Electric Motorcycles
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One of my favorite things about the electric vehicle industry is just how much diversity there is in the designs and types of EVs hitting the market. Part of that is due to the way electric drivetrains help break the mold of aging design constraints, but it’s also due to a new wave of forward-thinking engineers boldly pushing products in new and exciting directions.
As Electrek‘s resident tester of all things not-cars, I was fortunate enough to get behind, on top, and inside of some interesting and far-out forms of electric transportation. Here are the top five wildest and most awesome personal electric vehicles I tested in 2022.
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I know, I know. Electric motorcycles are usually quite pricey. Compared to internal combustion engine (ICE) motorcycles, e-motorcycles usually carry a premium of a few thousand dollars. Their long list advantages usually makes it worth it, though that still might not ease the sting of sticker shock. But if you know where to look, then you’ll find a surprising number of affordable options on the market in North America. All of the electric motorcycles featured here are either already rolling on America’s roads or are expected to become available in the coming months.
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Huck Cycles is a North Carolina-based electric motorbike manufacturer that built a name for itself with retro-inspired electric mopeds hand-made by Americans, including by a largely military veteran workforce. Now the company is beginning of production of its latest model, the Huck Stinger electric motorcycle.
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Electric motorcycles were once a rarity in the two-wheeler industry. But these days there are so many new models from a wide range of manufacturers that you’d have to go out of your way to avoid them. Fortunately for those in favor of progress, we actively seek them out. And these are the electric motorcycle news stories that you guys liked the most. You voted with your clicks, and these five stories became the biggest of 2022.
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A single electric motorcycle has been responsible for the majority of hype around a growing wave of budget e-motos. The SONDORS Metacycle, which has seen more than its fair share of ups and downs during a lengthy development process, is now touting deliveries currently in progress to 27 states in the US.
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Two Swedish EV brands today announced the release of a new electric moped version designed to slice through city traffic and look good while doing it. Electric car maker Polestar and electric motorbike maker CAKE have teamed up to release a new Polestar limited-edition of the CAKE Makka e-moped.
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Electric powersports toys aren’t cheap. E-motorcycles can cost several thousand dollars more than their gas-powered ancestors, and electric snowmobiles aren’t cheap either. So it makes sense to want to combine the two to get the most bang for your buck. That’s exactly what Canadian manufacturer Daymak did when it rolled out the Daymak Combat.
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I’ve always enjoyed multi-seater electric bikes, which bring passenger-carrying utility to small-format, easy-to-produce vehicles. But I never thought I’d see the concept taken this far. At least not until I stumbled upon a six-seater electric bike that has me all kinds of jealous.
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There’s a growing number of affordably priced electric motorcycles hitting the US market, but many are still produced overseas. Thanks to a $20M California grant though, electric motorcycle manufacturer RYVID will be able to build its RYVID Anthem bikes in the Golden State and create hundreds of jobs in the process.
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Electric motorcycles are my jam. If I’m on two wheels and it’s not a bicycle, then odds are I’m on an electric motorcycle. I don’t ride them because they’re clean or green, though those are nice side benefits – I ride them because they’re fun and enjoyable. They’re infinitely better than sitting in a car watching the world go by through glass. And the ownership experience is so much nicer than gas motorcycles due to their greatly reduced maintenance, lower cost of ownership, lack of vibrating cacophony, and a laundry list of other reasons.
My love of these awesome e-motos has put me in a unique position of having ridden pretty much every one of them out there.
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Motorcycle industry legend Erik Buell announced his new electric bike and motorcycle brand FUELL back in early 2019. Now just one pandemic later, the motorbike visionary is finally ready to roll out the FUELL Fllow electric motorcycle… for reservations, that is.
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Electric motorcycles are being used by VIPs and in all-electric motorcades to escort delegates from the international community attending the annual G20 Summit.
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The long-awaited SONDORS Metacycle electric motorcycle is now beginning deliveries nationwide in the US, according to the latest update from the company.
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I waited for this day for nearly two years, biding my time until I would finally get a chance to throw a leg over the SONDORS Metacycle electric motorcycle and ride off into the sunset with the twist of a wrist.
I never quite got that sunset, but an overcast LA morning was the next best thing I could wrangle up on short notice. The SONDORS team let me take out an early production Metacycle to get a sense of how the bike rides and whether or not it lives up to the long-building hype.
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Kawasaki took to the EICMA Milan Motorcycle Show to unveil a trio of electric motorcycles, with Electrek front and center to see the action live. The Kawasaki Ninja EV and Kawasaki Z EV were revealed as traditional battery electric motorcycles, while the company also unveiled an HEV hydrogen-powered concept motorcycle.
I’ll spare you the uninspired cliché about “Team Green going green,” and we’ll just get to the bikes.
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Indian electric scooter manufacturer Ola Electric announced that the company plans to unveil an electric motorcycle to complement its growing electric scooter production.
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Honda may have its eyes on the lucrative shared electric mobility market, based on new patent images showing a fascinating little electric motorcycle or e-scooter variant.
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Gates Carbon Drive is a global leader in belt drives used to replace chains on two-wheeled vehicles like bikes, scooters, and motorcycles. The company’s new Gates Carbon Drive Moto X5 product line was just introduced this morning, helping make already quiet electric motorcycles even quieter.
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Energica, the pride of Italy’s growing electric motorcycle manufacturing industry, already has one of the most powerful electric motorcycle drivetrains in the market. But that hasn’t stopped the electric motorcycle company, which was acquired by Ideanomics earlier this year, from pushing the envelope further with what appears to be an even higher-powered electric motor.
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When CSC first announced the RX1E, I was super excited about the prospect of an electric motorcycle that could hit highway speeds while priced at a fraction of most big name e-motos today. And so, when I was swinging through LA recently, I made sure to stop by CSC’s Azusa headquarters and give the bike a test. Now I’m even more excited than ever about this new addition to CSC’s lineup.
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Light electric vehicles have seen growing interest from militaries all over the world. Now the latest electric motorbike receiving its draft card comes from North Carolina-based electric moped builder Huck Cycles.
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The Ryvid Anthem electric motorcycle is one of the most innovative light electric motorcycles we’ve seen in years. The bike already began taking pre-orders, with deliveries expected next year, and I recently got the chance to test out a pair of Ryvid Anthem prototypes during a trip to LA.
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The Sur Ron Storm Bee has been one of the most hotly anticipated electric motorcycles in the US for several years running. Now we’ve learned that the North American distributor has finally set a date for the long-awaited electric dirt bike’s arrival.
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LA’s most iconic electric bike brand wowed us earlier this year with a new concept electric motorcycle known as the SUPER73 C1X. At the time, we only had the chance to look at a full-scale mock-up of the eye-catching design. But now the company appears to have a functional prototype at their disposal.
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