Daily motorbike news, views & reviews
The big electric motorcycle battle is looming this year between Harley-Davidson with its expensive LiveWire and Zero Motorcycles who are launching a new “effortlessly powerful” naked bike. But Australia will be at least another year or more behind. Harley-Davidson Australia won’t introduce the LiveWire, predicted to cost more than $40,000, until 2020. Zero Motorcycles pulled the …
Range is the big barrier for electric motorcycles, but a German rider has been able to shatter that barrier by riding 1134.3km in 24 hours and setting a new electric motorcycle record. Remo Klawitter of Berlin rode a Zero DSR electric motorcycle from his bicycle shop to the Land Centre for Renewable Energies in Neustrelitz …
Zero Motorcycles continues to improve the range of its electric bikes, now claiming a maximum of 360km, up 40km from the previous models. However, Aussies can no longer buy the bikes after Zero Motorcycles pulled the plug on imports to Australia and Asia in June, citing unfavourable exchange rates and taxes. The world’s biggest electric motorcycle …
Since batteries and electric motors can take just about any shape, designers are free to create all sorts of strange vehicles, even this board tracker from European company Avionics. They have unveiled their electric board-tracker-style moped made of wood and steel with orders from September, but no prices announced yet. It’s not the first old-style …
The biggest electric motorcycle company, Zero of California, has pulled out of Australia and Asia, citing unfavourable exchange rates and taxes. However, they promise to continue owner support through distributor GBT Imports who took over in 2013 after the first importer pulled out in 2010. Current (‘scuse the pun) Australian Zero dealers are: Euro Bikes, Noosaville, …
Zero Motorcycles has announced their 2017 models will have increased range up to 200 miles (320km), seemingly kicking down one of the barriers for buyers. However, the extended range only comes with the purchase of an optional $4790 ($US2700) Power Tank. Interestingly, only one power tank has been sold in Australia over the past few years. Over the past …
Electric bikes have received a jolt from Zero Motorcycles with the addition of two new models and an optional Super Charger that will charge the bike in under an hour. The compact 8kW Super Charger ($US2499) was developed by DigiNow and eMotorWerks to fit in the “tank” area of the new or previous model Zero S …
The infant electric motorcycle market has been dominated by naked, sports and off-road machines and even Harley-Davidson and Victory Motorcycles have gone electric without a cruiser model. But electric cruisers may not be too far away. Switzerland-based Sine Cycles has produced an electric chopper by taking a Tha Heist frame from Cleveland Cyclewerks and a 2013 …
A solo rider has set a Guinness world record for the longest electric motorcycle ride at 12,644km (7856 miles) – and he’s still going! Magazine journalist Thomas Tomczyk set off from Philadelphia in March on his “Electric Powered Odyssey” and last week surpassed the previous record of 11,000km (6835 miles) in Colombia. However, he still …
Japanese designer Kota Nezu has created a low-riding electric motorcycle that challenges some of the conventions of new-era zero-emission bikes. For a start the zec00 has hub centre steering which is an old concept that still has some advantages (read about one new concept here) and has belt drive rather than direct drive like most …