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This Puch e-Maxi Concept Is Begging to Become a Real Boy

If you have never heard of Puch, welcome to the club - I only recently discovered that Puch has been making bicycles since before the 20th century.
Puch e-Maxi 6 photos
Photo: Christoph Sokol/ Behance
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Imagine producing and selling 6,000 class-A bicycles today. Puch was doing this in 1895. This biggest-little biking company employed over 300 workers and produced on average of 6,000 bicycles back then.

After the two world wars Puch shifted productions to motorcycles and scooters. It’s these scooters and cycles that have inspired the work of Christoph Sokol. Sokol is currently a Creative Designer at Jaguar Land Rover, so you know he means business.

Named the Puch e-Maxi, it gathers old and new design and tech, molding it all neatly into one clean-cut moped. The initial design reminds me of the Polestar SLR (Salt Lake Runner), and if that holds true you can bet a buck or two that this puppy has got speed in her blood. But I wouldn’t be so sure.

If you have a close look in our gallery, you can see that the design of the body is much wider than the SLR, meaning it could possibly be heavier. Another aspect that offers me a feeling that it’s not too fast are the wheels. These just look like your average Streetmate wheels designed to carry you around town. Sure, you can change them, but this should be considered a factory design, and that means the wheels are based on specific capabilities.

Puch e\-Maxi
Photo: Christoph Sokol/ Behance
But the design for this, in my opinion, is quite pleasing to the eye. An oval-tube body sits low to the ground, keeping your center of gravity as stable as possible. The rounded shape of the oval gives the bike the ability to handle corners with a pretty good clearance, even though its low to the ground.

The front wheel is held in place by a very heavy-duty fork. Really. Look at it. It’s like someone put a pair of Yamaha shock-absorbers on my niece's training bike. That fork though, does look to be holding a pretty decent disk-brake, so don’t worry about stopping power.

The main body of the scooter has a black segment which is the seat. It can be adjusted as you wish in order to accommodate children of different sizes. Underneath towards the bottom of the bike, you’ll notice two slits on each side. These would be your footrests. Despite small looks, renderings and artwork show that two passengers could be accommodated on the Puch.

If it gives you that electric feel in your brain when you see it, it’s because it is electric. Equipped with a fixed battery and a removable power-bank, it fits right in with the current craze for EV’s. But, being a rendering, no one has thought of giving the Maxi any stats.

Puch e\-Maxi
Photo: Christoph Sokol/ Behance
Nothing on battery life, power output or charge time. Just a short list of possible components like a range extender, the earlier mentioned power bank and battery, but also an AI system that tracks your riding styles and battery usage to adjusts and maximize ride-time. An option for a touchscreen display is also in the works.

The rear motor too has absolutely no details. A darned shame that is. At least it looks like it means business.

A neat thing you’ll notice about the Maxi is that just in front of the seat there is a little cut-out. That cut-out is actually a storage compartment used to house anything from your device, groceries, and even a Bonsai with a booze bottle and shot glass. Whatever that’s about.

Since this project was created in Sokol’s spare time just so he can practice his handy work in Pencil and Blender 3D software, don’t keep your hopes up for seeing her on the streets. That explains the Bonsai and drink set too.
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About the author: Cristian Curmei
Cristian Curmei profile photo

A bit of a nomad at heart (being born in Europe and raised in several places in the USA), Cristian is enamored with travel trailers, campers and bikes. He also tests and writes about urban means of transportation like scooters, mopeds and e-bikes (when he's not busy hosting our video stories and guides).
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