The TWIKE is the best pedal-electric velomobile you can buy today. The most impressive thing about the TWIKE: it has been in production for nearly 20 years. The “Proto-TWIKE” was a two-seat bike with bodywork: 50 kg weight & 50km/h top speed via pedal drive. In 1986, it won a prize for ergonomics during the World Expo in Vancouver. In 1996, the first 190 TWIKE 3s are delivered. Twike3 top speed is 130km/h, Twike5 has room for two people and total weight less than 500 kg! An average-trained driver can contribute 100 to 200 W through pedalling power. At a speed of 50 km/h, this corresponds to about 10 to 20% of the total energy demand. The pedal drive is intended to assist the motor but not as the sole power source of the TWIKE. Both drives go directly to the drive shaft: The pedals through a chain, the motor via the gearbox. The speed can be set by Cruise Control. When you pedal, the electronics restrict the motor to the exact power you place on the pedals and the range increases. Twike3 specs bellow :
- Top speed: 85 km / h
- Acceleration from 0 to 60 km / h: 9 seconds
- Charging time: about 1 kilometer per minute
- Energy consumption: 4-7 kWh / 100 kilometers
- Integrated cruise control
- Length x width: 2.65 x 1.2 m
- Trunk: 250 liters volume
www.twikeklub.ch/technik– www.emissionslos.ch/links-ev-resources
DIY Pedal Generator for Electric Bike or Trike – YouTube – Build bike pedal generator
Twike4 was designed from the beginning not as a production model, but as an intermediate step to newer models. The company took part in several international competitions with the prototype: in 2010, the e-car bike came in 3rd place at the prestigious X Prize, and in 2012 it won the electric vehicle rally “E-Miglia”.
- Maximum speed:> 130 km / h
- Acceleration from 0 to 96 km / h: <18 sec.
- Range:> 160 km
- Energy consumption: <12 kWh / 100 kilometers
Twike5 has been developed since 2015. Mid to end of 2017, it comes in limited quantities of 500 copies on the market.
- Top speed: depending on the model 130 to 200 km / h
- Charging time: approx. 4.5 kilometers per minute (fast charging column)
- Energy consumption: 6-13 kWh / 100 kilometers
- Integrated cruise control
- Length x width: 3.04 x 1.55 m
- Trunk: 300 liters volume
Twike3: LxWxH 2650×1200×1250, Wheel base 1870mm, Drag coefficient Cw=0,325
The teardrop shape is most aerodynamic, with the least drag coefficient. Prius has a drag coefficient of 0.25 while the Schlörwagen had an incredible 0.15 cD. Basically, the Göttingen Egg was a wing on wheels.
Velomobile Study by Hassel Sørensen :