It’s Lightfoot, a solar scooter developed by San Francisco-based research organization Otherlab and available for purchase in the US from January. The most notable feature is the two side panels covered with solar cells, which will hopefully keep you from needing a charger. In the space between the two is a fairly capacious cargo compartment with almost 1.6 cubic feet of space. It’s enough to carry your gear to and from work or grab some groceries when you’re out and about. Padded seat and footboards are also designed to carry the driver and an additional passenger when required.
In terms of specs, there’s a pair of 750W brushless DC motors with a top speed of 20mph, 90Nm of peak torque, which should hopefully be enough to scale the hills around SF (and wherever else you may be). They’re connected to a 1.1 kWh battery, which the company promises will deliver 37 miles of range on a single charge. Two 120W panels on either side will charge the battery when parked on the road or outdoors. Otherlab claims this idle solar charge will add three miles per hour, or 18 miles if you leave it all day.
Along with the solar equipment, Otherlab claims that you or a qualified technician will be able to get it going without any outside help. Most of the components are off-the-shelf motorcycle parts and can be easily repaired or replaced, he said. There’s also a one-year full bike and two-year mechanical warranty, as well as a no-questions-asked buyback policy. We’ll reserve judgment on every aspect of this until we can test it for ourselves, but we’re looking forward to doing so to see how this thing feels to drive.
pre-orders for Lightfoot opens today for $4,995Otherlab promises to make the first deliveries in January 2025.
