Northern Light - a fully-electric, weatherproof e-bike rolls off the production line

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Northern Light - a fully-electric, weatherproof e-bike rolls off the production line road.cc

As Northern Light Motors themselves say, their three-wheeled, fully-enclosed machine is not your average electric vehicle - as one glance at it will tell you. It's the fruition of many years' thought and planning as it has been around in prototype form at least - and all over the internet - for several years. And now, as you can see on their Facebook page, individually specced examples are being assembled to order.

So how to describe this extraordinary looking three-wheeler? Velomobile is the standard term for an enclosed recumbent bike (i.e. where the rider sits down or in some extreme cases lies prone or supine). So perhaps electric velomobile is technically correct, but that doesn't convey the blend of retro chic and futuristic, aerodynamic elan that is the Northern Light.

Just important as name and looks is what the Northern Light will do for the rider. It's a weatherproof vehicle (there are pedal only, e-bike and more powerful, faster versions) with the design focus on efficiency, safety and comfort. In other words the Northern Light promises a ride where you won't get wet and will have the benefit of full suspension and crumple zones, safety cell and roll hoop.

The company themselves are UK-based and the Northern Light is the brainchild of automotive designer Graham Browne.

The vehicles
There are two off-the-peg electric Northern Light variants. (Though note the 428 model can be retrofitted with similar electric assist to the 557. It is their budget model with some self-assembly required, with prices starting at £4,000, depending on spec).

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