Source: TWIKE Press release dated October 17, 2023
In addition to technical and logistical challenges, the project still faces financial challenges.
Nine years have passed since the TWIKE 5 development was relaunched. Nine years in which everyone involved has overcome countless hurdles to realize their vision of a lightweight, powerful, yet comfortable and practical mobility solution for a sustainable future that is, above all, “cool” in the truest sense of the word. Building on more than 35 years of vehicle history, since its origins as a velomobile, the TWIKE is still seen as a community project today. Accordingly, TWIKE CEO Martin Möscheid announced the current status of prototype development in the community live chat at the end of August.
With the completion of the driver test vehicle (FET), consisting of the TWIKE chassis with frame, suspension, drive unit, electrical and electronic systems, and software, another milestone has been reached. The roadworthy base frame was put into operation last week and now offers comprehensive opportunities for practical testing of the driving characteristics and further optimization and tuning of all vehicle components, including the gradual adaptation of the body and interior.
“Even the first driving impression is convincing. Things are now so well connected that there aren’t many steps left to take,” explained Möscheid. The initial cabling has now been completed, for which Möscheid had predicted some challenging night shifts in the interview.
Neben weiterhin anspruchsvollen technischen Aufgaben hat das TWIKE-Team auch logistisch und finanziell einiges zu stemmen. So muss ein bedeutender Teil, der für die spätere Serienproduktion von 500 geplanten Fahrzeugen benötigten Komponenten von rund 600 involvierten Lieferanten bestellt, gelagert und bezahlt werden.
Since longer delivery times must be expected for many components and orders can often only be placed in full quantities, Möscheid anticipates a total liquidity requirement of around €6 million for the coming months. In order to be able to start series production next year, the TWIKE makers continue to rely on the power of the community.
To date, nearly 2,400 pre-orders have been received for the TWIKE 5 series, which is limited to 500 vehicles. Who gets a vehicle does not depend solely on the time of order. A deposit on the purchase price increases the chances by improving the individual ranking. The current status can be tracked online. In this way, around 360 vehicles are currently reserved for the time being. In order to meet the increasing liquidity requirements, Möscheid is therefore relying on further pre-orders with advance payment and on increasing advance payments already made, which will secure the relevant position in the ranking.
“If the first 500 customers in the ranking each pay an average deposit of around €20,000 in advance, we will be able to cover the necessary liquidity over the period,” Möscheid calculates in the interview. If this is not fully achieved, Möscheid says it would result in a delay to the project, which everyone involved would like to avoid if possible. Against this backdrop, cooperation with external investors is not out of the question, although strong identification with the TWIKE philosophy is always a prerequisite.
In the spirit of crowd innovation, communication with the TWIKE community and future and potential users remains a priority. This is also reflected in monthly Saturday events in Rosenthal. These events are not only used by the TWIKE creators to provide information on current topics and the status of development, but also to gather feedback through direct exchange, which is constructively incorporated into the development process.
