ELECTRIC MOTORCYCLES
“Hard riding revealed the bikes
would also require water cooling
for the motor and electrics”
Joachim Sauer, off-road product manager, KTM
when it received an Austrian
research fund for innovative projects
to work on an all-electric version of its 125cc
ICE motocross bike.
“Despite being renowned for creating some
of the best off -road bikes money can buy, we
have never actually been able to test them on
a track anywhere near our Mattighofen HQ
because environmental restrictions have
forbidden it,” explains Joachim Sauer, KTM’s
off -road product manager.
“It got the company thinking about
electrifi cation in our off -road products, as it
has the potential to open up a whole new world
of riding to our customers and helps us work
around the ever-stricter European Union
emissions and noise regulations that we have
to deal with,” he adds.
edge Samsung 21-700 batteries, of which the
Vector packs 960. According to its maker, the
Arc Vector is the fi rst motorcycle to use them.
“Right now, you can’t actually buy them,”
explains Arc’s head of electrical
engineering, Robin Boyd.
“Samsung are prototyping and
developing them, and have
partnered with Arc Vehicle as part
of this process. The battery cells
rank as some of the most powerful
of their kind and have the most
longevity. With 960, the Vector has
more battery cells and, in turn, power
than any other electric motorcycle. A lot
more. With these upgraded cells, we are
extremely confi dent in meeting our
performance and range targets,” he adds.
With a 399V electric motor producing 134ps
and a superbike-rivalling kerb weight, Arc
claims the Vector will have the best power-toweight
ratio of any electric two-wheeler at
655ps per tonne. Combined range will be
around 434km (270 miles). Zero to 100km/h
will arrive in three seconds and the top speed
will be 201km/h (125mph). The fi gures certainly
make up for a lack of engine note.
O grid
Off -road specialists KTM started its move
towards electrifi cation over ten years ago,
The result is the KTM Freeride
E-XC, an all-electric alternative to its
approachable line of entry-level off -road
machines that eliminates gears, a clutch and
kickstart, and replaces it with ‘twist-and-go’
electric performance.
“It wasn’t an easy task, as we initially wanted
to create a range of motorcycles that could host
either an internal combustion engine or an
electric propulsion system,” Sauer explains.
“We settled on a forged aluminum frame
with some clever packaging that would allow
for a slim fuel tank to sit where the enormous
battery packs would in the electric variant.
“The Freeride-E then underwent a long stage
of customer testing before it went on sale.
Regular hard riding revealed the bikes would
also require water cooling for the motor and
www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com // July 2019 // 71
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