is parts availibilty?

wondering if you got my comments, please let me know

I apologize for offering an opinion instead of directly answering your question.

With a vintage motorcycle as valuable as a square four, if I was going to put a side car on it I would stick to "period" stuff. I might try to find a correct old sidecar that needed restoration or at least copy a correct old sidecar. I once build a sidecar for a vintage dirt bike. It was bunches of fun but not very pretty.

A less authentic possibility would be a Jawa side car. Their even more recent (25 years old) side cars to me look very pretty and vintage. Also Jawa side cars were inexpensive.

I have never seen a Square Four Aeril, do you have a photo of it you could post? I collect motorcycle photos. I have a 1983 Harley Davidson FLHS with a 1976 H-D side car, it's a blast to ride!

thanks

if you are looking forariel pics look on ariel motor sites in usa

You need to contact CR4 member Case451, he builds side cars, but he is not very CR4 active recently, so send him an email and give him greetings from us all.....with a bit of luck, he may help you!!

COME BACK CASE, ALL IS FORGIVEN!!!!