THE STORY OF THE TWIKE
“Who invented it?” one would actually have to ask at this point. And the answer is, of course, here: “The Swiss!” Students of the ETH in Zurich developed the ancestor of the TWIKE for the World Exhibition in Vancouver in 1986. The idea was too good to be subsequently forgotten. But it was still a long way away from the TWIKE we know today:
1986
THE PROTO-TWIKE
The “Proto-TWIKE” is a two-seat bike with bodywork. It weighs 50 kg and can reach a speed of up to 50 km/h via pedal drive. In 1986, it won a prize for ergonomics during the World Expo in Vancouver.
1991
THE TWIKE 2
The TWIKE II is presented. The goal is to develop a vehicle with a strong electric auxiliary drive for everyday use.
1995
THE TWIKE 3
TWIKE AG further develops the TWIKE to be ready for series production. In 1995, the first TWIKE 3 are delivered.
1997
THE TWIKE CLUB
Founding of the TWIKE Club in Switzerland.
1998
FINE MOBILE GMBH
Founding of FINE Mobile GmbH as a German general importer.
About us
1998
NORTH CAPE CHALLENGE
In summer, a group of TWIKEs drive 10,000 km from Bern through the Baltic States to the North Cape and back through Scandinavia. In 2000, there is an entry into the Guinness Book of World Records for the longest distance travelled with an electric car as well as for the energy efficiency of a production car.
2002
THE TWIKE BECOMES GERMAN
After some turbulence on the stock market, FINE Mobile GmbH takes on the entire production from Switzerland.
2005
THE POWER-TWIKE
With newly developed batteries, the PowerTWIKE reached its first range of more than 100 km.
2007
THE LION BATTERY
The next big jump in range came with the introduction of the LION batteries. A range of 200 km is now possible. At the same time, complex battery maintenance was done away with – never before was driving a TWIKE so easy.
2007
VICTORY DOWN UNDER
The TWIKE successfully took part in the World Solar Challenge in Australia. The Swiss team covered the 3,000 km from Darwin to Adelaide with the lowest CO2 emissions in its class.
2010
THE AUTOMOTIVE X-PRIZE
The TWIKE 4 prototype, especially built for this international competition, took 3rd place. 136 teams from around the world were lined up at this exhibition.
The X-Prize
2011
VICTORY AT THE "WAVE"
First place overall for the team in the TWIKE 4 and also 6th place for a team in the TWIKE 3: At the end of the 2,800 km long route through Europe, our prototype impressed with its everyday practicality.
2012
VICTORY AT THE "E-MILGIA"
After 800 km, the international rally for electric cars, “e-miglia”, ended for the TWIKE team with the prize for the highest efficiency on the course.
2012
DOUBLE VICTORY AT THE "WAVE"
The “WAVE 2012” ran 2,700 km from Genoa to Amsterdam. Team TWIKE and Team Tesla from Austria shared first place. Second place went to the second TWIKE team in the race.
2013
DISTANCE RECORD
Unbeaten in the range test: The TWIKE reached 510 km with the current series battery. The Tesla Roadster gave up after 418 km.
2014
UPTAKE OF THE TWIKE 5 DEVELOPMENT
As good as the TWIKE 4 is - we knew from the beginning, that it would be only a prototype. Now we go into series production. The TWIKE 5 will be even better.
2014
EU homologation for the TWIKE
Thanks to the EU-approvel for TWIKEs there is now green light to register a TWIKE in whole Europe. A new TWIKE can now be delivered with a COC (Certificate of Conformity) and can be therefore finally registered in all European countries.
2015
20 YEARS TWIKE
And a new website for the anniversary. We open our TWIKE 5 development laboratory and invite YOU to support us with your feedback.
2015
NEW RANGE RECORD
The day was stormy and wet - however we drove 613 km from Rosenthal - Putbus without any recharging.
2016
TWIKE 5 DEVELOPMENT IN FULL SWING
Important milestones: The new drive concept and an innovative steering system are taking shape.
2017
TWIKE AT FULL SPEED IN AFRICA
TWIKE takes part with the first homologated electric vehicle in Morocco, a TWIKE, at the pioneer edition of the first e-mobile rally of Africa, the RIVE MAROC.
2018
20 years celebration of TWIKE North Cape Challenge
Already in 1998, six TWIKE drove from Switzerland to the North Cape and back. The event was celebrated by several TWIKE North Cape pioneers, together with other TWIKE pilots and the first TWIKE 5 pioneers.