Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

MN firm reveals 110mph electric motorcycle – and will beat Harley to market
bringmethenews.com ^ | July 30, 2015 | By Adam Uren

Posted on 07/31/2015 2:08:25 PM PDT by Red Badger

(Photo: Victory Motorcycles, website)

A Minnesota company appears to have beaten Harley-Davidson to the punch by unveiling its first electric street motorcycle.

Medina-based Polaris Industries, makers of Indian and Victory motorcycles, has this week revealed its “Empulse TT” high-performance sport bike, which runs without gas and has a top speed of 110mph.

The Pioneer Press reports that with the Empulse appearing in Victory dealerships by the end of the year, Polaris has secured a key advantage over competitors Harley, whose Project LiveWire motorcycle won’t be brought to market until battery technology has improved enough to allow for longer driving distances.

“We wanted to get in early, and so we are,” Victory Motorcycles product director Gary Gray told the newspaper. “At Polaris, we are pretty proud of our speed to market. We think it gives us a big competitive advantage.”

You can take a closer look at the Empulse TT here.

According to the Business Journal, the bike has a range of around 65 miles for “typical” riding, but those easier on the throttle might be able to get more than 100 miles out of a single charge.

The key to Polaris’s success getting the bike to market so early, Bloomberg reports, was its purchase in January of electric vehicle company Brammo, which provided the battery-powered technology that could be incorporated by Polaris’ Victory designers.

“Brammo is very, very good at electric technology and we are very, very good at motorcycle engineering, so there was a good marriage there,” Polaris VP of motorcycles Steve Menneto told Bloomberg, which says that the full recharging of the Empulse battery will take four hours on a 240-volt outlet, or nine hours on a standard 120-volt plug.

The bike will have a suggested retail price of $19,999, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Polaris isn’t resting on its laurels either, as it says it will continue to improve its products in tandem with Oregon-based Brammo.

“The day is coming when you’ll be able to ride 300 miles [on a single battery charge],” energy consultant Mike Cornwell told the Journal Sentinel.

VIDEO AT LINK........................


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Hobbies; Outdoors; Society
KEYWORDS: bike; electric; harley; motorcycle
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-69 last
To: zeugma
Indeed. If you can’t afford petrol, you have no business on a bike.

The tires will probably get 5k miles, tops.

Tires? Who wants one with tires?

61 posted on 08/05/2015 12:59:28 PM PDT by archy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 50 | View Replies]

To: CodeToad
I bought this bike (not this exact one), a BMW R1200GS Adventure. As equipped it gets 50 MPG +/-. At 55 MPH it gets 60 MPG. With a 7.9 gallon tank it goes 350 miles easy. Electric thingamabobs are just not of any interest.

Concur.


62 posted on 08/05/2015 1:03:33 PM PDT by archy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies]

To: archy

$2/gal gas is not stimulating the market for eCars, apparently.


63 posted on 08/05/2015 1:04:58 PM PDT by nascarnation (Impeach, convict, deport)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 62 | View Replies]

To: Covenantor
...and some bright spark came up with the idea of adding a Stinger to go with the buzz. A shoot and scoot concept.

Ural with Konkurs launcher:


64 posted on 08/05/2015 1:06:22 PM PDT by archy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 60 | View Replies]

To: nascarnation
$2/gal gas is not stimulating the market for eCars, apparently.

I wouldn't necessarily think that.


65 posted on 08/05/2015 1:08:09 PM PDT by archy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 63 | View Replies]

To: archy
How about this...?

my first thought was OMG!

66 posted on 08/05/2015 1:26:05 PM PDT by zeugma (The best defense against a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 61 | View Replies]

To: archy

Those naked bikes have an appeal all their own. Love them.


67 posted on 08/05/2015 3:56:28 PM PDT by CodeToad (If it weren't for physics and law enforcement I'd be unstoppable!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 62 | View Replies]

To: zeugma
How about this...?

my first thought was OMG!

My first thoughts have to do with saltwater environments and dissimilar metals corrosion. Seems like it'd be a maintenance nightmare waiting to rear it's ugly head on a mostly-alloys bike.

68 posted on 08/06/2015 8:04:10 AM PDT by archy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 66 | View Replies]

To: archy
My first thoughts have to do with saltwater environments and dissimilar metals corrosion. Seems like it'd be a maintenance nightmare waiting to rear it's ugly head on a mostly-alloys bike.

Yeah, there is that, but pipelining on a motorcycle? Awesome, regardless of the later headaches.

69 posted on 08/06/2015 9:01:11 AM PDT by zeugma (The best defense against a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 68 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-69 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson