Quantya developing 100mph+ electric sportsbike
Quantya is planning an electric sportsbike to rival the Zero SS. Our man in Norway, Ivar Kvadsheim uncovered the news at the EVS24 green vehicle conference taking place in Stavanger. "The best description I can give is Italian sportsbike styling...think Ducati 1198 or Cagiva Mito, but more angular" says Ivar, who was shown renderings of the new bike. That sounds great, but we're more excited about the performance from the new 74-volt motor; 55bhp and a 130kg weight are said to deliver a top speed of between 100 and 105mph. Quantya plans to launch the bike at EICMA in November, meaning it'll premier at nearly the exact same time as the Zero SS electric sportsbike. Sales are expected to begin in March 2010.
The new bike should prove a much more capable road vehicle than the Quantya Strada, not only is it much faster than the 45mph Strada, but its range is increased to around 87 miles at "normal speeds." The bad news is that the price is also going up to around €20,000 ($27,000).
via MC24.no
Wes Siler. May 15, 2009 — Permalink
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I know you're translating Norwegian, but I believe it's a 74 volt motor - not 74 watt (which is a unit of power and equals about one-tenth horsepower. And yes, the $27,000 is an non-starter for most of us. But I'm glad these guys are doing it, nonetheless.
Yeah, you're right, thanks for catching it.
So awesome, Go Norway! For a country with such a short riding season, there sure are lots of m/c fanatics over there.
For the record: Quantya is Swiss.
But agreed, Norway is awesome. I saw my first Hayabusa being ridden hard in corners there when I was a teenager and I've never come across better roads anywhere in the world.
I thought the Zero SS was going to be in the TTXGP, thus debuting before November.
No, Zero is not entering the TTXGP. I tried to convince Neal to let me enter the supermoto, but he didn't think they could cobble together a dustbin fairing in time.
It looks very 916ish. I eagerly await this throwdown from the future.
Switzerland and America, at war again!
Not at war, just competing manufacturers and that is only good for the industry and ultimately the consumer. Thanks for the posting Wes. You guys have good feelers out there !!!
I'm pretty sure that fairing in the picture IS from a Ducati 916.
Really cool to see that both Zero and Quantya are coming out with electric sportbikes soon. It'll be quite interesting to follow the development and evolution of E-sportbikes and racers over the next few years. Would love to see both companies each put an entry in next year's TTXGP, and go head to head against Brammo, Mission, MotoCzysz and the others.
http://www.superbikebodywork.co.uk/Ducati_916FRWF%20copy.jpg
At least they tweaked the headlights.
You guys are so crazy, that's a Duc 1098 fairing that I used as a general reference.
This is about 20% heavier than the Zero. Do you get that much more performance?
I am so happy that both Quantya and Zero are taking the performance electric bike market seriously. It is what it is needed. We all know that the current prices of these bikes are too high but with customers buying bikes and the economies of scale on batteries and motors; before long I am hoping that both companies have a family of products that suit urban commuters and riders in markets such as here in the UK. I was lucky enough to have a go on the Zero X and the Zero S a week ago and I was very impressed by the performance and build quality. I am currently also selling the Quantya Strada and Track in the UK. For those who test ride it, they think it is a breath taking piece of kit. At the moment, when I discuss electric bikes with customers, all I hear from customers all day long is complaints about cost, range, performance, styling and battery replacement cost. We should be focusing on these areas and ways of stopping them becoming barriers to customers purchasing electric motorbikes.
Oooops...my bad.
Gads.
Oh, I think anyone with half a brain has got to know that electric bikes are just around the corner. Batteries are getting better/cheaper everyday. They are not re-inventing the bike, just where the power that turns the drive sprocket comes from.
People use to complain about the same issues regarding hybrids. Now, it would be difficult to not hit a Prius with a rock in any given parking lot (at least in the US).