Mavizen's 130 MPH TTX02 Electric Motorcycle Runs on Linux

Why did you stop? Well, I was recompiling my kernel and got a segfault...
Mavizen has decided to offer a new electric bike based on the previous winner of the TTXGP so that other teams can have a solid foundation to build on for next year. The TTX02 is based on the KTM RC8 with a Agni powerplant. The twist is that they call it a "laptop on wheels" because of all the electronics it packs on top of what is strictly required to control the electric motor (dash-mounted computer that runs Linux, has wifi connectivity and a web-server, etc).

mavizen electric motorcycle photo

All this hardware and software might seem overkill for a racing bike, especially since it no doubt adds a bit of weight, but it probably compensates for that by giving the teams who will buy one more information about their performance and more ways to customize the ride. If the bike is able to tell you in great details how you're doing, it's probably easier to make adjustments (both to the bike itself and to the way it is driven) to shave off precious seconds from your laps.

Technical Details
The twin electric motors have a peak horsepower of about 100hp and they get their electricity from a lithium-ion battery. 3 different batteries will be offered, with 11kWh being the biggest one (it should give the bike a range of at least 38 miles, enough to complete the Isle of Man race).

Here are some more specs:

Top Speed: 130 MPH
Core operating system is open source Linux
USB based system bus allows virtually unlimited number of peripherals to extend the capabilities of the machine with plug'n'play
Dry weight: 110kg (without batteries)
Seat height: 805 mm
Ground clearance: 110 mm (depending on battery and suspension configuration)
Wheelbase: 1,430 mm
Frame type: Chromoly trellis frame, powder-coated
Rake (fork angle): 23.3°
Trail: 90 mm
Front suspension: WP-USD, 43 mm
Front suspension travel: 120 mm
Rear suspension: WP-Monoshock
Rear suspension travel: 125 mm
Front tyre dimensions: 120/70-17
Rear tyre dimensions: 190/55-17
Front brakes: Double disc. Brembo
Front brakes diameter: 320 mm
Rear brakes: Single disc. Brembo
Rear brakes diameter: 220 mm

Here's a video (below) that shows the TTX02 in action and elaborates a bit on the thinking behind its creation. It's a bit over the top, with some "majestic" music that tries to make us believe that this is a world-changing bike... But if you can get passed that, it's still a pretty cool piece of technology that is no doubt helping engineers figure out how to make better electric vehicles, and to my mind, that's the main reason why electric vehicle racing is important.

Video here

Below is a video of the unveiling of the new Mavizen bike at SEMA:

Video here

The Mavizen TTX02 should be available in Q1 of 2010, with "a limited production of 50 units". The target price for a complete bike with a Circuit Pack is £25,000 (about $41,500).

I wonder how this would compare to a ‘busa or an R1.

Your 1st hint would be that it's rear tire appears to be a front tire (120/17) and it ain't smoking.....or barely moving for the 1st 50 feet.

The 2nd would be that it is never shown doing more than about 60ish.

3rd would be that the electric toad never achived a rate of speed sufficient to lean the bike over in turns, much less drag a knee (unless you are employing your knee puck to drag one of the batteries (battery weight conspicuously unlisted) to the spot where "Flash" ran outta juice.

The specs listed are either for the black mockup (which we never see under it's own power), or the KTM, judging by the 190/55 rear tire and the gas engine, or just a bunch of hooey.

I'm guessing the black one is strictly a mock up, as is the extension cord run to the gas engine KTM.

What a joke.

Tesla? As in the Nicolas Tesla Death Ray, Tesla Ball Lightning, etc?

LOL, I worked in a high voltage lab with 3 expat Soviet scientists doing experiments with electrostatic precipitation - I didn't know jack about electronics, and none of them could wrench their way out of a paper bag, so it worked out pretty good for a few years. I taught one scientist a little english - "Hasta La Vista M###er Fu@@er" in Siberian accent when referring to the lead scientist's temper tantrums was one of my masterpieces.

It was a kick for a few years, but I realized that Soviet scientists aren't "wired" to ever quite finish anything.

"You finish your project, no more goverment grants, career over, go pick potatoes" was the mindset.

Also, after enough time goes by, you are looked on as a POW more than an employee, and my boss never quite appreciated the one employee that wouldn't back down like a whipped puppy.

Tesla - there's still loads of people that think he blew down all those trees.

Whose to say ;~)

$41,000??? OK, a fast bike is about $14,000, leaving about $27,000 for gas, or about 10,000 gallons, or basically gas for the life of the bike and its owner. How is this a savings of anything??

Please remember, this is a RACE BIKE, probably not even eligible to be licensed on the street. Did you see the production numbers? Just enough to make it "legal" as a "production racer."

Trust me on this one... While it's sort of cool to own a racing bike and ride it on the streets, it's really NOT a fun thing to do. They're seriously uncomfortable, need CONSTANT maintenance, and are really tuned so tightly to wring every bit of performance out of the bike, that it's OK for them to hand grenade the motor on the cooldown lap.

Ducati had to do some serious reengineering on the Desmosedici (their MotoGP bike for the street), detuning it, and beefing up the chassis, as well as replacing a lot of the parts to make it safe to ride on the streets (like getting rid of the magnesium racing wheels and carbon fiber brake rotors).

Mark

I just want one to wander all the meandering back roads of my mountains.

[like I used to do on horseback but I can’t ride any more because of back problems]

Sure, I could take the Harley and do that but it’s not as convenient to stop, get off and traipse around through woods if I see something interesting.

There’s an elderly local couple who have matching scooters and they just look like they’re having an absolute ball, putting around and enjoying the scenery for no good reason other than that.

*sigh*

That's more like it, but I can't help but wonder how much CO2 would be released in the atmosphere to produce the 58,800 watts it would require to charge the battery (not that I give a fried rat's patootie, really).

An easier way for most motorheads to get their helmet around that figure is to use Tesla's own specs - 240V @ 70amps for 3.5 hours.

Anyone who has stick welded 1/2 day non stop on 14 guage or better sheet metal should have a pretty good idea how much juice this puppy drinks every 240-313 miles.

They claim that a comparable sports car uses $2 per mile of fuel while the Tesla uses 2 cents per mile. I submit that each figure is equally inaccurate, and am not going to qualify either.

A fellow I know who's a far more talented and accomplished boat builder than I built a beautiful electric powered wooden boat, about 20 feet long. It was an awesome blend of classic yacht and electric propulsion. It only needed to use enough power to get it up to hull speed, roughly 5 knots. Anything more in a displacement hull, and you're just trying to climb your bow wave.

I have a few row boats waiting on me to finish them, and I'd love to offer a clean install of electric auxillary power, but other than a Minn Cota transom mount outboard, there's not really anything ready to drop in.

The R&D would be much more interesting if the industry wasn't stained by the hype and grant seekers.

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