What's new in velomobiles in 2008?
What's new in Velomobiles?
We've been overwhelmed trying to keep up with the velomobile world. Existing manufacturers have been refining their designs, and new velomobiles keep appearing. In North America, European velomobiles continue to be imported by Blue Velo in Canada and sporadically by other dealers, but the falling U.S. dollar favors domestic production. Big trends: easier entry and exit and velomobiles that can accommodate heavier riders. Fairing options that can be varied depending on the weather are showing up in both new and older models, and the Versatile's foldable weather roof is being mounted on many new and old velomobiles. Here's a sampling of recent activity:
Aerorider continues to offer its pedal/electric hybrid velomobile, but has spun off the pedal-only Sunrider to Sunrider Cycles.
Alligt Alleweder - New for 2008 is the Alleweder A6, a fiberglass resin version of the recently-updated aluminum Alligt Alleweder, the A4. The A4 and its smaller version, the A5, remain in production and are also available in kit form. German Alleweder dealer Lohmeyer Leichtfahrzeuge produces the Alligt Alleweder with or without electric assist (less necessary in the Alleweder's original Dutch homeland), and in all RAL colors.
Aurora - from Nimbus kayak builder Rainforest Designs in British Columbia, Canada, this delta-style velomobile (two wheels in back) has been available through Cambie Cycles since late 2006 or early 2007 and is already achieving popularity for its ease of entry, good weather protection, capacity for large riders, and readily-available electric assist. See it in action at: AuroraVelo's YouTube channel.
Bakmobile - Only one of these two-person, side-by-side electric-assist velomobiles has been produced. Fietser.be built the Bakmobile to allow disabled bakers to deliver their bread to customers.
Borealis - announced for April 2008, the Borealis is Rainforest Designs' velomobile shell for the Trice QNT tadpole (two wheels in front) trike. In contrast to some shell designs that offer shelter from the rain without considering the puddles underneath, the Borealis features real velomobile splash protection below. A large hinged access door facilitates entry and exit.
Bries - featuring full suspension, 16-inch front wheels, seating for somewhat larger riders than the WAW, and quick disassembly for transport, the Bries was introduced by Fietser.be in September 2007, but difficulties with production led to its further development being taken over by one of their dealers, in Denmark.
Brise - Leiba's very "open" Brise velomobile offers limited weather protection, but it's easy to hop in and out, and the aerodynamic fairing has plenty of space for decoration or advertisements.
Cab-Bike has improved its windows for better function and easier maintenance. The International Velomobile Meeting report from September 2007 has been posted on the Cab-Bike website in German and English. In North America, Cab-Bike is available from Blue Velo.
Cabriovelo - 4-Seasons Velo announces a delay in production of the Cabriovelo velomobile fairing for the Sinner Comfort delta trike. (This might be because Sinner entered a partnership to produce the Mango velomobile with Go-Mango.)
Flevo Alleweder - the classic Dutch velomobile from the 1990's was thoroughly updated when it went into production in Texas as a kit or finished velomobile. VelomobileUSA now has more than a dozen Flevo Alleweders on the road all across the United States. With a distinctive aluminum body and a double hump on the nose, they are easy to recognize.
Go-one3 - The manufacturer's website and the United States dealer announce important new developments for 2008: better lighting, better ventilation, and a soft-top for changeable weather. There are also dealers in Belgium and Germany.
Leiba has completely updated their website, including an English-language version. Now offering three models, they cover the range from fully-enclosed through top-open (with removable roof) to barely-covered.
Leitra - The website for Leitra has been updated to feature a rider forum. Leitra in Denmark continues to sell directly to customers in the U.S. Ligfietswinkel Amsterdam is the dealer in the Netherlands, Leitra.de and Mikus Liegerad cover Germany, and Bike Revolution in Austria (which also builds its own velomobiles based on the Leitra shell design) is now the distributor for the remainder of Europe
Mango - In 2005, Velomobiel spun off assembly of the Mango to Harry Lieben of Go-Mango, so that Velomobiel could concentrate on building and maintaining the Quest. By October 2006, Go-Mango had brought the total Mango production up to 100. In August 2007, Go-Mango became a division of Sinner Ligfietsen (manufacturer of several recumbent bikes and trikes) allowing an increase in production from one every 4 to 6 weeks up to as many as 4 Mangos a month.
Milan - new in 2007, the Milan adds a 3-wheeled fully-faired velomobile to a well-established family of limited-production enclosed racing HPV's from German builder Eggert Bülk, working on this occasion with Jens Buckbesch. The Milan will probably be built in a small series, aimed at the velomobile racing market.
Ped-3 from Slovenia now has a website. The Ped-3 is fully-enclosed and features easy entry and exit. The cabin is fully demountable, to allow riding on the open trike base (the Berkut trike from Russia). This YouTube clip from a Slovenian news program shows the Ped-3 on the road, with views of the interior.
Quest - Velomobiel spun off the Mango and has concentrated on building more than one Quest a week for the past two years. There is a waiting list of more than 200 -- and over three years -- for this very popular Dutch velomobile. The 245th Quest rolled out of the factory in Dronten in April 2008.
Team is the name given Blue Velo's combination of a Cab-Bike bottom with a top from Rainforest Designs. The Team top -- to be available in 2008 -- offers an "open" velomobile option with easy entry and exit and can be retrofitted to existing Cab-Bikes.
Thunderstorm - Bike Revolution in Austria works with Stein Trikes and other manufacturers in the Balkans to produce their own advanced designs for trikes and velomobiles, with particular attention to off-road capabilities and suspension. The Thunderstorm went into production in 2008, offering the versatility of a suspended trike with a removable velomobile fairing and the advantages of very easy entry and exit and a tight turning circle.
Stormy Weather - Availability of the Stormy Weather velomobile was delayed through 2007, with production of an improved model expected in 2008. This delta velomobile, like the Cabriovelo, was designed to be able to link to form a tandem.
Sunrider was developed as a student project modifying the Aerorider design to produce a pedal-only, "open" velomobile; the production was then spun off to Sunrider Cycles. The first Sunriders were sold in January 2008. A YouTube video of a Sunrider test-ride at Ligfietswinkel Amsterdam shows the interior and the ease of entry.
Versatile - This Dutch velomobile brought easy entry and exit, single-sided rear-wheel mounting (for easier tire-changing), and mid-drive mounting of a Rohloff hub-gear (for very low maintenance) to the velomobile world. Developed by Flevobike and now assembled by Ligfietsshop Tempelman, the Versatile is a much-admired commuter vehicle.
WAW - Fietser.be notes that there was some delay in production of the WAW because of diversion of time and resources to their new Bries velomobile. The WAW has been available since about 2004. It is best suited to slender riders in a somewhat shorter height range than the Quest.
Wega - new on the German velomobile scene, the Wega velomobile was scheduled for introduction at the Spezi bike show in 2008 but the prototype was not yet complete. Like many other new velomobiles, it will offer easy entry and exit.
X-stream - this new velomobile brings a more conventional design to the Leiba stable. The wide entry offers easy entry and exit, while the cover and roof provide customizable weather protection.
And for those who want protection from the weather but aren't ready for a velomobile, weather protection is available from Alfred's All-Wetter-Schutz, Lightfoot Cycles' Windshadow and Rain Shadow fairings, and the Velokit, among others. Adjustable head tube and front mounts and a new extra-long version enable the Velokit to fit even more trike models than before.
Mary Arneson
