I had an opportunity to ride around in on a Mercedes Hybrid this weekend. Who ever said Benz drivers are inconsiderate to the environment as they blast along in their AMG’s and S600’s? When they finally do arrive at their destination, they have no problem joining the greenies at their peace-loving rallies; and what better way to spread the earth-love than on a brand new bike?

Except, of course, this is Mercedes-Benz we’re talking about: among the first of car makers to introduce crumple zones, disc brakes, ABS, air bags, and electronic traction control systems. So forget everything you know about the bicycle! Welcome to the new age: with the help of alien technology the user can now pedal less and enjoy the scenery more. Let’s get down to the brass tacks; all of us here are technically-minded, Haskell and Lisp are not alien technologies, so why should a bicycle be? The motor is a 24V 300 watt DC Motor with a 20 cell 24V 5amp/hour Nickel Cadmium battery. For the less technically inclined that means we can go 19 miles at a nice cruising speed of 15 mph.

But the fun doesn’t stop there! All the best ideas were laughed at and disregarded at first; if anything, Mercedes should consider this post as a compliment that they are doing something right and on the path to a bicycle revolution. Riding the bike is in fact an enjoyable experience: with the motor on and draining the precious battery life, I can push the pedal just a little and feel a large torque swell up and kick the rear-wheel drive vehicle quickly up a steep hill. It really is a god-send: considering the weight of the bike, if the motor was drained I doubt I could actually get up the hill. But the problems start once you’re on level-ground (or dare-say, going downhill). The lawyers must have gotten to the designers before the AMG team showed up, because the bike is speed capped at roughly 15mph. That means you will get everywhere in comfort, but walking would probably be faster. And you will have to suffer the shame of having all the other bikers pass you by (or be forced to pedal furiously to keep your heavy bike in pace with all the low-tech bikes around you).

While we’re on the subject of the other bikers, I’m already hearing complaints about the slow integration of new innovations. And I agree; but where is the innovation? Most motorized bicycles fall into one of two groups: motor-powered scooters where the pedals are really just there for emergencies and decoration, and motorized bicycles which can help you go a lot faster and pedal less. This bike clearly falls into the latter category (excluding the speed boost). The first motorized electric bicycles were already showing up in the 1890s: it’s a good thing Mercedes decided to instead develop the Hybrid Bicycle, or this would be ancient history.

All things considered, Mercedes-Benz feels we should wait and charge a battery for 3 hours (recommended full charge 5.5 hours) to ride 20 miles with a limiter capping us to a little over walking speed. I feel this may be a marketing scheme to prove to us once and for all bicycles are useless aside from the leisurely Sunday stroll and we should go and buy that SLK 55 AMG or S600 when we actually want to go somewhere.