Author Topic: Brammo Improvement ideas  (Read 3402 times)

ALephart

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Brammo Improvement ideas
« on: June 01, 2010, 06:07:42 PM »
OK this is a list I will keep updated. This is only a week of ownership, and is knit picky.

More rigid turn signals
On more then one occasion I have taken the right rear signal off its mount when demounting the bike with riding boots on. And the front left turn signal bounces going down the road to much in my opinion. The signal is not loose, I already checked. And the right front signal bounces the same amount but is hidden my the brake master cylinder.

Charging port
Simply plugging the bike in without lifting the seat would be great!

Larger rear fender
The rear fender does not do a reasonable enough job keeping debris off the underside of the bike!

Seat latch
Simply "popping" the seat with a key and not having to use 2 hands to undo. Also putting the seat on springs so that it "pops" up. Also please redesign the front seat latch. Either the piece on the bike or the piece on the seat keeps getting bent because it's hard to line up!

Turning off headlight
I would love the ability to turn off the headlight while the Brammo drive is engaged.

Small rearview mirrors
I think the rearview mirrors are too small! Offset the larger wind resistance with incorporating turn signals into the mirrors!

Steering
I think the steering has to narrow a range from lock to lock. It makes parking lot maneuvers more difficult.

Side stand
I find it difficult to locate at times. I would suggest a small standoff pin to make it more visible. I would also make the resting pad a little larger. The pad is so small and the weight is so great that it often times marks the concrete where it rests.

Swingarm
Please add threaded inserts for the use of a “race style” swingarm stand. I have sold hundreds of these stands and believe them to be superior to the “cushion pad style” stands.

Lower triple clamp
Please add a center hole on the lower triple clamp for the use of a front stand. This type of stand has better clearance for wheel removal and allows more advanced users to remove the forks.

Front fender
It seems to me the front fender has A LOT of space between the tire and the fender. I can easily put my whole hand in there! This cannot be good for aerodynamics.

Different motor maps
I would love the ability to switch between different motor maps. Have one for performance and have one that limits acceleration and top speed to extend the range. Let good throttle control find the happy medium!

Rear brake regeneration
You have already "spent" the energy to move the bike forward. Why not try and recapture some of that during braking? I would only want this on the rear wheel however. For ease of implementation, and to not upset the suspension during certain situations.

Dual trip meters with auto reset
It would be nice to have dual trip meters. And after the bike reaches 100% S.O.C. during recharge that one of the trip meters reset's. It would be nice to also have a Kwh reading for the trip meter!

Front fork preload ajustment
It would be nice at the very least to have preload ajustments for the front forks.

Steering head rake angle
The bike rides at speed like a much smaller bike. The wheelbase is average so that would lead be to believe the steering head rake angle is to narrow (@ 24 degrees). A small rake angle is great at low speed but @ 60+MPH its a bit sketchy. (THIS HAS BEEN UPDATED! I KNOW BELIEVE THIS IS ATTRIBUTED TO THE HIGH PSI IN THE TIRES CAUSEING A SMALL CONTACT PATCH)

S.O.C. communication device
To remotely view the Enertia's S.O.C. during the recharge cycle. Rather then make ths an "app" for a smartphone I would rather have a display I could put in my pocket to view it. This would be helpful when charging it in the garage and I am upstairs, or @ a coffee shop when I am inside.

Charging mode
Please allow the ability to enter recharge mode without having to remember to turn off the headlight!

Tires
Please work with tire manufactures to develop a low rolling resistance tire, but still has grip in the turns! Not just overinflate a standard tire to its maximum rated pressure. The harshness in the ride quality can directly be attributed to the high tire PSI.

Cover for under the tailight
The wiring and taillight sockets are exposed to the road debris. Make a cover for this area. (Also possible fix by larger rear fender)

Speed up the Enertia's start up sequence
Part of consumers ability to adapt to new technologies is to make them as similar as possible to other items they may be familiar with. For motorcyclists this involves being able to turn the key and go in the shortest time possible. While it may seem routine. Making sure headlight is on, having to cycle the run switch from on/off and the dashboard booting all takes time. Anything that can be done to speed this up would be great. Of course Brian is going to tell me to always turn your run switch to the off position to speed this up!   ;D

Torque specifications
Please provide normal maintenance torque values in the owner’s manual. Every other motorcycle manufacture I have ever owned had torque values printed right in the owner’s manual. Front axle pinch bolts, rear axle nut are values that all owners should have.

Increase front brake disc brake pad swept area
The swept area on the front brake disc is not fully used. I would estimate it at 75% contact. Although it is still benefits from a larger brake disc to keep cool.

O-ring chain
Please use a standard 420 O-ring type chain. It will stay lubricated longer and I believe it to be superior.

Target power use screen
Allow the rider to set a fixed target similar to the peak power use screen. Once that target % is reached, cue the rider with flashing the green lights. I originally thought of a small buzzer, like the one I want for the turn signals. But that would get annoying. This would encourage better driving efficiency.

All the best,
Aaron Lephart
« Last Edit: June 25, 2010, 03:17:20 PM by ALephart »

Brammofan

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #1 on: June 01, 2010, 08:31:47 PM »
I love this kind of stuff.  When my wife and I bought an RV, I would scour the web forums for ideas that other owners had about making their rig more practical, usable, etc.  I've incorporated just a few of them, but it's all about the cream rising to the top.

I'm especially interested in your idea about the mirrors/turn signals combination.  I know that Brian has scrapped his stock mirrors and uses the bar end mirrors, but I like your turn signal synthesis. 

Here's a trick (from the RV world) that might help you locate the side stand.  Have you thought about painting just the base of it with a bright color?  White, or orange (to match the bike) might help you find it on a dark night.  Not sure what to do for the small size of it.  One thing that John Adamo noticed when we were at the Best Buy looking at the bike was that the name "Brammo" was stamped into the kickstand.  Nice detail, that.
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skadamo

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #2 on: June 02, 2010, 02:12:21 PM »

Larger rear fender
The rear fender does not do a reasonable enough job keeping debris off the underside of the bike!


Just be sure to make it easy for us to cut it off. :D ...or even better, unbolt it. Some prefer looks over functionality. ;)

re: kickstand - yeah, the "brammo" logo on the kickstand was cool. Most bikes have ugly, crappy metal kickstands. Some really nice details on the bike. Fit and finish is overall well ahead of Honda.

re: turnsignals - I agree. Noticed that on the bike in Best Buy and figured it was just the floor model we were looking at. They are kinda floppy.

BrammoBrian

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #3 on: June 03, 2010, 08:03:04 PM »
Man... this'll keep us busy for awhile!  ;D

cogito

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #4 on: June 06, 2010, 03:45:40 PM »
Thoughts I had when I rode the brammo:
-steering range: It would make the car/bike dance in my one-car garage a challenge. My old bimmer had a much shorter turning radius.
-throttle mapping: (I got a call the next week from a brammo tech who said they’d re-mapped it.) It had been slow off the line.
-regenerative braking for safety: If you’re driving on country roads (like say Ashland) you don’t really need regen. But in LA, you definitely want that “engine braking” to start slowing the bike the instant you let off the throttle.
-motor fan. It seemed strange and inefficient to me that on a relatively cool day the motor fan was running the entire time I was riding. Couldn’t the air be vectored to cool the motor while at speed?

I still had a blast riding the bike and I read Harry’s blog every week to see how the bike is progressing.

ALephart

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #5 on: June 06, 2010, 03:48:13 PM »
Welcome to the forum!

All the best,
Aaron Lephart

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #6 on: June 06, 2010, 04:46:51 PM »
I still had a blast riding the bike and I read Harry?s blog every week to see how the bike is progressing.
"cogito ergo I read Brammofan" = I think, therefore I read Brammofan.
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ALephart

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #7 on: June 20, 2010, 03:27:34 PM »
Added Kwh to trip meter and increased contact patch revision for front suspension.

All the best,
Aaron Lephart

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #8 on: June 22, 2010, 02:23:23 PM »
OK this is a list I will keep updated. This is only a week of ownership, and is knit picky.

Hope you don't mind me throwing my two cents on several of your items.

Quote
More rigid turn signals
On more then one occasion I have taken the right rear signal off its mount when demounting the bike with riding boots on. And the front left turn signal bounces going down the road to much in my opinion. The signal is not loose, I already checked. And the right front signal bounces the same amount but is hidden my the brake master cylinder.

I agree the front signals wobble too much but haven't had any issue with knocking the rear signals.

Quote
Charging port
Simply plugging the bike in without lifting the seat would be great!

I just leave my charging cord so that the plug sticks out a couple inches. I haven't lifted the seat to charge in months. It would be nice if there were a hole for this and some way to mechanically restrain the cord.

Seat latch
Simply "popping" the seat with a key and not having to use 2 hands to undo. Also putting the seat on springs so that it "pops" up. Also please redesign the front seat latch. Either the piece on the bike or the piece on the seat keeps getting bent because it's hard to line up!

Quote
Turning off headlight
I would love the ability to turn off the headlight while the Brammo drive is engaged.

Isn't this a DOT regulation?

Quote
Small rearview mirrors
I think the rearview mirrors are too small! Offset the larger wind resistance with incorporating turn signals into the mirrors!

Think I'm in the minority on disagreeing with the mirrors being too small. However I wish the right side mount were a little further out (say on the other side of the master cylinder). Incorporating turn signals would be a bad idea as the mirrors are the most vulnerable part of a bike and subject to the most damage while parked. I'd hate to make them more expensive.

Quote
Side stand
I find it difficult to locate at times. I would suggest a small standoff pin to make it more visible. I would also make the resting pad a little larger. The pad is so small and the weight is so great that it often times marks the concrete where it rests.

Don't think I've ever missed the stand when putting it down...so mathematically superior (not by much in some cases) to every other bike I've owned.

Quote
Different motor maps
I would love the ability to switch between different motor maps. Have one for performance and have one that limits acceleration and top speed to extend the range. Let good throttle control find the happy medium!

Hear, hear.

Quote
Rear brake regeneration
You have already "spent" the energy to move the bike forward. Why not try and recapture some of that during braking? I would only want this on the rear wheel however. For ease of implementation, and to not upset the suspension during certain situations.

I like the concept but am not sure how beneficial this really is (recapturing 5% would save me 5cents a day). I'd actually prefer the opposite, reducing the rolling resistance to extend coasts (and eliminate excess noise during coasting). If regen is added it would be nice for it to be controllable (i.e. left throttle or lever).

Quote
Dual trip meters with auto reset
It would be nice to have dual trip meters. And after the bike reaches 100% S.O.C. during recharge that one of the trip meters reset's. It would be nice to also have a Kwh reading for the trip meter!

Hear, hear. The range estimation read-outs also need some work. I have seen many cases where it resets and frequently varies widely from update to update.

Quote
S.O.C. communication device
To remotely view the Enertia's S.O.C. during the recharge cycle. Rather then make ths an "app" for a smartphone I would rather have a display I could put in my pocket to view it. This would be helpful when charging it in the garage and I am upstairs, or @ a coffee shop when I am inside.

I would rather not have a dedicated device for this. I would like to be able to turn the charger on or off remotely though.

Quote
Charging mode
Please allow the ability to enter recharge mode without having to remember to turn off the headlight!

Yes. The existing headlight switch actually has three settings, and it would be nice if one were an Auto setting that automatically turned off the headlight when the bike isn't on (including charging).

Quote
Speed up the Enertia's start up sequence
Part of consumers ability to adapt to new technologies is to make them as similar as possible to other items they may be familiar with. For motorcyclists this involves being able to turn the key and go in the shortest time possible. While it may seem routine. Making sure headlight is on, having to cycle the run switch from on/off and the dashboard booting all takes time. Anything that can be done to speed this up would be great. Of course Brian is going to tell me to always turn your run switch to the off position to speed this up!   ;D

Habits do help this alot, but one thing that would help me would be to have it remember the settings of the dash. Your suggestion of a reset on charge tripmeter would also help here. I also don't like having to hold the tank button so long and would love a faster/simpler startup sequence.


ALephart

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #9 on: June 22, 2010, 06:31:02 PM »
Added front brake disc swept area improvement.



All the best,
Aaron Lephart

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #10 on: June 23, 2010, 11:29:44 AM »
Aaron, I just found the solution to your "kickstand is too small" complaint:
Kickstand Kritters!

Quote
Have you ever tried to park your motorcycle on a soft surface like grass or gravel, only to watch your kickstand sink a hole into the ground deeper than British Petroleum? Neither have we, afterall who would admit to doing the two-wheeled yoga routine that’s involved in finding a piece of wood (or other suitable weight distributor), while balancing a sinking motorcycle? But in case this phenomenon has “happened to a friend of yours”, we’ve stumbled upon the solution to your “friend’s” problem. Cue the Kickstand Kritter.


They have many more options, including a poodle, Kermit-looking frog, and a voodoo doll.
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webman

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #11 on: June 25, 2010, 02:59:11 PM »
Aaron, I just found the solution to your "kickstand is too small" complaint:
Kickstand Kritters!

Quote
Have you ever tried to park your motorcycle on a soft surface like grass or gravel, only to watch your kickstand sink a hole into the ground deeper than British Petroleum? Neither have we, afterall who would admit to doing the two-wheeled yoga routine that’s involved in finding a piece of wood (or other suitable weight distributor), while balancing a sinking motorcycle? But in case this phenomenon has “happened to a friend of yours”, we’ve stumbled upon the solution to your “friend’s” problem. Cue the Kickstand Kritter.


They have many more options, including a poodle, Kermit-looking frog, and a voodoo doll.

Those are really funny, brammofan!  I've always used a flattened soda can out here in W. Hell (aka Phoenix, AZ in the summer).
webman, aka eric

brammo vehicle desired:  Empulse 8.0
current rides:  '97 yamaha seca II (low miles, but beater)
'06 honda metro (wife's bike, mostly)
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'91 yamaha FZR600
'84 Honda VF750 Interceptor

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Brammo Feature Requests
« Reply #12 on: August 27, 2010, 07:43:48 AM »
So many times, the "improvement ideas" or "feature requests" threads, whether they're on software forums, or product forums, tend to get bogged down.  Some of the requests are universal, but many are personal to the user/rider.  For example, I think the idea of a few more degrees of lock-to-lock steering would be a universal request.  The larger rear fender is more of a personal matter, depending on the rider.

I am struggling with how to arrange/reorganize this so that it is usable for Brammo and workable for us.  If you have any ideas, chime in.

While I'm here, I have a feature request:

Adjustable brightness of dashboard - I've noticed at night that the LCD display is too bright. My father was a torpedo bomber pilot in WWII and he flew off of (and on to) aircraft carriers.  He always taught me to dim my car's dashboard to the barely-visible point in order to increase my ability to see what's going on outside of the car.
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Phantom

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Re: Brammo Feature Requests
« Reply #13 on: August 27, 2010, 08:39:38 AM »
I am struggling with how to arrange/reorganize this so that it is usable for Brammo and workable for us.  If you have any ideas, chime in.

It may be alot of work, but what if you made a poll for every improvement idea. This thread is evidence that we do not all agree on certain improvements. The universally accepted ideas would have the most votes and I would suggest allowing everyone to see who voted for what.

Thanks for the riding tip on the headlight dimming.

protomech

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Re: Brammo Improvement ideas
« Reply #14 on: August 27, 2010, 09:50:33 AM »
Rear brake regeneration
You have already "spent" the energy to move the bike forward. Why not try and recapture some of that during braking? I would only want this on the rear wheel however. For ease of implementation, and to not upset the suspension during certain situations.

I like the concept but am not sure how beneficial this really is (recapturing 5% would save me 5cents a day). I'd actually prefer the opposite, reducing the rolling resistance to extend coasts (and eliminate excess noise during coasting). If regen is added it would be nice for it to be controllable (i.e. left throttle or lever).
More importantly, kinetic energy recovery would give you a bit more range, or a lot more range in city driving.

Coasting is great, it's more efficient than pulse & glide in an EV. Coasting is not very practical in traffic.

Without a manual transmission, we have a left hand and a left foot free for control.

A few options:
* left hand throttle / lever control
* left hand lever controlling right foot mechanical / regen braking mix (might be tricky to blend without drive-by-wire)
* right hand throttle "roll back" past neutral
* left foot regen brake, similar to right foot mechanical brake

Regen braking at the rear wheel would probably need some anti-lock capabilities built in, or maybe just disable it below 20 mph.

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