MIMO C1 Is the World’s First Foldable Cargo e-Scooter, and It’s Affordable Too

These are great times for sales of electric bicycles, but demand for other two-wheelers is also picking up pace. E-Scooters, for example, are very hot right now (and were even before the international health crisis) because they offer an easy and very convenient way to zap around the city without having to bother about roads closed due to traffic congestion or high maintenance costs.

One thing that e-scooters can do, though, is haul cargo. At most, they will allow you to wear a backpack or some sort of bag, but they’re not good for cargo at all. MIMO C1 is different in that it is the first cargo scooter in the world. It’s also foldable or transformable, which means you can use it as a trolley which, technically, means you can use it indoors as well.

A cargo scooter is perhaps not a regular commuter’s idea of an ideal product, but it’s not designed with the regular commuter in mind. Instead, it’s devised for delivery workers, grocery shopping, and people who, as a rule, carry stuff around with them for whatever reason. To them, it promises the ultimate electric two-wheeler that will solve all their problems. Transportation-related problems, that is.

Developed in Singapore, MIMO C1 is now crowdfunding on IndieGoGo for an August 2021 estimated delivery date. In presenting it, makers MIMO Motor use comparisons to the long john cargo bike, pointing out that the cargo e-scooter, on the other hand, is easier to use throughout. It has a smaller turning radius and offers a smoother ride, and, perhaps just as important, it can be brought inside closed spaces. Considering how many bikes are stolen by the minute and the fact that this massive type of cargo bike needs its own parking, this is nothing to scoff at.

Converting MIMO C1 from scooter to trolley configuration takes only three seconds. You bring the rear half upwards and fix it against the handlebars, and the mid-mounted small castor wheels replace the large, now-suspended rear wheel. The cargo in front of the scooter can stay where it is.

MIMO C1 is sturdy enough to carry some 190 kg (419 pounds) in total: a rider of up to 120 kg (264.5 pounds) in the rear and 70 kg (154.3 pounds) of cargo in the front. For the latter, you also get an assortment of accessories, from a large and small aluminum rack to a wooden crate for pet-carrying or a fiberglass enclosed case for whatever you need hauling. Should owners decide to use other types of accessories, the makers promise to leave the e-scooter “open-source” to allow it.

The lithium-ion battery is good for 15 to 25 km (9 to 16 miles), with the maker suggesting carrying spares with you for an extended range. Those spares would, of course, go into that maximum payload specification. Top speed is 25 kph (16 mph), with the maker promising to put in a speed controller (at 20 kph / 12.4 mph) for certain E.U.-based pledgers to keep the thing road-legal.

There’s a throttle switch on the handlebar and coil spring suspension in the front. Stopping power comes from a rear mechanical disc brake. The MIMO C1 weighs just 17 kg (37.5 pounds).

Initial pledgers can get this foldable, transformable cargo e-scooter (whew, that’s a mouthful) at $1,300, with the MRSP estimated at $1,800 for when and if it goes into full production. For this amount, you get the e-scooter and the small rack and a quite elegant aluminum phone holder for the handlebar on the house.