Four-wheeled "motorcycle" due for launch this week

This four-wheeled tilting motorcycle is set to be unveiled this week at the Geneva motor show.

Created by madcap Swiss design firm Sbarro – famous in the past for its prototype bikes built around hubless wheels – the Pendolauto is a similar concept to Yamaha’s recently revealed Tesseract concept bike, designed to offer the experience of a two-wheeler, but with added stability.

The rush of such designs comes on the heels of the successful Piaggio MP3, which uses a similar twin-wheeled front suspension arrangement but a conventional single rear wheel.

Both the Yamaha and Sbarro four-wheelers gain an extra swingarm and a second rear wheel as well.

While the Sbarro is unlikely to ever be more than simply a concept, Yamaha’s development of a four-wheeled tilting bike is expected to be developed into a production reality – although the final version is expected to be in the mould of a scooter rather than getting the superbike looks and performance of the Tesseract.