I can’t deny that I haven’t set my eyes on a seven-seater tuk-tuk, as I remember a few months ago while I was in Kitengela, I boarded a certain three-wheeler. At first, it looked like a regular tuk-tuk, but stepping inside, they had sacrificed its cargo area and added extra seats to make it capable of carrying up to 8 passengers.
But the space between the seats and legroom felt more uncomfortable due to the vehicle’s compact design, while rear passengers on the extra seats don’t have the room that they can refer to as a little spacious and luxurious.
I came across an article about a seven-seater three-wheeler vehicle by Arama Motors of Colombia called the W Racer Express vehicle, which comes with a 300 cc four-stroke single-cylinder engine that generates up to 17.5 horsepower and 21 Nm of torque. It is equipped with a liquid-cooling radiator that helps the vehicle endure long workdays and keep the engine temperature at an optimum level.
The engine is connected to a five-speed mechanical gearbox with reverse and an auxiliary multiplier gearbox called bass, which increases the traction force that facilitates starting on steep slopes, even at times when the vehicle is loaded with maximum passengers.
The W Racer Express 7+1 isn’t confirmed by Arama Motors for global production, but its innovation can thrive well in the Kenyan automotive market, especially in the tuk-tuk category.
What I love about it is that it has a sleek, bus-like body design and has a maximum speed of 50 km/h. It has a load capacity of 1,500 kilograms and a reinforced chassis with double shock absorbers. If sold globally and targeted at Kenya, it will start at approximately KSh 2,000,000–KSh 2,150,000 without import duty and more.
