Do Androids Dream of Electric Motorcycles?

by | Jul 20, 2008 | Local Tech Notes

A couple posts back I wrote about the Zero dirt bike and the possibilities of a street version. Well, it took a

The Zero S Street Bike

while, but I have some more information on that. According to Bryan Parnham, Factory Coordinator for Zero Motorcycles, they will be producing a street model which is planned for production mid to late November.

The good news is that the Zero S will be a beefed up model.  “As far as performance we are looking to achieve freeway capable speeds (65mph) with a range of 60 miles to the charge,” according to Mr. Parnham. Very nice.

But along with the increased power and range, comes an increase in the price. They are expecting the Zero S to sell for around $9300 (plus shipping). The dirt bike is about $2,000 less. Even so, they already have a waiting list for the new bikes. That’s a lot of cash to spend in order to save the world. But then there’s all the money I’d save on gas! If it could pull a little trailer for my kayak, I just might be tempted…

My apologies to Mr. Dick for screwing with his title.

Electric Motorcycles Hitting the Streets

by | Jul 9, 2008 | Life notes, Local Tech Notes

The Eureka Reporter had an interesting article this week about Zero Motorcycles. These dirt bikesZero Electric Bike are electric with no noise and zero emissions. Apparently you can view one at Bedliners Plus at 1326 Koster Lane off Broadway in Eureka.

But the real news is that the company expects to come out with a street legal version this summer. The current off road model costs $7450 (plus shipping) and you can order them from their web site. No information is on their site as to when exactly the new bikes will be available nor how much they will cost. The current dirt bikes can go up to 60 mph, have a range of 40 miles and take 2 hours to fully recharge. Of course, while you may not be making any noise or belting out pollutants, most of the electricty we use is still generated by burning fossil fuels (71.4%) so you will still be in the global warming tar pit.