The flyweight GX3 drives like a high-performance, high-tech soapbox. With no occupants on board, it tips the scales at a fit 1257 pounds. For better balanced lateral weight distribution, the fuel tank, the 2.8-cubic-foot cargo cubicle, the swing arm, and the battery are all located on the passenger's side of the vehicle. According to VW, the airy plaything can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in 5.7 seconds with its designated 125-hp, 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine and six-speed manual transmission. The company also claims a top speed of 125 mph and average fuel consumption north of 45 mpg.

This wild three-wheeler combines the classic dynamic thrills of a motorbike with the familiar reflexes of a roadster. As in an Elise, you sit low and snug. But this trike betters the exceptional Elise as it goes around bends, reaching ridiculous speeds that rival a go-kart on slicks.

After three or four hours of nonstop carving, skating, and gliding up and down challenging alpine roads, I have a broad grin on my face. No other car this inexpensive (VW claimed that it would have theoretically cost about $17,000) has ever been this much fun. Corner by corner, the sticky roadholding and the sweet handling balance enhance the appeal of this bug-eyed street machine. Climb by climb, the mix of instant grip and eager acceleration brighten its halo. Descent by descent, the subtle load transfer, the aggressive brake bite, and the very physical downshifts test the driver's skills.

Once you've driven the wonderfully absurd and potentially iconic GX3, it's easy to share the enthusiasm it generated at its launch. VW product chief Wolfgang Bernhard drove the car onto the auto show stand in Los Angeles himself, and later that day, after the first dealer meeting, the bigwigs were so fired up that production approval seemed only a formality.

"The business case was watertight," confirms Jens Berger, who was in charge of body development, specification, and vehicle safety. "Even the base model would have made money from day one." With the exception of the frame and the floorpan, all the major components come out of existing parts bins. The Germans struck a deal with Lotus Engineering, which was to build the GX3 and sell it to VW at a fixed price. Insiders claim that the net cost per unit was about $10,000, so each vehicle would have made a healthy profit--and that's before options.

So who pulled the plug on the project so late in the decision-making process? Who killed a vehicle even the bean counters liked? You guessed it: the product-liability squad.

The GX3 has no air bags or stability control. "Passive safety was taken care of by the substantial crumple zones and by foam-padded side panels," Berger explains. "Simulations showed that the tall, lightweight roll bars behind the seats would have done an excellent job in the unlikely event of the GX3's landing upside down. Instead of stability control, we were planning to offer traction control."

But imagine Paris Hilton rear-ending a semi in her brand-new GX3 on Highway 1 north of Malibu--you'd have high-speed, high-visibility carnage. Admittedly that's a worst-case scenario. But once the American media got hold of it, Audi's 60 Minutes of unintended acceleration would seem like a speed bump by comparison.

Of course, the smart alecks knew all along that the GX3 wouldn't fly. They pointed out the discrepancy between the low-riding GX3 and towering big rigs, they cited America's love-hate relationship with motorcycles, and they pointed out the incompatibility between the three-wheeler and the rest of the VW model range.

It's not the concept itself that's at fault but rather the company's confining focus on the U.S. market. What about Europe, where regulations are such that ATVs and minibikes can more easily be street-legal? There's bound to be a market for 500 or 1000 or even 5000 VW trikes there per year. Anybody who signs a disclaimer and agrees to wear a helmet should be allowed to drive the GX3--both on the street and on a track.

America may live in the insular darkness of lawyer-led repression, but Europeans, at least, should get the chance to go play in the street.