No, Nothing didn’t design an e-bike… this piece was designed for the LBM (Leo Brutal Motorcycle) workshop using bulletproof glass as its primary material. Named the Nu’Clear (because it’s new and clear), this unusual two-wheeler looks like nothing you’ve ever seen because while most motorcycles opt for large fairings and body parts to build character, the Nu’Clear goes the absolute opposite route by being transparent in its approach… no literally! The motorcycle concept (it obviously doesn’t exist quite yet) explores quite a few first. Not only does it use bulletproof glass in the design elements, but it incorporates glass in the load-bearing parts too, like the hubs of each wheel. Sure, the motorcycle’s chassis is still made of meta, but this unusual combination of metal and glass allows the Nu’Clear to stand out rather wonderfully. Also, extra points if you noticed that transparent fuel tank on the top that’s filled with ethanol, which the Nu’Clear runs on.
Designer: Mikhail Smolyanov
The Nu’Clear was designed in the Atompunk style of the 50s and 60s, capturing in the potential futuristic aesthetic of the time. Sure, a glass motorcycle is futuristic by pretty much any standard, but the use of straight lines and mild fillets (as opposed to wildly aerodynamic forms) makes it look distinctly Atompunk. Think Jetsons, which originally aired in the 60s.
Although Smolyanov mentions that the Nu’Clear has the potential to be an e-bike, for his own personal experimentation, the designer decided to outfit it with a boxer engine, which emerges from the two sides, sporting fins that also are reminiscent of batteries in a nuclear reactor (reinforcing the Nu’Clear name). What’s marvelous about this design direction, is the fact that it now sports a transparent fuel tank too, letting you see the fuel inside in a way that makes a fuel-gauge absolutely redundant!
Smolyanov experimented with a few versions (shown below), using a combination of chassis styles. Each variant brought a new flavor to the Nu’Clear, either revealing or obscuring parts of it. V1 had a larger fuel tank, V3 used opaque paneling at the base, and V4 opted for incredibly beautiful shallow-arched metal channels to give the motorcycle its strength and character.
While the motorcycle uses bulletproof glass for a pretty sizeable chunk of the motorbike’s design, for the parts that couldn’t be made with glass, it uses different materials like metal, rubber, etc. This means the Nu’Clear isn’t entirely transparent, but for the most part, it’s sufficiently skeletal to really make it catch one’s eye when it drives down the road. However, this experience isn’t limited to passersby but to the rider too, who gets the unique experience of being able to control a motorcycle made of glass, and being able to see the components and parts within the two-wheeler in a way that’s never been seen before!
