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John Anthony

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Our local newspaper ran a piece this morning (http://seattletimes.com/html/businesstechnology/2024266130_harleyelectricxml.html) on the new Harley electric motorcycle. Maggie and I had a little time to kill, so she grabbed her gear, I grabbed the car keys and off we went. As you can see in the attached photo, one of the bikes was set up on rollers. Riders got a couple of minute pitch on what went into the bike and how it operates and then you got a quick little ride on the rollers. I've got to admit that the bike is fun and given its range limitations (55 miles or so) it could be a nice commuter bike.

Maggie got lucky and was able to take one out for a 15 minute or so test ride along with 4 other riders and she had a blast, but then what's not to like about an ultra smooth ride and 0-60 MPH in about 4 seconds. About the only thing funky on the bike are the mirrors, but if the bike ever does make it into production, there will surely be ample opportunities to swap them for something more attractive.

I spent about 45 minutes talking with one of the road show staff and it was no surprise when he told me their response from every place they've visited so far has been incredibly positive. Harley has not made a commitment to a production version, yet, but with battery technology progressing on about a daily basis, with a strong consumer response, my guess is it's only a matter of time before we see these on the street.

Also available to test ride was a trio of Teslas. Now that was an opportunity I couldn't pass up. We'll wait for the next generation (another 3 years or so), but I can definitely see one of those in our future.

John
 

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Always been a fan of EV. In fact, it was my research into some early electric motorcycles 15 years ago that got me back on a regular mc after a 19 year absence. The EV mc wasn't ready for any real production and I didn't want to wait. It was a Blackbird EV mc and I was looking at cutting the fuel bill on the commute to work. I was also looking into another EV car/motorcycle, 3 wheels, named the Sparrow and made by Corbin. Yeah, the seat guys. There was another company set up by Corbin called Corbin Motors. Problem there was that Corbin had hired some deadbeat management that got selfish and greedy and took them down. Now those cars ARE being sold but from another company called Meyers Motors. I am still interested in an EV mc for commuting. It only makes sense since my commute is 26 miles round trip and any stops are on the way there or back. An alternative I am looking into is the Elio by Elio Motors. But it's gas powered, 84 mpg, $6800, and more than 90% American sourced and made. Factory being set up to build these in Shreveport, LA (recycling the old GM plant).
 
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John Anthony

John Anthony

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The Elio is pretty interesting. If you do pick one up, I hope you'll post your experiences with it.

It will be fun to track the acceptance of electric vehicles over time. With battery technologies only getting better, they should be a winning proposition. They sure are a heck of a lot of fun to drive, that's for sure.

John
 
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I'm a little confused about the Harley electric. Do you add speakers, blaring exhaust noise, or is there something you can take off to make it loud? Otherwise, how are we gonna save lives?:tb1:
 
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John Anthony

John Anthony

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If the bike goes into production, adding sound is one of the issues we were told they'd be addressing, as much for safety reasons as anything else. Maggie tells me that when she was on the test ride, she'd hear a little whirring sound, but that's about it.

John
 
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Several brands of electric bikes already available but Harley would be an interesting entry. They fur sure have the resources to build one.
 
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John Anthony

John Anthony

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I agree with you, George. We learned Harley has been working on this bike for 4 years, so they've obviously given it a fair amount of thought and resources. I'm not a big Harley fan, but this is definitely a bike I could own for short trips. For bombing around town, it would be perfect.

John
 

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That E-Bike could be pretty cool! IF they go into production, did that rep. say anything about approx. COST ??

Gonna check the Tour dates & Locations, and maybe go to a demo and ride 1 if they get close. Thanks for the review.
 
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Guess there would be no "blipping" the throttle at the lights.... maybe they will add a Harley recording and an appropriate "blip" switch to satisfy the urge to announce themselves at every opportunity. e-vehicles are definitely going to be in the future, by the time they are really needed, the technology will be in place.
:bigpop:
 
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John Anthony

John Anthony

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That E-Bike could be pretty cool! IF they go into production, did that rep. say anything about approx. COST ??

Gonna check the Tour dates & Locations, and maybe go to a demo and ride 1 if they get close. Thanks for the review.
The rep I spoke with wouldn't comment on pricing. Still too many variables at this point in time. The newspaper article mentioned sub $20K pricing which I think would be appealing. With battery technology improving and costs coming down, that seems like it would be very achievable.

John
 
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