Latest news with #Model-M
The Drive
28-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Drive
This 24,000-Watt Scooter Is Going for a 100+ MPH Speed Record at Bonneville
The latest car news, reviews, and features. A British outfit called Bo makes a sleek little electric scooter called the Model-M. The best variant claims a 22 mph top speed and a 40-mile range for $2,500. Sounds pricey but practical. The prototype Turbo model is another story—it's gunning for triple-digit speeds at the Bonneville salt flats next month. Bo has been around since 2022, but seems to be on a bit of a marketing blitz—last week, it released a teaser video of somebody clad in full Moto GP-looking garb absolutely ripping through a tunnel on its Turbo model concept, and it seems to be loaning out the more socially acceptable Model M to journalists for test rides. My old buddy Matt Hardigree was recently test-riding one and seemed to dig it. The Bo website says the company's engineers left Formula 1 to work on scooters 'because we think electric scooters are the most important vehicle innovation of this century.' Bold! I have fond memories of the Bird scooter fad when I lived in LA—I rode one all the way from Culver City to Marina Del Rey one time, it was fun and took about the same time as driving in traffic. But then everyone got sick of them, threw them into the ocean, and I haven't seen them littering the streets of any city in years. Bo is obviously looking to get away from the disposable vibe, which I appreciate. The Model-M is being framed as an elite alternative to janky Bird and Lime scooters. Though to be honest, it still looks like every other scooter to me, just with one extra layer of aluminum skin to give it a slightly softer Cybertrucky look. Not hating—I think electric scooters are fun, and $2,500 for an exceptionally well-made one that can go 40 miles doesn't seem too outrageous. But there's no need to go ga-ga over everything that's finished in big planes of plain silver. The Bo Turbo and a regular Model M on the right. Bo As for the super-fast Turbo models, Wired reported you can buy one for $30,000, but I think you gotta know a guy to get the hook-up—there's no option for it on Bo's consumer site yet. It reportedly produces over 24,000 watts of juice with a high-power dual motor controller setup developed with partner Rage Mechanics, which is a French company making all kinds of high-performance electric microvehicles. This looks way better to me than the Apple/Tesla aesthetic everyone seems to love. That said, I'm still not in the market for a $25,000+ scooter. Rage Mechanics That sent me down a rabbit hole into the world of electric scooter racing and Rage Mechanics' previous accomplishments. The company already claims a 106+ mph top speed with its RM-X model, a French-made scooter you can buy for about $26,500 that looks far cooler than the Teslaesque Bo in my humble opinion. So I guess that's what the Bo Turbo will have to beat to properly claim its speed record. Get a load of this madness: Bo says, 'Over 24,000W delivers blistering acceleration, advanced traction control adjusts the balance of power to the wheel with most grip, resulting in maximum thrust.' But I think the main thing Bo is trying to show off is its stability assistance tech called Safesteer. That's the brand's stabilization system that supposedly counteracts rider twitchiness. Top Gear reviewed one of these in 2023 and described it as 'torsion springs to stabilise the steering and reduce twitchiness and kickback.' Safesteer is on the regular Bo scooters—the Hope V4 disc brakes and floating rotors of the Turbo model are not. Nor is the extreme power output or ram-air intake for cooling Bo As a technology showcase stunt, this is a neat idea, and I wish their test pilot all the luck getting this thing to triple digits and back to a stop safely. Couldn't be me—I'm happy with neighborhood bicycle speeds on anything with wheels smaller than my face. If you're suddenly finding yourself wondering what kind of performance you could get on a cheaper e-scooter, there's plenty more room in this rabbit hole. Jump in, I already found one on Amazon that claims it'll do 50 mph for $1,500. Ridden or created any extreme tiny-wheeled machine? I want to hear about it! Drop me a note at
Tom's Guide
22-07-2025
- Automotive
- Tom's Guide
I just rode a $2,000 electric scooter designed by Formula One engineers — and I'm actually tempted to buy it
What do you get when a Formula One engineer takes his talents and designs an electric scooter? I found out for myself when I took the Bo Model-M for a test ride in Brooklyn last week. This new electric scooter has an aluminum monocoque chassis and a unique steering system that makes it unlike any other electric scooter on the market today. But how does this $2,000 machine compare to the best electric scooter? I went for a ride with CEO Oscar Morgan, who previously worked for Williams Racing, to see how well it handled. Motor: 400W (1200W peak)Speed: 22 MPHMax range: 40 milesBattery capacity: 672WhBrakes: Sealed drum (front), Regenerative e-brake with e-ABS (rear)Weight: 50.7 poundsMax rider weight: 265 poundsDimensions: 47.2 (length) x 44.5 (height) x 23.2 (width) The company is slowly introducing the Model-M to the U.S. You can order the base model — which has a top speed of 16 MPH and a range of up to 25 miles — for $1,990 at Bo's website. A version with a top speed of 22 MPH and a range of 40 miles sells for $2,490. The Model-M is also offered in four colors — silver, gold, black, and chrome — with the latter three being a bit more costly. For example, a gold version of the top-end Model M costs $3,399. That's a lot more expensive than the best electric scooters, but the company doesn't plan to release it in large numbers; each scooter is hand-built. Lest you think it can't go faster, Bo is developing a modified version of the scooter that can reach speeds of up to 100 MPH. At $30,000, it'll cost you as much as a car, though. Unlike most every other electric scooter, the Bo Model-M has a monocoque chassis, which means that the outer shell of the scooter itself provides support, rather than an internal frame. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. So, there's no vertical downtube like you'll see with most scooters; rather, you get an L-shape that swooshes down and blends seamlessly with the deck; it's the sleekest scooter design I've seen since the Unagi Model One. A running light sits about a third of the way up the scooter, with a headlight in the middle of the handlebars. Partly because of this design, the top of the scooter doesn't fold down, which makes it more suited for those who have a garage to store it. There are two small design touches I particularly liked. The first is the Model-M's kickstand, which is designed that that you'd find on a motorcycle: It folds down on both sides of the scooter, so it's propped up level, and more securely, than a kickstand that's just on one side. The other feature I loved are the folding loops for a bike lock. These are located about halfway down, and pop out so that you can slide a bike lock through the frame of the scooter, and then fold them back in for a sleeker look. These loops also have a small tab at the top, so you can use them to hang a bag from the scooter while you're riding. The Model-M lacks a built-in display. Instead, there's a mounting bracket in the middle of the handlebars, to which you attach your smartphone, and use the Bo app as your dashboard. Also, the steering is a lot tighter than a traditional scooter — you feel a lot of resistance as you turn the handlebars to either side, as they automatically return to center. In some ways, it feels like the steering wheel of your car. While I didn't try it, you could almost ride the scooter one-handed, as you don't have to focus on keeping the wheel pointed forward. The Model-M is powered by a 400W (1200W peak) rear motor, which felt pretty zippy around the admittedly flat streets of the area around the Brooklyn Navy Yard; I'd be interested to see how it would fare in hillier environs. Still, it felt very zippy during my time riding it; the Model-M has two speed settings, so you can keep it at a lower top speed until you get used to riding it. Another conscious design decision was to forego any sort of suspension system on the Model-M, and instead rely on its 10 x 2.5-inch pneumatic tires to absorb any bumps in the road. It was definitely more jarring than full suspension scooters like the Segway Max G3, especially when riding over the cobblestone streets of Brooklyn. There's a lot to like about the Bo Model-M; not only does its design stand out from the crowd, but it's thoughtfully made; I especially like touches such as the folding bike lock. While I'd like to test it out further, the Model-M's steering is also unlike any other electric scooter I've ridden, and definitely feels more stable when making turns; it felt more like skiing than scooting. I do wish there were some sort of suspension, though. At $2,000, this is definitely a boutique ride, and, as it doesn't fold and weighs around 50 pounds, I would not recommend it for those who live in a walk-up apartment. But, if you're looking for a scooter that will make a statement, this is it.
