Lastly, we have the Lit C1, an autonomous-balancing electric vehicle (AEV) from San Francisco-based startup Lit Motors. Well, we will if it ever hits the streets. See, the C1 first promised to bring “Tron” to reality way back in 2012 with an initial cost of $24,000 and a launch date of 2014.
After years without a single C1 hitting the road, CEO Danny Kim was forced to reimburse customers. Then, in early 2023, pre-orders for the C1 reopened, now with an estimated MSRP of $32,000. Another year later, it’s still in the pre-ordering phase, one that entails buying a company T-shirt (for $250) with an “Official Reservation Certificate” entitling you to “reserve a place in the queue 6–12 months before production.” Make of that what you will.
The C1 has incredible potential because it’s a genuine, fully enclosed motorcycle that automatically self-balances. It does this using two large gyroscopes (typically found in satellites) mounted on the floor, making it very difficult to topple over, thus doing away with the outrigger training wheels (and kickstand). In an accident, the gyros absorb and significantly reduce the impact’s force. It will protect passengers by working with other safety features (i.e., seatbelts, steel-reinforced chassis/doors, and front and side airbags).
The C1 can carry a driver and one passenger and is steered like a motorcycle, sustaining lean/tilt angles up to 45 degrees. It uses a 13Kwh battery pack to power a 72Kw motor, can go from zero to 60 mph in five seconds, and reach speeds over 100 mph. Additionally, it is supposed to have other creature comforts like scissor doors, windshield wipers, a stereo system, air conditioning, etc.
With just a few prototypes built, only time will tell if we’ll ever see Lit’s C1.
