Electric Motorcycles

Having spent my formative years (i.e. hooligan years) growing up in Georgia and Arkansas, I know a thing or two about exploring a farm or backwoods on a quad, all terrain vehicle or dirt bike. They make great platforms for navigating rough terrain, if you don’t mind the loud engine noise, finicky carburetors and smell of exhaust.

But why suffer when there’s a better way? New Zealand-based UBCO developed an all wheel drive electric dirt bike that is now available in the US.
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The Honda Super Cub is a legendary retro-styled motorbike that has been in continuous production since 1958. With over 100 million units sold, it holds the record for being the most produced motor vehicle in history.

For all of its strengths however, the little retro scooter has one major downside: its internal combustion engine. Sure, it’s a gas sipper instead of guzzler, but it’s gas nonetheless. Until now, that is, as the Super Cub is finally being reborn as an EV.
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If the name Harley Davidson conjures up images in your head of leather-clad biker gangs flying down a desert highway while spewing exhaust from their loud chrome pipes, then perhaps you’d better think again. As we reported earlier this summer, Harley Davidson is well on their way to debuting their first electric motorcycle which they are hoping will target a younger, more urban audience – a market with which the brand desperately needs to succeed.

And now the company appears to be doubling down on that commitment by announcing a new lineup of electric motorcycles while simultaneously fleshing out their EV team with a string of new positions.
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Two-wheeled electric vehicles aren’t exactly in limited supply. There are hundreds of different electric bicycles and dozens of electric motorcycles and scooters to choose from in the US alone. However, the prices of existing options are quite delineated, with budget electric bicycles starting at under $1,000, followed by mid-range electric bicycles of higher quality in the $2,000 range, then nicer (and faster) electric mopeds and scooters that usually cost up to $4,000, and lastly full-scale electric motorcycles that start at around $10,000 and increase steeply from there.

Now a California-based company is introducing a new electric motorcycle into the mix, offering faster speeds than most electric bicycles and scooters at a price less than $2,000.
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As battery technology catches up with the rest of the electric vehicle industry, electric motorcycles are increasingly replacing their gas counterparts. Recent offerings have been packing more energy and power into two-wheeled EVs, helping them better compete against combustion-engine alternatives.

Alta’s Redshift EXR multi-terrain electric motorcycle is a great example of an EV in the motorcycle industry that has made a strong showing against a traditionally loud and proud gas-fueled sport. And now Alta has announced the 2019 Redshift EXR, poised to help push gas bikes even further to the wayside.
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France is better known for its high fashion than for fast motorcycles, but the French custom garage Jambon-Beurre Motorcycle wants to change that, or at least combine the two. Operated by Benjamin Cochard and Antonin Guidicci, Jambon-Beurre Motorcycle is a small startup better known for their custom ICE motorcycle designs, though they have also built an impressive 80 kW flat track electric motorcycle.

Now they are headed in a bold new direction with the revealing of their latest electric motorcycle Gloria, a fashionable, functional and fast electric motorcycle designed for a new breed of riders.
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It’s been a big week for electric two-wheelers in India. First, Ather Energy launched their new 340 and 450 electric scooters yesterday, and now eMotion Motors has unveiled their new electric motorcycle today. 
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San Francisco-based ONYX has launched two new electric mopeds that are advancing small electric motorbikes. With speeds of 30-60 mph (48-96 km/h) and sharp designs, these aren’t your typical mopeds.
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Curtiss Motorcycles presented its new dual motor Zeus electric motorcycle concept for the first time publicly this week at the 2018 Quail Motorcycle Gathering in Carmel, California. In addition to winning the attention of the thousands in attendance at the 10th annual meet, the powerful electric motorcycle quickly secured the coveted “Most Innovative Motorcycle” award as well.

In an Electrek exclusive interview, director of design at Curtiss Motorcycles Jordan Cornille shared more information with us about the impressive new Zeus electric motorcycle concept.
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In one of the most dramatic scenes from the classic 1963 Steve McQueen movie The Great Escape, A USAAF officer steals a German officer’s BMW R71 motorcycle and is chased up and down the sprawling Bavarian hillside before taking his newly acquired motorcycle airborne in an attempt to jump the border fence to Switzerland. An epic performance, no doubt, but I can’t help but wonder if the improved bottom end torque of an electric motorcycle couldn’t have helped McQueen make it to safety.

Apparently I’m not the only one, as a new startup has announced plans to reboot the legendary 1930’s BMW R71 as an all-electric motorcycle, complete with sidecar.
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Harley Davidson’s CEO Matt Levatich just confirmed that the company is on track to meet its goal of releasing a fully electric motorcycle in 2019. According to Levatich, Harley Davidson wants to use the new line of electric motorcycles to help reach a younger audience focused more on utilitarian, urban transportation.
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The world’s first electric motorcycle racing championship has been announced today in partnership with Dorna Sports, which is behind MotoGP, The FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme), and they signed multinational power company Enel as the title sponsor.
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Four years after unveiling the LiveWire project, an all-electric motorcycle prototype used in the Avengers series, Harley-Davidson finally confirms that it is bringing its first electric motorcycle to market.
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The Russian company Kalashnikov, better known from products like the AK-47, unveiled an electric motorbike at the Army 2017 International Military-Technical Forum in Moscow, Russia. Kalashnikov introduced two versions, one for military purposes and one for the police force. If these bikes are anything like their infamous assault rifle, then they will prove to be virtually indestructible and hugely popular among certain demographics.

It’s admittedly a stretch considering the nature of the different products, but most electric bikes, such as the Zero DS, offer high-tech features like the digital dashboard and smartphone app. Kalashnikov does not get into such tech wizardry. Instead, they opt for good old-fashioned flip switches, indicator lights, and a chronological speedometer. Nothing wrong with that.

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California-based Zero Motorcycles, one of the biggest makers of all-electric motorcycles, unveiled its 2018 bike lineup this week.

As usual, the company is introducing some new features and improvements to its electric powertrain technology, which now allows for faster charging and longer range.
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While not as popular as Zero Motorcycle, Alta Motors is an up-and-coming electric motorcycle manufacturer and it unveiled a new version of its flagship Redshift last week that could broaden their market.

Alta’s Redshift was only offered as an all-electric supermoto/motocross, but the latest version of the motorcycle is a new street tracker: Redshift ST.
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A group of engineers in partnership with a few bike shops in Switzerland set out to show that electric motorcycles could be “badass” and have “outrageous performance”. I’d argue that Zero Motorcycles are already pretty badass, but sure let’s see what they got…

They created a company called ‘Zvexx Motorbike’ and came up with Zvexx, a fierce-looking all-electric torque machine.
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Custom motorcycles have long been an important part of the biker community and it recently got a lot of attention after none other than Keanu Reeves announced that he was starting his own custom bike company: Arch Motorcycle Company.

Now the same concept is coming to electric motorcycles and while it’s not accessible to everyone, it’s still interesting to see more options for EVs on two wheels.
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Airbus has a wholly-owned subsidiary called APWorks, which is set up to develop additive manufacturing techniques – especially metallic 3D printing – for the supply chains of Airbus’ main businesses. From time to time, the company releases independent products developed through their manufacturing work for Airbus.

The latest of such product is particularly interesting to us at Electrek: a 3D printed all-electric motorcycle.
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We recently stumbled upon a small Austrian-based company called Johammer. The firm is building an interesting futuristic-looking electric motorcycle: the Johammer J1. They launched the vehicle last year, but they recently ramp-up production and we are now seeing more of the vehicle reminiscent of a Star Wars pod racer with chopper-like handles.
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The new budget bill approved by the US Congress last week included an important extension to the 30% investment tax credit (ITC) for solar, but it also brought back the less popular (but welcomed) tax credits for electric motorcycles.
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