A Lisbon-based startup, Amble, is redefining electric vehicles by offering a minimalist buggy designed for everyday short-distance use, positioning it as a practical and stylish second car for families and resorts.
- Amble One is street-legal, ultralight, with 40 mph top speed.
- Designed primarily as a second vehicle for short trips and leisure use.
- Meets Europe’s L7e quadricycle standards, emphasizing weight limits.
What happened
Amble, a new electric vehicle startup based in Lisbon, Portugal, has unveiled the Amble One, a street-legal electric buggy designed to serve as a household's second car. The vehicle features a compact, open-air, neo-retro design and is intended for locations where traditional automobiles are either impractical or unnecessarily large, such as resorts, hotels, and neighborhood streets.
Equipped with a 15 kW motor and an 11 kWh battery, the Amble One reaches a top speed of 40 mph and offers a range of approximately 62 miles on a full charge. It is engineered to comply with Europe’s demanding L7e quadricycle regulations, which require the vehicle, including its battery, to weigh under 450 kg. This focus on lightweight design presented some of the team’s most challenging engineering decisions.
Why it matters
The Amble One reflects a strategic shift in the electric vehicle market away from performance and automation towards simplicity and purposeful design. By targeting the second-car segment, the vehicle addresses the reality that many families have two cars for distinctly different uses — one for longer trips and one for short, local journeys such as grocery runs and school drop-offs.
Amble’s approach challenges the trend of growing car sizes and complexity, proposing a smaller, more efficient urban vehicle that balances environmental concerns with practical daily usage. Its design and functionality make it particularly well-suited for controlled environments like resorts or beach towns, where compactness and ease of use are highly valued.
What to watch next
While the Amble One is initially focused on the resort and hospitality sectors, the company plans to expand its product lineup to cover a wider range of low-speed electric vehicles tailored to local and urban travel needs. Future iterations might include models with added features such as doors and windows, broadening its appeal beyond open-air buggy enthusiasts.
Industry observers and potential customers will be following how well European and possibly other international markets receive this innovative take on the second car. Its success could signal a broader acceptance of alternative vehicle categories that prioritize lightness, simplicity, and practical short-range transportation over high performance and automation.