Retro-innovation – pairing classic components with modern technology and contemporary design elements – is a growing trend in consumer products development. Last May Local Motors invited the global community of designers, engineers, fabricators and enthusiasts to design a gas-powered bicycle reminiscent of early 20th Century Board Track Racers and Beach Cruisers offering 130-180 mpg fuel efficiency. Participants had to submit concepts combining the aesthetic and functionality of traditional pedal bikes with the performance efficiency of a Honda 48cc 4-stroke engine. All entries have been validated to ensure ‘manufacturability’ and compliance with the challenge submission requirements.
$5,000 in prize money has been awarded to the designers of the top five concepts, as chosen by Local Motors and the Community. In addition to the cash prize, the designer of the first place concept will receive the first production Local Motors Cruiser built from his design. And the top winners are…
1st place: Ariel Cruiser, by Ianis Vasilatos, (vasilatos_ianis), Romania.
2nd place: LM Cruiser, by Nagabhushan Krishna Hegde (neo), India
3rd place: Cruiser Schneider Special, by Andre Costa (Lude), Portugal
4th place: Stealth Cruiser, by Cosmin Mandita (Mandita), Romania
5th place: LM Vintage Cruiser, by Andre Costa (Lude), Portugal
All have superb lines.
They all look good; but I personally like 2 and 4. As someone that will pedal a bicycle from time to time; I could see myself riding either of those.
Superb designs. Turn them all into real motorcycles
Oh man! This is the new chapter.
No stock bicycle is safe in the hands of a kid with a wire-fed MiG welder and a 5 hp Briggs & Stratton.
I can think of nothing more thrilling than a 1-1/2 hp Briggs on a straight-drive bicycle, welded motor platform and no headlight.
Gas fed by hand and a piece of bailing wire. Raw power and speed….. midnight rides in complete darkness…. boy howdy…. somebody get me a hamburger and a frosty coke!
This is just great!…. and a “Rotary Club” approach to keeping kids in the garage and off heroin.
Who knows where this motor in a bicycle frame idiocy might end up? (Slowly scratches,head gazing at the sky).Got it: “The Harley-Davidson motor company”.
We’ve been getting powertrain option samples in and bolting them to a test frame for info. We’ve got something like 8 guys at our company that have their m-class, and even if you have ridden hot 600’s or larger 1200cc units, everybody who gets on is grinning in short order. Can’t wait to have a setup that actually looks good too, instead of the junky mule we are riding now as we get our component sourcing figured!
Portugal’s done some nice work. The red 3rd. place has some lines.
They should find a picture-book on the Ariel (Red Hunter). It has some exhaust system tips….like fender tips of no other.
Indian had some pipes way back too.
And then there was Europe: Cotton, Villers, J.A.P, and everyone trying to outdo each other with the art deco of it all.
48cc can still terrify if it’s mounted on skinny rims.
Looking forward to something new on the horizon. It’s always “timeless” period when everything’s coming together – like one continual summer. 🙂
stuff like this is so much fun BECAUSE its dangerous. my favorite is the 2nd place bike, just my style i guess. fun!!!
What’s the average time (hours, months or years) invested in building one of these
“puddle jumpers”?
Some of my wanna-be owner angst has been erased by the emergence of these creations.
Imo, the 1st place Romanian disguised, drop-cradle frame bike could be placed undetected along-side either of the Simmon’s vintage mounts (seen in the topic below – nice couple) – and could probably out-run the 1914, 2-speed beater of Pat’s. 🙂
They look like a ton-a-fun! They will probably also be the wave of the future when the world population goes through the roof and gasoline costs $20/gallon. That won’t be until after we are long gone….I hope.
Admire the ingenuity but “No thanks”!!!
would look good in a museum
Nice work all around and I personally think they got it right on who got 1st. Great look, great lines, and probably a lot of fun to play with.
@Fritz : A chilling thought to be sure! Well, petrol-heads should prepare for the future, and one way to do that is with bomber small displacement two wheelers where you feel like the ragged edge is at only 45MPH 🙂 .
As for the time @Kirk Perry, we don’t know yet! If you want to stay up to date with the dev (and maybe participate! (even better)), then just check out the Ariel Cruiser Dev project page in the Forge area of the LM site. Obviously anybody who wants to help steer this is welcome to join in, should be fun. Might be a couple of crashes, but it just makes for good video… 🙂
I’m diggin’ the lines of the number 3 bike…it kind of reminds me of a bicycle I had when I was a kid.
I want mine with a 2 stroke… expansion chamber, of course!!
These things ain’t shabby! peace
Great ideas/designs….these are the future for a lot of people, 48ccs, 130 mpg.