Electric sled...the evolution and our expectations

EricV

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#21
Swappable batteries could be the answer for LD riding, but the infrastructure required would be massive and I can’t see all bike manufacturers agreeing on a common system any time soon.
The possible work around with that idea is to have a support vehicle capable of charging one or two batteries while the rider is running down a third with the bike.
 

Firstpeke

Well-Known Member
#22
Can you imagine the cost of such a venture?

*/ Rant mode

I still don't understand this headlong rush to electric vehicles when there is never going to be enough rare earth elements to do what all the politicians think they want to do.... never mind the provision of sufficient electrical generation infrastructure to charge the expensive white elephants!

I did a quick calculation for my street of 24 houses and if every house had just one car that would be 24x7Kw chargers, or a maximum provision of 168KW just for one street,
If there are say 1000 houses in our village, and again everyone has one car, that's 7MW, SEVEN MEGAWATTS....

If there are just one million houses, well you get the idea.

Now not everyone will be charging at full rate, if at all, every night, but if you have a 7KW charger that is what it has to be supplied at.

This is over and above all the household's normal power requirements...... particularly as they want us all to go all electric and do away with gas!

Is it just me or does anyone else think that both the greens and other politicians who are planning to ban internal combustion engines haven't really paid attention to the glaringly large details of their insane plans?

Someone has been reading too much science fiction and ignoring science fact.

Rant mode */
 

Ed.

Premier Member
#23
Swappable batteries could be the answer for LD riding, but the infrastructure required would be massive and I can’t see all bike manufacturers agreeing on a common system any time soon.
I seem to remember a grand all singing media release announcing that an impressive array of manufacturers were collaborating on exactly this sort of system. Since then...crickets.
I see this as the only viable way forward, not only for our chosen pastime but also for any real traction of electric tech in areas of genuine "remote"/non-urban travel.
 

Rollin'

Premier Member
#24
I completed my 31st IBA ride last year at 68 years old, it was probably my last long-distance ride. Not because of my health but my wife's. I'm a fulltime caregiver for her, I don't leave the house much so that changed things.
I always wanted to try an electric vehicle and noticed that I wasn't getting any younger so this past spring I bought a 2022 LiveWire.
The salespeople at the dealer seemed surprised that this gray haired 69-year-old was buying this electric bike.
I like it a lot! Fast, quiet, smooth and so easy to ride, click and go. No clutch, shifting and with the REGEN braking I don't use the brakes much. One hand operation. I plug it in at the end of the day and it sends me a message when it's done charging. Another thing I like is there is no heat off of the engine. The battery temp when riding is about three degrees above ambient temp, you don't feel any heat.
If I was doing long distance rides it would not be my first choice but for a second bike, I think it's perfect.
I have two other bikes, a 1975 Ducati 860 GT and a Yamaha SCR950. If I am able to ride further the Yamaha will work for that. If I feel the need to use a kick start, hand choke, clutch and shift I have the Ducati. :) The LiveWire is my first pick most of the time.
Didn't think I would have a purple bike that can go zero to sixty in three seconds when I was 70 years old, but I like it!
It does start a lot of parking lot conversations.



The fleet.

 
Last edited:
#25
Swappable batteries could be the answer for LD riding, but the infrastructure required would be massive and I can’t see all bike manufacturers agreeing on a common system any time soon.
The big 4 Japanese brands have an agreement with Gogoro to use their standard and form factor for swappable batteries. It's only being used in small urban bikes, scooters and such in dense urban centers in Asia and Africa.

Honestly my bike already has a liquid cooled motor and inverter. If it had 18KWH battery that was also liquid cooled instead of a 22KWH passive air-cooled battery it would probably be the touring king right now. But capacity and range is what sells. It's what sold me. Only after riding it for 8000 miles in 5 months, did I realize what I really want....is cooling capacity.
 
#26
I completed my 31st IBA ride last year at 68 years old, it was probably my last long-distance ride. Not because of my health but my wife's. I'm a fulltime caregiver for her, I don't leave the house much so that changed things.
I always wanted to try an electric vehicle and noticed that I wasn't getting any younger so this past spring I bought a 2022 LiveWire.
The salespeople at the dealer seemed surprised that this gray haired 69-year-old was buying this electric bike.
I like it a lot! Fast, quiet, smooth and so easy to ride, click and go. No clutch, shifting and with the REGEN braking I don't use the brakes much. One hand operation. I plug it in at the end of the day and it sends me a message when it's done charging. Another thing I like is there is no heat off of the engine. The battery temp when riding is about three degrees above ambient temp, you don't feel any heat.
If I was doing long distance rides it would not be my first choice but for a second bike, I think it's perfect.
I have two other bikes, a 1975 Ducati 860 GT and a Yamaha SCR950. If I am able to ride further the Yamaha will work for that. If I feel the need to use a kick start, hand choke, clutch and shift I have the Ducati. :) The LiveWire is my first pick most of the time.
Didn't think I would have a purple bike that can go zero to sixty in three seconds when I was 70 years old, but I like it!
It does start a lot of parking lot conversations.



The fleet.

That Livewire is an amazing piece of engineering. The choice to skip 240 volt charging and just have 120 volt AC and the DCFC shows they really build to the use case of most people. (slow charge overnight at home and DC fast charge when out and about). It saved weight, compared to other electrics with similar capacity, and the ability of that pack to shed heat is evidence it was designed by a company making air cooled bikes for a century. Now that it's in its 4th year of production the price is very competitive. It's reliable and looks great. If I had room in my garage and wallet for more than one bike, electric or not, the Livewire One would definitely be it.
 
#28
I completed my 31st IBA ride last year at 68 years old, it was probably my last long-distance ride. Not because of my health but my wife's. I'm a fulltime caregiver for her, I don't leave the house much so that changed things.
I always wanted to try an electric vehicle and noticed that I wasn't getting any younger so this past spring I bought a 2022 LiveWire.
The salespeople at the dealer seemed surprised that this gray haired 69-year-old was buying this electric bike.
I like it a lot! Fast, quiet, smooth and so easy to ride, click and go. No clutch, shifting and with the REGEN braking I don't use the brakes much. One hand operation. I plug it in at the end of the day and it sends me a message when it's done charging. Another thing I like is there is no heat off of the engine. The battery temp when riding is about three degrees above ambient temp, you don't feel any heat.
If I was doing long distance rides it would not be my first choice but for a second bike, I think it's perfect.
I have two other bikes, a 1975 Ducati 860 GT and a Yamaha SCR950. If I am able to ride further the Yamaha will work for that. If I feel the need to use a kick start, hand choke, clutch and shift I have the Ducati. :) The LiveWire is my first pick most of the time.
Didn't think I would have a purple bike that can go zero to sixty in three seconds when I was 70 years old, but I like it!
It does start a lot of parking lot conversations.



The fleet.

I have a few bevels myself....love em
 

MidTNJasonF

Premier Member
#29
I owned an electric motorcycle about 20 years ago in the early 2000's. It was a DIY garage conversion started by someone else and finished by me. It was very limited in range and speed due to the traditional battery tech. At the time my commute was less than ~20 miles a day even with errands and the max speed on the roads I traveled was 45mph. It worked perfectly with the bikes 45~50mph top speed and 30ish mile range. I used it heavily for several years.
I later converted it to reclaimed Nissan Leaf battery cells once those started hitting the market. This increased the range but not the top speed unless I wanted to get into motor and controller upgrades. It was 120v single phase household current for charging and took 6~8 hours to fully charge with the equipment I had available at the time.

I will own another electric bike, probably within the next three years. I will own an electric car, again probably within the next 3 to 5 years.

When I hear anti electric vehicle people spout off about infrastructure and lack of charging stations I pretty much immediately tune them out and discount their opinion. EV's are a rapidly evolving technology. So were IC cars in the late 1800's and early 1900's. I was not there but you can bet there were arguments made about the availability of gasoline and lack of fuel stations. The support of IC car fueling came along behind the development of the vehicles themselves. Millions of gas stations did not pop up in 1902 prior to Henry producing the Model A in 1903. They came after the fact and expanded with the proliferation of the vehicles and the roads they traveled on. EV's will be the same way but in our already highly developed world there will be challenges to overcome.

As much as I support EV development and use I do believe fuel cells are viable and they are also rapidly developing. There is a valid argument that the concentration on EV development is sapping interest and investment in pursuing other viable renewable energy vehicle tech.

If they make a bike with a 200~300 mile range and a sub 30 minute charging time I will do an IBA ride on one, if I can afford it of course.
 
#30
...
When I hear anti electric vehicle people spout off about infrastructure and lack of charging stations I pretty much immediately tune them out and discount their opinion. EV's are a rapidly evolving technology. So were IC cars in the late 1800's and early 1900's. I was not there but you can bet there were arguments made about the availability of gasoline and lack of fuel stations. The support of IC car fueling came along behind the development of the vehicles themselves. Millions of gas stations did not pop up in 1902 prior to Henry producing the Model A in 1903. They came after the fact and expanded with the proliferation of the vehicles and the roads they traveled on. EV's will be the same way but in our already highly developed world there will be challenges to overcome.

As much as I support EV development and use I do believe fuel cells are viable and they are also rapidly developing. There is a valid argument that the concentration on EV development is sapping interest and investment in pursuing other viable renewable energy vehicle tech.

If they make a bike with a 200~300 mile range and a sub 30 minute charging time I will do an IBA ride on one, if I can afford it of course.
Your post reminds me of the trials George Wyman faced when he made his cross-country motorcycle trek back in 1903.

Not only was gas hard to come by, the roads west of the Mississippi left much to be desired as well.

The charging infrastructure challenges today's EV motorcyclists face today are not unlike the fueling challenges Mr. Wyman faced back then.
 

Stephen!

Flivver Flyer
Premier Member
IBA Member
IBR Finisher
#32
When I hear anti electric vehicle people spout off about infrastructure and lack of charging stations I pretty much immediately tune them out and discount their opinion. EV's are a rapidly evolving technology. So were IC cars in the late 1800's and early 1900's. I was not there but you can bet there were arguments made about the availability of gasoline and lack of fuel stations.
In what kind container do you carry an extra five gallons of electrons?
 

EricV

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#36
Perpetual motion has been tried before. You can't use the bike's forward motion to spin a mounted wind turbine unit and develop enough energy to overcome the losses of making the energy. ;) At least with today's technology.