AMA Life Member builds wheelchairs with motorcycle engines

By Bill Andrews

May 6 – AMA Life member Jerry Bowers figured that if his wife was going to have a wheelchair, it might as well have some power. And the end result was a couple of wheelchairs powered by motorcycle engines—including a dragster version good for 130 mph.

The whole thing started when Jerry’s wife, Bonnie, contracted Multiple Sclerosis. The electric wheelchair that she used to take to the store was so slow—the Bowers say it was dangerous.

“We live on the borderline of the country,” Jerry says, from their Manteca, California, home. “And she almost got run over because her old wheelchair would only do 7 mph.”

“You can imagine going over the overpasses,” Bonnie says about the lack of sidewalks in the area. “I didn’t have a way to get over them, and if you are in the street in a normal electric wheelchair, you’re just going to get run over.”

Solutions to adversity can come in many forms. In the case of Bonnie’s husband Jerry, an automotive air-conditioning technician, and self-described motor-head, the solution was more power.

“I used to race speedway bikes,” he says. “So I’m sort of a speed freak.”

When building Bonnie’s chair (right), Jerry says he started with an old Honda three-wheeler engine.

“I built it from the ground up,” Bowers says. “I put the wheelchair on the ground, the motor right behind it, and then I eyeballed it and put it all together,” he says. “It was only tack-welded when I rode it for the first time, and I loved it.”

That’s when Bowers decided to up the power ante.

“After having so much fun building her chair, I decided to build myself one,” he says.

His, though, has about 10 times the displacement: “I used a ’79 CBX 1000 engine.”

To get all he could out of the quarter-century-old Honda, he added a blower and nitrous oxide, which he says should be good for about 210 horsepower. An air-shifter handles gear selection.

“All my cars are blown too,” Jerry says. His prize possession is a 1954 Nash Metropolitan Convertible with a blown, 454 cubic-inch engine.

Jerry designed his wheelchairs with quick release mechanisms on the steering wheels, like drag racers, and junior dragster wheels in the back. Always mindful that appearances count, he polished every nut and bolt on the machines.

Bonnie’s wheelchair shifts with a lever that comes up on the left side of the steering wheel. Jerry says it’s designed so she can shift and clutch with one lever.

“When she starts downshifting you can hear the tires squeal,” he says.

Hers has an oxygen bottle with NOS painted on it. It’s obviously more for show than go though. “That’s the gas tank,” he says.

His 130 mph wheelchair (left) comes with dragster slicks in the back.

“Right between your legs is the main power switch,” Jerry says. “On the right side of the steering wheel is a throttle thumb lever, like an ATV. On your left is the air shift button and the nitrous oxide button. One is black for air shift, nitrous is red. Two more switches activate the NOS and air. Two dead switches, one by your right thumb, kills everything and keeps it off until you reset the main switch.”

Jerry says he never takes his on public streets, though. “I know I’d get in trouble with mine,” he says.

Bonnie, on the other hand, uses hers daily.

“I love it,” she says. “It draws a crowd everywhere I go. It’s great to just keep up with traffic.”

What’s next for Jerry? What he’d really like to do is challenge Monster Garage star Jesse James to build his own chair with a Harley engine, for a race.

“I’m looking forward to see if he takes the challenge,” he says. “If not, I’ll just have to build one with a Harley myself!”