News

Don’t Call It Vaporware – Brammo Empulse Coming May 8th

Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr

Taking nearly two years to go from vaporware to reality, Brammo has announced that its true second model in its lineup is finally ready for primetime. Set to be unveiled May 8th, with technical details to be released April 18th, the Brammo Empulse will finally become a consumer reality, as well as Brammo’s a six-speed gearbox.

Touting a 100 mph top speed and 100 mile range, the Brammo Empulse on paper should be a market-leading machine (the Zero S tops out at 88mph and 114 mile range). Though it will remain to be seen under what conditions those figures are achieved (Zero’s range figure is at in-town speeds only), as over-promising has been the calling-card of the electric motorcycle manufacturers thus far.

A long time coming, the Empulse is based partially on the company’s 2009 Isle of Man TT race bike. Though the Brammo Empulse RR missed its racing debut at the 2010 Laguna Seca e-Power race, the Empulse RR came back the next year to win the 2011 North American TTXGP Championship by being one of the only top-entries to compete at all three Championship races.

Expected to have 10 kWh of battery power on board, Brammo is touting the company’s temperature-regulating battery pack on the Empulse (Brammo’s BPM 15/90), which heats and cools the battery cells to maintain the optimal discharge temperature. Using a liquid-cooled motor, the Brammo Empulse will be the first production bike in the company’s line to use the IET six-speed gearbox, though there has been much debate in the electric community if there is an actual need for the transmission, or if it is simply a marketing gimmick. Because of the long duration to get the bike to market, According to our sources, Brammo is expected to unveil a completely revised look for the Empulse.

With Polaris now investing in Brammo, the launch of the Brammo Empulse street bike is perhaps not as mission-critical for the Oregonian company, though if Brammo wants to hold any more water with the discerning press and its patiently waiting customers, the company needs to hit a home run with the Brammo Empulse, and deliver on the promises it has made. Selling a couple hundred motorcycles thus far since its inception, Brammo has not mentioned any release dates for the Brammo Encite & Brammo Engage dirt bikes.

Source: Brammo

Comments