Hyundai’s folding electric scooter mounts to its vehicles

The Hyundai Motor Group began exploring the viability of a personal last-mile mobility device back in 2017 when it unveiled an Ioniq-branded electric scooter at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Since then, Hyundai has worked to improve on the concept, and the product you see here is the result of its efforts. The attractively designed scooter has a range of up to 12.4 miles, folds into three parts, and theoretically could fit into charging pockets built into Hyundai’s future vehicles. It’s not quite a modern Motocompo, but it’s close!

While Rolls-Royces feature, among other hyperluxurious amenities, umbrellas kept in the cars’ doors, Hyundai is fixated on a world where electric scooters are stored within its vehicles’ structures. As seen in the video below, the storage/charging cubbies could be designed into numerous locations on a vehicle, as long as they don’t interfere with safety standards. 

The charge pockets would hold a tri-folding scooter that weighs roughly 17 pounds. It doesn’t have a specific name yet, but its 10.5-Ah lithium battery gives it enough juice to last 12.4 miles and scoot up to 12.4 mph. 

The biggest change between the previous concept and this scooter is a shift from front-wheel drive to rear-wheel drive. Hyundai says moving the weight to the rear helps with stability and safety. The scooter also has front-wheel suspension, headlights, and taillights. Regenerative braking, a possible future feature, could increase the scooter’s range by about a mile. 

As of now, this is still just an idea, but it seems Hyundai is trying to make it work. We sure hope it does.