The low profile of velomobiles has often been mentioned as a major issue both due to low eye height for the rider and the low visibility.
The Frikar ebike is 1100 mm high, and you will feel like you are sitting inside a sports car with large windows. But 1100 mm is 50 mm higher than a Lamborghini Miura and 50 mm lower than a Volkswagen XL1. We agree that there are benefits of raising eye level on the vehicle. That is part reason why we will offer an option to raise the rear end of the vehicle. So the rider eye level can be raised to get better overview. But only when going slow. As the elevated vehicle’s higher centre of gravity makes the vehicle much less stable, there will be speed limit and visual warning.
Per Hassel (Founder and Product Developer) says:
“After seven years of usage of an even lower velomobile, the Dutch Alleweder, the argument of not being visible in traffic is simply not true, because: the large bodies of velomobiles are much more visible for the other interacting traffic compared to regular upright bikes.The relative large body forces a Frikar ebike rider to behave more car-like, making traffic interaction more predictable, comparable to a car. The Frikar ebike is taller than Lamborghini Countach but lower than Bugatti Veyron, and about as easy to detect in complex traffic due to profile, colors and light. A Frikar ebike is much taller than most traffic posts and traffic islands. And they are easily seen by passing drivers”.