With electric motorcycle racing on the rise, it’s certain that more riders are going to want to give it a try. But what if you aren’t Chip Yates? Have no fear – Brammo’s got you covered.
Yates, along with his Swigz.com racing team, is turning heads with his electric superbike that he built – and constantly improves – himself. But everyone doesn’t have that sort of design and manufacturing skill, so according to Autopia, Brammo has signed a deal to provide electric superbikes for the 2013 TTXGP electric racing series.
The Brammo racing bikes will be based on their box-stock Empulse, which the company says we’ll see shortly. Brammo will have everything you need to go racing, including race-spec bodywork, other unspecified racing upgrades, and trackside tech support available through their program. The 2013 TTXGP entry fee is also included.
Brammo claims they already have 1,000 orders for their Empulse motorcycle, but production has been delayed by their plans to incorporate six-speed gearboxes into the machines, similar to their dirt models. Those electric dirt bikes cleaned up handily on the race course when introduced, so the gearbox may also provide an edge to Brammo’s road-racing effort.
For now Brammo plans to offer the Empulse with a six, eight, or 10 kilowatt-hour battery, although that may change – they figure almost everyone will go for the most battery power they can buy. The 10 kilowatt-hour battery offers about a 100-mile range, although that drops off if you’re ripping and tearing around.
The news doesn’t mean the TTXGP is going to become a spec series, with everyone riding the Empulse. Brammo says they’re simply trying to make it easier to enter, and they hope other manufacturers do the same.
