The briefing we received before designing the Tohqi Elipse was as it follows: an electric scooter, for commuting, for two people, with 12”-13” rims, with a maximum speed over 100km/h and a range over 100kms, with room for a full-face helmet, with an onboard charger, a mid to high price range and a design that could be kept on the market as long as possible. In this briefing there were no instructions about aesthetic aspects of the motorcycle which gave us much more creative freedom. For us, the key point was to look for a design with no expiration date, which would withstand with dignity the passing of time. We focused on finding a classic and elegant design but at the same time, a design which clearly belonged to the XXI century. Our inspirations were the Vespa, Lambretta / NSU and Lohner scooters.
In order to reduce costs, this project has been developed using entirely digital tools. That is, we haven’t made clay models, or any previous milling. We jumped directly from the CAD model to a functional prototype with the fairing and chassis designed in detail. This is quite risky especially from an ergonomics standpoint. What we did, to avoid unpleasant surprises, was to take as a reference, the external measures and the driving positions of the Vespa LX, GTS and Kymco Like. With these measurements and the volume of the battery pack, charger and helmet, we started working.
