Michael Crumpton
It is nice to see some more reasonable prices for a velomobile. Making it an all weather vehicle (or at least ridable in rain) would be important in my book. It would also be nice to see some place to put cargo. I guess the area over the rear wheel would be available for some kind of panniers.
Johnny Wiedmann
If you take a look on their website, they address your concerns. Well, mostly.
Todd Dunning
All weather? Ridable in rain? Cargo? Dude, you'll never get trendy eco-hippy chicks with that. This 'vehicle' will only leave the garage for pictures to post on a Facebook wall, then it goes on craigslist. To someone equally hip and cool.
Mr Stiffy
These are too expensive and too heavy.
I'd also like to see the power requirements of the different models at say 50Kmh on a flat road with no head wind.
The CD and rolling resistance.
The glass fiber shell is a dumb and out dated idea, it's fine on faired motor bikes, but it's DUMB heavy cladding on a recumbent.
My bikes are way better.
Jerri Cornelius
32kg being the leightest end of the weight range of the velomobiles is an outdated figure. The new Go-One Evo-K weights 20kg in its lightest version. For a really efficient velomobile, you can have a look at the Milan Sl as well. Cristian von Ascheberg managed to cover 1219km in 24hours with a Milan Sl. Their website mention 145W to maintain 50km/h.
Lock Hughes
"...rides along our bike path system and in our local parks."
...hehe... Surprised he doesn't know power-assisted bikes are banned in Toronto parks and pathways...
Cycles
His son's bike doesn't have electric assist. That came afterwards.
Mr Stiffy
@Jerri Cornelius - thanks for the tip off.
20Kg sounds MUCH better and so does 145W @ 50Kmh....
My evil plans for a twin seater with a 70Kmh+ easy cruising speed on the flats is evolving.
Jimm Pratt
@Mr Stiffy: The big problem you will have is that anything motorized above 25-30 kph (15-18 mph) will most likely require a license and/or vehicle registration - which is rather silly for what is essentially a bicycle with electric assist.
Velomobiles are not meant to replace cars, but provide better weather protection, speed (on flats at the least), and cargo capacity than normal bicycles. These are the things that people interested in commuter-cycling or long-distance cycle touring look for.
This is why velomobiles like the Mango or Quest (both from Netherlands) are so popular in Europe - it fulfills all those needs. Few things beat a Quest cruising (without motor) at speeds around 30-40 mph for *everyday* use. This also depends on the human-power applied - not everyone is expected to go that fast, hence the addition of electric assist.
And glass-fiber is not dumb, just cheaper than carbon-fiber (the other popular velomobile shell-making material). Built properly, the shell weight is only really noticeable when climbing, so you either pedal fast in a lower gear ("spinning"), or you use electric assist.
I went the basic way: bought a Steintrike Nomad, then built a Leitra Wildcat fairing to fit it. The results: a useable, comfortable velomobile for under $5000 USD. Photos available here: https://picasaweb.google.com/103124336912395863201/NomadWildcat
Ross Nicholson
I have one similar to this and they are indeed comfortable to ride in bad weather. They are very heavy bicycles but ultra- ultra- ultra-light cars at the same time. They're perfect for around town shopping. I carry a bike trailer when I need a big capacity, but you can carry enough in one to go backpacking for a weekend in one. I believe this one is built on a German body that has been around for decades. Velomobiles like mine have seen more than two hundred thousand kilometers service. I would load up and get Bluevelo to put in your horn, turn signals, and lights for you. You won't be sorry you did.