What if you could have a two-seater EV that offers the advantages of a motorcycle, but still has four wheels and is enclosed (well, mostly), like a car? If you find this idea intriguing, then you might be interested in a French startup that's been working on creating exactly this vehicle for the past few years.
Both the vehicle and the company are called AEmotion, and if the end result puts you in mind a little bit of a BMW C1, you're not alone. It's not that, of course. And really, in the grand history of beloved French automotive oddities like the Citroën 2CV or the Renault Twizy, honestly, would you expect any less? Especially when the goal is creating low-speed mobility designed to fit French licensing tiers and get 16 year olds in teeny, tiny low-speed microEVs for the first time.
Now, here's a bit of a blurry line for you. In the demo video that AEMotion published on its own YouTube channel, it clearly shows the vehicle lane filtering between full-sized cars. Please note, if you're unfamiliar, that in France lane filtering has long occupied a sort of gray area, and there was much hemming and hawing and back-and-forthing about finally making it legal once and for all for motorcycles to do.
It's now legal, but it took a whole lot of action from angry French riders to finally get it across the finish line. But, legally speaking, would a microcar that could be driven on a B license (not a motorcycle license) qualify to participate in such behavior? I'm no legal expert, on French law or otherwise, but this video leaves me with at least one pretty serious question.
To give you some idea of the size of this thing, its official dimensions are 235 x 79 x 171 centimeters. That's just under 8 feet long, just under 32 inches wide, and just under 67 inches high.
That 32 inch width is possible because the seats are tandem, of course. It's also worth noting that if these dimensions are accurate, that would make the AEmotion thinner than a 2025 BMW R 1300 RT. Which does indeed make you reason that hey, maybe lane filtering with what's really a microcar wouldn't be quite so egregious after all.
Except it would feel terribly, terribly weird. And generally speaking, trying to lane filter or lane split in any kind of car is an absolutely terrible idea. Just because the math looks good doesn't mean the idea is always good, right?
Also, you're going to need to replace the tires on your AEmotion from time to time. They look like they're probably a strange size, and very skinny. How difficult will it be to find replacements? If AEmotion is still around and offering replacement parts for sale, will they be the only game in town, or will plentiful aftermarket options exist?
If I put all my questions about this thing into writing, we'd probably be here all day, so I'll just leave you with one more. Take a close look at the video, and maybe watch it a few times. The way the doors work, and the way the cabin is mostly enclosed (but not entirely), don't you kind of wonder why they didn't just go the whole way and use a full door that covers the rider's legs, too? Instead, there's a little window for your calves to get a bit of a breeze as you roll through town. Or a bit of a splash as you roll through puddles. It's certainly a choice!
What do you think of AEmotion's design? Are you thinking about what happens if it crashes? Me, too. But let me know what else you're thinking in the comments.
