I don't think the world is ready for a electric bike, but it sure does look badass

 

The price and the range will be the issues. Brammo has had a few electric bikes and their Empulse 10.0 goes just 100 miles on a 10 hour charge.

Heaven help you if you run out of charge miles from home. What are you going to do? pull over and ask someone if you can borrow an extension cord?

I also don't want to be so vulnerable as on a motorcycle and essentially silent on top of that. I know the arguments against "loud pipes save lives" but being silent is not a good way to get noticed.

 

I like the look, but until they can get the rangebup to 200 miles at real-world speeds, with a... okay, I'll be generous and say 30 minute turn around time, then I'm not interested. I don't give a rat's hairy hiney about triple digit top speeds.

 

I think you'll be waiting for a while.

Otoh I don't think it will be 5-10 years for a plausible electric bike.

 

If it's like the electric "sport" car (Tesla I think?), there's no gear shifting, which seems like it could be even more dangerous than a SS that revs like crazy. I wonder if 600cc class means acceleration or top speed? Or both? I think this is still 5-10 years from being plausible, but I'm glad somebody is trying.

 

I'd be all over one for cummuting if the price came down. Personally I really like the Brammo, but price and lack of any local support kill it for me

 

Can't wait for there to be a wire gauge upgrade war when these bikes get really popular.

 

Im not so sure that this bike is all the way there yet. Half of the reason electric vehicles can even make sense is through use of regenative braking. Which can trap some (or on some more technical systems alot) of the energy that is simply converted to heat when you hit the brakes, and store it back in the battery for use re-accelerating the bike. And to my eyes that front hub looks like a normal motorcycle hub.

So unless they are doing regen in some way Im not seeing, (possible) why bother. A race bike with regen could potentially have a much smaller battery than a bike without, so the regen bike could be significantly lighter.

Assuming the next generation incorperates a regen braking system (or this one and I'm just a fool) I could see it as a possible race/track bike. However as Golden Chicken said a few posts up, "What happens if you run out of juice a few miles from home?" will keep me from viewing it as a potential street bike.

 

Been readin' up on these things, and is seems that many use re-gen when you lift throttle. Makes it feel like compression braking without the complexity and possible owner un-use of regen like Prius. I've talked to a couple Prius owners that didn't have a CLUE what I was prattling on about....they just 'drove'.

If they could get the range up to 200+ I'd start thinking about electric (if it was affordable). But, at present less than 100....wouldn't work for me. I rarely know just where I'm going when heading out on a ride....just go where the mood takes me. Of course, we've got so many GREAT roads around here to choose from range envy really IS on the plate.

 

I think you could work around the running out of juice problem by keeping a small emergency battery as a backup. Maybe something that could get you 20 miles down the road. These bikes have a long way to go before they reach mass appeal, hell maybe they never will. But if the price was right and the range was decent I would be all over it. For commuting <100 miles a day in the city I think they would be just perfect for that.

 

The Brammo Empulse uses a six-speed trans with clutch, is water-cooled, and has programming to make it respond like a regular combustion engine.

But, like I said, you have to be so aware of your range. It's not like you can stop at the nearest gas station and get a gallon to get you home. It wouldn't be a bike that you could tour on or go for a decent joyride on a weekend. You'd have to make sure you had enough juice to get home. If you wanted to take it to a track you'd have to trailer it up and back or stay a couple extra nights to let it recharge.

An electric scooter for commuters might be a better market given the current level of battery tech.

 

I would rock it although i didn't see anything about actual specs.

 

Love it. I look forward to seeing stuff like this available for public consumption.

 

Very cool. Ive been eying the Brammo empulse as a possible daily commuter. My work commute is less then 30 miles both ways and I would just charge at night. Not sure if I will bite the bullet but I really like the idea of a full electric sport bike.

 

Looks like the offspring of a Ninja 650 and a 1st gen SV track bike.

 

I don't see one thing that the RC-E has in common with either of those 2 bikes (in terms of engineering or styling), other than having 2 wheels.

 

If it's a decent price, sign me up!

It looks sexy, fast, fun, quiet, and no gas!

http://www.reddit.com/r/shutupandtakemymoney/comments/m9h0y/honda_rce_electric_bike/

 

Beautiful bike! We just need a little better battery technology, all the other pieces are in place.


A gadget like this would help too!

 

Beautiful bike! We just need a little better battery technology, all the other pieces are in place.


A gadget like this would help too!

I was JUST saying something like that to a friend! Put a big speaker on it and allow us to program it to sound like any bike at our discretion. One day rumble like a Harley, another day scream like a Japanese I4.

 

We'd probably all be a little safer if cars drove themselves. I can't see them being allowed to operate on autopilot without some kind of input system that can detect and yield to other obstacles in the name of safety. No point letting the machines drive if they blindly pull out without first looking both ways. There's too many uncontrolled variables on our streets.

I could see some kind of HOV lane type of deal when the technology evolves to cope with it, but it's going to take a bit before cars have the capability to deal with the complexities of surface streets.

Beyond that, there's the car culture to overcome, and people's need to feel in control, even though current technologies make it easier for people to get away with being less in control.

 

... I could see some kind of HOV lane type of deal when the technology evolves to cope with it ...

That's how I believe it will start. Only cars that can "train up", send/receive and run 90mph at 1 foot separation would be allowed. As technology evolves more and varied roadways would fall. In the end there will be no place for motorcycles that can't drive themselves, and if they could, what would be the point? On the bright side, it should be a while before that happens.

 

The Nissan Leaf is an all-electric car that appears to be in pretty high demand. Its range is also about 100 miles max. They are on the road now, not 5+ years away, and charging stations will be popping up all over.

This is not a touring bike. Sure, it isn't going to work for a lot of us, but for those who ride 20 - 30 minutes each way to school or to work (more if there is a charging station at the destination) or live near a nice section of twisties or just go for an hour or two of joyriding, this bike might be great. And how many miles do you log on an average track day?

Another attraction for me, if I could live with a 100 mile range, would be more altruistic, even if only symbolically so. However, if everyone who could live with the range limit drove an all-electric vehicle, it might make a big difference in fossil fuel demand and all the bad stuff that goes along with it.

Plus, that bike looks really cool.

 

And how many miles do you log on an average track day?

Not many, but a disproportionate amount of it is at WOT, so you'd eat through the charge a lot faster on the track than commuting. Still, I agree that for a few specific uses, such a machine would be useful today.

Another attraction for me, if I could live with a 100 mile range, would be more altruistic, even if only symbolically so. However, if everyone who could live with the range limit drove an all-electric vehicle, it might make a big difference in fossil fuel demand and all the bad stuff that goes along with it.

Agreed.

Plus, that bike looks really cool.

AGREED! It's soooooooo clean.