It’s the Mission One. It’s the electric motorcycle the blogsphere is buzzing about. It’s green (in energy, not color…although there are a lot of earth tones going on in its design).
It’s electric. It will hit 150mph, go 150 miles, make 100 ft lbs of torque, and take 8hrs to charge on a standard home outlet. Oh, and it’s also going to cost $68,995. That’s the bike in a nutshell, but digging deeper finds there is much more to it.
Designers from MOTOrepublic have released a more developed render of their electric bike concept: Beta. While the bike is more an exercise in aesthetics than function, the designers hope to have a fully running prototype built some time soon in the future. The concept bike is reported to include composite bodywork, which will also double as the bike’s frame, lightweight wheels, and of course an electric motor.
There seems to be some fanciful thought in the design, as far as packing batteries and a drive train into the otherwise spartan layout. We’re also a little dubious about the bodywork being stress-bearing, but MOTOrepublic gets points for originality and vision. Someone has to push the envelope, it might as well be them. Good on yah boys, let us know when we can take the prototype out for a spin.
There’s been a lot of talk in the auto industry lately about electric cars, and moving to fully electric platforms. Quietly, motorcycle companies have seen the writing on the wall, and have been exploring electric two-wheel applications for new models. KTM has promised to bring an electric bike by this time in 2010, and Quantya has an electric dirt bike, the Strada already available for purchase.
Not to be left out on this one, Honda has announced that it has partnered with Yuasa to bring an electric bike line-up to their model range by the year 2010.
“Honda is currently developing a battery-powered electric motorcycle which emits no CO2 during operation. The company is aiming to introduce this electric motorcycle to the market about in two years from now,” says Takeo Fukui, Chairman and CEO of Honda Motor Co. “History shows that motorcycles remain strong in a difficult market environment and have always supported Honda in difficult times,” he adds.
Yuasa, maker of most motorcycle batteries (check yours), will be responsible for the development of the high-performance lithium-ion batteries necessary for the electric motorcycles. The two companies will jointly set up a research and development center, and a battery manufacturing facility near Kyoto in Japan. This joint venture is being funded to the tune of $18.5 million, with Honda holding a 49% stake in the company, and the rest being held by Yuasa.
Electric motorcycle manufacturers, Quantya, in partnership with Shredelectric, have set up their first dealership in the US. The Swiss company has been selling its electric dirt bikes in Europe with what they describe as some fair success. Pictures and more after the jump.