Harley's Electric Motorycle

[Mike]

Tomorrow???

[Firefight911]

George Jetson, Jane his wife.....

 

What ever will the HD fan do with no oil to wipe through their hair or off their garage floor?

[Selden]

What's a Harley without the noise?

 

I predict the aftermarket parts will include large plastic cards to be flapped by the spokes, a la

(video)

 

 

[moshe_levy]

Watch for some big announcements tomorrow from the MoCo....

 

'Lectric HD

 

 

-MKL

 

PS - Yes, of course I'm drooling.

[Kitsap]

That should draw an interesting, entertaining response.

[moshe_levy]

Very, very, very awesome idea.

 

-MKL

[Firefight911]

LINKY

 

More photos

[FlyingFinn]

A friend from work just took the latest Zero EV bike for a test ride.

He rides an FZ1 and SV1000, after the test ride he was totally sold on the e-bike.

 

Performance and sensation of quiet speed and acceleration blew him away.

 

I think the e-bikes are going to be a big hit. And soon.

 

Mikko

[fourteenfour]

A friend from work just took the latest Zero EV bike for a test ride.

He rides an FZ1 and SV1000, after the test ride he was totally sold on the e-bike.

 

Performance and sensation of quiet speed and acceleration blew him away.

 

I think the e-bikes are going to be a big hit. And soon.

 

Mikko

 

Oh I think their fine as toys, but honestly I do not want a bike I cannot just take out on a whim a go to anywhere. I put them in the realm of those cute little electrics my nephew rode in his driveway. I would not put them in the same category as the cars.

[moshe_levy]

I have to agree with Chris. I'm an EV / Hybrid enthusiast when it comes to cars, and some of the aspects like instant torque would be great on bikes, but....

 

A 100 mile range relegates it to urban duty or commuting duty. No touring. That's a limiting factor.

 

-MKL

[Mike]

I have to agree with Chris. I'm an EV / Hybrid enthusiast when it comes to cars, and some of the aspects like instant torque would be great on bikes, but....

 

A 100 mile range relegates it to urban duty or commuting duty. No touring. That's a limiting factor.

 

-MKL

 

Assuming that the leaked photos are of the bike that's being contemplated, I'd agree. It looks like a blast to bop around on for short distances, but that limited range would knock it out of contention for me.

 

I've read that this is a not-ready-for-production motorcycle that Harley is going to display in various venues to gauge potential buyer reactions and, to the extent necessary, tweak the final offering. If so, there may be hope of a more versatile offering when it actually hits the market.

 

[Ponch]

I have to agree with Chris. I'm an EV / Hybrid enthusiast when it comes to cars, and some of the aspects like instant torque would be great on bikes, but....

 

A 100 mile range relegates it to urban duty or commuting duty. No touring. That's a limiting factor.

 

-MKL

 

Even with commuting…What happens if I forget to plug it in? My bike is my primary transportation. Getting gas takes 5 minutes, charging takes hours.

 

People are already making jokes about the sound and leaking oil.

[Selden]

That's a very weird photo. From the center back, it looks like a modern sport bike; forward HD. And the rider! De rigeur no helmet (although she could be wearing a headband), leather pants, and what appears to be a Glock strapped to her thigh.

[russell_bynum]

A 100 mile range relegates it to urban duty or commuting duty. No touring. That's a limiting factor.

 

-MKL

 

No touring for sure...but this wouldn't even be good for an afternoon ride.

 

It would be OK for the "Ride 10 miles from your house to the nearest 'biker bar' with a 2-day stubble to hang out and pretend you're a bad ass before going back home to wash the minivan." thing that most HD riders around here do.

 

But it's not big, chrome-laden, and loud...so I don't see those guys going for it.

 

Urban bike...OK...sure. But I could do better and cheaper with small dualsport on street tires.

[russell_bynum]

That's a very weird photo. From the center back, it looks like a modern sport bike; forward HD. And the rider! De rigeur no helmet (although she could be wearing a headband), leather pants, and what appears to be a Glock strapped to her thigh.

 

What's wrong with that...isn't that how everyone rides? I like the hair styled to look like she (or is it a he??) is going fast.

 

Seems legit.

 

 

 

 

[Antimatter]

That's a very weird photo. From the center back, it looks like a modern sport bike; forward HD. And the rider! De rigeur no helmet (although she could be wearing a headband), leather pants, and what appears to be a Glock strapped to her thigh.

 

I'm thinking that's a stunt double for Scarlett Johansson aka the Black Widow. The headband might be the attachment point for the red wig the stunt person is wearing.

 

I would love the idea of an electric motorcycle if they'd solve the range problem. Swappable batteries? A way to swap out old electrolyte for fresh stuff? Pony Express-type bike swaps? There ought to be a way.

[Selden]

I still don't understand Harley's thinking on this, unless California plans to extend its "X% of sales have to come from ZEVs" mandate from cars to motorcycles.

 

If Honda introduced an electric motorcycle, I could understand it, but coming from Harley is just weird.

[russell_bynum]

That's a very weird photo. From the center back, it looks like a modern sport bike; forward HD. And the rider! De rigeur no helmet (although she could be wearing a headband), leather pants, and what appears to be a Glock strapped to her thigh.

 

I'm thinking that's a stunt double for Scarlett Johansson aka the Black Widow. The headband might be the attachment point for the red wig the stunt person is wearing.

 

I would love the idea of an electric motorcycle if they'd solve the range problem. Swappable batteries? A way to swap out old electrolyte for fresh stuff? Pony Express-type bike swaps? There ought to be a way.

 

With current technology this is a square peg/round hole situation.

[moshe_levy]

I have to agree with Chris. I'm an EV / Hybrid enthusiast when it comes to cars, and some of the aspects like instant torque would be great on bikes, but....

 

A 100 mile range relegates it to urban duty or commuting duty. No touring. That's a limiting factor.

 

-MKL

 

Even with commuting…What happens if I forget to plug it in? My bike is my primary transportation. Getting gas takes 5 minutes, charging takes hours.

 

People are already making jokes about the sound and leaking oil.

 

As an EV guy I can tell you that you have the same chance of "forgetting to charge" as you do of "forgetting to fill up." We do not yet know the charging system in this bike - if it's direct DC, yes, it may take minutes. You can fill a Tesla's 80KW pack to 80% in less than 30 minutes now - this is barely 1/10 the capacity. So that, too, isn't necessarily an issue.

 

A larger point is being missed IMO. Is this the bike for the lynyrd skynyrd straight-pipe barhopper crowd? No, obviously not.

 

BUT.... Isn't it the first serious attempt by a major manufacturer? Yes. Does it show a willingness to push the boundaries technologically? Yes. Does it mean the MoCo is willing to put some serious $$$ and engineering muscle behind the idea when no other major player did? Yes. And all this DESPITE a mostly conservative customer base that insists on handcuffing the company to strictly the "rolling nostalgia" class of motorcycles? Yes, to that too.

 

It's a big deal for those reasons. It signals acceptance of the genre by a market leader. And it makes guys like me want to open my wallet.

 

-MKL

[Ponch]

I have to agree with Chris. I'm an EV / Hybrid enthusiast when it comes to cars, and some of the aspects like instant torque would be great on bikes, but....

 

A 100 mile range relegates it to urban duty or commuting duty. No touring. That's a limiting factor.

 

-MKL

 

Even with commuting…What happens if I forget to plug it in? My bike is my primary transportation. Getting gas takes 5 minutes, charging takes hours.

 

People are already making jokes about the sound and leaking oil.

 

As an EV guy I can tell you that you have the same chance of "forgetting to charge" as you do of "forgetting to fill up." We do not yet know the charging system in this bike - if it's direct DC, yes, it may take minutes. You can fill a Tesla's 80KW pack to 80% in less than 30 minutes now - this is barely 1/10 the capacity. So that, too, isn't necessarily an issue.

 

A larger point is being missed IMO. Is this the bike for the lynyrd skynyrd straight-pipe barhopper crowd? No, obviously not.

 

BUT.... Isn't it the first serious attempt by a major manufacturer? Yes. Does it show a willingness to push the boundaries technologically? Yes. Does it mean the MoCo is willing to put some serious $$$ and engineering muscle behind the idea when no other major player did? Yes. And all this DESPITE a mostly conservative customer base that insists on handcuffing the company to strictly the "rolling nostalgia" class of motorcycles? Yes, to that too.

 

It's a big deal for those reasons. It signals acceptance of the genre by a market leader. And it makes guys like me want to open my wallet.

 

-MKL

 

I never forget to fill up, but I forget to charge my phone all the time.

 

Didn't know they charge that fast now.

[Ponch]

“The sound that we’ve developed for this motorcycle is uniquely our own,” explains Richlen. “It is not silent. It’s far from it. It has a very distinct sound that is a result of the architecture we have chosen for the motor.”

 

The whine comes from the bevel gear that shifts the longitudinal motor’s output 90 degrees and sends it to the belt final drive.

 

SOUND? They had to develop SOUND?

I guess LOUD GEARS will save lives, eh?

 

 

I will bet it will sound more like a "sewing machine" than any Boxer motor ever did!

 

 

 

Probably pretty quiet:

 

Amazing how quiet it can be considering the speed/power.

[moshe_levy]

There is definitely something visceral about the sound of some engines, that's for sure.

 

As one who has experienced it firsthand, I will also tell you there is something visceral about accelerating to 60mph in about 4 seconds flat without a peep, in a 5,000 pound car. Max torque from 0 rpm? Yeah, that's pretty visceral.

 

Let's give it a shot. See how it feels. Then pass a judgment on it.

 

I'm just happy they're taking a chance, and perhaps giving America the opportunity to lead in this segment, like we do in electric cars.

 

-MKL

[russell_bynum]

SOUND? They had to develop SOUND?

I guess LOUD GEARS will save lives, eh?

 

 

What's wrong with that? All the manufacturer's work to develop the right sound for their bikes.

 

I remember and article about a BMW cage...the Z4 I think...where the engineers spent fairly considerable effort piping intake noise into the cockpit.

[eddd]

I'm developing a sound farkle for the new Harley.

 

You'll get dual 500 watt amplifier/speaker units housed in two Screaming Eagle pipes. Proprietary software matches the bike's speed to the sound made by gasoline powered straight pipe Harley. An added feature is that the sound system software is able to recognize when the bike is at idle and will respond with continual throttle blipping. But in addition to that feature the system has visual recognition capability. If a chick or other bike is within range of the sensors the throttle blipping will be intensified in sound level and length of time.

 

[moshe_levy]

I remember as a kid there was an article about Mazda trying something like 3 semi-trucks full of different exhaust systems before settling on the final choice for the Miata when it first launched. Even BMW started paying attention recently. My friend Matt's 2013 R1200R has an exhaust valve which opens up during WOT on his bike - sounds MUCH less like a wet duck fart than my 2009 RT at WOT, that's for sure.

 

-MKL

[russell_bynum]

BUT.... Isn't it the first serious attempt by a major manufacturer? Yes. Does it show a willingness to push the boundaries technologically? Yes. Does it mean the MoCo is willing to put some serious $$$ and engineering muscle behind the idea when no other major player did? Yes. And all this DESPITE a mostly conservative customer base that insists on handcuffing the company to strictly the "rolling nostalgia" class of motorcycles? Yes, to that too.

 

It's a big deal for those reasons. It signals acceptance of the genre by a market leader. And it makes guys like me want to open my wallet.

 

I love bold moves...when they result in something worthwhile.

 

But the best I can tell...this bike is only usable to the Starbucks Angels bar-hopper crowd...and they aren't going to buy it because it's not big and flashy and loud. For everyone else, it doesn't have the range to be even remotely worthwhile.

 

So...what's the point?

 

As a first attempt and a concept bike I guess it's interesting but I can't see it actually selling, so I have a hard time getting excited about it. And you _say_ it makes you want to open your wallet, but unless you actually do then who cares?

 

I can just see that HD Board meeting:

Board: We lost a gazillion dollars on the electric bike program.

Wandell: Yeah, but there are some people out there who post on the internet that this bike makes them want to open their wallet.

Board: ...

 

 

[moshe_levy]

You and I have been through this a gazillion times. I am an early adopter. You are not. At least with EVs, etc. It's not a product question at this point - it's a matter of what you see (or don't see) in terms of potential.

 

-MKL

[Ponch]

http://www.cycleworld.com/videos/latest_videos/harley-davidson-livewire/#ooid=12MzNkbjoudIz0pmcG-dny5MsXMCs698

[russell_bynum]

You and I have been through this a gazillion times. I am an early adopter. You are not. At least with EVs, etc. It's not a product question at this point - it's a matter of what you see (or don't see) in terms of potential.

 

-MKL

 

Unless you're going to buy one of these, then you're not an early adopter....you're an early lip-fpla

 

Hey...I love lots of stuff about electric. I can't see ever owning another gas-powered RC plane or helicopter. I love the little electric go-karts at places like K1 (though I have several times gotten a kart that started running out of juice late in a race.)

 

The performance of a well-sorted electric motorcycle should be quite impressive.

 

That's all good.

 

But if you can't actually use it, then it's not interesting.

 

And despite all the talk and the effort, I just haven't seen much in the way of real solutions to the range issue. The best out there by a huge margin is the Model S...which was designed from the ground up as a BEV (vs. pretty much every other BEV which is a normal car adapted to a BEV)...with all of Tesla's cool technology and it's still not a viable car. Oh boy...you can 80% charge it in 30 minutes (If you accidentally find yourself near a charger and it isn't broken or in use.). I can fully fuel my car in well under 5 minutes, so forgive me for not being excited. And I have friends who are actual BEV early adopters (including one who was in that "who killed the electric car" movie. It's absolutely not a mainstream solution. You have to really want to make it work and you have to make some fairly substantial changes and compromises to make it work. That's fine for affluent people with nothing better to do, but most people want their vehicle to fit their life and not the other way around.

 

I like BEV technology and I think it makes a bunch of sense in some situations. But I really think we're working too hard and wasting too much time/money/energy trying to force it to work across a more mainstream use case when there is no realistic hope of that ever happening.

 

Get the range up to 200-250 miles on this bike and make it appeal to the day ride folks (Sportbike squids would be prime candidates...though I don't know that they'd be interested in buying a Harley. The HD riders who do day rides might be interested...I dunno.) and then they might have something. Electric seems like it would be good for Motocross where you're not riding for very long at a stretch and you're never far from "base"...though you'd have to be able to charge between motos using something portable enough to take with you in the back of a pickup. And it has to be light...which has been another big drawback of BEV so far.

[russell_bynum]

I do kinda dig the styling, though.

[Rob L]

How many miles between bars? You could plug your bike in, have a beer or 2 and then ride a few miles to the next bar. And then sneak back home without waking anyone up. Harley has it all figured out

[moshe_levy]

But if you can't actually use it, then it's not interesting.

 

Yes, it's the same old argument, which is in fact the motto of the late adopter. "It's not usable, it's too new, let somebody else beta test it, etc.."

 

I'd simply advise you to tell me the last time you saw a 3 month waiting list for an $85k+ car (Tesla) - an American one, at that. They're not all sitting in garages unused. Neither are the hybrids, EVs, and all the rest which are "unusable" and yet, which are VASTLY outperforming the overall market in terms of sales. In other words, they're trending from early adoption to more mainstream acceptance. And much as you'd like to think that every customer of these vehicles is a moron who doesn't know what "usable" is, by THEIR definition (which is all that counts, since they're the actual paying customers) the vehicles ARE usable. Else they wouldn't buy them.

 

Does the transition from early adoption to mainstream purchasing happen overnight? No. Does it mean it's the right choice for everybody? Certainly not. But... Does it mean that you consistently say "there is no future in it" despite the obvious evidence to the contrary? Of course not.

 

Years ago only garage tinkerers were making electric cars. Then Toyota got into the game in the mid 1990s, and that changed everything. They have the engineering, the money, the distribution - to make it happen. Back then, they were met with ENORMOUS skepticism. And yet, today, EVERY major manufacturer makes an EV offering, if not multiple ones. Without exception. Those that don't make their own - like Mercedes - are forced to buy from others that do. Like Tesla. Imagine that.

 

What we are seeing here is the "Toyota moment" just in the motorcycle world. It's not about what is - it's about what is going to be. If this bike actually goes on sale, and has a reasonable range and charging capability, you can bet I will be one of the first on line.

 

-MKL

[Matts_12GS]

There is definitely something visceral about the sound of some engines, that's for sure.

 

As one who has experienced it firsthand, I will also tell you there is something visceral about accelerating to 60mph in about 4 seconds flat without a peep, in a 5,000 pound car. Max torque from 0 rpm? Yeah, that's pretty visceral.

 

Let's give it a shot. See how it feels. Then pass a judgment on it.

 

I'm just happy they're taking a chance, and perhaps giving America the opportunity to lead in this segment, like we do in electric cars.

 

-MKL

 

I hate to admit that I agree with Moshe on this point. I think it could be cool, and maybe enough for me to consider one for lightweight duty.

 

I'm really disappointed by all the stereotyping trolls though dismissing the concept instead waiting to see what happens. I guess they're too busy playing McGyver to keep their old bikes alive or sitting in the waiting room at the dealership drinking kool-aid while they get their ESA recall done.

[moshe_levy]

Hallelujah! Matt and I are in accord!

 

-MKL

[Matts_12GS]

Hallelujah! Matt and I are in accord!

 

-MKL

 

[moshe_levy]

Oh, c'mon. It's not that bad....

 

-MKL

[russell_bynum]

Yes, it's the same old argument, which is in fact the motto of the late adopter. "It's not usable, it's too new, let somebody else beta test it, etc.."

 

That's not my argument at all. There's nothing new about electric cars. My argument is that I'm growing more and more convinced that it's never (though I hesitate to use that word) going to be a mainstream solution and that we're wasting too much time trying to make a square peg fit in a round hole.

 

 

I'd simply advise you to tell me the last time you saw a 3 month waiting list for an $85k+ car (Tesla) - an American one, at that.

 

Hey man...I live in Southern California. You can't turn around without bumping into a Model S around here. They're pretty much replaced the S-class Mercedes and 7-series BMW's that used to litter the landscape here.

 

 

They're not all sitting in garages unused.

 

No, they're not. They're being driven as daily runabouts and commuters. And every single person I know who owns one has at least one normal car for when they actually need to go somewhere. As I said...it's fine for affluent people who have nothing better to do but for people who want their car to fit their life rather than the other way around...not so much. But the Model S isn't priced for those people anyway.

 

 

Neither are the hybrids, EVs, and all the rest which are "unusable" and yet, which are VASTLY outperforming the overall market in terms of sales.

 

When did I say Hybrids were unusable? Aside from the added cost and complexity, I think a hybrid is a pretty good mainstream solution. I'm leery of them personally because of the miles that I put on my vehicles...the long-term reliability is still not known and the numbers vs. buying a fuel-efficient regular car don't work for me...but my commute and my tendency to keep vehicles a long time are hardly mainstream. As for the other EV's...I'm not seeing them. I'll occasionally see a Leaf. A friend has a Fit EV (fun car, btw. Feels peppier than my normal Fit...though they sacrificed the "magic seat" that was one of the best features of the car in order to make room for the battery pack.) But otherwise I'm just not seeing them out there in any real numbers. And everyone I know who owns one has a regular car for when they actually need to go places. Again...it's only workable if you're affluent and willing to make it work.

 

 

What we are seeing here is the "Toyota moment" just in the motorcycle world. It's not about what is - it's about what is going to be.

 

Yes...and since Toyota started doing this in the 90's I haven't really seen any real improvements. That's my whole point. The Model S is slicker than the rav4 EV was and it benefits greatly from being designed as an EV from the ground up. And it's grotesquely expensive. And even with all of that it's only marginally useful as a daily driver.

 

If this bike actually goes on sale, and has a reasonable range and charging capability, you can bet I will be one of the first on line.

 

So...if it goes on sale and if it eliminates all of the drawbacks that all current BEV's suffer from, you'll pry open your wallet? Yeah, I'm with you there...IF the price is reasonable. I'd be on that like fat on a mother in-law.

 

And if if's and buts were candy and nuts, we'd all have a Merry Christmas.

[moshe_levy]

What we are seeing here is the "Toyota moment" just in the motorcycle world. It's not about what is - it's about what is going to be.

 

Yes...and since Toyota started doing this in the 90's I haven't really seen any real improvements. That's my whole point.

 

Absurd on every level. A late 1990s Prius is outclassed in MPGs by a modern econobox with no battery whatsoever. And a car like Volt can offer infinite economy. We went from lead acid to nickel and now to Lithium in those years... It's not a statement even worth considering.

 

The specs of the Livewire have yet to be finalized. I saw reports today ranging from 50 miles (HA!) to over 100. We shall see where it winds up, and how useful it is.

 

This is an issue that goes beyond the product you see right now. It means real muscle and money is behind the IDEA. And that means great product will result in the future.

 

-MKL

[Selden]

But the best I can tell...this bike is only usable to the Starbucks Angels bar-hopper crowd...and they aren't going to buy it because it's not big and flashy and loud...

I can't find the source, but several years ago I remember hearing from someone who worked at HD's York,PA factory, who said that the average HD is ridden less than 500 miles per year.

 

The nearest thing to the LiveWire in the HD product line is the V-Rod. I can't find more recent figures, but in the year HD introduced the V-Rod, they reportedly sold 1703 V-Rods, 240,416 traditional Harleys and 5995 Buells. In the past 13 years, I don't think I have seen more than 1 V-Rod per year on the road. It would seem that HD is willing to carry a model with abysmal sales over a long time, so the electric HD may have a place in their lineup. It will be interesting to see who it appeals to.

 

That said, the HD LiveWire has produced more positive publicity for Harley than they have gotten in years, which may be worth more than their sales.

 

The best article I've seen to date is this one from Wired: Harley-Davidson’s First Electric Motorcycle Surprisingly Doesn’t Suck. Absent from much of today's coverage is this:

 

"...[T]his isn’t a production model. Not yet, anyway. Harley is taking a few dozen LiveWires on a tour, dubbed Project LiveWire, of the United States and Europe."

[russell_bynum]

 

Absurd on every level. A late 1990s Prius is outclassed in MPGs by a modern econobox with no battery whatsoever. And a car like Volt can offer infinite economy. We went from lead acid to nickel and now to Lithium in those years... It's not a statement even worth considering.

 

That's funny...I thought we were talking about BEV's.

 

Yeah, the battery tech has changed and that's helped a little (lighter. More power. etc) But these are small changes and not real game changers. A Leaf is not practical for most people for the same reason the EV1 wasn't practice for most people 20 years ago....despite all of the advances you mentioned.

 

The specs of the Livewire have yet to be finalized. I saw reports today ranging from 50 miles (HA!) to over 100. We shall see where it winds up, and how useful it is.

 

Yup.

 

 

This is an issue that goes beyond the product you see right now. It means real muscle and money is behind the IDEA. And that means great product will result in the future.

 

It doesn't mean that at all. For this to work, they have to make something that their customers will buy. Tesla is doing great at that and hopefully they'll use what they're learning to make a car that normal people could afford. I'm having trouble figuring out who would buy an electric Harley....especially if the range is as crappy as we've heard. If nobody buys it then it's going to be a hard sell to the HD board to keep pouring money into a losing product.

[Selden]

... hybrids, EVs, and all the rest which are... are VASTLY outperforming the overall market in terms of sales

That's a highly misleading statement, and applies only for year to year change in sales. In absolute terms, hybrids accounted 3.0% of US automotive sales in 2012; that's a 50% increase from 2.1% in 2011. Three percent of the market after 15 years is a far cry from VASTLY outperforming the market in terms of overall sales.

[Selden]

...We do not yet know the charging system in this bike - if it's direct DC, yes, it may take minutes. You can fill a Tesla's 80KW pack to 80% in less than 30 minutes now - this is barely 1/10 the capacity....

 

Harley isn’t saying much about the drivetrain beyond saying the bike uses a lithium-ion battery with a range of 53 miles. It charges in 3.5 hours at 220 volts. [emphasis, mine]

[Selden]

I was 8 years old when GM introduced the Firebird XP-21 car, and I thought it was incredibly cool. In fact, I built a model version, powered by a CO2 cartridge. I was lucky enough to see the Firebird XP-21 up close two weeks ago. Like the LiveWire, "None of the [Firebird] designs were intended for production, but instead were to showcase the extremes in technology and design that General Motors was able to achieve."

 

 

 

The 1954 Firebird was followed by these models:

 

[moshe_levy]

...We do not yet know the charging system in this bike - if it's direct DC, yes, it may take minutes. You can fill a Tesla's 80KW pack to 80% in less than 30 minutes now - this is barely 1/10 the capacity....

 

Harley isn’t saying much about the drivetrain beyond saying the bike uses a lithium-ion battery with a range of 53 miles. It charges in 3.5 hours at 220 volts. [emphasis, mine]

 

Likely that is slightly misleading. House voltage is either 120 or 240. If it charges in 3.5 hours at 240VAC, then it's pretty much a dead on equivalent of the Volt's 10.5KWh usable capacity.

 

What's NOT known (yet) is whether it can be charged direct from DC. BMW is offering that option on the i3, for example. That cuts down on charging time exponentially.

 

-MKL

[UberXY]

I'm going to be very open minded about this, and I look forward to seeing how this product turns out.

 

What surprises me here is not that another electric bike comes to market, buy that it comes from Harley. HD always struck me as a technology laggard, not a leader. Kind of like NASCAR...twenty years behind the technology curve. This may well serve to change my opinion of HD even if I don't buy the bike. (I would rather have a Tesla motorcycle....)

 

I wish them every success with this.

[upflying]

I'm going to be very open minded about this, and I look forward to seeing how this product turns out.

 

What surprises me here is not that another electric bike comes to market, buy that it comes from Harley. HD always struck me as a technology laggard, not a leader. Kind of like NASCAR...twenty years behind the technology curve. This may well serve to change my opinion of HD even if I don't buy the bike. (I would rather have a Tesla motorcycle....)

 

I wish them every success with this.

Me thinks the Electric Glide is an attempt by HD to gain political favor with Washington. Could be a future cap and trade ace in the hole. That would allow HD to continue to produce dirtier air cooled Big Twins for a few more years without the EPA breathing down their necks.

[fourteenfour]

“The sound that we’ve developed for this motorcycle is uniquely our own,” explains Richlen. “It is not silent. It’s far from it. It has a very distinct sound that is a result of the architecture we have chosen for the motor.”

 

The whine comes from the bevel gear that shifts the longitudinal motor’s output 90 degrees and sends it to the belt final drive.

 

SOUND? They had to develop SOUND?

I guess LOUD GEARS will save lives, eh?

 

 

I will bet it will sound more like a "sewing machine" than any Boxer motor ever did!

 

 

 

Probably pretty quiet:

 

Amazing how quiet it can be considering the speed/power.

 

We can fix that, Turbospoke

[tallman]

I don't care who does it.

 

If they build it I'm on board.

 

By it Imean 250 mile range, minimum, so I can commute or day trip.

 

If you build it...

[moshe_levy]

Battery technology is exploding and every year, they get smaller, lighter, and gain capacity. While a 250 mile range on an MC is still not feasible due to size / cost / weight, in time it will happen.

 

That's what makes this new HD great - the process is helped when the heavyweights in the marketplace get behind the idea. Their money, engineering expertise, distribution, and innovation push this along at a faster pace.

 

As for HD being a tech laggard, like the Vrod before it, the Livewire proves that the MoCo is dying to stretch its legs technologically, and maybe even push the boundaries a little - but the company is handcuffed to an extremely conservative, Luddite customer base which fears ANY change to the status quo. They're getting older though, and the MoCo needs to get the next generation of young customers into the showroom. They're hoping products like the Street line and concepts like the Livewire help in that endeavor.

 

-MKL

[UberXY]

 

...but the company is handcuffed to an extremely conservative, Luddite customer base which fears ANY change to the status quo.

 

-MKL

 

Does anyone here hang out on one of the dress-like-a-pirate HD boards? How are they reacting to this?

 

And is this bike just a testing the waters publicity stunt, or is it scheduled for production?