Since 2008, Nicolas Trub has been developing his Cyclospace concept, a pedal car that weighs less than 100 kg and that changes our relationship to travel: lighter, more user-friendly, more autonomous, and designed with low-tech elements.
With the Cyclospace, no risk of getting caught on the radar. You will never exceed 30 km/h, “a rhythm that we should never have left” according to its inventor Nicholas Trubnostalgic for the character “poetic” pedal cars for adults.
To design his Cyclospace, the Ile-de-France resident, who works between Montrouge and Palaiseau in the Paris region, was directly inspired by muscle-powered cars of the Mochet company, between 1930 and 1960.
Out of 6,000, there are still some that are in good condition. I discovered that this concept was an immense poetry. It was poetic to pedal to go to your vacation spot
A la carte production
Nicolas Trub started the development of its Cyclospace in 2008. Since then, 15 models have seen the light of day and many changes have been made (disc brakes at the front, horn, seat comfort, etc.) despite maintaining the main basic principles such as the arch stretched between the rear axle and the foredeck.
The inventor confesses to having sold a Cyclospace per year since its beginnings: “It’s very weird but every year there is someone who shows up, and it’s great because it’s exactly my rhythm”.
Because there have been few buyers to date, Nicolas Trub knows them all by name. He even sends them theupdates” over the years. “We have improved the steering a lot, for example,” he explains..
Priority to low-tech
Made entirely in France in ESATS (Establishments or work assistance services), the Cyclospace is intended to be a means of transport “natural and friendly”.
Me, I’m trying to invent a car in which we don’t argue
Better than that: the absence of doors and its reduced speed are an invitation to chat with people in the street! You understand, the Cyclospace is not a vehicle like the others. Apart from being virtuous in its design, it is also made from low-tech resources for better control by the user in the event of a breakdown.
“To be an engineer from electrotechnical and electronic engineering, I know very well the limits of high-tech. We add layers, it consumes energy, and then it creates dependence and frustration”summarizes Nicolas Trub.
The Cyclospace is a car!
Out of the question for its founder to equate his vehicle with anything other than a car: “I like it when people say it’s a car because I want to reclaim that word” says Nicolas Trub.
I want to reinvent the automobile
According to him, what is presented to us as an automobile has nothing autonomous about it: “She fetches her fuel thousands of miles away, she fetches her maintenance from garages…”
With its Cyclospace, the user gains autonomy for Nicholas Trub. The energy comes from the legs and the solar roof. And to overcome the small technical inconveniences, he has planned everything: “The maintenance kit is a small bag with three keys. You have to know how to do everything yourself”. What more could you ask for?
More information
The Cyclospace website
It changes life spotlights great French innovations. These sometimes unusual objects or which change from the ordinary bring a real answer to certain small annoyances of everyday life.