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[Francois]

Hello I heard that zero will propose a super bike for 2018
100kw motor with 240 Nm torques
new batterie graphene 30kwh
someone can confirme?

[Richard230]

Hello I heard that zero will propose a super bike for 2018
100kw motor with 240 Nm torques
new batterie graphene 30kwh
someone can confirme?

That seems a bit extreme for a Zero production bike.  Maybe a one-off racing machine to gain press attention.  Unless things have radically changed at Zero they have always been focused on keeping prices as low as possible and getting sales as high as possible.  A super bike is not going to do that - especially as sport bikes are not all the rage right now.  The hot motorcycle markets currently (subject to change at any moment) are dual-sports, standards, and retro designs.

[Justin Andrews]

A 30kWh battery would sure get my attention.
However I would be bloody surprised if the standard 4 brick monolith was to go up as high as even 20kWh for 2018.

Besides, either battery would really have to refocus Zero's attention on charging as well, as large format batteries are really going to need 3.3+kW chargers as standard rather than as an optional extra.

[Rugby4life]

Well If that unicorn 30kwh battery makes it to production it better have DC fast charge capability. It doesn't do any good to go 200 highway miles if you have to spend the next 4 hrs on a j-plug.

[Doug S]

I'm guessing this may be the source of the rumor?

http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-confederate-zero-deal-20170818-story.html

[JaimeC]

Wow... Now THAT'S interesting.  However, of all of the motorcycle designs out there, a cruiser has to be the LEAST aerodynamic... at least, one built along the nostalgic lines over nearly every ExISTING model right now.  Streamlining it to maximize range would probably make it look too "Manga" for many.

However, that crowd is aging out of the market anyway.  Maybe it's time to target the millennials raised on Japanese Manga and Anime?

[NEW2elec]

Yeah Doug I hadn't heard about that partnership but its very likely where the rumor started.
I thought maybe it was Lightning's bike set up for the speed record attempt next weekend.

[Rugby4life]

Wow... Now THAT'S interesting.  However, of all of the motorcycle designs out there, a cruiser has to be the LEAST aerodynamic... at least, one built along the nostalgic lines over nearly every ExISTING model right now.  Streamlining it to maximize range would probably make it look too "Manga" for many.

However, that crowd is aging out of the market anyway.  Maybe it's time to target the millennials raised on Japanese Manga and Anime?

You have to understand the target audience for the cruiser segment. They could care less about going 200 miles on a charge or maximum aerodynamic efficiency. They want huge torque off the line, smoky burnouts, low seat height, and cool styling as they roll up to the bar and impress their friends. All of these traits play on the strengths of an electric drivetrain, including flexibility in placement of batteries and other components to achieve a low seat height. Imagine the possibilities to impress your friends with custom sound files and an exhaust replicating sound system (on/off switchable). Is there anything (within reason) better than rolling up to bike night sounding like a V12 Merlin powered P51 Mustang?

[gyrocyclist]

Wow... Now THAT'S interesting.  However, of all of the motorcycle designs out there, a cruiser has to be the LEAST aerodynamic... at least, one built along the nostalgic lines over nearly every ExISTING model right now.  Streamlining it to maximize range would probably make it look too "Manga" for many.

However, that crowd is aging out of the market anyway.  Maybe it's time to target the millennials raised on Japanese Manga and Anime?

You have to understand the target audience for the cruiser segment. They could care less about going 200 miles on a charge or maximum aerodynamic efficiency. They want huge torque off the line, smoky burnouts, low seat height, and cool styling as they roll up to the bar and impress their friends. All of these traits play on the strengths of an electric drivetrain, including flexibility in placement of batteries and other components to achieve a low seat height. Imagine the possibilities to impress your friends with custom sound files and an exhaust replicating sound system (on/off switchable). Is there anything (within reason) better than rolling up to bike night sounding like a V12 Merlin powered P51 Mustang?

Um, peace, but think I've impressed more people with my (almost) silent Zero than I ever would with a loud bike.

I'm all about efficiency. Any time an engine expels noise or heat it's running at less than 100% efficiency.

That said ... if the partnership were to happen methinks it could be a huge win for electric motos. Not just the top-end bikes, but all the way down the line. Am hoping it happens. And that Zero goes public, so I can buy some stock.

[Rugby4life]

Gyrocyclist, I wasn't being confrontational. I also value efficiency but you and I are already sold on electric bikes. What Zero and Curtis are trying to do is reach an audience who value efficiency so much they ride around with engines designed in the 1940s. To win over those who otherwise would never consider an electric bike you have to speak their language. Curtis (formerly Confederate Cycles) has the marketplace clout to successfully charge $155k for their custom bikes. Curtis speaks to this market segment with an authority you and I could never exercise with all our talk of kilowatt hours and charge cycles. If a high end custom bike company can make EVs cool in the eyes of the cruiser crowd, that cool will ripple through the rest of the motorcycle community. Every other manufacturer will want a piece of this hot new trend.

[JaimeC]

You hope Zero goes public?  Oh HELL no!!!

When a company goes public, their whole mission changes.  Their primary concern becomes "Stockholder Return."  They have to do everything possible to turn a profit.  Often that means cutting corners, off-shoring for cheap labor, etc.  No, I'm perfectly happy with them being privately held.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2011/11/28/maximizing-shareholder-value-the-dumbest-idea-in-the-world/#206dc2952287

[Richard230]

You hope Zero goes public?  Oh HELL no!!!

When a company goes public, their whole mission changes.  Their primary concern becomes "Stockholder Return."  They have to do everything possible to turn a profit.  Often that means cutting corners, off-shoring for cheap labor, etc.  No, I'm perfectly happy with them being privately held.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2011/11/28/maximizing-shareholder-value-the-dumbest-idea-in-the-world/#206dc2952287

I concur.  When a company goes public, rarely is that a good thing for their customers - especially if they are enthusiastic early-adopter customers of a new technology.   

[Rugby4life]

Ask Erik Buell how it works out when you sell control of your company to a huge conglomerate that's not passionately invested in the dream you created.

[MichaelJ]

FYI, I'm an EV fan who likes cruisers, but doesn't like the noise they make.


My Suzuki Boulevard was fun to ride for its comfortable seating position, the relative quiet and protection from the wind behind a large windscreen, the generous storage, the low center of gravity, and the extra headlights I could throw on it to see at night on unlit rural roads.  Going electric, other than the usual earth-friendly reasons, was in part out of concern for my neighbors when I rode home to my rural bedroom town late at night.


Really looking forward to the opportunity to replace an e-sportbike with an e-cruiser.  Everything about the cruiser styling is perfect for a pavement-touring e-motorcycle:  a giant windscreen to hide from the wind, extra headlamps to banish the darkness, room for lots of batteries where the engine and fuel tank were, saddle bags are expected and even more storage can hang on to the sissy bar, a shaft drive to avoid worries about snapped belts or forgetting to grease the chain, a low seat height for shorter people, and a low center of gravity for easy handling.  It can be done, if the Brutus V9 is any example.  Sure, a Brutus is yet another expensive niche e-motorcycle like a Lightning or an Energica, but I hope that a more affordable e-cruiser will come to market before I get too old to ride.

[Richard230]

Here is the other end of the electric-superbike spectrum:     https://electricmotorcycles.news/onebot-l1-and-l2-luggage-suitcase-scooters/