E-TRIKE REVOLUTION BY STUDIO LATA REIMAGINES THE TRICYCLE
Electric trike design received a compelling new direction when Andre Fangueiro, founder of Porto-based Studio Lata, unveiled the E-Trike Revolution concept. Rather than pursuing the sterile, tech-forward aesthetic that dominates most electric vehicle design, Fangueiro set out to create a three-wheeled electric vehicle that felt viscerally alive: raw, fast-looking, and emotionally engaging in the way that classic racing machines from the mid-20th century used to be.
Design Philosophy: Emotion Over Technology
The central argument behind the E-Trike Revolution is that most electric vehicle design has prioritized technological demonstration over genuine riding character. Fangueiro spent months interviewing end-users and studying market gaps before settling on a design direction that deliberately channels the proportions and posture of vintage classic automobile racers. The shapes are lean, low, and aggressive, designed to convey skill, speed, concentration, and freedom at a glance. The intent, as Fangueiro described it, is to translate those feelings directly into the vehicle's visual language, so that the rider feels them before the ignition is even switched on.
Technical Concept: Direct Drive, Full Front Suspension
The E-Trike is designed around a direct-drive electric motor delivering instant torque from a standstill, which is particularly relevant for urban riding where acceleration out of junctions and through gaps in traffic matters more than top speed. Full front suspension is specified, an uncommon feature on concept trikes of this type, aimed at maintaining composure on degraded urban surfaces while preserving the raw, minimal aesthetic. Sustainable materials are specified throughout, and Studio Lata used CAD modelling combined with Finite Element Method (FEM) engineering simulations to validate the structural approach. For a detailed design breakdown, see the coverage on Designboom and Autoevolution.
Urban Mobility Redefined
The E-Trike is designed for what Fangueiro calls early adopters and globetrotters, city dwellers who want a machine that keeps pace with their ambition rather than blending into the background. The tricycle format offers inherent stability advantages over two-wheeled commuters, making it accessible to a wider range of riders while the aggressive design ensures it never feels like a compromise. Every session in city traffic, weaving through congestion at maximum legal speed, is meant to feel like the kind of concentrated, high-stakes experience that makes riding worth doing.
What Studio Lata Gets Right
The E-Trike Revolution is, as its name suggests, still a concept rather than a production vehicle. But as a provocation it succeeds: it asks why electric urban vehicles should look passive and anonymous when the riding experience they enable is anything but. Fangueiro's answer, drawn from decades of automotive racing aesthetics, is that form and function can reinforce each other, and that a vehicle that looks dangerous and fast will be ridden with more engagement and skill. It is a philosophy that aligns well with TheArsenale's own curatorial approach to mobility objects.
Photo: Studio Lata
Explore more avant-garde electric mobility at TheArsenale, including the Evol.Bike x TheArsenale Electric BMX, the Carbogatto H7 electric bike, and the full e-bike collection.
