If you can’t beat them, join them

While we still have thousands of custom shops crafting café racers and scramblers out of classic and modern bikes, there’s not such a need for an electric bike with classic aesthetics. What separates a good custom bike builder from a great one is their ability to emphasise the embedded characteristics of the base bike, embracing its features rather than trying to hide them. A lesson in this comes from Saint-Quentin, France, in the form of this flowing electric wonder, aptly named ‘Hope’. Based on a Vectrix VX-1, a far from attractive example of the design that pushes people away from electric bikes, this creation took Samuel four years to make, taking inspiration from three very different sources — a pre-A Porsche 356, an iPhone, and a Pokémon.

While the third may be up for debate, there’s no denying the merits of the others, and their influences are apparent. The bulbous fibreglass body, designed by sketching and 3D rendering, has hints of said Porsche, while the overall integration of components and packaging is quite Apple. The riveted aluminium centre section that breaks up the black paintwork is a nice nod to the past, while the trio of gauges arranged vertically are an elegant solution to legality and safety. Internally, little has changed with the power unit, with the addition of Brembo brakes being the main change from stock. Undeniably different, arguably beautiful, and certainly refreshing, if this is the direction custom e-bikes are going, then sign us up…

Photos: Bike EXIF