Electric Motorbikes

BazzyB

Just trying to get a bit of a discussion going.

Has anyone managed to have a test ride on an electric motorbike of any sort?

Been toying with the idea buying one for a while as I love the idea of Silent and smooth motoring. Ended up with a hybrid car after I decided to not take the plunge for a full EV and now I regret it at times. Had a drive of a BMW i3 and torque/power available on acceleration blew me away.

Zero appear to be the market leaders in this area?

[HTML]http://www.zeromotorcycles.com/[/HTML]

KTM have the freeride-e range also but when they quote the range in hours other than distance you have to question their usability in the real world.

[HTML]https://www.ktm.com/e-ride/[/HTML]

I'm seriously considering taking advantage of the VRT exemption on Electric Motorbikes later in the year and going to Europe or the UK for one, like the idea of a ZERO DS I reckon it would cover 90% of my riding, to work and near home and down some forest fireroads.

Can also keep an older bigger bike in the shed for the longer tours.

Any thoughts? reliability / warranty would be the main worry I guess

Sonics2k

Fairly honest review on the Zero here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e-7IemXkmc

With that said, much like electric cars I'm genuinely interested in how these work out. I'm not a fan of naked bikes, but when they starting doing more touring style electric bikes in the future I'll be really excited.

I'll miss the sound of an engine though.

Goose81

I wouldn't touch one, I don't care about how much money you save. If you are riding on a bike that makes no noise it's a recipe for death that's enough for me.

Regards warranty, no one is going to know it should be listed on their website and pretty easy to find... No offense but I'd be asking the manufacturer not a forum where 0 people have any experience.

Car wise, I'm interested. I like them, everything about them. On a bike not a chance

Del2005

Goose81 wrote: »

Regards warranty, no one is going to know it should be listed on their website and pretty easy to find... No offense but I'd be asking the manufacturer not a forum where 0 people have any experience.

In this country warranties don't matter as much as in others, as our Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act kicks ass off even the best manufacturer warranties.

BazzyB

Sonics2k wrote: »

Fairly honest review on the Zero here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e-7IemXkmc

With that said, much like electric cars I'm genuinely interested in how these work out. I'm not a fan of naked bikes, but when they starting doing more touring style electric bikes in the future I'll be really excited.

I'll miss the sound of an engine though.

he seems to like it overall, 100 mile range he quotes seems honest enough but he wouldn't appear to have a heavy throttle hand I think so I assume mileage will vary relative to fun, same as an ICE bike so not really a mark against them.

I like the idea of the silence really especially in busy places, I reckon it would help with the social perception of bikes if they aren't loud, neighbour waking things.

The fact the charger cable can be put in a backpack too seems useful if you can find a friendly cafe that would let you plug in while you have lunch. Not sold on having to shell out extra for a quick charger to use the public chargepoints.

BazzyB

Del2005 wrote: »

In this country warranties don't matter as much as in others, as our Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act kicks ass off even the best manufacturer warranties.

Warranty may have been the wrong way to phrase it. I suppose more of a case of if you needed a software update or motor parts that could only be gotten by a main dealer I would imagine it could get messy. You can't just rock up at a main dealer and plug in,even the dealer network in the UK is sparse. Then again ZEROs and even the KTMs and ALTAs seem to be fairly reliable from my reading of other forums.

Mad to see you can drive most of their models on an A1 licence due to the loopholes around continuous power output that they can circumvent. I imagine commuters who are looking to upgrade from a 125cc but only have an A1 licence will find them a great option. A faster bike with no test needed. Would be brilliant for dublin commuters anyway if you can plug in at work.

Max Headroom

I'd love one in the stable..i'd prefer to build one to my own spec but thats not going to happen....it would be nice to see an alternative in the shops ..At least you wont be annoying the neighbours...or sleeping babies...:p

Paulw

Goose81 wrote: »

If you are riding on a bike that makes no noise it's a recipe for death that's enough for me.

Why?

Outside of the city, the majority of cars driving on the road don't hear you anyway. Your exhaust noise is going backwards, so cars in front would not hear you. There have been many studies that show this.

With stopped or very slow moving traffic they can hear you, that's if they are not listening to the radio, talking, on the phone (hands-free), etc.

So, having a silent bike won't make much impact on traffic in front of you.

A silent bike would also enable YOU to hear more of what is happening around you.

I know someone who test rode a Harley LiveWire and loved the feeling. Of course, that was a demo bike, experimental, so real bikes may be somewhat different.

D3V!L

Most new bikes (Euro 4) are really quiet around town anyway. My bike is mostly tyre noise until I open it up.

Rory28

It is inevitable that we all end up on electric bikes but I dont believe they have much use beyond small commutes at the moment. When they do take off I can see customising being a big factor in people buying them.

Sonics2k

D3V!L wrote: »

Most new bikes (Euro 4) are really quiet around town anyway. My bike is mostly tyre noise until I open it up.

Yeah, I've never quite gotten this whole idea that loud exhaust = safer bike.

It's extremely rare when driving in a car I'd actually hear a motorbike coming up unless they're going insanely fast or it's a Harley or something.

Lumen

Rory28 wrote: »

It is inevitable that we all end up on electric bikes but I don't believe they have much use beyond small commutes at the moment.

The future is self-driving electric motorbikes + dedicated lanes.

Sonics2k

Lumen wrote: »

The future is self-driving electric motorbikes + dedicated lanes.

Jesus, the idea of a self-driving motorbike is one of the most depressing things I can think of.

Lumen

Sonics2k wrote: »

Jesus, the idea of a self-driving motorbike is one of the most depressing things I can think of.

It'll be a car-substitute not a motorbike-substitute, a two-wheeled JohnnyCab.

Sonics2k

Lumen wrote: »

It'll be a car-substitute not a motorbike-substitute, a two-wheeled JohnnyCab.

That's an even scarier idea

Max Headroom

Lumen wrote: »

It'll be a car-substitute not a motorbike-substitute, a two-wheeled JohnnyCab.

Isnt that just a Goldwing then...........:D

BazzyB

Lumen wrote: »

It'll be a car-substitute not a motorbike-substitute, a two-wheeled JohnnyCab.

No fear of this in the near future I reckon, Zero's don't even have traction control :pac:

UrbanFret

A few years back the Irish fire service and Northern Ireland fire service did a cross border RTC course involving Cavan ,Monaghan,Louth,Donegal and Leitrim along with their Northern counterparts. The tutors were giving an electric van for the duration of the training. It had a range of 80km if I recall correctly. What has this got to do with electric motorbikes you ask? Nothing except the van had a button that when pressed produced "engine noise" to warn pedestrians of its approach in urban areas. Surely this should be available on the bikes as well. One that you could change to the note from the old honda four four with the touch of a button.

Max Headroom

UrbanFret wrote: »

A few years back the Irish fire service and Northern Ireland fire service did a cross border RTC course involving Cavan ,Monaghan,Louth,Donegal and Leitrim along with their Northern counterparts. The tutors were giving an electric van for the duration of the training. It had a range of 80km if I recall correctly. What has this got to do with electric motorbikes you ask? Nothing except the van had a button that when pressed produced "engine noise" to warn pedestrians of its approach in urban areas. Surely this should be available on the bikes as well. One that you could change to the note from the old honda four four with the touch of a button.

Or just use the horn..............:p

TBi

Max Headroom wrote: »

Or just use the horn..............:p

I wish electric vehicles had two horns. A quiet ‘alert’ horn for pedestrians and a louder normal horn.

Gavin

There's no import duty on electric motorbikes at the moment, until 2020, so importing from the U.K is an option. Talked to one bike shop who are quite happy to export (of course). Only issue is what to do if there is something wrong with the bike.

If there was somewhere selling in Dublin, I'd buy one, no question. Perfect for the commute. Little to no maintenance, fast, cheap. What's not to like.

4068ac1elhodqr

If it's anything like lawnmowers, you'll never go back to 2-stroke, after having a zoom around on a zippy electric.

Gone are the days of starter failure, carb blocks, oil/petrol spills, snapped cables and a covering of combusted particles.

Max Headroom

I love the smell of Castrol R in the morning....:)

stewygriffin

Ryland Tall Pest wrote: »

If it's anything like lawnmowers, you'll never go back to 2-stroke, after having a zoom around on a zippy electric.

Gone are the days of starter failure, carb blocks, oil/petrol spills, snapped cables and a covering of combusted particles.

Then it's not a real bike.

And people growing up won't be real bikers either.

Max Headroom

stewygriffin wrote: »

Then it's not a real bike.

And people growing up won't be real bikers either.

And Bruce Anstey isnt a real racer either.....

BazzyB

Gavin wrote: »

There's no import duty on electric motorbikes at the moment, until 2020, so importing from the U.K is an option. Talked to one bike shop who are quite happy to export (of course). Only issue is what to do if there is something wrong with the bike.

If there was somewhere selling in Dublin, I'd buy one, no question. Perfect for the commute. Little to no maintenance, fast, cheap. What's not to like.

This is sticking point I think, Dealer support on something so techie is vital, I've had enough issues with software updates for the car to know that.

stewygriffin

Max Headroom wrote: »

And Bruce Anstey isnt a real racer either.....

Hope the man recovers from.his cancer battle.

He's one of the nicest guys out there.

Some man on the CBR1000rr.

Max Headroom

stewygriffin wrote: »

Hope the man recovers from.his cancer battle.

He's one of the nicest guys out there.

Some man on the CBR1000rr.

and some man on an electric bike too....;)

stewygriffin

Max Headroom wrote: »

and some man on an electric bike too....;)

So was McPint.

He's out too....refractured his leg.

Max Headroom

stewygriffin wrote: »

So was McPint.

He's out too....refractured his leg.

therll be no one left.....:D

Sonics2k

stewygriffin wrote: »

Then it's not a real bike.

And people growing up won't be real bikers either.

That's some real Gatekeeping there stewy.

Surely a biker is someone who enjoys riding motorbikes?

I've been told I'm not a real biker because I don't service my own bike or change the tyres, nevermind the fact I'd have to do it in the middle of the street or have the tools for it.