Electric motorcycle concepts always seem to have a vein of the fanciful in them. Maybe it is because the thought of an electric powertrain feels like the future, and so designers swing for the fences on what the future could hold for society.
That seems to be the case here with the Aether electric motorcycle concept by Taiwanese designer Lin Yu Cheng, who has designed a motorcycle that cleans the air around it, while it rides down the road.
Two years ago, Triumph set out in a partnership with Williams Advanced Engineering, Integral Powertrain Ltd.’s e-Drive Division, and WMG at the University of Warwick to develop an electric motorcycle.
The group is funded from theUK government’s Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) via Innovate UK, and today they have reached “Phase 2” of their four-phase development process.
Effectively, this means Triumph et al have developed an electric drivetrain package for a motorcycle, and to make this a little sexier, they are sharing their design sketches for the prototype bike that they plan to build in Phase 3 of the project.
Last week, Moto Guzzi marked its 100th birthday of making motorcycle – a pretty significant achievement for a motorcycle brand – and the Italian brand showed that even after a century of being in business, they still have some tricks up their sleeve.
We say this because Moto Guzzi casually snuck a glimpse of a future motorcycle in its plethora of anniversary materials, and it doesn’t seem like too many people noticed.
The photo in questions is a relative low-res glimpse of a motorcycle, which of course has been further obscured through Photoshop manipulation.
BMW Motorrad is already playing around with the idea of its electric future, teasing us with electric scooters and fancy futuristic concepts that practically ride themselves, but what if the company’s future actually rested in its past?
Take for instance this electric sidecar concept by Spanish transportation design student Iago Valiño. Drawing off-road inspiration from the El Solitario troupe, the concept is a nod to BMW’s sidecars from the WWII era, but with an obviously modern flare.
Another year, another electric scoot concept from BMW Motorrad – as one colleague put it.
He has a point, for how much BMW Motorrad talks about the future of mobility (it’s been close to a decade now), and how that future relies on electric vehicles, the German brand has been painfully slow in its attempts to bring an electric scooter to market.
That Harley-Davidson has been working on a small-displacement motorcycle for street rider is not a well-kept secret.
The project involves a collaboration with Chinese motorcycle manufacturer Qianjiang Motors, but the fruits of that labor have been slow to reveal themselves.
Like many of Harley-Davidson’s planned future models, the alleged “XR338” is at best MIA, and at worst DOA.
No one seems to know the next move from Harley-Davidson, including the Bar & Shield brand itself, which has been extremely terse about the details of its “Hardwire” business plan.
To help nudge them along the way, A&R contributor Michael Uhlarik has been working with Italian design show Engines Engineering (E&E) on an XR338 flat track concept for the street.
It has been a decade since the KTM RC8 debuted at the Austrian brand’s answer to the superbike question. Perhaps ahead of its time, the RC8 and its progeny were never strong sellers for KTM, though the bike had its highlights (and struggles).
Now, the “Ready to Race” brand is obviously missing a full-faired superbike in its lineup, despite offering the naked “Beast” that is the KTM 1290 Super Duke R, which is a direct descendent of that RC8 project.
Our point? It’s high time that KTM got back into the superbike game, and while the Austrians have made it clear that they are not interested in revisiting the RC8 thesis, KTM is on the forefront of the electric motorcycle movement.
That brings us to these concept creation by Indian designer Mohit Solanki, who envisions an electric superbike from KTM.
MV Agusta is poised to make some interesting motorcycles over the next few years, many of which will be focused on smaller displacement categories, rather than large big displacement machines.
To help us imagine what is ahead, Oberdan Bezzi has a concept for us to ponder upon, dubbed the MV Agusta F1 650 Supersingle.
Oberdan Bezzi has an interesting concept for us today, taking a peak into the world of Italian heritage at the motorcycle factory in Mandello del Lario, Italy.
We are of course talking about Moto Guzzi, and the bike in question is an idea that is built off the Moto Guzzi V85 platform, which we know Moto Guzzi is keen to use in a variety of motorcycles, not just the current V85 TT adventure-touring bike.
Dubbed the “Black Eagle”, the concept shows a sporty usage of the air-cooled 853cc transverse 90° v‐twin, with the bike using a half-fairing design, clip-ons, solo seat, and copious amounts of carbon fiber.
Here is an interesting concept that has us thinking about the future of transportation: inflatable vehicles.
It sounds strange to consider, but some students at the University of Tokyo have an intriguing proof of concept (dubbed POIMO), and the aerospace has already proven out these ideas further.
The concept is basic, the body of the vehicle (think: frame, bodywork, seat, etc) is actually an inflatable bag that when pumped with sufficient pressure, becomes a rigid structure.
With all the talk of the possibility of a new Honda CBR600RR-R supersport debuting later this year (we are still dubious, but going with it so far), one intrepid soul has wondered what a 750cc variant might look like.
The 750cc sport bike category is an interesting one, since they typically don’t have a home when it comes to racing, but provide the best of both worlds for those who think that a track day is a good use of a weekend.
Light and nimble like a 600, but with the brawn closer to a 1000cc, the category is defined by the Suzuki GSX-R750 and currently lead (in our opinion) by the Ducati Panigale V2.
With bikes like the MV Agusta F3 800 and Triumph Daytona Moto2 765, the segment has no shortage of potent and intriguing motorcycles. So, could Honda fit in as well?