Spanish moto manufacturer Derbi appears to have built an all electric race bike based on their GPR 125 (shown above). A mysterious YouTube user uploaded a grainy video of a red cloth being ceremoniously pulled from a Derbi sportbike in front of a Derbi branded backdrop. The bike was then shown not-so-silently navigating the tight switchbacks of Parc Motor De Castelloli in Barcelona, Spain and doing it fairly quickly. Video and more after the jump.
The GPR EV was built by Derbi and uses a Sevcon Gen 4 AC motor controller and AC Perm motor which should produce some impressive results. Perhaps part of the 150 Million Euro loan taken out a year ago by parent company Piaggio to develop hybrid and electric transportation might have helped in this effort. There has been a credible mention that Piaggio will enter the TTXGP with a Derbi branded electric motorcycle. You can bet Azhar Hussain would love to have Piaggio on the TTXGP grid for 2010 to further it’s lead on the FIM e-Power series, who has yet to sign on any electric motorcycle race teams.
This would be the first factory electric Derbi, but not the first electric GPR. Todd Kollin, of 2009 Open class TTXGP winner Electric Motorsport, has been converting GPR50’s to electric power for quite some time. We don’t yet know if Electric Motorsport is entering a bike in the US TTXGP rounds in 2010, but if he is we’re sure they will be comparing notes with the Derbi crew.
Source: PlugBike
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