Moments before zipping off and down the stairs.
40 mile range. Rechargeable with standard power plug in about 2 hours. 60 MPH top speed. Similar performance to a 250cc bike. $6,500 and then 1 cent per mile (cost of recharging)
For the bikers out there, how appealing is this?
Very cool. I’m no "Safety Nut" but… Skirt, Barefeet, untamed locks (hair) stairs.. I’m sure she’s not looking for the ol’ Kick starter, but there are some elements of danger in this photo… Other than that it would be great fun! Interesting to think of the combination of the rugged activity with the silence of electric power…
Not really to me. For a bike that’s safe at highway speeds, I’d want to make it out to points more than 20 miles away (from SF), so the 40-mi range would feel cramped.
Inside the city, it might be hard to justify this versus a real (human-powered) bike or even just walking. (Full disclosure: My idea of a good bike ride is 20+ miles on a single speed, so I may just like biking more than normal people.)
I really dig the danger elements in this photo, though.
In practice, recharging electric vehicles after using them usually takes quite a bit longer then the actual recharge time.
On my Voloci, I would have to wait for the batteries to cool down before the quick recharge could actually begin. The time this would take varied but was usually at least 1-2 hours after use. Maybe they’ve figured out a way to keep the batteries from heating up as they are discharged, but I doubt it.
I ride a yz 250 F and the main concern would obviously be power. However, if it’s fairly powerful, then it seems like it would be a great trail bike for a few hours. Although I love dirtbiking, I have to say it still disgusts me how loud and polluting my bike is as I cruise through pristine mountian trails. A quiet clean alternative would be fantastic!
What is the intended customer or use-case?
Perhaps tour outfits or rental agencies would benefit if the overhead were less (gas, maintenance). And they would be relatively silent, so maybe they are a good fit for animal watching/hunting…? A fleet of silent vehicles might also be good for security guards or border guards.
I like it. But I’d still buy gas due to the distance factor. Given the amount of gas a 250cc motorbike uses…
I bought a Razor 650 for my son on his 16th. Its quiet, fun and not so fast its deadly. At less than 1/10 the price of this "toy" I get great enjoyment out of it. The neighbors like it too. I had a video of one of his friends jumping off a ramp and flying into the brush. Only minor abrasions. How heavy is it? Oh, can we get more pictures of the rider???
Looks cool, but only for use around the neighborhood or on simple offroad trails. It appears to basically be a modified mountain bike with an electric motor – it even has Bonetrager mountain bike tires on it (I have the same tires on my pedal bike) that wouldn’t be used at high speeds on a road…
When I visited their site before they were talking about a < $2500 price point. I would buy one for that price. For $6500, I would probably not. I love the eco- element, but it is a very "slim" bike, and it doesn’t look highway ready. For a, "get around SF" bike type thing, $2-4k seems a better price point.
This Bike:
zeromotorcycles.com/
$6500
Competitors:
http://www.enertiabike.com
$15000 (!)
http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/33853/113/
(killacycle founder crashing at NexFest)
http://www.electricmotorsport.com/new/ems_electric_motorcycle_su...
$5800
http://www.envbike.com/
(just a concept at this point)
Its always nice to have the hot girl demo the product in front of the investors, but its even better if she appears ready to use it. Nice girl, no interest in the product. Sounds very expensive for a single seat toy. Good photo, did you get one of it flying down the stairs? I hope she wasn’t hurt in the adventure…
Okay, I just watched the crash video in the comment before mine. Toy was not the right word. Now I really hope the girl wasn’t hurt…
I have a friend who’s a cardiopulmonary transplant specialist. This is her dream come true!
I would rather see a smaller, lighter and more commuter style bike. There was a company in Seoul Korea producing this small electric commuter bikes (without peddles) and they were very cool and practical. I just wish something like that would show up around here in the US.
the potential is being realised:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jun/11/tt-isle-of-man...
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