Electric Motorbikes

[chris4652009]

Sorry if there is already a thread for them (I did search but come up with nothing)

Anyone else super interested in two wheeled EVs ?
This latest "Zero" looks fantastic
https://youtu.be/CPxZwcSVjhk

[biggles330d]

chris4652009 said:

Sorry if there is already a thread for them (I did search but come up with nothing)

Anyone else super interested in two wheeled EVs ?
This latest "Zero" looks fantastic
https://youtu.be/CPxZwcSVjhk

I've been a bit baffled by this. Why have battery powered scooters (bikes, not those stupid electric kid scooters that are scattered about every city these days) and battery motorbikes not become more popular? Scooters particuarly. When I were a youth in the '80's and '90's, there were plenty of piaggio, peugeot and honda scooters about, plus all the 50cc runabouts. Today, you barely see them.
If there are electric scooters available, are they legal in the UK on a normal bike licence.

I say this and aren't even a biker. More an observation as I think they'd be quite cool to see about.

[anonymous-user]

biggles330d said:

I've been a bit baffled by this. Why have battery powered scooters (bikes, not those stupid electric kid scooters that are scattered about every city these days) and battery motorbikes not become more popular? Scooters particuarly. When I were a youth in the '80's and '90's, there were plenty of piaggio, peugeot and honda scooters about, plus all the 50cc runabouts. Today, you barely see them.
If there are electric scooters available, are they legal in the UK on a normal bike licence.

I say this and aren't even a biker. More an observation as I think they'd be quite cool to see about.

Same issues as cars for many. Range, charge time and price.

[Donbot]

A small motorbike/scooter will easily do over 100mpg and are typically used for low miles, so there isn't much to save from fuel costs. On my 125 the cost of replacement tyres is almost half the cost of fuel.

A small, cheap scooter with a decent range isn't possible just yet.

[TommyBuoy]

chris4652009 said:

Sorry if there is already a thread for them (I did search but come up with nothing)

Anyone else super interested in two wheeled EVs ?
This latest "Zero" looks fantastic
https://youtu.be/CPxZwcSVjhk

Actually, I've just been looking for my nearest zero dealer - I'm genuinely starting to get interested, mainly for the novelty I think, but who knows, if they are a good, comparable ride I could be won over - I ride for fun so long range (over 150 miles say) isn't so much a concern

[sjg]

biggles330d said:

I've been a bit baffled by this. Why have battery powered scooters (bikes, not those stupid electric kid scooters that are scattered about every city these days) and battery motorbikes not become more popular? Scooters particuarly. When I were a youth in the '80's and '90's, there were plenty of piaggio, peugeot and honda scooters about, plus all the 50cc runabouts. Today, you barely see them.
If there are electric scooters available, are they legal in the UK on a normal bike licence.

I say this and aren't even a biker. More an observation as I think they'd be quite cool to see about.

It's roughly the same as piston bikes, restrictions on licences by power output. CBT at 16 or the old moped classification on your licence - 4kw (50cc equivalent), CBT and over 17 years old 11kw (125cc equivalent), A2 33kw (500cc equivalent), full licence anything. Most are straightforward to restrict if needed. Electric bikes/scooters tend to have way more torque though so can feel quicker than petrol ones.

It's mostly cost and lack of other incentives. You can get a brand new chinese 125cc scooter for £1200 or so. Electric 11kw equivalents start at £2k+ for something very basic with probably sketchy support, way past £3k for something with a bit of performance and some reasonable backup. Two-wheelers already escape the London congestion charge (and equivalents elsewhere) and as long as they're under 12 years old they're OK for ULEZ too. No difference as far as parking goes. Petrol ones get 100+mpg so most will be spending £25 or so a month on fuel.

So you have to really want one, and you have the worry of if it goes wrong, you can't just dump it at the local dealer and use their loan bike in the meantime.

[squirdan]

Ive had a close look at the Energica. its top quality and looks similar to a Ducati, MV Agusta etc. IE high end components / Italian design

Couple of years back I bought a BMW C650 super scooter for commuting and flirted with the electric version. Impressive torque but v expensive mind you

my issue is simple - "loud pipes save lives". well maybe that old phrase is an exaggeration but on a daily basis it certainly helps you be more visible, especially to homicidal pedestrians with headphones on. a silent bike is just raising the odds of an accident IMHO

[granada203028]

Another electric super bike:

https://lightningmotorcycle.com/product/specificat...

Trouble is ride it hard it runs out very quickly. Braking hard there is little weight on the rear wheel so little regeneration is possible.

The weight of the optional 24kWh battery must ruin the handling.

Bikes are very minimalist typically all engine so difficult to package a sizeable battery. More practical for choppers/tourers, no excuses for mopeds though.

I did this conversion in 2008 to a Honda H100:



7.5KWh battery approx. 12KWe. 120Kg. Half the batteries in the tank box, 1/4 each side in the pannier boxes. Would do about 50mph and completed a 52 mile round trip once with an estimated 1/3 capacity left. Since I got the Leaf in 2013 I've made no use of it so are planning to convert it back petrol.

I like the look of the fxs as I had a DR350 and this looks to be similar size, power and weight.

https://www.zeromotorcycles.com/eu/zero-fxs

[ntiz]

I know of a major manufacturer who has a an EV bike ready to go on sale, just waiting for infrastructure to catch up and the government to make them inevitable.

Interestingly no interest in selling it outside of Asia which isn’t surprising as that is were the volume is.

[u9ge]

Have always wondered why not but (London centric view) most I know with scooters keep them on the street so it is simply an infrastructure restriction. Very good point above though that petrol costs are low so not like making a 90% saving with a car.

[myvision]

chris4652009 said:

Sorry if there is already a thread for them (I did search but come up with nothing)

Anyone else super interested in two wheeled EVs ?
This latest "Zero" looks fantastic
https://youtu.be/CPxZwcSVjhk

I've had a go on that and it was surprisingly good I was told the real range on a full charge is 130 miles not the quoted figure of around 200.

[M1C]

That looks fantastic,

It would be very strange to see / hear one go past. As you expect a bike to make a decent amount of noise as it goes.

[gregs656]

The electric moped type things are everywhere here but the laws are different so you can ride them around without a licence.

[Caruso]

I've been riding electric scooters for 8 years, although I have a petrol bike too. My 2008 Vectrix battery is now on it's last legs and I'm struggling to get help with upgrading or replacing the battery since the main support guy in the UK got out of the business.

I've been considering a Zero or BMW C Evolution but the price is what's putting me off. There's no 'business case' for buying one over a petrol scooter so it's just for those with deep pockets determined to be green.

[Captain Smerc]

[Jag_NE]

Bikes are much more about the engine than cars are. The noise, the feel, the explosive acceleration on relatively humdrum stuff. With bikes there is also much less of a fuel saving benefit, scooters aside most of the nice stuff is used as toys for low mileage, the savings compared to a car running daily just aren’t the same. I could go for an electric car if the numbers made sense but I could never see me having an appetite for an electric bike.

[Janluke]

myvision said:

chris4652009 said:

Sorry if there is already a thread for them (I did search but come up with nothing)

Anyone else super interested in two wheeled EVs ?
This latest "Zero" looks fantastic
https://youtu.be/CPxZwcSVjhk

I've had a go on that and it was surprisingly good I was told the real range on a full charge is 130 miles not the quoted figure of around 200.

Likewise I had a test ride a couple of months ago, possibly one of the fastest accelerating bikes I've ever ridden. A little heavy and wanted to run a little wide in faster corners but a real fun machine. Too much money and as above 130 mile real range wouldnt suit my riding

[Gas Monkey]

Captain Smerc said:

Maybe a smaller rocker switch to turn it on and off would help it’s looks

[Pica-Pica]

Jag_NE said:

Bikes are much more about the engine than cars are. The noise, the feel, the explosive acceleration on relatively humdrum stuff. With bikes there is also much less of a fuel saving benefit, scooters aside most of the nice stuff is used as toys for low mileage, the savings compared to a car running daily just aren’t the same. I could go for an electric car if the numbers made sense but I could never see me having an appetite for an electric bike.

I would.

[MC Bodge]

granada203028 said:

Another electric super bike:

https://lightningmotorcycle.com/product/specificat...

Trouble is ride it hard it runs out very quickly. Braking hard there is little weight on the rear wheel so little regeneration is possible.

The weight of the optional 24kWh battery must ruin the handling.

Bikes are very minimalist typically all engine so difficult to package a sizeable battery. More practical for choppers/tourers, no excuses for mopeds though.

I did this conversion in 2008 to a Honda H100:



7.5KWh battery approx. 12KWe. 120Kg. Half the batteries in the tank box, 1/4 each side in the pannier boxes. Would do about 50mph and completed a 52 mile round trip once with an estimated 1/3 capacity left. Since I got the Leaf in 2013 I've made no use of it so are planning to convert it back petrol.

That's brilliant