The Veemo SE is here
Are people ready for a mainstream velomobile?
I've been patiently waiting for updates about the Veemo SE for the better part of two years.
The interesting little podbike/velomobile/microcar thing has had ups and downs along its journey coming to market. But it appears that a final product is officially now ready to ship. You can purchase one today and it should arrive at your doorstep in just a few weeks.
So in light of my recent update on the status (or lack there of) of my Nimbus One S, I thought it would be worth devoting some time and energy to review the Veemo. Is it a viable option for people in search of a the micromobility holy grail? What should it be able to do well and where is it lacking? While I have seen and touched the Veemo SE (note that there is a Veemo LT version as well that doesn’t have an enclosure and some other differences, I’ll keep this discussion about the SE model)at Micromobility America this past October, I haven't had a chance to ride it yet. My opinions could certainly change if/when I get my hands on one or as I see other reviews coming out. But for right now, here are my thoughts.
Pros
It's a covered bike!
Let's not overthink this. The Veemo is something that myself and plenty of other cyclists have wanted for a long time. It's a bicycle that has a roof! Well, I suppose it's technically an electric tricycle but you do still need to pedal the thing. This is huge. While I live in a pretty dry climate, rainy bike rides in the winter are pretty awful. Sometimes they can be exhilarating if they're short and you have a change of clothes handy, but they're usually pretty uncomfortable and can be downright dangerous sometimes.
The Veemo SE solves this with their ePod enclosure system that offers both a roof and a windshield. That windshield even comes standard with wipers! So in theory, there should be no weather that the Veemo can't tame. You may want to upgrade the tires if you're trying to get through a snow storm but your visibility should be solid.
Speed
My main mode of two-wheeled transportation is a Class 3 pedal-assisted e-bike. My Gazelle is great because it can get up to 28 mph without too much effort. That allows me to keep up with traffic and feel very safe pretty much on any road with a speed limit of 40 or below. I'm all for e-bikes needing to be pedaled to get around. A throttle has its place in certain circumstances, but for the most part, a pedal-assisted e-bike is the way to go in my opinion.
But I think that the Veemo SE is one of those unique vehicles that will benefit from a throttle. So I think it's great that they include one. You can even get a double battery option if you want to really hammer that throttle and not pedal at all. Initially, the early prototypes were powered by a Bosch system which is the top-of-the-line in my opinion. But Bosch doesn't do throttles. So the engineers pivoted here and swapped out the drive train for one of the ENVO powertrain drives. This allows for a throttle and potentially some additional customization in terms of speed.
The Veemo SE is capable of speeds of 28 mph but will be limited to 20 mph at launch in the US. However, I imagine that unlocking that top speed will be possible even if not advisable. This isn't a souped up dirt bike that shouldn't be going faster than it was designed for. This is basically a car that should certainly have no issues pushing 30 mph on roads where that is legal.
That speed difference on a vehicle with this form factor would be huge. You'd really be getting the best of both worlds. At roughly the size of your average mountain bike, this thing should have no issues running (at safe speeds) on multi-use bike paths. But when you get on the open road, you should be able to get your speed up to 28 mph to "take the lane" when feasible. The roof, turn signals, and tail lights should certainly command more respect on the road than typical e-bikes.
Cool Factor
This is clearly subjective, but I think this is a really cool looking vehicle. You'll certainly turn heads in this thing for better or worse. While all of the initial images showed a white version, the latest press photos offer up a baby blue and sleek black color as well. I'd probably lean toward the black, but all three look beautiful.
Cons
Passengers
The biggest knock on the Veemo SE for me is that it can't officially fit a passenger. For plenty of people, that is not a big deal at all. It's meant to be a solo commuter vehicle designed for an urban environment. If you live alone in a city and have a place to park it, this feels like the perfect vehicle.
But if you're like me and have kids, not having passenger capacity can severely limit the utility of the vehicle. It would certainly be tight, but the cargo area behind the passenger seat looks like it could hold a small adult or certainly a child. When speaking with one of the folks at ENVO at the Micromobility America event, he did say that there could potentially be a child seat option down the line. I certainly won't hold him to that, but I would have to agree.
If you could pop a Yepp seat or even a small cushion with a seatbelt back there, it would be pretty great. It may not meet certain safety standards, but we're in uncharted waters with a vehicle like this. It may not have an official stamp of approval, but I wouldn't call it unsafe. I do think I could put my dog back there on a pillow and he'd be fine if tethered to something.
They do say that any standard bike trailer could be attached, but that certainly loses the sex appeal of the vehicle. And with that enclosure, you'd feel really far away from any kids back there. It wouldn't be ideal, but at least it's an option.
Reliability/Maintenance
I'm not sure that I'd call this a con right now but it's something to consider. Since the electrical components here will no longer be made by Bosch, you likely can't take it in for service at any Bosch licensed e-bike dealer. Maintenance could be tricky.
I do think that many of the components are standard "off-the-shelf" items, you are taking a bit of a leap of faith purchasing an expensive vehicle like this from a relatively unknown player in the e-bike space. I've been impressed by everything I've seen from the ENVO folks and I know they make a ton of products, but it's still something to consider.
You could do your own maintenance here in theory, but I'd want to take it into a place that has experience fixing something like this. And those places will be very few and far between.
And this is a proper vehicle. You really can't load it into your car and even if you have a proper truck, it won't be that easy. You'll want to bring it somewhere for routine maintenance before it breaks down, or have the option for someone to come to you if there is a problem.
Not fully enclosed
I won't totally knock it until I've tried it, but I kinda wish this vehicle was fully enclosed. I understand the potential issues with that. It would certainly raise the price. I imagine the windshield might fog up easier if it was fully enclosed. Then you'd have to deal with a defogging mechanism and maybe adding heating and air conditioning. Those are real car things and they would really impact the total cost.
I live in California so it's something that I'd be willing to overlook. Having that front windshield to cut down on the chill on a morning ride would be great. But I'd still feel compelled to wear a jacket most of the time when riding in the Veemo. The cross breeze may feel good in warm weather but I'm sure you'd still get a little wet during those really rainy, windy days.
The only reason I add this to the cons list is because a previous version of the Veemo was fully enclosed. I wonder why they didn't try to port that feature over to the modern design. It just looks slightly unfinished I think without the doors. It would be great to have the option to put them on seasonally. Or even a half door option like Arcimoto offers on the FUV could be nice.
If there is enough interest for it, I can definitely see them offering a door option down the line. And I know there are some intrepid minds already looking to rig up some DIY options. Even something akin to the setup of the Tern Storm box on my cargo bike could work. You'd only need something that could handle the wind up to 28 mph. Steel or aluminum might be overkill, but a sharp-looking zip-up door would make me feel better in a major storm or really cold morning. And it also adds a sense of security if you have cargo in the back. I'd certainly love a door option if I had my dog back there.
Price
The last thing I'll mention here is the price. I don't actually consider the price to be a pro or a con. I think it's probably priced pretty accurately in my opinion. The pre-orders are a little confusing as they were offering a discount depending on how large of a deposit you were willing to put down. Ten percent off is a nice touch though for early adopters. The base model will start at $6,199 USD with a dual-battery option pushing it up to $6,899.
What other products fall in that range? Well it's certainly more than most e-bikes. Even high-end cargo bikes can be had for a bit less. It puts it in the front-loading cargo bike range. For example the Urban Arrow starts at a similar price. That may be more geared toward bringing your kids around town, but offers some of the same utility.
But if you compare the Veemo SE to some of the golf carts/neighborhood electric vehicles out there, it seems like a steal. One of the options from Eli Zero or Wink will cost nearly double the price of the Veemo. Sure, those offer a bit more creature comforts and capacity but they also require insurance and registration fees. And they can only be ridden on roads posted 35 mph or less. You can't take them on bike paths or ride in the bike lane, but they go roughly the same speed as the Veemo. It's a tough call.
Conclusion
The Veemo SE may not be the perfect vehicle but it's also something that I can't stop thinking about either. It will absolutely fill the transportation needs for a large group of the population whether they realize it or not.
It's a bit too expensive to be an impulse purchase for someone who isn't a major mobility nerd. But it's a downright bargain if you've been in the market for a second car to just get your around your neighborhood.
I'm not exactly sure where it would fit into my life, but it's too clever of a design to fully ignore. Is it something that you leave parked outside like a car? Would I want it next to my other bikes in the garage? It's a product that refreshingly doesn't really fit into a category. I hope enough people are willing to give it a try because I really want this to succeed. At the very least, we need products like this to influence other companies to iterate and keep pushing the envelope until it becomes more viable.
Standard cars and standard bicycles just don't cut it anymore. We can't just slap batteries on both of them and call it a day. Long live the quirky in between products like the Veemo, let's hope it can survive!
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!
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