No doubt about it, the future is here and the big companies have paid much attention to changes in the motorcycle department. Our environment is a great responsibility and everyone is involved in the task of taking the best possible care of it. Hence, we present to you on this blog 8 electric motorcycles that will change your mind if you thought this kind is still far away to catch up with their internal combustion rivals. The information was taken as a summary from the official manufacturer’s website highlighting the best features of each model.
Zero Motorcycles Zero SR/Fa
259 km without a charge in the city and 139 km on the highway in its basic shop configuration. This motorcycle with its aggressive design will change your perspective in many ways thanks to its 190 Nm in torque and 110 CV of power. Its riding control modes will allow you to select power and torque to your likes. Reaching 200 km/h with an automatic gearbox, it displays a scent of freedom like few different motorcycles in the market. Amongst the perks added to this electric motorcycle is the stability control system provided by BOSCH and its CYPHER III system that allows full interaction between motorcycle and rider.
Yamaha PES1
The big Japanese giant brings to the world this minimalistic design that for sure will confuse many to think its a combustion motorcycle with lots of empty spaces in its frame. Nope, is not a gas tank, is its top frame that works elegantly as a knee support. A feature indispensable when riding beyond normal skills. Yes, the fun is guaranteed. Aside that is coming from a brand that knows how to do things right, this electric piece of engineering seems to be promised to come with an accessible price tag around it.
Energica Ego
Bearing in mind that Italians know about design and when this is mixed with top-end technology, we have as a result the first Italian street-legal electric motorcycle. With 107 kW (equivalent to 145 Hp), it reaches max speeds of 240 km/h and accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 3 seconds. The green heart on this amazing motorcycle is a synchronous oil-cooled motor with permanent magnets engineered by the same guys that were involved in bringing the thrills of LeMans 24hrs to us. Its brain is a VCU developed by Energica itself that monitors and controls all the systems in the motorcycle allowing to adjust the bike overall 100 times per second. This means to you to have the perfect tuned motorcycle, every time.
Zero Motorcycles Zero FX
Lean and mean is its logo and the reason why we come back to the Zero motorcycles is due to the fact that this piece of art is simply impressive. As a motorcycle rental company, this is one model that copes with our current aspirations of taking care of the environment. It may not have the autonomy from other models but its versatility on off-road is unquestionable. With a peak power of 46Hp and an outstanding torque of 106 Nm, challenges you to get the most out of it in the environment it was designed for. It might not count with the gear changing thrill or the awesome roar for an enduro motorcycle, but for sure with fewer things in mind to worry about, more complicated routes and stunts will be accessible.
Peugeot 2.0
Agility in urban areas is your thing, maybe the feeling that you are not contributing to polluting a city also could be a good motivator. This scooter was designed for everyday use with its 3,2 kW of max. power and three riding modes that will take you to 45 km/h in less than 10 seconds. The motorcycle was designed for commuting and its frame has been designed to be customizable by its owner and best of all, it can be charged from any domestic port. Furthermore, its 100% connectivity allows you to forget about having a mobile to manage your motorcycle, as this is connected to a cloud on real-time via a 3G card. With a practical dashboard that is easy to read at any speed, the interaction with the rider feels much more comfortable and natural.
KTM Freeride EX-C
Following the green tendencies, KTM has also brought its brand forward with a design that just like its gasoline sisters, it will keep you airborne as much as you want to, with zero emissions. Its core, an engine that delivers 18 kW with a brushless motor and an automatic gearbox right underneath it that also works alongside when the Economy mode is selected to recover some of the energy when decelerating. Another cool feature of this electric off-road prodigy is that according to the manufacturer, it can be fully submerged which is pretty attractive especially for river crossing or hardcore off-road trails.
Lightning LS-218
The fastest electric motorcycle counts with 228 Nm of torque and 201 CV of power can be delivered thanks to its Synchrono engine with permanent magnets. Its chassis is designed based on carbon fiber and other alloys that combined with Ohlins top of the line suspensions permits to have the flexibility needed when the bike is leaned into a curve. Its top speed reaches an impressive +348 km/h and its weight is around 495 lbs. It takes only 30 minutes to charge the motorcycle and you’ll be ready again for action. it counts with a direct driven motor and a state of the art programmable regenerative braking system.
Harley Davidson LiveWire
Claiming an impressive 142 km on the highway and 225 km in urban areas. One of the key features of this beast is the Electronic Chassis Control (ECC) that improves greatly the control and increases the confidence over the motorcycle in less-than-ideal-situations. How? by managing the antilock braking system, the traction control system, and Drag-torque slip system simultaneously based on the response of a 6-axis inertial measuring system. A Panasonic H-D connectivity system works as the interaction motorcycle-rider for outstanding feedback on numbers and statistics that anyone could be interested on after a ride. For Harley Davidson enthusiasts one of the key aspects of any model is the options for customizing their rides, and this model is not the exception. As a final thought, we can get some conclusions out of this blog. For instance that now telemetrics with this technology is within the reach of every motorcycle owner, as is just a matter of a click and you can download all the info you need to your mobile and create the metrics for the perfect ride. In the case of riders that wants to take things to the limit and tune their motorcycles according to their riding styles, this presents an obvious advantage for tune-ups. Another note is that autonomy is reversed from the internal combustion engines. Electric motorcycles tent to give more mileage in urban areas than highways and with increasing charge range. All these are promises of amazing things to come in the electric area like reduced charging time, longlasting batteries and increase in engine outputs, that for sure is still on diapers of its total potential. As a consumer I think is fair to give an open-minded good try and not be judgemental to this new era in exchange of our ecosystem’s well being, although this also means that the thrill perceived from changing gears and the roar of a 3+ cylinder engine will be eternally missed.