An interesting vehicle that is limited to being earthbound, and that has a price that isn't out of orbit for an average Joe, is the Kollter ES1-S (Street) and ES1-X (Enduro).
Already available in the US from Naticycle, and priced just under $6K, with a 12kW, centrally mounted motor and a 72V, 25.6 Ah battery, the ES1 is capable of an 80 mile range and speeds up to about 60mph. Base weight is 220 lb. Adding a 2nd, 32 Ah battery allows a higher ~72mph top speed and longer range.
75% charge can be achieved with the 15amp charger in 2 hours. 100% will take up to 5 hours. I'm pulling the numbers in this post from all three links below, and they don't agree, so these are a bit of mish-mosh.
https://electrek.co/2021/10/26/north-americas-most-affordable-70-mph-electric-motorcycle-is-already-here-and-no-one-noticed/http://www.kollter.com/es1.htmlhttps://naticycle.com/ols/products/kollter-es1-s-5kw-2x72v32-batteries1If I was a NEW motorcycle buyer, and given my current, "commute to work" usage pattern, a machine like this could be a real contender. My round trip daily ride is under 15 miles, at speeds under 50mph. This bike could handle that, easily. Perhaps the best value in an IC engine machine to do the same job would be something like this Genuine Buddy 170i scooter, that I can buy here direct from their Chicago based importer for around $3300.
http://www.genuinescooters.com/buddy170i.htmlI'll calculate the break-even mileage, assuming smooth running, and no major repairs required for either machine. I'll assume gas prices at $4/gallon. I paid more than that filling my Honda today. I suspect gas prices will be considerably higher before the break even period is finished, but lets keep the calculation simple. Let's assume that licensing, taxes, and registration is the same for both machines.
The Kollter will go about 700 recharge cycles before the battery is beyond hope. I'll need to charge twice every three weeks or so, lets say 40 times per year. That calculates to a 17.5 year life, which I'm skeptical of, but 8 years should be attainable with a little luck. That's 8 years of 25Ah * 72V recharges, 1.8 kW per charge. I think I'm paying about 13 cents per kwh and I'll say the charger is 85% efficient. That's 27.5 cents per recharge, on which I can go about 60 miles. The Kolter will cost me 2.2 cents per mile to operate.
The Buddy will get me 90 miles per $4/gallon of gas. That's 4.4 cents per mile. Scooters are cheap to ride. Oil changes are costing me $30 every 2000 miles, which brings me to 5.9 cents / mile to operate the Buddy.
With the cost of the Kollter being $2700 more than the Buddy, I'll need to ride a lot of miles before I've paid that difference off, just about 73,000 miles, to be exact.
This differential will continue to move in favor of the electric vehicles over the next few years. According to articles I've read, electric vehicle makers are predicting prices will be at parity within the next 5 to 10 years. When purchase prices equalize, the economics of ownership, will go increasingly in favor of the electrics.
Topic: E-Bike developments (Read 109141 times)