Stinkwheel Publishing is dedicated to producing books about a long-neglected area of motoring history- the humble cyclemotor or motor assisted bicycle. Introduced immediately after World War 2 to provide a less wearisome means of getting from A to B than simple pedalling a push-bike, the clip-on cyclemotor unit was destined to have a short and often brutal life before increased prosperity consigned it to the back of sheds and garages, replaced by more powerful and reliable machines such as a moped or scooter.

Three types of minimalist transport were on offer throughout the 1950's;

Autocycles: An autocycle is very similar to a moped. It is a lightweight motor cycle with pedals and an engine of 100cc or less. Autocycles appeared on the roads of Britain in the 1930s and took an important rôle in the transport of essential workers during World War 2. The autocycle died out at the end of the 1950s, it had been usurped by the moped.

Cyclemotors: A cyclemotor is a motorised bicycle, a small engine that could be attached to a normal bicycle. This idea dates back to the dawn of motor cycling in the last years of the 19th century but the boom period for these machines was the 1950s - the years of post-war austerity.

Mopeds: The definition of the moped has changed over the years: It started off being a motor cycle with pedals and an engine of less than 50cc capacity. Nowadays, the pedals are not required but there are power and speed restrictions.