Ask any state government anything, and you'll almost always get a different answer depending on which state you ask. However, the two-seater tricycle called the Polaris Slingshot was something of a unifying factor. Just about every state in the union has the same opinion on it. It's a motorcycle in their eyes, though you don't need a motorcycle license to operate it, owing to its many car-like features.
New York, was for a very long time, an outlier in this regard. NY said, "it's a bike, so you damn well better know how to ride a motorcycle before getting in one!" Now, the state's legislation reflects a change of heart. Beginning April 20th, you can now operate a Slingshot with a run-of-the-mill D-class license in the state of New York.
"We're excited to open up the door for more New Yorkers to experience the open-air driving experience only a Polaris Slingshot delivers," said Chris Sergeant, Vice President of Polaris Slingshot. Of course, the brand would be excited. How many people do you personally know who have an active motorcycle license versus those who have a driver's license? One of those groups is almost certainly larger than the other. Now, Polaris' potential customer base is significantly larger in one of America's most populous states.
The reclassification states that the Slingshot is no longer a three-wheeled motorcycle, and is now classified as a three-wheeled motor vehicle in the same vein as the all-new Morgan Super 3. Polaris says that though the Slingshot doesn't operate like a traditional bike; its steering wheel, automated manual transmission (or manual if you like), and traditional seating arrangement make it more like a car than a bike.
Initially, Slingshots even had a car's engine, a GM-derived unit that used to live in the Chevrolet Sonic. Now, however, models use an in-house-developed ProStar 2.0-liter four-cylinder making 178 horsepower and 120 lb-ft of torque. The hotter Slingshot R ups that to 203 hp and 144 lb-ft of twist which, when specced with an automatic transmission (saving 55 lbs off the stick), moves the car's 1,650-pound mass along quite rapidly. The Slingshot is a fun weekend toy, and now more people than before, at least in New York, can find out what it's like to drive a three-wheeled equivalent of a Mazda Miata.