ADV Pulse

NEWSLETTER
Get ADV Pulse delivered by email
Sign up for ADV Pulse Weekly

Newsletter

Get ADV Pulse delivered by email
Sign up for ADV Pulse Weekly

Connect With Us

Follow On Facebook:

ADV BikesMotoHome: The World’s First House on a Motorcycle

MotoHome: The World’s First House on a Motorcycle

The MotoHome may seem strange now but who knows, it might catch on!

Published on 05.30.2018
WATCH: MotoHome in Action.

As adventure bike riders, there are only a few options when it comes to accomodations. Either open up the wallet for the comfort and luxury of a hotel, motel, B&B, etc., or carry your own tent/hammock/lean-to and “rough it.” What if you could have both? USC School of Architecture graduate Jeremy Carman decided to combine his passion, motorcycles, with his skills, architecture to create what you see here: The MotoHome.

The bike started as a Honda CB street bike and from there the bike had to be prepped for the extra weight and different center of gravity. The swing arm is extremely long, as is the chain, and the “subframe” is now a large structural component. The front end is from a CR500 to help make the bike a more all-terrain capable machine.

MotoHome Motorcycle
Besides a heated shelter with insulated walls, the MotoHome includes a kitchen, dining space, USB power, a dedicated storage space and more.

Now before you balk at the idea, let’s explore what is really going on here. On first sight, the MotoHome does look a bit ungainly, but we have to keep in mind this is the first prototype created by a student on a student’s budget. Not an OEM creating a highly polished finished product. Secondly, according to Jeremy, the sleeping pod weighs 35 pounds empty and, depending on how it is loaded up, shouldn’t get much heavier than that. Plus, all of the extra structure under the pod is not only reinforcement but storage for all the camping supplies you could need. Jeremy also claims that along with the shelter, there’s a kitchen and dining space.


ADVERTISEMENT

Why not a tent? Well, that is the typical way to go but tents do have their limitations. Temperature wise, a fully enclosed, insulated, heated sleeping area will always be warmer and more comfortable than a tent in chilly weather. Then comes the wind. We’ve all had tents laid nearly flat by gusts of wind making it impossible to sleep. The MotoHome doesn’t have to worry about that, given the bike doesn’t fall over. Also, packing and unpacking tents can be tricky depending on the tent and require sleeping pads and sleeping bags, not to mention a relatively dry, relatively flat piece of real estate.

Why not a trailer? This one is harder to answer because we’ve never ridden the MotoHome and have no idea how it handles. It is a fair guess to say it doesn’t turn all that great with such a long wheelbase and even though the weight of the pod isn’t too bad, it it very high up messing with the center of gravity. But, we know that towing a trailer isn’t a picnic either. Riding a machine that leans into turns pulling something that doesn’t is awkward and hard to get use to. They can also swing around and can’t take much off-roading (not that the MotoHome looks like it will be carving up any single track).

We sort of see this as a mix between a tiny house and a motorcycle. There is something to be said about sleep in a rigid structure, protected from the elements. And just as a large, four-wheeled motorhome that people live in while traveling the world, this could be a viable living situation for a moto traveler who doesn’t want to live in a tent that they have to pack and unpack every night. Jeremy explains it this way:

MotoHome house on Motorcycle

“Architecture, in this instance, distills down to a creatively designed shelter that intelligently performs its programmatic function(s) efficiently, all the while remaining practical to build/afford. I’m not just designing a motorcycle with architecture strapped to it, I’m designing and building a shelter solution that’s dependently integrated into an all-terrain motorcycle. Its purpose is to give its user a travel experience unlike any other; nearly uninhibited travel on an athletic and widely capable vehicle all while providing the user a home that’s comfortable, practical, and sustainable. If the RV was architecture on four wheels, this would be an attempt at architecture on two.”

World's first house on an Adventure Motorcycle

Sure, our gut reaction is to raise an eyebrow but given some time and a few more prototypes to refine some features, perhaps the MotoHome will look and function closer to a normal bike. Our only real issue right away is trusting the center stand to be wide enough with a full size human in the pod. Turning from your back to your side too fast in the middle of the night might tip the whole thing over.

Overall, we aren’t saying this is the next big thing, but aren’t dismissing it either. More so, we give a hearty tip-of-the-hat to Jeremy for thinking outside the box and actually seeing his dream come to fruition. He plans to test the bike with a trip through South America and back, crossing more than 20,000 miles of road and dirt. There might even be a documentary or series of shows chronicling Jeremy’s trip, with plans of doing live broadcasts when possible.

World's first house on an Adventure Motorcycle

Go to Gofundme.com to support Jeremy or just get more information.

Author: Sean Klinger

With his sights set on doing what he loved for a living, Sean left college with a BA in Journalism and dirt bike in his truck. After five years at a dirt-only motorcycle magazine shooting, testing, writing, editing, and a little off-road racing, he has switched gears to bigger bikes and longer adventures. He’ll probably get lost a few times but he’ll always have fun doing it. Two wheels and adventure is all he needs. 

Author: Sean Klinger
ADVERTISEMENT

Related Stories

Related Stories

Notify me of new posts via email

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

9 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Vu Nguyen
Vu Nguyen
May 30, 2018 10:08 am

cool idea!

RobG
RobG
June 3, 2018 3:56 pm

I bet it sucks in crosswinds! 🙂

normhami
normhami
June 8, 2018 4:52 pm

that would make a great super light and simple trailer or truck bed camper but a bike. neat idea i would wonder what that would be like at highway speeds with a cross wind.

herbelicious
herbelicious
June 11, 2018 9:15 am

I wonder if it is bear-proof?

joe
joe
June 17, 2018 7:42 pm

so when you die trying to ride it, the coffin is already attached! I do think its pretty cool, though a trike might be more appropriate.

Kai
Kai
June 21, 2018 12:27 am

My advice: do not tey to ride this thing in windy places like Patagonia. Or not even over the Oresund bridge between Denmark and Sweden. And not on twisties in the Alps. It might work however on those boring long stretches of highway in the US or CA on a windstill day.
And by the way: my Hilleberg Staika tent has never given up in any storm.

trackback
RV Travel Newsletter Issue 851 - RV Travel
June 22, 2018 10:00 pm

[…] the shelter, sleeping area and storage, there’s a kitchen and dining space in this prototype pod. Click here for article, pictures and video at advpulse.com. Thanks to Greg Illes for calling this to our […]

Jon
Jon
July 6, 2018 5:50 pm

My guess is that it would be “unsafe at any speed” in winds above 10-15 mph. It looks like if you were sleeping in it and it blew or fell over on the left side you would be trapped as the weight of the bike would be pinning the door shut. 20,000 miles of roads and dirt? Let me quote John Wayne and also Buddy Holly “That’ll be the day”. Certainly not what you’d want on the Interstate system. This is not even a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist….

trackback
Jeremy Carman Builds Off-Road Motorcycle Shelter
July 22, 2019 2:12 am

[…] Via: ADVPulse […]

ADVERTISEMENT

Watch: 2024 Triumph Tiger 900 Rally Pro Tested

For 2024, Triumph's dirt-focused Tiger 900 — the Rally Pro — has received...

My First Time Riding Enduro, How Hard Could It Be?

Nestled between the Sierra Nevada and Inyo Mountains of California lies a l...

REV'IT! Tornado 4 Mesh Adventure Jacket

REV’IT! Launches Two New Mesh ADV Suits For Warmer Days Ahead

The thaw is on in North America, and before we know it we’ll be tearing up th...