Like a BMW Isetta for the 21st century
July 24, 2024 1:37 AM Subscribe
The microlino [wiki] is a cute little electric bubble car from Micro Mobility Systems [wiki] of kickscooter [img] fame. But is it any good? Why not watch a YouTube review from Aging Wheels, Fully Charged (and again) or The Late Brake Show to see what they have to say about it?
That said, I've never ever seen a microlino...
I believe it's available in Switzerland now, but they haven't ramped up production enough to move into other markets yet, so give it some time!
posted by Dysk at 1:59 AM on July 24
I believe it's available in Switzerland now, but they haven't ramped up production enough to move into other markets yet, so give it some time!
posted by Dysk at 1:59 AM on July 24
"Here's a hedgehog. Look at it!" Okay, that was a lot of fun, and the car (not car) looks like it is too. Apparently it's now available in the UK! Can't wait to see one out and about. That price tag is hefty, though—the Lite version is £17K and the one that can do 90km/h (55mph) is £19K.
posted by rory at 2:01 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
posted by rory at 2:01 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
A range of 140 miles on the upper-end model makes it a serious city commuting contender... you'd only need to charge it once a week if all you're doing is running around town.
posted by rory at 2:06 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
posted by rory at 2:06 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
I’m just pleased to see Aging Wheels get some attention
posted by DoctorFedora at 4:15 AM on July 24 [4 favorites]
posted by DoctorFedora at 4:15 AM on July 24 [4 favorites]
I saw one of these in traffic here in Stockholm the other day, and what struck me what a huge difference in eye level this creates in traffic. Between the lowest (the microlino) and highest (us cyclists) it didn't seem... like a great development.
posted by groda at 4:29 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
posted by groda at 4:29 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
Is it really a bigger difference than between e.g. a giant SUV or pickup and a low sports car? SUV drivers typically sit higher than cyclists, and the microlino doesn't look unusually low for a small car? It's about the same height as a Citroen Ami, 50% taller than a Caterham Seven. What am I missing?
posted by Dysk at 4:33 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
posted by Dysk at 4:33 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
Why do you think the eye level difference between regular traffic and giant SUVs is unproblematic?
posted by groda at 4:46 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
posted by groda at 4:46 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
I don't, it's just that given the problem is already much worse, I don't see how the microlino creates the difference in eyeline. It's already there, much more so.
posted by Dysk at 4:55 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
posted by Dysk at 4:55 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
(And I am in general in favour of bringing everyone down much lower, which the microlino does compared to an SUV. I guess I just don't see the difference in eyeline between a cyclist and a microlino or other microcar as problematic, given that it is much smaller than the differences we accept as the status quo, and doesn't strike me as overly large in an absolute sense either.)
posted by Dysk at 4:59 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
posted by Dysk at 4:59 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
(the other difference here is that a cyclist high-up can see those lower them around them easily. An SUV driver high-up cannot, because the sight-lines on those things are obstructed by the bodywork, and is a much bigger risk to those around them as a result. The height isn't the issue here; visibility is)
posted by parm at 5:37 AM on July 24 [4 favorites]
posted by parm at 5:37 AM on July 24 [4 favorites]
I live in the suburbs and work from home. I would love to have one of these things for the 5k drive each way to the grocery store, library, et. (Carrying food for six very active adults on my bike is a non-starter, thanks.)
posted by wenestvedt at 6:14 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
posted by wenestvedt at 6:14 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
Just seen similar chariots while on holiday in Italy - perfect for old, narrow streets
posted by GallonOfAlan at 6:16 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
posted by GallonOfAlan at 6:16 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
These little things make me weep for my interstate-addicted suburbs. Look what they took from us!
posted by mittens at 7:39 AM on July 24 [5 favorites]
posted by mittens at 7:39 AM on July 24 [5 favorites]
I drive a similarly ridiculous joyous Citroën 2CV as my semi-daily driver in the region around Baltimore and DC in the US, and I've been pondering that, once I've squeezed all the juice out of my reliable commuter pod Fiat 500, I'd like to get a last-mile electric car as my grocery-getter, run to the park, catch the MARC train to work, general purpose local zipper...and I can't, because the US has literally the worst car culture on earth.
A Citroën Ami or Renault Twizy would do nicely for that 5-mile-radius kind of driving (and notably, most Americans drive 30 miles per day or fewer, alone in a car), but nope, they won't sell them here. The Smart Fortwo Electric Drive would have been great...but nope, they won't sell them here. In fact, if you're one of the apparently nonexistent drivers like me who detests lumbering around in an obnoxiously huge car to drive seven minutes to the store (a requirement that I'm stuck with because there's literally no safe route to ride a bicycle to the H-Mart that's a five-minute drive from where I live with my family), your options are...well, nothing. The European A-segment city car is gone from here, with Smart leaving in 2019 and and Fiat dropping all but the dreary Jeep-in-drag 500X around the same time. The next-gen EV Fiat 500E is coming in...finally...and it's $35k and up, with no EV credit worth mentioning because something something Amurica.
I credit this to a simple truth about my fellow countrymen—we're idiots when it comes to vehicles.
Drive anything even remotely off-axis from a black/white/grey/beige SUV and you will hear the endless jokes. "Uh, you know whut Fiat stands for, right?" they say about my Fiat, which has yet to require a second fix from Tony, or "I'd hate to be in a crash in something like that," they've said of almost every small car I've ever owned, none of which has ever actually been in a crash because I pay attention, anticipate dangers (used to be a motorcyclist, so I'm versed), and drive something nimble enough where I can avoid crashing because my car handles and has a few extra feet of space around it in which to maneuver.
None of it matters when I'm tootling around in a slightly insane car designed in the 1930s to get French farmers out of their horse carts, and I would venture a similar guess that I'd make the same manly sounds of delight as our Aging Wheels commentator, because the Microlino looks magically perfect as a conveyance to do all the little errands for which it's stupid to fire up the massive engine room of an ICE car and drive it a couple miles to cram the trunk with a huge cart of groceries (half of which will get thrown away). Best part of all those short-haul drives? Your emissions control system doesn't work until the car's warmed up properly, so on most of those drips, you're polluting like a lawn mower. Ugh.
And yeah, I'm bitter about it. It wouldn't be so bad if we had any options in much of the US, but we don't, other than to sneak in kei cars for the ICE crowd or just bitch.
Sigh.
posted by sonascope at 9:31 AM on July 24 [6 favorites]
A Citroën Ami or Renault Twizy would do nicely for that 5-mile-radius kind of driving (and notably, most Americans drive 30 miles per day or fewer, alone in a car), but nope, they won't sell them here. The Smart Fortwo Electric Drive would have been great...but nope, they won't sell them here. In fact, if you're one of the apparently nonexistent drivers like me who detests lumbering around in an obnoxiously huge car to drive seven minutes to the store (a requirement that I'm stuck with because there's literally no safe route to ride a bicycle to the H-Mart that's a five-minute drive from where I live with my family), your options are...well, nothing. The European A-segment city car is gone from here, with Smart leaving in 2019 and and Fiat dropping all but the dreary Jeep-in-drag 500X around the same time. The next-gen EV Fiat 500E is coming in...finally...and it's $35k and up, with no EV credit worth mentioning because something something Amurica.
I credit this to a simple truth about my fellow countrymen—we're idiots when it comes to vehicles.
Drive anything even remotely off-axis from a black/white/grey/beige SUV and you will hear the endless jokes. "Uh, you know whut Fiat stands for, right?" they say about my Fiat, which has yet to require a second fix from Tony, or "I'd hate to be in a crash in something like that," they've said of almost every small car I've ever owned, none of which has ever actually been in a crash because I pay attention, anticipate dangers (used to be a motorcyclist, so I'm versed), and drive something nimble enough where I can avoid crashing because my car handles and has a few extra feet of space around it in which to maneuver.
None of it matters when I'm tootling around in a slightly insane car designed in the 1930s to get French farmers out of their horse carts, and I would venture a similar guess that I'd make the same manly sounds of delight as our Aging Wheels commentator, because the Microlino looks magically perfect as a conveyance to do all the little errands for which it's stupid to fire up the massive engine room of an ICE car and drive it a couple miles to cram the trunk with a huge cart of groceries (half of which will get thrown away). Best part of all those short-haul drives? Your emissions control system doesn't work until the car's warmed up properly, so on most of those drips, you're polluting like a lawn mower. Ugh.
And yeah, I'm bitter about it. It wouldn't be so bad if we had any options in much of the US, but we don't, other than to sneak in kei cars for the ICE crowd or just bitch.
Sigh.
posted by sonascope at 9:31 AM on July 24 [6 favorites]
oof. The Car and Driver review after a few good points makes it sound pretty brutal.
posted by bluesky43 at 9:41 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
posted by bluesky43 at 9:41 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
oof. The Car and Driver review after a few good points makes it sound pretty brutal.
Bear in mind, though, that our desperately bad automotive journalism in the US is pretty much why we're stuck with the trinity of trucks/SUVs/sad old sedans that we have here. They spent the entirety of the eighties running down small, simple, compact hatchbacks as "econoboxes" (because there's nothing less forgivable in the United States than appearing austere, to say nothing of practical), applied terms like "quirky" to every Subaru until Subarus turned into the mostly-like-everything-else cars they are today (except for the boxer engines), and have fussed about "hard plastics" in the cabin as a sign of cheapness until we have nothing but initial-quality-focused (i.e. impressive in the car dealership, but cracking all to hell in the sun) interiors and the average price of a new car is $30K and up, with used cars pretty close behind.
Those guys literally can't understand the notion of a car that doesn't have to be good at everything in every conceivable use case all at once, so a basic runabout for a small, simple task completely eludes them.
Meanwhile, if you look at reviews in their home markets, the journalists aren't so mystified.
posted by sonascope at 10:52 AM on July 24 [4 favorites]
Bear in mind, though, that our desperately bad automotive journalism in the US is pretty much why we're stuck with the trinity of trucks/SUVs/sad old sedans that we have here. They spent the entirety of the eighties running down small, simple, compact hatchbacks as "econoboxes" (because there's nothing less forgivable in the United States than appearing austere, to say nothing of practical), applied terms like "quirky" to every Subaru until Subarus turned into the mostly-like-everything-else cars they are today (except for the boxer engines), and have fussed about "hard plastics" in the cabin as a sign of cheapness until we have nothing but initial-quality-focused (i.e. impressive in the car dealership, but cracking all to hell in the sun) interiors and the average price of a new car is $30K and up, with used cars pretty close behind.
Those guys literally can't understand the notion of a car that doesn't have to be good at everything in every conceivable use case all at once, so a basic runabout for a small, simple task completely eludes them.
Meanwhile, if you look at reviews in their home markets, the journalists aren't so mystified.
posted by sonascope at 10:52 AM on July 24 [4 favorites]
Sonoscope, you are the perfect candidate for a used Nissan Leaf. There are a fair number on the market with aged batteries that will only have a 40-60 mile range, but that sounds like way more than you'd need. We have a used 2014 Leaf and it's a real dream for the short commutes/errands.
That said, I really want an adorable micro EV like the Microlino.
posted by advicepig at 11:06 AM on July 24 [3 favorites]
That said, I really want an adorable micro EV like the Microlino.
posted by advicepig at 11:06 AM on July 24 [3 favorites]
advicepig, those are on my radar, but our local market has been fished dry, as it were (same applies to the cheap Smart Fortwo EDs that were around). I think my Fiat's got another 80-90K left before it stops being useful, so I'll have to see what's around when that day comes. Plus, I see they're making robust adapters to plug CHAdeMO into CCS and other chargers, which is nice. Robert Llewellyn's great piece on upgrading the battery in a Leaf was a nice reminder that ranges are not fixed where they were when these things were new, too. Unlike an ICE, new battery tech retrofits well.
posted by sonascope at 11:15 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
posted by sonascope at 11:15 AM on July 24 [2 favorites]
Speaking of Aging Wheels, check out his piece on the Citroën Ami EV quadricyle, which is a great example from the lower-budget end of the market that includes the Microlino.
His videos are fun and informative—I think he's a good viewing companion to HubNut and the less technical but even more infectiously joyous idriveaclassic for those free moments where you want to just dive into the deranged world of off-center vehicles.
posted by sonascope at 11:29 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
His videos are fun and informative—I think he's a good viewing companion to HubNut and the less technical but even more infectiously joyous idriveaclassic for those free moments where you want to just dive into the deranged world of off-center vehicles.
posted by sonascope at 11:29 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
We don't even have CHAdeMO in our Leaf and have never really missed it since we have a Prius C as our second car, so we've never really needed to fast charge. Just slow charges in the garage overnight. Putting in 1kWh/hour in is fine if you are only driving 20 miles a day...
posted by advicepig at 11:32 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
posted by advicepig at 11:32 AM on July 24 [1 favorite]
Unlike a lot of these vehicles, this looks like a very 'finished' design and looks pretty cool. There are lots of people that these would work for although the price is too high for those most suited, I think.
Unfortunately, here in Australia, a four-wheeled vehicle like this falls between the cracks of design rules and would be assessed against the same standards as any other passenger car. There are less stringent requirements for vehicles of this size, but only if they have three wheels. I don't see how a vehicle like this could pass things like crash tests that similar vehicles with fewer wheels are exempt from which is a shame because the four wheels bring a lot better stability and handling.
I could definitely see myself buying one, albeit not as my only vehicle. But it's too expensive, being priced squarely in the economy 'normal' car range.
posted by dg at 4:55 PM on July 24 [2 favorites]
Unfortunately, here in Australia, a four-wheeled vehicle like this falls between the cracks of design rules and would be assessed against the same standards as any other passenger car. There are less stringent requirements for vehicles of this size, but only if they have three wheels. I don't see how a vehicle like this could pass things like crash tests that similar vehicles with fewer wheels are exempt from which is a shame because the four wheels bring a lot better stability and handling.
I could definitely see myself buying one, albeit not as my only vehicle. But it's too expensive, being priced squarely in the economy 'normal' car range.
posted by dg at 4:55 PM on July 24 [2 favorites]
SUV driver high-up cannot, because the sight-lines on those things are obstructed by the bodywork, and is a much bigger risk to those around them as a result. The height isn't the issue here; visibility is
recumbent people-powered vehicles solve this with flags (adds minimal wind drag; more safety)
posted by HearHere at 8:26 AM on July 25
recumbent people-powered vehicles solve this with flags (adds minimal wind drag; more safety)
posted by HearHere at 8:26 AM on July 25
This made me think of the amazing 1957 Astaire/Hepburn musical Funny Face, which I just watched. Tell me the 1950s VELAM microcar featured in the film isn’t a spiritual cousin!
posted by caviar2d2 at 4:13 PM on July 25 [2 favorites]
posted by caviar2d2 at 4:13 PM on July 25 [2 favorites]
This made me think of the amazing 1957 Astaire/Hepburn musical Funny Face
My first-ever sighting of an Isetta was in the fabulous 1967 film Bedazzled, where an ultragroovy Eleanor Bron hops into one in a fleeting scene that nonetheless propelled me out of my seat with joy.
posted by sonascope at 7:15 AM on July 26 [1 favorite]
My first-ever sighting of an Isetta was in the fabulous 1967 film Bedazzled, where an ultragroovy Eleanor Bron hops into one in a fleeting scene that nonetheless propelled me out of my seat with joy.
posted by sonascope at 7:15 AM on July 26 [1 favorite]
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