“Tecate 500”

"It had been a long time since I'd ridden a three-wheeler and I'd forgotten how smooth they are!" says Ron Baker form PEP (suspension and performance company) near LA "With a quad, you have two wheels up front hitting all the bumps. Even with great suspension, the chassis flexes somewhat in choppy terrain and the front-end candance. I think a three-wheeler is a funner, smoother ride though the dunes.

"The '84 and '85 Tecate was one of the best-handling ATVs ever made, certainly comparable to the Honda ATC250R. Plus, it has a slightly higher seat height than the Honda and it fits me better."

Ron's been racing professionally since the three-wheeler days and he should know. However, good ergos and smoothness are not the only reasons he built a Tecate 500. He wanted to rocket up Olds Hill at Glamis faster than anyone; now he has the weapon to do it.

The Tecate three-wheeler came to PEP as a trade-in for shock work and the KX500 motor was in a quad owned by Putman Motorsports (see story in last month's issue): "The KX has no counterbalancer and vibrated like crazy in the quad frame. But in a three-wheeler, vibration is minimal, probably because it is absorbed better by the chassis, the front forks and the triple clamps (which secure the forks)."

Though the chromoly frame is based on the Tecate, it is entirely hand-made by Ron. The front down tubes and engine cradle were re-designed to accommodate the KX motor and unlike the original Tecate, the swingarm (also by Ron) was designed to accept a no-link suspension setup. Steering head geometry of the original Tecate was retained.

POWER COMPANY

The '88 Kawasaki KX500 motor (used on dirt bikes) makes tons of power in stock form. Custom pipes were needed to clear the frame, PEP did the port work and the stock power valves were removed for better exhaust port flow and more top-end. Since the KX motor produces so much bottom-end anyway, and the finished machine is so lightweight (275 pounds), torque is never a problem.

What's even more unusual about this machine, though, is not really the motor itself. It's how the motor is fed. "Up until now, running fuel injection on a quad has been risky,' says Ron. "There have been problems with fuel delivery; too much or too little. We've been working on this system for a year now and we haven't burned a piston yet. I don't think you would find that kind of reliability with other injection systems."

Ron's system is by Mellor, which has been working with fuel injection systems since '83. With Ron's input, the Mellor Injection System was perfected. We've changed the throttle body design and improved fuel delivery," says Ron. "It's a bolt-on-and-go system that has the advantage of reliability and versatility. I can dune the machine and ride it everywhere, not just on the hill. Plus it's really fast; I'd guess we're getting about 20% more horsepower with the injection."

The injector pump is belt-driven and runs off a pulley on the crank of the KX. On a Banshee, the system could be driven by the water pump gear, as is the MRD injection system. To switch from gas to alcohol, only the jetting needs to be changed. The entire Mellor system includes, the pump drive (pump, belt, pulley, adapter, housing) intake manifold, throttle body and all plumbing illness. The components are sold separately or complete for $1250, excluding the intake manifold, which is custom designed for each type of machine.

How does the three-wheeler perform? "It ran much better than we expected," says Ron with typical understatement, I'm sure it would beat my RD400 quad. We started out with a +10" (over stock Tecate) swingarm, which was too short, and the bike could come over on you. After we added four inches, it was pretty stable. The power is violent enough from the carbureted KX motor. With the fuel injection, it's a machine for power addicts.

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