Patent ID: 7810603

Claim:
A shaft-driven vehicle, comprising: a vehicle body frame; a power unit disposed on the vehicle body frame and comprising an output shaft; a pivot shaft extending through a rear portion of the vehicle body frame; a swing arm having a front end pivotally movably supported by the pivot shaft on the vehicle body frame, the swing arm having a hollow space defined therein; a drive shaft disposed longitudinally in the space inside the swing arm; a rear wheel rotatably supported on a rear end of the swing arm, the power unit operatively driving the rear wheel via the drive shaft; and a universal joint connecting a front end of the drive shaft with the output shaft of the power unit, the drive shaft and the pivot shaft being disposed so as to cross each other in a plan view and such that an axis of the drive shaft is offset vertically from an axis of the pivot shaft, wherein the universal joint has a center of pivotal motion disposed forwardly of a center of pivotal motion of the swing arm.