We have seen our share of exotic, interesting and sad motorcycles over the last few years, but French manufacturer Newron has brought something new to the table with an electric motorcycle that has a large cylindrical battery and a wooden body.
The story of Newron Motors has been one of fits and starts. Sébastien Mahut is an electronics engineer by trade and the man behind the concept motorcycle. He has dreamed of designing an all-electric motorcycle since he was as a child, but until recently, it seemed unlikely that it would ever become a reality.
Officially, Newron Motors was founded in 2016. Shortly thereafter, the company met the design team at Dassault Systems at an incubator and used Dassault’s 3DExperience platform to collaborate on prototypes, sketching and design validation. The money ran out at the incubator and Newron has now turned to the Advans Group.
The company is working with ELSYS Design, a division of the ADVANS Group that specializes in embedded systems. ELSYS is working on a test bench for Newron’s wood-wrapped electric motorcycle, and also plans to collaborate on the control and communication interface components.
The company is now on its second prototype and one interesting feature will allow riders to set their destination in the GPS and allow the motorcycle to configure the most efficient power usage for the trip. The bike will also connect to a smartphone application that will help owners perform predictive maintenance.
Newron’s plans are ambitions. The company hopes to produce 12 road-certified motorcycles in 2020, before ramping up production to commercialization in 2021.
While the production goals seem aggressive, if not a long shot, it seems that little will prevent Sébastien Mahut for realizing his dream.
