Back in February, Arcimoto revealed an awesome tilting e-trike called the Mean Lean Machine. Now the e-mobility company has announced three models will make up the MLM lineup, and has rolled out a new mid-tier prototype to celebrate.
The 4th-generation MLM prototype has been dubbed the Cybertrike Edition and was revealed during Arcimoto's latest Weekend Stakeholder Update. Copies of this design are to be produced for platform testing and on-road marketing campaigns as the company moves toward the launch window at the end of this year.
"The MLM team has really outdone themselves with this Cybertrike Edition prototype," said CEO and founder of Arcimoto, Mark Frohnmayer. "The team has continued to refine the ride experience, dial in the industrial design of the chassis, as well as provision for best-in-class carrying capacity, and it will provide us with invaluable testing and marketing data as we push towards the release of the first Mean Lean Machines later this year. I remain confident that this product will be in a field of its own, while also opening up the bicycle class to a much wider audience."
For this edition, the design team has made significant improvements to the suspension for a smoother ride, swapped out the solid metal wheels for carbon fiber, manufactured a "near-production" chassis and packaged in the first MicroFutureDrive technology (though the company has yet to reveal exactly what that is, other than to note that it "will act as the 'brain' for all the new features this revolutionary vehicle will host").
Elsewhere, there's a cargo shelf to the rear plus strap-on storage to the front, the battery pack's orientation has changed from upright to horizontal and it sits in front of the box containing the mysterious MicroFutureDrive hardware, the e-trike rides on 20-inch wheels with Schwalbe tires and sports a single disc brake sits at the rear.
The prototype has integrated lighting front and back, a branded spring shock beneath the rider, a mid-handlebar trip computer and a double kickstand.
As before, the latest "ebike-class" prototype rocks hub motors in each wheel to power the MLM along via thumb throttle control, with the rider's pedal-pumping action feeding an onboard generator instead of turning a chain or belt.
The MLM family will be made up of three members – the base Sidewinder model, the Cybertrike and a high-end Mean Lean Machine – and each will come with different per-charge range capabilities, and of course different price points.
But we're going to have to wait until closer to official launch time to find out more. You can see Frohnmayer introduce the prototype at around the seven-minute mark in the video below.
Source: Arcimoto
