XE Plus Concept Project Is a Shapeshifting Motocross Cycle Meant for All Roads

Ladies and gentlemen, you may be led into thinking that before you lies the newest and most technologically advanced KTM motocross cycle you’ve ever seen. Sadly, what I'm about to talk to you about is nothing more than a rendering aimed at expressing a mix of wild and down-to-Earth ideas.

Before you embark on this journey of simply having a look at a rendering and me telling you why I think it’s a neat idea, try and remember that a whole lot of vehicles you see on the streets today began as nothing more than a sketch on paper.

The XE Plus Concept, as it’s been dubbed by its creator, Petr Badura, is the sort of motocross design meant to be the answer to a certain problem bikers face, that of changing terrain.

If you ride a motorcycle or even a bicycle, you know how much of a hassle it can be to have to switch road surfaces. Most times, the cycle you ride is meant fir only one type of terrain. What makes the XE so special is that it can morph to meet the requirements of more than just one terrain.

To understand how the whole morphing works, take a good long look at the design and note the features and their placement. All good? Great.

One of the modes the XE can take on is known as City mode. In this mode, the vehicle performs just like any other street bike. Here, the front suspension is lowered as to also drop the front end of the bike, while the seat is lifted in order to position the rider forward. The pedals, too, shift to the rear of the XE in order to elongate the rider’s body.

As for the wheels, you can see that they’re smooth as to offer the perfect grip necessary while on asphalt. The reason I attracted your attention to the wheels is because this is one of the modular features on the XE, which also brings me to the next riding mode.

The second function that the XE can perform, which inevitably helped the designer brand this vehicle, is that of tackling uneven and off-road terrains, much like what the real KTM is known for. Now, everyone knows that wheels are going to be a huge factor in you making it home alive; it’s why I mentioned them a moment ago.

In this second mode, known as Cross, to compensate for the lack of grip experienced on loose terrain, the wheels deploy orange segments out of the tire in order to dig into the ground and offer necessary traction. The way that happens is even more out of this world than the actual idea; compressed air chambers run through the spokes and force the segments out of the tire. I don’t know man, I'm just the messenger.

Also in Cross mode, the pedals on the bike are shifted to sit under the rider, and front suspension is lifted back up to position the occupant in a more suitable stance for riding off-road, one in which maneuvering the XE should be easier.

Personally, I have a lot of questions regarding the design, like how that front “suspension” works, or how are the tires built so that they don’t lose any pressure when the central knobs are expelled? Nonetheless, it’s a design meant to explore some possible technologies, even though you may never actually see this vehicle in real life.