American-made Brammo electric motorcycles will be coming to Canada, and as in the States, the bikes will be sold through the Best Buy chain of electronics stores, as well as through traditional motorcycle outlets.
Two models are available, with each one available with different battery packs that offer added range.
The entry-level Enertia boasts a range of up to 68 km, and its Valence lithium iron phosphate batteries take about four hours to charge fully from empty.
Its 13 kW (17.4 hp) motor propels it to a top speed of 95 km/h. Weight is claimed to be 145 kg (324 lb).
There’s also a higher-spec Enertia Plus, which doubles the range of the Enertia, to 128 km, though other performance specs are the same. It achieves the additional range through Brammo Power batteries that take eight hours to charge fully.
For high-performance aficionados, there’s Brammo’s latest release, the Empulse. This plug-in naked bike uses a 40 kW (53.6 hp) motor that produces 59 lb-ft of torque, double that of the Enertia models.
This bike claims a top speed of 160 km/h, and depending on the battery pack (three are available), range between charges varies from 96-160 km. The batteries also add weight, which varies from 163-190 kg (360-420 lb).
More info can be found at Brammo’s website. We’ll hopefully have pricing soon, but for now, here’s the video ….
@MXS
I also have your same experience with computer laptop batteries.I work in IT and I see this all the time. These batteries are different, but there is a leap of faith that I am willing to take based on my research and knowledge of Brammo. If you are still interested, I would encourage you to get information from a variety of sources about Brammo motorcycles. I have owned an Enertia for nine months at the time of this post and I have had no problems.
BillJ said:[quote]If you have to add tax breaks to bring the costs in line with conventional vehicles, it isn’t worth it. Electric bikes have to be directly comparable. Until this happens, they are even more of a novelty to the majority of the population than conventional motorcycles are.[/quote]
If you have to add tax breaks to (X) keep the costs in line with (Y) it isn’t worth it.
Where X= Railroads and Y= cross country travel by horse.
X=alternative energy producers Y= coal-fired plants
x= mortgage interest y= renting
Thank goodness our tax dollars help spur innovation and investment.
All EV’s are expensive right now. It’s because they are new. Once the general public realizes all the benefits and begins buying them, manufacturing runs can be done on a much larger scale. If the Volt and Leaf take off then you can be sure that in a few years the price point on those vehicles and others is going to drop dramatically. In the meantime governments are stepping in to make the price point more in line with ICE vehicles. The US government currently foots 10% and other individual states offer additional incentives.
If you have to add tax breaks to bring the costs in line with conventional vehicles, it isn’t worth it. Electric bikes have to be directly comparable. Until this happens, they are even more of a novelty to the majority of the population than conventional motorcycles are.
To bring costs Inline with what?
From everything I’ve seen from following Brammo for the last couple years they stand behind everything on their bikes. If I can find a way to become a service rep for them in Vancouver I will jump at the chance. EV’s are ideal for urban living and now with bikes that will do a maintained highway speed and batteries that will last for more miles than most bikes on the road, there is virtually no reason not to be looking at one of these bikes. Now if we can just get the canadian government on board with some tax breaks to bring the costs inline…
@Phantom
My laptop batteries were supposed to last many years as well …. but the opposite is the truth. Of course warranties never include batteries, regardless what product uses them. Except for Rigid tools. Lifetime battery warranty, and I already tested it. I think this is what the manufacturers will have to consider in the future to get this mainstream, otherwise many people refuse to be laughed at when something goes wrong ….
I own a Brammo Enertia in the USA and it has been great. My primary use for it is to commute to work. I wrote one of the reviews on the the http://www.bestbuy.com website. For more information from Brammo owners, please visit the site http://www.brammoforum.com. I found this site when a new potential Canadian Brammo owner alerted me to this news.
The batteries are projected to last many years. I did not have a problem putting full insurance on it.
Totally rad. 95% of my time on a bike is for commuting (20KM/day), so I’d love to try a bike like this.
TK4 does bring up some good points and battery longevity, replacement and recycling, though.
Can we even get insurance for them???
Hi gang.I’m happy to see that electrobike developments continue to “charge” ahead!Is there a full snot road test to get the real nitty gritty on dat Empulse in the grand scheme of things to do Bondo?Here’s hopein. Rock On
You don’t want to know….
Call me when recycling program is in place.
Oh yeah, how much $$$ for a replacement battery pack ???
“160 kms maximum range, how long to recharge and what do you do with the spent batteries ???”
Recharge time on the Empulse ranges from 8-12 hours with a standard wall outlet, or 2-4 hours with a dedicated DC charger. Electric bikes are better commuter than touring bikes.
Brammo rates the batteries at 500 cycles to 90% remaining capacity (50-80k km). You can continue to operate the bike as long as the slowly diminishing range meets your needs. Brammo should have an operational recycling program next year – see http://techcrunch.com/2010/10/19/brammo-enertia-plus-ev-motorcycle/
160 kms maximum range, how long to recharge and what do you do with the spent batteries ???
They’re not there yet, IMHO…