High Gas Prices got you down?

[Onikaze]

This should get 200 Mpg, and go 20 Mph.

I so need one.

 

[Dave A]

I'd rather do all the pedaling using a normal bike and keep fitter than the person that starts relying on the motor more and more.

 

[Onikaze]

I see it more as, the Motor will be great for hill assist, and for LOOONG distance cruises.

Plus for people who unlike me, didn't spend 50% of their youth on a bicycle, it's a godsend.

 

[Dave A]

The way I see it is your defeating the purpose of riding a bike. It will make riding easier, but what's the point of riding then. I get tired riding up steep hills, but I wouldn't want a motor to take over for me because if I just wanted to get from a-b in comfort I'd use my car. I spent almost none of my youth riding a bike, and I still don't see the point in this.

 

[Carl.]

For 400$ you can get a scooter that will go much faster than 20mpg... Although You won't be able to take the same shortcuts you'd take with a bike.

 

[Dave A]

If you have that you won't be alloed to use the same shortcuts either, you'll be paying road tax and you won't be able to ride it on pavements or footpaths.

 

[Carl.]

I don't think so, at least over here... I've seen a few bikes with motor assists on bicycle trails. If you turn off the engine, it's still a bike.

 

[Dave A]

Yeah but that doesn't make it legal, I've seen motorbikes being rode down foot paths and I'm sure you don't need convincing that that's illegal. Also it depends what you mean by motor assist, if it is something that falls into the same category as this then you need to pay road tax and have a license to use it in most places.

 

[IMADreamer]

eh, I will keep my regular old bike. Big hills aren't a big problem around here and I enjoy and need the exercise.

 

[Onikaze]

I'm just curious as to where that falls in America.

I know Mopeds don't technically require more than a Drivers Permit, and if it can't go over 40 mph, you don't even need a helmet legally.

Mopeds are EASILY stolen, I've had two stolen, both locked up, and both were gone within a 30 minute window while I went inside to change a shirt, or eat some food.

This could be hauled inside easily, and you can put a normal wheel back on the bike when you want too.

 

[Carl.]

From their website:

Local regulations vary by state and in some cases cities. Usually, a motor assisted bicycle, under 50cc's and traveling less than 25 mph (40 kph), is not considered a motor vehicle. If you have any doubts, contact your state or local authorities - a good starting point would be your local Department of Transportation. In some countries, the Wheel is considered a moped, requiring the vehicle to have lights, indicators, mirrors and other accessories. In that case, the rider may need to have a license and wear a helmet.

 

[joseph dobson]

Why don't you just get Bio-Diesel, Bio-Ethanol, or just get a normal bike?

 

[Onikaze]

You can have a normal bike, and you can stick this on it for looooong trips.

I used to ride my bike at a high rate of speed 7-10 miles to work, this would have been great back then, and unlike a moped, I can take this and park it in the backroom, or bring it in the house at night.

Mopeds are easily stolen, again, I've had two, 40+ mph Mopeds, stolen from me.

 

[exigeracer]

Why don't you just get Bio-Diesel, Bio-Ethanol, or just get a normal bike?

True dat. My brother was really close to getting a Greasel VW mkIIGolf. I would definitely convert a pickup truck to grease if I had won the lottery.

 

[niky]

Pretty nifty, but only for long distances... in urban conditions, I'd still rather pedal.

Also, a 15 lb weight difference is pretty big for me... it's like carrying a laptop and an overnight bag with you as you pedal to work...

 

[James2097]

What's the point of a mountain bike style frame when you screw the entire drive-system if you buckle the front rim even slightly?

No jumps, no hooning doing tricks. 👎

No point having that kind of bike if you can't ride down stairs really fast and take crazy shortcuts! May as well get a scooter or a proper bike.

The motor is probably waaay too noisy too, would piss everyone off that you rode past.

 

[niky]

The big question is, with all that weight in the front wheel, can you even do a jump? I'd rather have that on a super-light racer frame... kind of useless with a mountain bike.

Still, after seeing it, it's a cool idea... some of us are just too old to bike for three hours straight...

 

[Onikaze]

Not only that.

You can do other things with this.

Example: A friend and I used to skateboard, and we noticed that since we both use opposing stances (I'm right foot forwards, he's left foot forwards) we could both hang onto a bicycle seat and be towed.


With one of these, you could tow two skateboarders towards a ramp at pretty high velocity.

Among other things, and when you used to ride a bike EVERYWHERE for hours at a time, something like this would have been great. I see the difference between a nice leisurely 10 mile trip, and a nice leisurely 20 mile trip.

 

[Famine]

Front wheel drive. Interesting.

200mpg and 20mph is okay, but I'd prefer 375mph and 71mpg (yes, those numbers ARE the right way round).

Why don't you just get Bio-Diesel, Bio-Ethanol, or just get a normal bike?

Bio-ethanol is hilarious. It's unsustainable - it requires more oil to grow and make than it replaces in cars.

 

[Dave A]

Front wheel drive. Interesting.

200mph and 20mph is okay, but I'd prefer 375mph and 71mpg (yes, those numbers ARE the right way round).

That'd be 200mpg Famine . That Acabion is one heck of a machine, but theres a long way to go before anything like that starts getting tested.

 

[Onikaze]

That Acabion thing is even worse than a Motorcycle to me.

I avoid Motorcycles because while I have faith in my driving skills, I do not have much faith in the people I have to share the roads with, and well...Motorcycle Vs. SUV=not fun.

 

[High-Test]

I would ride my bike in my town, but as I'm on the outskirts of a Soccer mom ridden suburban wasteland, it would be suicide. These cappucino gulping people in SUVs can't even pay attention to other cars, let alone a kid on a bike. Plus, drivers in my area seem to hate anyone crossing the street. the walk signal lasts for maybe 20 seconds, and usually it's 20 seconds to get across 4 lanes. Plus there are the people who try to turn right on red, even when a person is clearly in their way on the crosdswalk. I somehow can't take the risk of being on a bicycle when my peers ( ) are trying to control a two ton killing machine while talking on their cell phones.

But, that aside, that wheel is pretty dang cool. Does the crankshaft bolt to the fork, and the motor spin around, much like an early rotary airplane engine?

 

[Freddie]

That must understeer spectaculary in slippery conditions.

That would only be legal here if it was the bicycle was registered and modified into a "vintage" moped, many of those already using such a solution (my uncle as such a motorized wheel on his, and it works exactly the same way). Thing is, within the EU, bicycles with 300W electric motors are still considered bicycles, as long as the motor-assist doesn't propel the cycle above 45kmh, and only works when the rider is pedalling. Plus they work from standstill and have regenerative brakes. And since they work on the rear wheel, they can be combined with automatic shifters, providing plenty of power.

I can only see the RevoPower Wheel becoming popular in the US.

 

[Dave A]

I do doubt you'd have an understeer problem on one of thoes, also thin tyre's are good in the wet, they push down through the water harder creating less slip.

 

[Onikaze]

I just like the idea of taking one of those, and getting a pedal powered bicycle based RWD moped, and attaching this too it.

Adjust the gearing, and have a 2WD 35-40 Mph Moped that I could haul inside.

 

[Dave A]

That'd be quite a contraption.

 

[STLbarcelona5]

I dunno, 200mph and 20mph.

I'd rather get a Buell Blast, go 100mph and still 70mph. Well maybe not 70mpg while going 100mph, but IF I needed to go at least highway speeds its nice to know I can.

 

[niky]

@FreddieA bicycle will not understeer greatly with a powered front. At 15 lbs, the engine still isn't heavy enough to counterbalance the rider, but gives some extra grip to the front end. Considering you have a 150-200 lb rider centered over the bike, who can shift his weight forward or backward and side to side to aid cornering, a heavy front doesn't entail any difficulty at all... and it's not strong enough to power understeer the bike, if that's what you were getting at.

Plus, like live4speed says, thin wheels don't hydroplane. Sure, they don't have much lateral grip, but when was the last time you saw a bicycle rider cornering at over 0.6gs?

The motor would be neat in trail riding (never seen a 2wd motorcycle at Paris-Dakar? a powered front wheel makes for excellent traction and fall-recovery), but, like I said, 15 lbs feels like a ton when you're pedalling hard...

And there are AWD bicycles, anyway.

@Famine: Bio-ethanol costs a lot to make the western way, but there are cheaper ways to farm... while Brazil has shown that it can be done, admittedly, it's not enough to do everything, and such bio-ethanol dependence can't be sustained if we are to meet current commercial and industrial demand.

 

[High-Test]

I still want to know, Is the crankshaft mounted to the forks and the motor spins around? Or do I speak crazy talk? Would that little thing have that much torque?

 

[Jim Prower]

EDIT: Note to self...read the story, which was about the wheel, not it's frame!