Velomobiling Guide

The Velomobiling site Gallery features Velomobile Albums including Aerorider, Alligt Alleweder, Aurora, Berkut, Birk Butterfly, Cab-Bike, C-Alleweder, Flevo Alleweder (FAW), Go-one, Leiba, Leitra, Limit, Mango, Quest, Sunrider, Versatile, and WAW, with a miscellaneous album for limited-edition and home-built velomobiles, including La Fleche. "Building a Velomobile" showcases velomobile construction projects. Velomobile Circus celebrates wild and colorful velomobile designs.

The quick velomobile overview page is up again in English en in het nederlands.

They're still incomplete, but the Velomobile Comparison Tables are far enough along to mention here.

We've assembled some links to 2-person velomobiles, 2-wheel velomobiles, tandem recumbents, side-by-side and back-to-back tandem bikes and trikes. Whether you want two-person, two-wheel, multi-rider, or some other variation on the human-powered vehicle, we've tried to include it.

From any page on the site, just click the header photo of the velomobile in the tulips to return to the home page. On the "book" pages, it looks like this:

Return to home page

Original site

The original Velomobiling.net site will be closed down and merged with this site some time in 2007. (If that link brings you back here, it's already happened). We are creating archives of the articles and "blocks." Velomobile information, articles, event announcements, and links related to human-powered vehicles will be appearing on this Drupal version of the velomobiling site.

For articles and reviews on velomobiles, velomobile-building, and velomobiling (in English and Dutch), from the original site see the Archives list. paginas in het nederlands

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Velomobile Construction

Return to home page  Velomobile Construction (Body)

Velomobile bodies are either monocoque (with the chassis comprising part or all of the fairing) or attached to a trike base.  The monocoque bodies are self-supporting and more solid than the fairings that are mounted on trikes, and the trike-based fairings tend to be lighter and easier to transport.  Leitra and Thunderstorm are trike-based European velomobiles.  The Stormy Weather velomobile is also built on a trike base.  The Aurora was prototyped as a trike-based model but was soon changed to a monocoque design.  Most velomobile bodies are made of glass-fiber reinforced polyester (fiberglass), the the Versatile uses Twintex, and some velomobiles are built of carbon fiber or a combination of materials.  The Alleweders have aluminum bodies.  Velomobile color has a large impact on interior temperature as well as on visibility.  Yellow is common because it doesn't overheat and is easy to see.    

updated 3 February 2007

Velomobile materials repair issues colors available type of fairing versatility
Aerorider glass fiber-reinforced polyester ? (has been seen in yellow, red, and white) monocoque, head-in
Alleweder (Alligt A3) pop-riveted aluminum repairable by owner (assuming some metal-working skills)

 Natural aluminum color;  can be painted in automotive colors.  
 

 monocoque, head out;  many owners have built roofs, and the Versatile fabric roof can be adapted to fit.
Alleweder (Alligt A4)
Alleweder (Alligt A5)
Alleweder (Flevobike)
Alleweder (US Flevo)
Aurora Vacuum bagged or infused shell using Graphite, Graphite/Vectran, Kevlar, Glass/polyester and Glass laminates. ? (prototypes in yellow, red, and orange) Monocoque construction with graphite central beam to which all the bike parts attach;  head-out optional roof
Butterfly ? ? both of the existing copies are light blue front-mounted canopy opens with hydraulic assist;  head-in, can be ridden head-out
Cab-Bike Fiberglass/Polyester can be repaired by owner. white monocoque;  head-in several configurations possible - removable windows and canopy;  can convert between regular Cab-Bike and Speedster versions.
Cab-Bike Speedster monocoque;  head-out
go-one3 (carbon) carbon fiber may shatter many color choices monocoque;  head-in can ride without roof
go-one3 (fiberglass) glass fiber repairable by owner many color choices monocoque;  optional roof
Leiba glass fiber repairable by owner many color choices monocoque;  head-in
Leitra (small) glass fiber

 repairable by owner many color choices Bare trike, with front fairing and rear-tailbox available separately;  very light-weight, fairing opens on a front-mounted hinge;
head-in 		  Can be ridden head-out.  Size reduces enough to transport as luggage by air.  
Leitra (Sport and medium)
Leitra (extra long/tall)
Mango glass fiber repairable by owner yellow, white, or red monocoque;  head out can use Versatile fabric roof or optional racing cap.
Quest (26" - current model) glass fiber repairable by owner yellow, white, or red (molded-in color - other colors can be sprayed on) monocoque;  head out can use Versatile fabric roof or optional racing cap.
Quest (20" - low floor)
Quest (20" - flat floor)
Sorcerer e-glass polyester ? blue? monocoque;  head-out with fabric cover. optional roof for racing
Stormy Weather carbon-reinforced fiberglass, gel-coated ? white trike base;  head-in with fabric top/side cover body bolts together from four sections;  very light weight.
Sunrider glass fiber reinforced polyester ? ? monocoque;  head-out
Thunderstorm glass fiber repairable by owner many colors front-hinged light-weight fairing derived from Leitra design, fitted on trike base. removable fairing.
Versatile Twintex recyclable material, probably not repairable by owner. all automotive paint colors, including SIKKENS special-effect paint (chameleon effect) monocoque;  head-out optional roof
WAW carbon and aramide fiber with epoxy resin resists scratches;  modular construction allows replacement of sections. RAL, MOTIP (including metallic) and SIKKENS (pearl effect) monocoque;  head-out optional roof, body separates into 3 parts for transport
new 2007 WAW
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