Mission motorcycles...

[SpikeC]

 We make electricity from water around here.........

[Stormtrooper]

Since most electricity in this country is generated by burning filthy brown coal....

I'll stick to my relatively environmentally friendly petroleum burning machines  .

Being involved in the EV community I've seen this argument many 'o times.  Bottom line is the hydrocarbons spent creating that electricity to charge up your battery is dramatically less than HCs spewed from the exhaust pipe of your ICE.  This is taking into account the nationwide average of ~40% of electricity being produced from coal.  This argument gets even weaker in green friendly states where coal makes up <10% of the electrical fuel source.  

[LowThudd]

Not to mention the issues of domestic fuel vs. foreign oil,

[thought]

site is live, details are up... what do guys think?

www.mission-motorcycles.com

rs or r? haha

[hbliam]

The price is pure stupid.

[thought]

this quote on their home page is pretty cool though:



    “The Mission RS is the first motorcycle that shows the new thinking that will allow the next generation of riders to entirely reinvent motorcycles.”

    Miguel Galluzzi - Designer of the Ducati Monster

[Dirty Duc]

I'd like to know what they mean by "real world range."

If changes in riding style can knock 40 miles of 3.5 gallons, how much will it knock off of 12 kWh?

And how much does the whole bike weigh?  "drops into corners like no other motorcycle before" seems a bit hyperbolic without any other data to back it up.

The price?  At least it's cheaper than the Motus... and includes delivery.

Still useless for my purposes unless you can carry a charger with and it will charge in 30 minutes (I thought planning gas stops every 100 miles in the wilderness was bad, imagine planning to find places that will let you plug your bike in while you eat or do whatever).

[thought]

hmmm... so what i'm thinking is their rating should be relatively accurate if i'm drawing off from what we know of the brammo empulse.

brammo empulse has something like 10 kwh and tests on it have said that it gets around 80 miles per charge with real world driving.

so..

12 kwh: 100 miles
15 kwh: 120 miles
17 kwh: 140 miles

for the mission.  so for e bikes, every 2 kwh adds about 20 miles of real world range?

but i'm sure if you're beating it around a track you'll get way less.

[hbliam]

The price?  At least it's cheaper than the Motus... and includes delivery.

If it's more then 20K for a new tech bike with limited range and limited to no charging options on the road they are just being stupid about the pricing. Leno will buy one and ride it to the Rock Store twice and park it in his garage.

Delivery? Like included delivery is a selling point. Let me know what $20K bike you want and I'll personally go pick it up and drop it off at your house for another 15 to 50K. What a deal. 

I've considered a Brammo for commuting to and from work but they aren't quite "there" for me.

[Dirty Duc]

If it's more then 20K for a new tech bike with limited range and limited to no charging options on the road they are just being stupid about the pricing. Leno will buy one and ride it to the Rock Store twice and park it in his garage.

Delivery? Like included delivery is a selling point. Let me know what $20K bike you want and I'll personally go pick it up and drop it off at your house for another 15 to 50K. What a deal. 

I've considered a Brammo for commuting to and from work but they aren't quite "there" for me.

You take me too seriously... I think the Motus is wildly overpriced as well (a new tech bike that starts at $31k?)... and the nearest dealer is about 470 miles away.

I don't want either of those bikes at that price point.

As for the Brammo... the cheap one is 8g... the one that looks like a motorcycle is nudging up on 20k... and neither one is much better than a maxi-scooter as far as performance.

The nearest Brammo dealer is also 470 miles for me. 

Of course, it looks like "real world" driving doesn't work for me on an electric bike (half city, half highway).  Brammo's website shows a claimed highway range of 56 miles (at a sustained 70mph)... and that means I can't ride it anywhere except to work and home and maybe once across town on a charge.  I certainly can't take a quick ride during lunch, as then I might not make it home.  That kind of range won't even get me to the next city... not to mention I'd get run over for going too slow.

I realize I'm in the minority here... but until they solve the range "problem" (in quotes because apparently I am a freak who likes to drive/ride) an EV only makes sense in places where mass transit makes sense.  And an electric motorcycle only makes sense in CA (or other legal lane-splitting places) or on a track. 

[triangleforge]

An interesting interview with Steve Rapp about lapping the Mission R at Laguna:

http://rideapart.com/2013/06/steve-rapps-famous-mission-r-ride/

As noted in that article, Mission - like MotoCzysz and many of the other electric bike builders - is more focused on where the real money lies, perfecting technologies to sell to OEM car builders and getting their attention. Not on building and marketing a motorcycle.

And at the Isle of Man, electrics are for the first time doing the ton, with three bikes setting practice laps of 104-107 mph. (Scroll to the bottom of the story linked below):

http://www.iomtt.com/News/2013/06/02/Solos-set-for-thrilling-Dainese-Superbike.aspx

An electric that is a viable, affordable, straight-up replacement for a desirable gas motorcycle isn't a reality yet, but looking at what's out there right now as compared with just last year, I wouldn't be surprised to see continued fast evolution toward that end.

[Triple J]

Damn those are pricey! 

I'd love to try an RS on the track though. Not having to shift gears would be fantastic! 

[zLoki]

The dash...  I want the dash, sell that and I'll buy it in a heartbeat....

[Nero-92]

Not a fan but on the Island on the 37 mile mountain course the electric bike does an average speed of over 100 mph. But it only does 1 lap.

[Stormtrooper]

so much for the "loud pipes save lives" mantra.  This bike is badass but like I said previously, its more or less a beta at this stage, targeting only the super wealthy that can blow $60k without a care - there are plenty of these types in SoCal.  I can't wait to see what 5 years time will bring in this sector!

no shifting, instant torque, infinite packaging possibilities, no oil changes...there will be a lot to like in the future.