Did you feel that? The company that made the four-strokes the standard in motorcycle engine design just moved the earth a little bit further, releasing today the Honda CR Electric prototype.
The electric motorcycle is a 250cc equivalent dirt bike from Big Red, and broke cover at the Tokyo Motorcycle Show in Japan.
Not too many details are known at this time, beyond what we can see…but there is certainly a lot to digest when looking at this machine.
Honda continues to use an aluminum twin-spar frame design, the suspension is provided by Showa, and the tires knobbies from Dunlop. The bike is full-sized, and seems to have some electrical help from the folks at Mugen.
This would mean some similar EV tech to what has been found in the Mugen Shinden electric superbike, which has been dominating the Isle of Man TT the past few years.
Of course, we should remember that it wasn’t too long ago that we saw an electric dirt bike concept from Mugen, which also used an aluminum twin-spar frame.
That bike was curiously dressed in a dinosaur motif, and differed in its EV powertrain set up from the Honda CR Electric. The folks at Mugen and Honda will of course tell you that this is all coincidence, but experienced hands will tell you otherwise.
This example of the machine looks right and tight…and even pretty close to production ready, but of course we are absent particulars on battery size, motor power, and vehicle mass – aka The Holy Trinity of EV parity.
Still, the fact remains that this is a huge moment for Honda – that the Japanese company would even give us a glimpse of its intentions to go down the electric motorcycle route, after making its brand around the four-stroke internal combustion engine, is a huge shift for the industry.
We lamented not too long ago that the closing of Alta Motors meant that the driving force for an electric future was now gone in the motorcycle industry. Honda just assured us that we are very wrong in that opinion.
Source: Moto-Station
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