Tag: McLaren

Gocycle 2 Getting Ready to Roll

Earlier this year former McLaren Cars design engineer Richard Thorpe rolled out the Gocycle, the first generation electric bike, and soon after announced plans for an updated version. Now Karbon Kinetics Limited has released the technical specifications for its upcoming Gocycle G2, which will weigh in at a lean 32.8 pounds, and feature a German-made 250 watt electric motor with in-house controller for a top speed of 15.5 mph in pedelec or 20 mph in empower mode. The G2 will propel riders for up to 40 miles in the pedelec mode or 20 miles in the empower mode on a single battery charge, and riders should be able to juice up and go again in about three and a half hours.

This could make for an interesting commuter vehicle for urban dwellers and those with reasonable commutes, and is aided by the fact that the whole bike can fold up for transport and storage between rides, and quickly transform for when the rider is ready to go again! Video and more images after the jump

When Race Car and Bicycle Engineers Collaborate

Two years ago the sports car company, McLaren, approached the bicycle manufacturer, Specialized, to collaborate on a bicycle frame project utilizing a material that both companies are familiar with – carbon fiber. McLaren pioneered the carbon fiber monocoque construction technique used in their Formula 1 race cars all the way back in 1981. Since the 1990s, Specialized has been using carbon fiber in their higher end bikes either as main tubes with aluminum lugs or as complete carbon fiber frames. In 2009, McLaren’s Applied Technologies division approached Specialized with the idea of designing a carbon fiber bicycle frame utilizing their years of extensive research and racing know-how to make an even lighter, stiffer and more aerodynamic frame. McLaren hoped they too could learn something from this endeavor to make an even better sports and racing car.

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