Long time lurker, first time poster.
I've been interested in motorcycles for a long time, only because of their MPGs (seriously). For a while I had been eyeing the Ninja 250 and even took the local class to certify for my endorsement (and its still valid). Once I heard of the Enertia, I became very interested, especially in the next generation models, + and Empulse. I think given my current commute distance and speed needs, I'm looking at the Empulse 6.0.
Here are my two questions:
1) I live in a high property crime area with an active motorcycle gang that steals and/or strips motorcycles. Do you think an electric bike would be more or less susceptible to theft? I worry that the most expensive component, the battery, is also fairly small and relatively light, compared to the rest of the bike. Do you worry about theft with your Brammo?
2) I have an older car and have been looking to upgrade to a Focus or Fiesta sometime in the next 2 years, when I can get a prior years model or when bugs get worked out. I like the idea of a smaller car with good gas mileage. I would really like to maybe keep my car and buy the much cheaper Brammo instead, but holy cow how long must I wait? I realize I can buy the Enertia now, but why would I when there are much better models on the horizon that are only slightly more expensive? What is Brammo's strategy here? The reason most companies don't announce future products too far into the future is they don't want to cannibalize sales. While the price is somewhat high, for me, it is much cheaper than any electric car and would likely work fine for my commute 6 months out of the year. But I, like many other consumers, can only wait so long. If I end up getting a new car, that'll eat up any money or interest in a Brammo. I realize most people on this board are waiting for Brammo as well and I know Brammo must also seek VC funding, but in a market featuring more and more energy efficient options (either a high mpg car or something like the Volt or Leaf), every month that passes is a month Brammo gets further behind. I want to love Brammo, as I live in their state and think their product is very cool. But I can't wait forever.