SEV eTricks Series

[Mithion]

http://www.sev-world.com/en/products/etricks/

These bikes are really cool. More of a light electric moped based on mountain bike dimensions than an electric motorcycle, they have no pedals. I can definitely see people using these obviously for fun but also for suburban/urban short distance travel. Their relatively light weight (83lbs) makes them very easy to bring anywhere.

You can get them in several configurations, with road legal running gear(mirrors, head/tail/signal lights, license plate mounts). They are not sold in the US(yet) but I don't see there being a problem importing one as long as you have the road legal running gear and register it as an electric moped.

These are the specs for the O01 which is one of their basic on-road versions, the other one, the S01 adds a compartment mounted under the frame that can hold an extra 1kwh battery pack or be used for small storage. There are also two off-road versions with different tires etc. They also still make their older models which are 20inch wheel versions with smaller frames. I read in an article that they limit the output and thus top speed of the motor with firmware which could most likely be changed to "open it up" and get some more mph out of it. 28mph is not bad but something like 35-40 would be ideal for where I think people would use these.

I can really see people taking a liking to these as alternative to mopeds and scooters. Not quite an electric motorcycle but close enough for the right usage.

ENGINE   Brushless DC Leroy Somer Made in France
MAX POWER   2500 W
SPEED   45 Km/h/ 27.9 mph
BATTERY   BMZ - Lithium-ion SONY 48v - 18A/h / .864 kWh
CHARGING TIME    4:30 hours
AUTONOMY   30-40 Km / 18.6-24.8 miles
WEIGHT   38 Kg / 83.7lbs
TRANSMISSION   Belt - 22x48
BRAKE   Hydraulic Brakes : MAGURA MT4 with brake's sensor integrated
DASHBOARD   Immediate speed, average speed, max speed, timer, daily distance (Trip 1 and 2), total, battery level
SADDLE   SDG I-BEAM
FORK   SR SUNTOUR DJ Magnesium 130mm travel – Compression and rebound settings
SHOCK   Hydraulic shock 110mm travel - Compression and rebound settings
WHEELS   Aluminium double wall DH MTB style - 24 inch
TIRES   SCHWALBE Crazy Bob
WARANTY   24 months

What do you guys think of these?

[Shinysideup]

Looks like a good design. I can see these working in European cities. Electric bikes have been very slow to take off in the U.S., mainly, I'd guess, that most folks here see the purpose of bicycles as recreation rather than transportation.

I'd recommend NOT increasing the speed of these. I built a 100 lb. e-bike with hydraulic disc brakes that, with the bike fully loaded,  are marginal when coming down San Francisco hills. At speeds above 30 mph, they are also marginal.

http://www.evalbum.com/676

[Mithion]

I think these are very similar to this-

http://www.technologicvehicles.com/en/green-transportation-news/2076/elmoto-now-ranging-from-pedelec-to-electric-m

I definitely see what you are saying with the weight and power of the bike being too much for the brakes. I don't know how hard or possible it would be to maybe put a more "serious" brake system on a bike like this.

[Shinysideup]

These have hub motors which, in addition to increasing unsprung weight, have the disadvantage of being offered in either high torque or high speed, but not both.

The first design, while using a remote motor and chain drive, don't seem to take advantage of that setup and use gearing.

My bike has a Rohloff 14 speed internal hub and is geared so that it can maintain 20 mph on a flat and still haul 400  lbs up a 30% grade. Hard to do that with a hub motor of any reasonable power (with a reasonably-sized battery pack to power it.)

[Mithion]

The Rohloff is a very cool piece of gear. The Nuvinci CVT is pretty cool to. I always wondered why they didn't make a beefed up version of something like a Rohloff or Nuvinci so it can handle more power through it. It could very well be an easy way to add a "transmission" to electric bikes and motorcycles.