OK, I'm back (or on my way back) from the trip to LA. My apologies for how long it took to post this, but I was pretty busy with performing at the Disney Music Hall for George Takei (Ooh, I get to drop some names from my bucket list!
to be writing up my thoughts while I was down there, but here are my impressions...
First, a disclaimer for me. This was my first time riding on these roads, including the infamous corner where rnickeymouse takes all of his videos of
squids new riders dumping their fancy brand new superbikes. I was riding in borrowed gear from a guy who was slightly taller and 70-80 lbs. less portly than me, and I had to wake up a couple of hours before my usual time. I have never ridden a sport bike with clipons or rearsets so my aging and creaky bones were trying to make due the best they could with the riding position, but it was actually pretty comfortable after the first couple hundred feet when my legs got over the shock. Despite all of that, the ride went very well!
I've read the Asphalt & Rubber article and think they did a good job. I mostly agree with just about everything they said (with a few minor differences). In particular:
I love, love, love the reverse gear. (I should admit that I didn't actually engage it and use it myself, but it's there and they demonstrated it for us and it works well with excellent low speed control for parking.) Since this just requires some software, I'd like to see this on any AC motor driven bike.
They have really excellent low speed throttle control. It is so intuitive that when the rides started with the bikes positioned on the left shoulder with the high traffic arriving and leaving from the Rock Store, requiring us to look ahead and behind us simultaneously while gliding slowly up to speed across both lanes to follow the rider leader, it was an excellent example of not having to focus on anything but where you are going. I actually enjoy the visceral clunk of the Empulse, but in a "character" sort of way, not in a "this is a sublime experience" manner like the Ego throttle. Don't get me wrong, the Empulse is very easy to control at low speeds, but the Ego throttle map had quite a bit more low speed linearity than I have seen before on either Brammo or Zero.
But, on the other hand, I never felt that impressive launch of power from a stop that the Empulse has. Perhaps with a bit more than 10 minutes on it and some stop-start opportunities that didn't involve pulling off to the side and then watching traffic as I got back on, I might have had an opportunity to do some 0-XX pulls and feel all that it had to offer, but it wasn't as readily present as the strong pull of the Empulse at a stop light. So, perhaps this is a factor of the really excellent, gentle and intuitive low-speed throttle response and I just never goosed the throttle enough to experience the other side of its character. On the other hand, what I definitely did experience was that it can pull strongly from any speed and there is nothing weak feeling about the pull, I just never had a fun goose-ing off the line like I did on my Empulse test ride. It was strong and polite and the Empulse is energetic like a (well mannered) puppy. Another factor may be 100 lbs less weight and the torque multiplication of the 1st gear on the Empulse. How much torque does it have in 1st again?
The first thing I told them when I got back was "more regen!" We started in "Eco, mid-regen" and halfway through we pulled over before the sweeper section and I switched to "Sport, high-regen" and got barely enough regen for me to notice it. I love the sport regen on the empulse and it gives at least twice as much drag as the Ego did in its strongest regen setting.
I disagree with their reservations on the styling, though. I love it and it didn't take any growing on me. It's a beautiful bike.
I absolutely, positively completely contradict their evaluation of the brakes. I should have tested them early in the ride, but instead I was 5 or 6 corners in before I decided to slow down and I nearly launched off the front of the bike. It's a good thing that it has such heavily sculpted thigh cutouts or they would have been scolding me for breaking one of the prototypes, the guy whose gear I borrowed would have been pissed at me, and I might have had to limp around our choreography that afternoon. 8| After that I merely suggested to the brake lever that I might want to touch it to get as much braking as I needed. Perhaps the review's beef with the brakes was that their absolute limit wasn't very high and it was simply that the brakes are more touchy than I was used to, but the braking force I felt was plenty strong compared to what I was reading, though I didn't push the bike anywhere near its limits...
