The safety and comfort of a car, the convenience of a motorcycle.

Nimbus EV, a Michigan- based startup, needed a design concept for their revolutionary self balancing electric vehicle: A fully enclosed 2-seater, as nimble and compact as a motorcycle, which doesn't require a motorcycle license to drive. It automatically leans into corners and balances itself, providing active safety and stability, as well as a sturdy construction with crumple zones, seat belts and airbags. 

The desired visual impact was "safe, efficient, urban, dynamic and fun". Applying these concepts to such an unusual form factor required deconstructing how they work in a car and in a bike, then remixing the result. It was important to avoid the pitfalls of designing it like a small car trying to look bigger than it is, or like a "motorcycle with some added value". The design had to be a visual icon of it's own, otherwise it wouldn't work. So, for example, a "bumper" that envelopes the driver is a nod to safety, but the space it leaves for a forward-leaning streamlined front, combined with a squinting headlight streak, delivers the dynamic aspect, and so on.