Sidewinder learner sidecar - Vintage and classic motorcycle

A blast from the past for many. The Sidewinder sidecar from the eighties was a ruse to get around learner motorcycle laws - a learner in the UK was restricted to 125cc until he or she had passed their riding test, that is unless they were in charge of a sidecar outfit. In the case of a combo any capacity was possible; so the learner could ride for example either a CB125 solo or a CX1000 with sidecar.

The Sidewinder was a mail order clip on banking sidecar that was aimed at the learner market. There was no passenger, or even luggage, carrying capacity. The whole thing was just a liberal interpretation of the rules to get around learner capacity restrictions. They sold a whole load of them and at one time they were a regular sight on British roads.

Though the spirit of the law was being twisted there was never a huge spate of road traffic accidents associated with learners and Sidewinders. As learner laws changed and direct access riding tests came on stream so the whole raison d'etre of the Sidewinder vanished and they are now a largely forgotten footnote in British motorcycling history.