Pete Larsen, owner of Liberty Sidecars, stands with a recent creation at his Seattle shop. (Jeff Layton)
Pete Larsen has shipped hundreds of his hand-built motorcycle sidecars as far away as Indonesia. Billy Joel owns two of them. One even made an appearance in the 2007 film "Wild Hogs."
"It was fiberglass, but they did a good job making it look like a rusty hulk," Larsen says.
A custom sidecar sits in Pete Larsen's shop on Rainier Avenue. (Jeff Layton)
In fact, if you've seen a touring sidecar on the road this summer, it was probably one of Larsen's creations. As one of only six sidecar makers in North America, Larsen's company, Liberty Sidecars, has a fair share of the market.
"I can't make them fast enough," he says.
Larsen, 62, has been building his retro-styled sidecars for nearly two decades, and still does most of the work himself inside his historic, 8,000-square-foot workshop on Rainier Avenue.
The sidecars are an homage to 1930s Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The chassis and frames originate from a basic mold, and then each is built by hand to match the style and color of the owner's bike. Each sidecar takes on its own personality through customized wheels, lights, paint and trim.
The sidecars are assembled with four mounting struts, and feature dual-suspension leaf springs and a shock absorber for a comfortable ride.
Liberty Sidecars
- Price: $5,500-$10,000
- Requirements: Larsen's sidecars are made exclusively for Harley-Davidson motorcycles, because Harley frames have remained fairly consistent from year to year, he says. The sidecars can be mounted to almost any Harley, from 1960s models to current bikes.
- More info: libertysidecars.com
Larsen says that at the turn of the century there were more sidecars than automobiles on the road. While they are more of a novelty today, the culturally romantic image of the sidecar keeps them popular, he says.
"Their use has changed from practical transportation to recreational," Larsen says. He points out that they can be used to carry tools or lunch, and that they are great for young families.
Sidecars also offer a pragmatic solution for overweight or disabled riders, aging baby boomers and motorcyclists with dogs. Many of his orders come from motorcycle riders in their 60s or 70s who have slipped on their bikes and need some help with balance.
"Their doctors tell them they will lose a hip with one more crash," Larsen says.
In the corner of his shop recently, Larsen was making adjustments to a 2001 Harley-Davidson Road King belonging to a disabled customer from Wenatchee. Larsen says the owner takes cross-country road trips, with his wheelchair riding shotgun.
Larsen fell in love with sidecars at age 25, when he attached a Russian-built car to his 1968 BMW motorcycle. Since then, he and his wife, Patty Billings, have toured the world with their luggage piled high inside a variety of sidecars.
He started his business in 1991, when he built his first prototype and drove it to the Sturgis motorcycle rally in South Dakota. He landed his first six orders and then rushed back to Seattle, where he had to quickly figure out how to manufacture them all.
On a recent test-drive of a shiny black sidecar with bright-red flames, Larsen came to a stop at an intersection across from a woman in a minivan. She smiled and pumped her arms in the air.
Her reaction is typical, Larsen says.
"They make people happy. People honk and give the thumbs up. Kids point," he says. "It's like being in a parade."
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