It was two years ago that Mugen caught some serious attention for an electric motorcycle. No, it wasn’t an electric superbike like the Mugen Shinden Hachi, which just broke cover in Japan, instead it was a dirt bike…with the bones of a dinosaur.
Called the Mugen E.Rex, the bike showed how the Japanese tuning brand was applying its electric vehicle knowledge into new spaces. And to be frank, there was a lot going on with the electric dirt bike concept.
First up, there was the appearance of the machine, which was…interesting, to say the least. But also, it was important to note what the Mugen E.Rex meant for the electric motorcycle space, as Mugen and Honda are very closely linked.
Now today, with the Honda CR Electric prototype debuting…along with a revised edition of the Mugen E.Rex, we see that these two bikes have an even deeper link to each other, as they are virtually identical.
While Mugen is very tightly lipped about the new edition of the E.Rex, we see that it shares the same chassis as the previous iteration, though the electric drivetrain appears to be all new.
This new Mugen E.Rex also shares its core with Honda’s electric dirt bike concept, with the two bikes really only differing in their approach to the bodywork. Whereas Honda is taking inspiration from its CRF lineup, we see that Mugen is taking design cues from its Shinden electric superbike, especially in the form of its vortex-creating aerodynamic fairings.
As such, the “ribs” from the first dinosaur design are still there, but Mugen has modernized them to look like cooling gills, and the effect is quite striking. Overall, the machine looks spot on, and we quite like the zigzagging number plates below the tail section.
Now, if we could just get someone at Honda or Mugen to tell us what is in store for these two concepts, then we would be set. Oh, and some tech specs too.
One thing is for certain though, these machines were designed to be Alta-killers, and they look very close to coming to market. Stay tuned. Below is the press info we got from Mugen.
Electric Motocross machine “E.REX Prototype”
2 years ago MUGEN unveiled an electric motocross concept named “E.REX”, and this year at the Mugen booth the company showed just how far the programme has come with the “E.REX Prototype”.
E.REX Prototype continues the powerful dinosaur visual theme, with the “T” from T-Rex substituted by“E” to denote the electric powertrain.
The EV MX programme is a collaborative project between Honda and MUGEN, with MUGEN, drawing on experience gained through the highly successful Shinden programme, taking responsibility for development of the battery and drivetrain.
Source: Mugen
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