First and foremost, because this was posted to the Zero sub-forum, I consider this post attention-seeking and inappropriate. I wish Energica enthusiasts wouldn't take up space on Zero forums "negging" on the bikes. They can co-exist just fine serving different parts of the market.
Energica certainly has achieved something (at least on paper) if they ship bikes with 21kWh of battery capacity. But their battery warranty is lackluster. 31,000 miles and 3 years is not a respectable number for a battery warranty for a practical motorcycle, because motorcycle powertrain batteries are incredibly expensive, and absolutely not serviceable. I'm not investing in EVs that turn into landfill before they pay off, or in EVs that might need $10,000 battery replacements every few years. The fast charging seems to play into that warranty limitation, but you don't get a longer warranty if you don't fast charge.
In short, I don't think Energica's battery is a gamechanger. Capacity is not the only number to consider in a battery, and there are likely some tradeoffs involved in what they've accomplished.
Energica makes a bike that has extra equipment for high performance riding. If you don't value track performance, the extra mass and maintenance complication of a gearbox (or chain and gear sprockets, coolant, etc) are a liability instead of an asset. I don't care how well it handles - 600lbs of motorcycle is not desirable. It's definitely a liability if you drop it, and less efficient as a vehicle without the rider finessing efficiency more mindfully.
Energica also doesn't offer hard luggage mounts, hard luggage, or a top case solution. That's a deal-breaker for me, as I've discussed before. I would not put my girlfriend on the back of this motorcycle. Energica makes an "ego" (selfish) motorcycle. Energica gives off Northern Italian race culture snobbery and their designs don't deny this.
I've logged about 66,000 miles on two Zero models, and aside from the lack of CCS charging, 20kWh, and a standard fairing/cockpit mounting structure, is much easier to deal with. They're also quieter, more relaxing, and easier to modify. The SR/F platform should address a great deal of issues with their models, and I've spent a lot of time documenting the bike (zeromanual.com) in ways I don't feel welcome doing around Energica. It's true that if there weren't the SR/F, Zero would inspire less confidence. But it does exist and is impressive for having improved on a number of levels.
Energica is focused on the track, and Zero is focused on the daily rider. The latter seems more likely to produce a useful motorcycle that can scale in sales and production.
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Topic: Zero vs Energica (Read 6937 times)