Electric Motorcycles

African electric mobility company Opibus announced today that it has closed on a round of equity and grant fundraising totaling $7.5 million. According to the company, this the largest sum of money raised by an electric mobility company in all of Sub-Saharan Africa, eclipsing the previous by $4 million. Opibus now looks to use this investment money to continue to scale its operations in electric motorcycle and bus manufacturing in Africa.

I recently had the chance to borrow a Zero SR/S electric motorcycle for several days to test out how well the company’s flagship model rides. The result? I’m going to go broke if I keep doing this stuff, because now I really want one in my garage.

The $5,000 SONDORS Metacycle looks like one of the best bets right now for a low-cost and highway-capable electric motorcycle in the US. But high demand for the bike means new reservation holders may have to wait nearly a year for their bikes.

And anyone still on the fence could be seeing prices rise soon too.

Volcon, the Texas-based manufacturer of the Grunt electric motorcycle, has just announced plans for global expansion.

As someone who rides, reviews, and covers news on electric motorcycles, I hear the same thing all the time: “I’d love an electric motorcycle, but they’re all so expensive. Maybe when prices come down.”

And I get it. Electric motorcycles really are expensive. Zero’s flagship electric motorcycles cost $20,000. LiveWires are a couple thousand more. And Energicas are a couple thousand more than that. But somehow a little-known, highway-capable electric motorcycle popped up in North America for just US $5,990, and it seems like no one noticed. I’m talking about the Kollter ES1 electric motorcycle.

After Italian electric motorcycle manufacturer Energica announced recently that it would not be extending its agreement to produce racing electric motorcycles for the FIM Enel MotoE racing league, speculation regarding a possible replacement ran rampant. Now Ducati has ended the mystery, announcing that it will become the sole supplier of electric sport bikes for the series from 2023-2026.

The only problem is Ducati doesn’t make electric motorcycles.

America’s only all-electric offroad powersports company Volcon is preparing to roll out its first side-by-side Stag UTV next year. That prospect is looking even rosier after signing on Martin Technologies, a design firm and automotive industry expert that works with brands like Jeep, Dodge, Ford, GM, Nissan, and Toyota.

The Japanese motorcycle manufacturer has announced that by the year 2035, it will only sell electric motorcycles in developed countries.

Volcon has made history as the first US-built off-road electric fat tire motorcycle. Now the company is making bank too, in the form of an IPO on the Nasdaq under the symbol VLCN.

Bicycles being used as military tools are nothing new, going back decades and serving across several wars. Electric bicycles with the special forces though, now that’s something relatively novel and a sign of the times.

The SONDORS Metacycle and NIU RQi electric motorcycles are both racing to reshape the market by bringing highway-capable speeds down to commuter-level prices.

Three years ago yesterday, I broke the news on SOL Motors’ debut of its innovative Pocket Rocket electric motorcycle. We’ve had to wait quite a while for a major update, but now, after a lengthy period of continued development (and one pandemic later), the company is taking orders for its eye-catching electric motorbikes.

Sweden’s most prominent electric motorcycle and e-moped manufacturer CAKE has just closed a significant funding round that should add another $60 million to the company’s coffers.

Small form-factor electric motorcycles are enticing targets for manufacturers due to their lower cost and reduced regulatory hurdles. The Taiwanese manufacturer of one of the cutest mini electric motorcycles, the TROMOX MINO, is showing off a growth spurt with its latest larger and faster bike, the TROMOX UKKO.

Electric bicycle company SONDORS has expanded into the larger electric mobility space with the announcement of a highway-capable electric motorcycle.

RGNT Motorcycles has developed one of the classier-looking retro-inspired electric motorcycles we’ve seen to date. After a few years of developments, now updated versions of the Swedish company’s bikes are finally available for order.

Volcon Powersports burst onto the scene in late 2020 with lofty goals to build a fancy, funny-looking yet reasonably priced fat tire electric motorcycle in the US. Fast forward less than a year, and the company has made good on its claims as it begins shipping its first Volcon Grunt bikes to customers, though with somewhat muted specs.

The SONDORS Metacycle electric motorcycle is apparently running behind schedule and won’t achieve its latest estimated ship date of Q3 2021, according to emails sent out by the company.

Zero Motorcycles already operates the world’s largest electric motorcycle network thanks to the company’s wide distribution of dealerships. Now those electric motorcycles are receiving some key updates as Zero unveils its MY2022 upgrades ahead of schedule.

Electric motorbike brand CAKE has announced the first-ever electric mobility bundle alongside EV automaker Polestar. The two Swedish companies look to provide solutions for urban mobility with a custom version of CAKE’s recently released Makka moped platform, which can be towed behind a Polestar 2 EV and simultaneously charged.

It was a cool summer morning overlooking the pier in Santa Cruz, California, when I first watched Zero CEO Sam Paschel pull the cover off the company’s latest electric motorcycle. I immediately fell in love with the design of the Zero FXE. But I also knew that it takes more than a sleek body to make a good bike. Only by throwing my leg over the shiny new metallic steed and hitting the open road could I know if the FXE was really worth the attention.

Fortunately I was doing exactly that barely an hour later.