The long road—from concept to prototype to finished product—finally ended for the Brammo Empulse electric motorcycle at a swanky club in Los Angeles. With scantily clad models, love music and b-list celebrities milling about, the final production version was unveiled, but more importantly, MSRP and final specifications were also revealed to assembled media and buyers.
The pictures speak for themselves—it’s a stunning design, especially for a market segment that has been dominated by weird-looking, wonky machines. The basic frame and battery pack looks the same as the prototype that toured the country in 2011, but the tailsection and “tank” are abbreviated, and the radiator (the electric motor is liquid-cooled, the first on a production e-moto) is moved down low behind the front wheel. As we stated a few weeks ago in a tech brief, the premium suspension and braking components by Marzocchi, Sachs and Brembo will be retained, as are the 17-inch Marchesini wheels. The look is elegant, minimalist and very European. And the performance—with a promised 100 mph-plus top speed—should be pleasing as well.
The bad news—for me, anyway—is the pricing. It ain’t cheap. The 440-pound Empulse, with a 10 kilowatt-hour battery (good for a 121 mile range at city riding speeds or 56 miles of highway cruising) is priced like a Ducati Panigale at $16,995. An R version, blinged out with carbon-fiber, is $18,995 and will be available this summer—the standard Empulse won’t hit showrooms until 2013.
So it looks like Brammo has priced itself out of the market, doesn’t it? Who’s going to pay 20 big ones for a machine with the power of an EX500 and the range of Lance Armstrong? Not so fast, Mr. Crankypants—Brammo has something like 2000 pre-paid customers ready to buy, and Polaris Industries, which is most definitely not run by idiots, owns an undisclosed chunk of the privately held company. In fact, Brammo is operating a factory in Hungary to satisfy an expected flood of European orders.
Too expensive? Too slow? Range too short? You’re missing the point—this motorcycle has a six-speed gearbox and one of the most powerful electric motors you’ll find on an e-moto, a combination that should really deliver a unique riding experience—at a running cost that’s so cheap it might as well be free. I can’t wait to ride one.
Here is Brammo’s official press release regarding the Empulse and Empulse R:
ASHLAND, Ore. May 8, 2012 – Brammo, Inc., the designer and manufacturer of world leading electric motorcycles, today revealed pricing and production plans for the Empulse and Empulse R while giving motorcycle enthusiasts in Los Angeles a first look at the stunning new design.
At this unique electric vehicle industry event, Brammo has demonstrated to consumers and motorcycle insiders alike the advancements in electric motorcycling and is providing a glimpse of what is to come in the future. The Empulse is the only electric motorcycle to include a 100-mile range and 100-mph top speed as well as a breakthrough battery and powertrain system enabling a great zero-emission experience.
At the launch party, Brammo announced the Empulse and Empulse R will cost $16,995 and $18,995 respectively with financing available from Sheffield Financial. Through this financing, customers will be able to purchase the new Empulse and Empulse R from Brammo dealers as follows:
- Empulse: 8.9% for 72 months at $303, 6.9% financing for 60 month at $334 and 3.9% for 36 months at $499
- Empulse R: 8.9% for 72 months at $339, 6.9% financing for 60 month at $373 and 3.9% for 36 months at $558
Availability of each model will vary based on demand for the Empulse and Empulse R. Production for the Empulse R will take place first with limited availability in June 2012 and in volume by Q3 2012. The Empulse will be available in Q1 2013.
Research conducted by Brammo with both customers and dealers has driven the development of the Empulse and Empulse R. As a result, these motorcycles now come with a water-cooled AC motor and fully integrated IET ™ six speed transmission, seating for two, regenerative braking and on board J1772 Level 2 charging capability. To ensure the highest quality performance and design, Brammo works with internationally renowned manufacturers for superior components of their motorcycles. This close attention to the supply chain ensures the durability, reliability and ultimately future resale value of Brammo products.
“It was important to Brammo to create a great motorcycle and we paid attention to customer feedback to create just that,” said Craig Bramsher CEO and president of Brammo. “From concept to production the Empulse product has evolved quite a bit. We are bringing you a different motorcycle that promises to be more than what our riders expected.”
The two models vary as follows:
- The Empulse body work is all plastic has semi adjustable front suspension and semi adjustable rear suspension.
- The Empulse R uses carbon fiber for headlight shroud, front and rear fenders, top panel and the rear light housing.
Brammo promised that of the first 1000 people who pre ordered an Empulse, one would be selected at random to receive their motorcycle free of charge. Last week from the first 1000 orders six finalists were selected. At the event, Craig Bramscher rolled a dice and chose the lucky winner.
True to Brammo’s devotion to zero tailpipe-emission transportation, the Empulse launch event was carbon-neutral. Brammo has worked with Carbonfund.org to purchase carbon offsets to mitigate the greenhouse emissions generated by transportation, electricity use, and other resource-intensive activities associated with this event.
In additional efforts to reduce travel and carbon intensity of the event, Brammo will stream the launch event live to tens of thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts, who will be able to experience the launch party across the nation and afar in Asia and in Europe .
Why does everyone talk about payoff or break-even points when talking about electric vehicles or hybrids? What is the break-even point for buying a ZX-10 instead of a ZX-6? How about a Ducati 1099 vs a ZX-10? What is the break even point for buying a V6 instead of the I4? How about leather seats vs cloth?
What is the point? People want different things and what is important to me might not be important to you. Manufacturers make products to fulfill those demands and right now Brammo (and their financial backers Polaris) are betting that enough people want an electric vehicle to make a profit. It doesn’t matter if it makes financial sense to you.
Coal isn’t nearly as dirty as it used to be. If you’re looking at emmissions rates from coal plants built in the 60’s…sure, it’s disgusting. But any coal plant that has been built in the last 10 years (or retrofitted with modern emissions controls), will be much much cleaner. The move to supercritical boilers and better AQCS equipment has done great things to help coal stay relevent. 1 modern coal plant powering 5000 electric cars, will produce FAR less pollution than 5000 gasoline powered cars.
So even if you get your power from dirty, smelly, smog producing coal, it’s still cleaner than an Accord in your garage.
Well, stepping away from global warming and cost of gas, lets not forget the other aspects of riding e-bikes. Think of the maintenance. I ride, and love my ’10 Multistrada Touring, however I know that one day I’ll have to fork over a huge sum for service. Same goes for all bikes, my Aprilia is also not excluded (valves, throttle body syncs, oil changes, tons of moving parts that need adjustment or replacement, etc. etc.). Same goes for my 2-stroke KTM, carburetors are a pain in the butt. How many moving parts does a reciprocating electric motor have? How much will you spend on servicing one of these things? I sold Vectrix at one point, and while it was a bit still-born back in ’07 there were valid points those boys made. If I were to add another bike to the stable, I would love to have a bike like this thing to eat up those bruiser “not intended for fun” commuter miles so I can save the fun miles for my long distance bikes I’ll never get rid of.
Production Brammo Empulse and Empulse R Finally Break Cover!
I’m impressed.
No really…see? Look at my face and you can see how impressed I am.
I would have to spend a lot of “energy” to come up with $17000. So that’s not really an “energy” efficient bike for me. It is a “green” bike for sure to require all that money to buy. I am still no falling for the hype.
BTW, still love my DRZ400SM. Will stick with it for a few more decades.
It is a very good looking bike, and if I did 100% of my riding in the city I would consider buying one. But I don’t, so I won’t.
Knowing how batteries work, I just don’t see any quantum leaps in the technology coming to fruition in the next 20 years. Getting price-point, weight, range, power, life and charge times that would be competitive with ICE’s just isn’t going to be easy to do if it is even possible. The technology will get better, and we will see ebikes gradually make more sense to more people in more markets as time goes on. I think coexistence rather than ICE replacement will be the future of ebikes.
I think to really start making waves, e-bikes and e-cars need to start using modular, homogenous battery packs that could be quickly and easiliy swapped out for pre-charged ones at fuel / battery exchange stations.
Most bikes, especially sport bikes, stay very close to home.
I may not get that far from home; but on a day of recreational riding, I typically “recharge” my bike at least once. I typically get 160 miles before the fuel light comes on. But even if my bike only had a 56 mile range, when I did run out, I could just fill it up and continue the fun. That is where ebikes just don’t make sense for me personally. Having to charge a battery to keep going takes a lot of fun out of it. Brammo doesn’t list a “flogged” range, but I’d bet it is around 35 – 40 miles.
It’s not perfect, but a lot closer than they were a few years ago. As far as a commuter, it’s pretty close to ideal except for cost, which will come down with some competition and a few years under their belts.
I find the disdain and anger over electric bikes fascinating.
A little over a hundred years ago, diesel engines technology was just beginning and most folks (folks just like you) thought the Baldwin Steam Locomotive company would be around forever, Oh, you never heard of the Baldwin Steam Locomotive company.
I understand….within a decade; manufacturers of diesel locomotives put them out of business.
No one likes taxes and the thought that our federal government is giving tax breaks for new technologies can be upsetting – yeah, it’s your money!
But on the other hand, the Chinese and other national governments are pouring tens of billions of dollars into battery and electric motor technology. And they are already far ahead of U.S. battery research and development.
So, maybe we should try resurrecting the Baldwin Steam Locomotive company.
It might be 50 miles of fun but it’s still not a serious motorcycle.
The battery life claims are ludicrous. 100,000 miles? Zero claims 300,000. You really could claim anything. At 50 miles per charge and 4 hour charge time, there are not enough hours in the day (or you won’t live long enough) to ever put anything close to 100k on this.
And you get range or top speed but not both at the same time. This is from CW’s recent test. These EPA numbers are so rigged it’s laughable:
The EPA’s UDDS test runs 7.45 miles and has an average speed of less than 20 MPH! The vehicle comes to a complete stop 17 times and runs faster than 50 mph for all of 70 seconds!
How many of you are going to pay 17 grand to ride like that?
Would not their efforts be better served catering to the mini to maxi-scooter crowd, now becoming known as the “urban mobility” market?
Chasing the sport bike segment does not seem logical.
Let’s See, 1992 Honda VFR, 56,000 miles $6000 in 1994, plus all the oyther expenses…
Sign Me UP
I’m calling this thing the “Duke Nukem of Motorcycles.” Lots of promise, lots of hype, long wait and then… “WTF???”
Not at that price. Nice timing… introduce a megabuck electric bike when you can no longer qualify for the tax breaks for buying one?? 56 miles on the highway, and then it has to sit overnight before you can use it again (I don’t have a high voltage charging station in my garage, that would be even MORE $$$$).
I’ll stick to my scooter. 150 miles at highway speeds (170 at slower speeds and on surface streets) and SECONDS to refill at a gas station and for HALF the price of the Empulse being sold THIS year. Electric bikes have a long way to go.
with a tax credit, might get one
I resent paying for your toy.
I resent paying for your toy (gas subsidies, environmental damage, wealth redistribution to giant multi-nationals and foreign governments), but you know what? I’ll get over it.
Oh, but using your tax dollars to subsidize agro-chem companies to produce the poisins that flow into our rivers and oceans, killing not only us but creating vast deadzones in the ocean… that’s ok? Using your tax dollars to support the largest military in the world in order to control any country they deem as having energy reserves worth hijacking… that’s ok? You guys should do a reality check. Your tax dollars are spent precisely to keep you addicted to oil and the big economy that surrounds it. Subsidizing alternative energies and technologies that are associated with those technologies is the best thing this country could do. Whether you believe these early electric bikes would be fun enough to satisfy your huge egos is one thing but don’t discount the emergence of refined technologies that will far surpass the performance characteristics of your current ride… It’s going to happen whether you’re on board or not. I’d also add that you should be thrilled that this manufacturer who is essentially first to the plate, is from your country. I’ve personally ridden the Zeros and can’t wait to try the Brammos. Good on them for this breakthrough product.
But you don’t mind paying for big oil subsidies? Or bailing out massive auto companies that chose to chase short term growth for their shareholders instead of long term competitiveness and stability?
Technically since you elect your government, it is democracy. That’s the definition of democracy, a government elected by the people…not withstanding the whole electoral college thing.
Dude…”Under the Republic for which it stands”.
You’re right. We need to stop picking winners and losers. Lets take away all the subsidies to the fossil fuel industry.
Turn off the Rush. Back away from the radio. Step into the 21st century.
The ‘fossil fuel industry’ is ‘subsidized’ much much less than the ‘green’ fuel industry. And if you look at it on a per mwh basis, it makes fossil fuel ‘subsidies’ look like a drip in the ocean.
Start listening to something besides the MSM. Learn something.
@ Wayne
Your argument is flawed. Yes, the government spends more on renewables per mwh because there are less mwh being produced by renewables. However, the total amount spent on fossil fuels is still way more than renewables.
You still don’t explain why we should be subsidizing the most profitable industry in the history of the world?
http://www.eli.org/Program_Areas/innovation_governance_energy.cfm
http://www.eli.org/pdf/Energy_Subsidies_Black_Not_Green.pdf
“The federal government provided substantially larger subsidies to fossil fuels than to renewables. Subsidies to fossil fuels—a mature, developed industry that has enjoyed government support for many years—totaled approximately $72 billion over the study period, representing a direct cost to taxpayers.
Subsidies for renewable fuels, a relatively young and developing industry, totaled $29 billion over the same period.”
Oh yeah? What would that cost you exactly? $0.000000000001?
I resent paying more for medical care from increased air pollution.
Considering the pollution from coal fired power plants that are used to charge the batteries of these things, you should be out protesting their production.
Actually my power is 100% renewable, so blanket statements like that aren’t really true, no matter how many times you say it.
People that would be interested in buying an electric vehicle for environmental reasons are probably aware that some electricity is produced with coal, and might even take action to ensure their electricity comes from renewables. It’s really not that hard. Even if an electric vehicle is powered up with coal power, it’s STILL more efficient than a gas powered vehicle.
Yes, I do support renewable energy, it’s common sense.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/health-science/electric-cars-may-not-be-so-green-after-all-says-british-study/story-e6frg8y6-1226073103576
Renewable energy is not as common sense as you think it is. Do you know that wind generation, considering the manufacturing process (heavy metal mining and all) is not very environmentally friendly at all.
It’s a good effort for the present. I think that I’ll forgo any electric powered vehicles for the time being and wait for IBM’s Air/Lithium battery to mature and go into production. That might just possibly be the technology that will turn the electric market free.
John Huntsman is the Republican ex-governor of Utah my home state. While governor Utah tied with NH for best run state government. We now have a $1/2B surplus (we’re a small but growing state). John loves motorcycles and broke his leg a few years ago dirt riding.
Whilst running for president several months ago John stated the actual cost to US taxpayers per gallon of petrol is “$13 to $15”. He’s not a greenie wacko, just including normally hidden costs such medical/health, military excursions, etc.
A day comes in our lifetime when a general reset occurs, and the hidden costs for petrol will become apparent and incorporated into personal financial choices.
At that time we’ll view Brammo in an entirely new light.
This bike will never sell. Except to a few overpaid nerds in Norcal trying to make some pseudo/enviro ststus points. Period. Like a Tesla on 2 wheels. A terrible waste of resources and effort.
They’ve already sold 2,000. That’s not bad.
18 grand for 100mph, 56 mile range (on the highway or having fun twisting the throttle)and 4 hour recharge time motorcycle. Guys, I picked up a used 08 Husky Sm610 last fall, it goes 115mph with a slip-on exhuast and jetkit. I dont’t know the exact range but it has to be at least 125mpg, it has a rack on the rear fender, recharges in about 5 minutes and cost me $3500 with 5100 miles on the odo. One must conclude that these 2000 prepaid Brammo customers definetly are not mensa members.
This website is pushing electric motorcycles at any price. That’s OK, it’s their site and we can choose to read or not to read. But the simple logic of what these things cost and what there is in the market that they compete with just doesn’t get through. Trust me, I’ve tried.
Every “new” technology has to start somewhere. The dollars and sense of it doesn’t have to add up as at first it won’t come cheap and only those willing to belly up to the bar will buy in at first. But as been mentioned, this is the direction all vehicles may go, if not immediately today then a good chance tomorrow. You’re looking at the ground floor of what we may see in the future. I’m glad that Motorcycle Daily includes the progress that is being made.
Don’t worry this website isn’t pushing any agenda. They’re simply reporting the facts on a new motorcycle that came out. Just like every other decent motorcycle news website or magazine is going to do.
Ok since you say so, I won’t worry any more. Now I can sleep nights. Thanks.
You’re welcome! 🙂 I know it must get pretty scary out there with all these conspiracy theories floating around.
Uhhh have you been to their website? Their first model has been out for a couple of years now, and its practical, has luggage capabilities, and is offered at a very competitive price point of $8k. Now asking for that range but a cheaper price just isn’t gonna happen—yet. The reason this thing is so expensive aside from the nice components is the battery. If they could have this battery in the 8k bike we’d have no problems, but that just isn’t possible right now. Give it time, the price per kWh for these types of batteries has been dropping at a decent clip for a while now.
That’s your right and your choice. But unless you subscribe to the conspiracy theory concerning global warming I think there’s lots here to learn about. I’m always ready to learn and don’t see the need to make a political statement about the green movement.
Right you are Steve. And remember please, electric vehicles are not that ‘green’ in the first place. The batteries must be disposed of when they die. And the energy needed to recharge them comes from those evil dirty power plants, most are coal burning. You are essentially riding a coal fired bike. A well running gas burning bike has much less impact on the environment then these POS.
I “reconcile” that because its not true. A handful of “scientists” claiming an ice age isn’t the same as 97%+ of scientists today SHOWING us in their data the reality of climate change.
If you are all for getting off mid-east oil, etc then why are you so against electric vehicles? Oh thats right, drill baby drill? Okay sure, how bout we start drilling in your backyard first. That would be okay with you right? If your water or land gets messed up, oh well too bad?
No, I don’t believe that if everyone suddenly went out and bought an electric car we’d be fine. Its only a small part of the problem, but its a step in the right direction. Do you actually believe that if you park your car in a closed garage and run the engine for a long period of time, that the air will be fine?
Explain to me how you can think that politicians or scientists somehow made up climate change to make money, but you don’t think that politicians who we know are being paid money by big oil, aren’t just denying climate change to protect their own wallets?
@Wayne Actually it depends where you live. In some areas you can buy 100% renewable energy and even if your electric vehicle was powered 100% by coal energy, it’s STILL more efficient than the typical gas powered vehicle.
Motograph – Scientists that are global warming alarmists are NOT showing us their data. That was one of the things revealed by climate-gate. They ‘lost’ their data and couldn’t replicate it. And in many cases if they do reveal their data, it’s been manipulated. Mann’s famous ‘hockey stick’ graph has been completely discredited.
It is all about power, control (political) and money (grants, ‘green’ investments). The alarmist side is where the real money is at. Gore has made a fortune on this BS. A lot of scientists’ jobs and fame depend on it. That’s why they are trying to suppress opposing view points. Another revelation of climate-gate. They have never proved that any warming that has occurred in the last 70 years has not been completely natural. Temperatures were higher during the Medieval Warming period than they are today. Long before man was using that evil fossil fuel. And global temperatures have not risen in the past 12-15 years to spite increasing CO2 levels.
Stop spewing the leftist talking points and learn the truth. I think you need to stop being such a sheeple and learn to do some critical thinking, even when it comes to leftist talking points.
The actual facts do not support AGW or climate change or what ever today’s name is. Alarmists are relying on computer models. I know enough about computer models to know that they are only as good as the person who wrote them. They will often give the answer the programmer wants. And these computer programs have been wrong in their predictions time after time. That’s why they’ve scraped the term global warming for climate change. The global temperature has not been increasing as they predicted. Sea levels have not risen as predicted. Ice caps and glaciers have not disappeared as predicted, etc., etc., etc. These programs can’t even get it right when historical input is used to try to replicate the past.
Motograph – Where are energy needs supplied by 100% renewable power? I would not like to be dependent on that kind of generation mix. Too expensive and too intermittent. Most of the energy produced in this country, by far, is produced by coal.
@Wayne
You crack me up. Climate-gate? Really? I don’t know if I should even waste time responding to someone so blindingly s#####. EVERYONE involved in the so-called Climage-gate email “scandal” were completely exonerated of any wrong doing by 4 separate independent investigations.
Not showing us their data? You’re kidding right? Or maybe you’re just ignoring it?
“Temperatures were higher during the Medieval Warming period than they are today. ”
WRONG – Look at this chart from what i’m sure is your favorite right wing “news” source. Even their own chart shows the temperatures being higher than during the medieval warming period and that was compared to 2004.
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/new-evidence-suggests-medieval-warming-period-was-global-proof-of-naturally-occurring-global-warming/
“And global temperatures have not risen in the past 12-15 years to spite increasing CO2 levels.”
WRONG again. I’m not sure where you pulled that one out of, but 12 of the last 15 years are the warmest years on record.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/29/us-climate-conference-idUSTRE7AS0MQ20111129
“Stop spewing the leftist talking points and learn the truth. I think you need to stop being such a sheeple and learn to do some critical thinking, even when it comes to leftist talking points.”
Amazing, I could have said the same exact thing to you, but about your right wing, denier talking points. It has nothing to do with left or right, it has to do with FACTS and DATA. That’s all I care about, and the data shows you’re wrong. I’m a sheeple because I look at data, and facts, from scientists, and come to my own conclusions? You listen to right wing “entertainers” masquerading as journalists and politicians paid off by big oil that tell you, oh yeah everything is fine, and you believe them at your and our peril
Guess what. We all pay taxes and no single person gets to choose where their money goes. It’s part of the price we pay for living in a civilized society. You don’t want your taxes going towards electric vehicles, I don’t want mine going towards oil subsidies. Tough. I would have been willing to pay more taxes if it would have improved your education though.
I’m sick of listening to close-minded fools post ignorant political comments on a site about motorcycles. If you don’t like electric bikes, then why did you read this article, why did you bother commenting? If you don’t care then why did you take the time to come on here, make your BS statements and badmouth an American company? Spare us next time. Like it or not, electric bikes are going to be in the news now, okay? Get used to it.
Go on, keep denying climate change.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/29/us-climate-conference-idUSTRE7AS0MQ20111129
“the warmest 13 years of average global temperatures have all occurred in the 15 years since 1997.”
“Global temperatures in 2011 are currently the tenth highest on record and are higher than any previous year with a La Nina event, which has a relative cooling influence,”
The evidence goes on and on and on. If it’s an illusion, why is the military already making preparations for rising sea levels and more extreme weather? Even insurance companies are preparing for an increase in extreme weather. The U.S. is the ONLY industrialized nation on earth that has a political party that denies climate change simply because they are in the pockets of big oil. Think for yourself.
“Myself…I am choosing to read other motorcycle related sites that contain info that interests me…that’d be non e-bike info exclusively…”
Good. See ya. I think we can all do without reading your asinine idealogical comments. Take your ball and go home. No one cares.
$17,000-$19,000 + tax and license is a bit much to pay for what you are getting when you buy an Empulse. Let’s at least be honest about this on point. I actually like the looks of this particular ebike but no way am I going to spend that kind of money on a machine that is 1/4 as good as a comparably priced motorcycle.
I wonder if there will be any kind of incentives associated with these to help bring the price down.
I think it depends how you look at it. Yeah for the price you could go get a 195 hp Panigale. It’s a little too much money right now, but with this bike you still get fully adjustable suspension (marzocchi and sachs) front and rear, brembos front and rear, braided lines, marchesini wheels, decent performance, attention, low maintenance and a 485 mpg-e rating, thats not too bad. We’re getting there. I wonder what the true cost would be when compared with something like the Panigale, which is expensive to operate, maintain, and insure? This is probably the cheapest $17k motorcycle you can buy in the long run :).
Awesome bike! These comments are soooo unimaginative! “Why would I buy X when there is Y available?” Why would someone buy a motorcycle when I can buy a used diesel VW for 4k that gets better mileage than your cruiser and is safer to boot! Or why even own a vehicle and pay for insurance when you can take public transit and hitchhike while meeting interesting people?
To each there own- be grateful that we live in a place with so many choices!
exactly.
Oh so I guess we should invest MY tax dollars in what YOU want. I see how this works.
Maybe I don’t want my tax dollars subsidizing oil companies, who are making record profits. What’s the point of that? The oil industry was and has been helped by the government for decades. Now that they’re profitable why should we be giving money away to them? Why not use that money to invest in NEW technologies and new energy? Ohhhh thats right, the oil companies got their handout, but now we don’t want anyone else to get theirs, especially companies that might harm oil profits down the road.
How is investing in alternative energy taking away “freedom of choice.” In effect, you are getting MORE choices now. So please explain how “freedom of choice” is being taken away. Oh let me guess, you can’t because it doesn’t make any sense.
Why don’t you do a little reading and research before regurgitating the same long debunked talking points. The handful of “scientists” that were claiming there was going to be another ice age in the 70s-80s are not the same as the MAJORITY of scientists today who KNOW we are altering our environment. We’ve known C02 in the atmosphere traps heat since the 1800s. Are you disputing this?
Seems to me that smaller electric vehicles would be better suited for the Scooter Market?? Make them lighter, go 50-55 mph tops, and have a 100 mile range……perfect for urban/city life?? And make them priced competively with other scooters ($1250-$6000).
WOW, they can go a whopping 56 miles on the highway and take 4 hours or more to recharge for nearly $17,000….No thanks…Electric vehicles are far from being a revolutionary form of propulsion and they aren’t “green”…If you want “green” vehicles they need to put out C02 not eliminate it..It’s basic science that more C02 increases plant growth….That’s the irony of the “green” movement…And they have the nerve to wave the science banner..What a twisted concept.
“If you want “green” vehicles they need to put out C02 not eliminate it..It’s basic science that more C02 increases plant growth.”
That’s some mighty tortured logic there, pal.
LOL here we go. Didn’t take long for the new climate change denier talking point “more CO2 is better because it increases plant growth” to emerge.
Do the world a favor and learn something:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn11655-climate-myths-higher-co2-levels-will-boost-plant-growth-and-food-production.html
Do not call call me a denier. It’s you that needs to learn something pal. The whole AGW or climate change or whatever it’s being called today is been discredited. Global temperatures haven’t risen in 12-15 years to spite continuing rise in CO2 levels.
http://wattsupwiththat.com/
Brammo would be better served (and more successful)if it rolled out its first model as a practical, comfortable machine aimed at proving the viability of the concept. Starting with a machine that looks like and is equipped like a sport bike will invite comparisons that it’s not ready to stand up to. The same powerplant likely could have supported a 75mph, 150 mile range in a bike with friendlier ergonomics, luggage, and a lower price point, resulting in more reasonable expectations. That would result in more favorable reviews, and subsequently better sales. This would in turn provide more time and money for R&D to produce something actually capable of competing with today’s sportbike. Brammo bit off more than it’ll be able to chew.
Have you been to their website? Their first model has been out for a couple of years now, and its practical, has luggage capabilities, and is offered at a very competitive price point of $8k. Now asking for that range but a cheaper price just isn’t gonna happen—yet. The reason this thing is so expensive aside from the nice components is the battery. If they could have this battery in the 8k bike we’d have no problems, but that just isn’t possible right now. Give it time, the price per kWh for these types of batteries has been dropping at a decent clip for a while now.
Yeah I was disappointed HD axed Buell, but it was their own mishandling of the company and the economic downturn that forced them to cut their losses. I’m allowed to bitch about the axing of whatever bikes or makers I feel like, wether or not I bought one of their bikes or not. I’m sure that if I had bought a Lightning, Buell would still be here today.
Why are you coming on here trying to convince people not to buy one of these? I’m merely defending the progress of these machines against comments made by right-wing conspiracy theorists such as yourself. Don’t worry me or Obama aren’t going to force you to give up your precious Harley and get an electric bike. I’m not going to buy one of these because it doesn’t meet my current needs, and I can’t afford one. However, I’m actually open-minded to new technology, more choices, etc. and I realize that there are plenty of people out there whose needs will be met with this machine and have the money to afford one. And one day machines like this will be able to meet my needs.
Why you feel the need to come on here and bad mouth an AMERICAN company whose come out with an innovative product is a little confusing. Isn’t this guy a “job creator.” Someone whose living the American dream? I guess in this case that doesn’t count because you see this as an attack on your beloved fossil fuel industry?
Way too expensive for 56 highway miles.
So lets see if I understand some of whats going on here to go green in America. We stop production on Buell XB Lightning motorcycles.. so as to produce very expensive rechargeable drills on two wheels with limited range and a replacement battery pack that will force you to junk the whole thing down the road. I don’t think so.
What does Harley shutting down Buell have to do with going green in America or Brammo? If you bothered to do a little research you would know the battery pack should be good for well over 100k miles, and then even at that point it will still be operating at 80% charge. When you reach that sort of mileage in what like 10 years, do you think the same battery pack is going to cost the same as it does today? I don’t think so. Not to mention the savings you could achieve by getting 485 mpg-e with this thing could easily cover a replacement battery if you decided to keep the bike long enough to need one. How much is it going to cost you to replace or rebuild your XB engine after its got 100k+ miles on it? Maybe in your world ICE last forever?
The battery pack will actually cost nothing, because they won’t be made anymore and the company will be long gone. Museums always want one atleast, so there is one potential buyer in ten years. Good luck!
Yeah I’m sure. You a betting man?
Too expensive for me, but the performance is good enough to make a great commuter even via freeways. But since commuter is the obvious niche for ebikes, why would they design it with no way to even attach bags or a tail trunk?
They had to make it look like a Ducati monster so Hipsters would buy it.
hipsters ride bicycles
no thanks.
I wonder what the costs would be if they had used Kawasaki EX500-type wheels, suspension and braking components? I know that the high-end components add considerable cost to ICE bikes. Maybe Polaris will figure that out for them (but I hope it doesn’t turn out to be an electric Victory chopper).
To be fair, I believe they offer a few lower-priced models.
Are there California and Fed incentives to purchasing one? There should be.
No. There shouldn’t be. I resent paying for your toy.
I resent paying for everyones healthcare problems from breathing in toxic chemicals from burning fossil fuels.
Sure wish’d I had 17 grand lying around to buy one.
Why haven’t the e-bike manufacturers moved to kevlar belt final drives? It would seem to be quieter. I’ve heard (read) that e-bikes seem noisy (particularly brakes) when no engine intake/exhaust is present to mask the running gear’s noise. Plus, a belt would be lighter…no?
ps. Great looking bike Brammo!! I wont be buying one however. That price would buy many substantially more fun machines. But we gotta start somewhere.
They already have. Zero has belt drives on theirs.
I won’t exactly be running down to Scuderia West (local SF dealer) to buy one, but the looks, the range, the performance is finally somewhere close to acceptable – for me. However, I would still so much rather have a lovely RSV4-R, Tuono V4R, RC8, 990SMR ect. etc. etc. But nice to see things progressing!
The payoff in gasoline saved, at $4 per gallon, will come in 21 years, vs. what I am riding now, a BMW R1200RT which consistently returns 50mpg. That plus the fact that the claimed range numbers and recharge times are usually under the best of conditions. Then there is the fact that there are no places to charge the batteries conveniently where I live, with the exception of my own garage. So I’m missing the point??? That IS the point!!! The manufacturers need to get the range at least tripled, charge times down to 10 min. and the price down by half for me to consider one of these.
I couldn’t agree more!
The payoff comes in 21 years? In relation to what? Usually people make this comparison when the two vehicles in question are different in price, where the electric is more expensive, so it would take you X number of years to make up the difference with savings, but here, your BMW costs approximately the same amount but is a whopping 970% less efficient. The length of time also changes based on how many miles you ride. Did you factor in how long its going to take your BMW to pay for itself vs. whatever you would have compared it to?
“970% less efficient”??? You forgot to factor in the 25-30% efficiency of the power plant used to charge your electric wet dream.
Uh no, this bike has a 485 mpg-e rating. Do you know what the mpg-e rating is? 485 mpg-e is 970% more efficient than 50 mpg.
25-30% efficiency? Maybe power plants build 50 years ago. I had the opportunity to participate in the development of the GE 9FB gas turbine power plant 10 years ago. 59.3% efficient.
http://www.ge-energy.com/products_and_services/products/gas_turbines_heavy_duty/9fb_heavy_duty_gas_turbine.jsp
No exhaust junk of any kind creates a very clean look. I love internal combustion, but it has reached the apex of what can be accomplished with that platform. With electric bikes we are just getting started.
This is the future and soon combustion based bikes will be obsolete.
Ziggy, the e-bike thing is cool, but to say that combustion based bikes will soon be obsolete is unrealistic. The ICE will not “soon” be obsolete. Bike, car, or whatever, the ICE is here to stay for quite some time. Bet on it.
I wouldn’t bet much money on a lot of ICE vehicles being available in 20 years.At some point there will be diminishing returns on designing, marketing and maintaining ICErs and the OEMs will go to where the profit is.
Of course, I’ll always want to have at least one ICE moto. There will be a glut of cheap used ones! Remember how cheap used SUVs and Hummers were when gas prices spiked?
While I definitely agree that we will be seeing a proliferation of electric power in personal transportation over the coming decades, I don’t know that it’ll supplant ICE as soon or as completely as many think. It’s going to take awhile before the power grid will be able to handle the sort of increased load that widespread electric vehicle adoption will require. And while battery tech may get cheaper, materials may not. High-capacity cells need large amounts of rare-ish elements like lithium. More vehicles, cars in particular, will put strain on available supply. Recycling may help here, though. I don’t know how much material in a spent battery is recoverable. Lastly, pure electrics straight-up don’t work in cold climates for a quarter to half the year.
Short version: what you’re describing may happen, but it’s probably farther out than 20 years. Yeah, I’m kind of a cynic.
I agree with what you’re saying except for the energy grid part. The idea that our grid couldn’t handle the increased load of electrified vehicles has been debunked.
The one thing that will kill internal combustion vehicles is the government. They like to pick the winners and losers.