Not Just Electric Cars, Motorcycles Too!
Obviously when it comes to electric hybrids and all electric vehicles, cars make up the majority of the news, but don’t let it fool you, bikes are being developed and also converted by local enthusiasts.
We wanted to start with this fun little concept that opens the doors to light city electric scooters/bikes. According to Electricpig, its designer, Filipe Tolomei used light plastic materials with two small electric motors to power that zany little thing. The battery is intelligently located as close as possible to the bike’s low center of gravity, obviously improving stability.
But if you are looking more for a scooter type, how about Britain’s StreetScoota? It’s a cheap electric scooter (less than $2000) that does job just nicely. It is imported in England by Firebox.com. Or how about the more sophisticated Vetrix with its regenerative braking? Imports anyone?
OK, OK so a scooter is not enough, you want more power and torque. Well, how about converting that old Honda? At least it looks like a Honda. Ben Nelson didn’t let a blown engine stand in the way of enjoying a bike and why not, make it cheaper to use. So he did what any other intelligent guy would do, strip the engine and shove batteries with an electric engine in. The cost? $100 for original cycle, $500ish for used motor, $300ish for New Alltrax AXE 48v 300 amp programmable controller, $160 EACH for 4 Optima yellow top 55AH batteries. Let’s see now, that’s around $1500 for a 2 cent a mile motorcycle. Even though it isn’t a performance monster at 45 mph with a range of just over 20 miles, it is just the beginning.
So there you go. The revolution is seeping into the world of our two wheels friends. And in a few days we’ll write about this other incredible electric dirt bike I found at the Long Beach Grand Prix of 08 that really impressed me.
Tags: electric conversion, electric motorcycle, electric scooter