It would be interesting how the unsprung mass of the rear wheel assembly compares to a conventional set-up. Convention indicates that a reduction in mass improves handling and ride.
Really isn't hugely relevant for road riding. Two key points; it's the ratio of sprung to unsprung mass that's the important part (& the factor that usually gets missed); and considering the swingarm etc as part of unsprung mass, it's likely to be equal to or less than something like a BMW Paralever (I did work it out once).
A 2002 generation GSXR 1000 has about 45lb of unsprung rear weight. My first thought was that this would be much heavier. But without the axle and center hub, there was some definitive weight savings. I'd like to pull the rear shock and set the tire assembly with swing arm attached to the bike on a scale.
If I had to guess, and I’m definitely not an expert, I’d say that you can just screw off the bolts, disconnect the wires and then remove the tire from the motor, shouldn’t actually be too much of a hassle I think.
This has me curious. As well as how much they made the rim fit conventional tyres or if it's a custom designed affair. As well as the integrity and what was done to mitigate the forces involved in hitting a pothole at speed. They should focus on these matters since not mentioning it just leads me to believe in it being the weakness in what is an aesthetically pleasing design.
A few things... 1) The colour code... The flex cables really stand out as a feature & flow into the body of the bike... The white body panels parts should be matched to the orange flex cables providing continuity & vibrancy... 2) The sound... An audible, futuristic, fluctuating high/low electric pitch matching power delivery would really set this apart & also increase safety for all road users... Brilliant venture!
I bought the 'chainless' Soco ..Bosch motor, supposed to be 50cc equivalent but delivers 40 mph, lots of fun, 50p to do 30-40 miles. The issue is lack of streamlining so that is the battery killer ..not the motor.. not weight..simply pushing the sail that is your body through the air
Exactly, this is why motor bikes are inefficient, ducking down whilst riding add more mpg and mph. Imagine the efficiencies that could be gained if aerodynamics were properly sorted, but this would mean encapsulating the rider taking away some of the Joy's of riding.
@@FlyingFun. My bike EV has a purpose..it is the eco run around that goes on the back of my camper.. for trips into the hills, to save fuel, to venture into cities. 30 mile range is fine. Bike makers have to be clear on what the bike is for.. the do everything of a modern ICE bike is not really an option. This super bike really needed super fast charging as standard & a 150 mile range
@@julesdingle I have converted some pushbikes to electric they do 30mph, range is dependant on pedalling but easily 30 to 60 miles. It really is plenty for all the local chores and having fun exploring. Biggest issue is security, too many theives about..
yeah I'm on a soco too, the tc max so it's not a hub motor but instead has a belt drive. Still lovely to not have a chain to oil or rattling away. Biggest thing for me commuting daily is it's so smooth - no vibrations may be a bad thing when riding for short periods for pleasure but as a commuter experience it's so much more restful having a smooth bike. The air resistance is substantial though as you say - no streamlining and a very upright position, a fairing would be nice :D still spanks any tesla in efficiency round town though. I'd love a bigger bike, but at the moment there is such a huge price jump between what I'm on and the faster bikes.
Reminds me of that Tron film back in the early 80s - the future is here! Yep it has been mentioned in this video I know, but that'll teach me to comment too early! :)
@@electroplank587 It exited for long time, nobody used it, because it's not idea for anything, not in racing, not in long distance transportation, not in rail road, it's not rigid enough to hold the circle shape, too much rolling resistance, and yes there's more direct drive than this.🥰🥰🥰
@@electroplank587 I don't think you know what you're talking about, why don't you let your 6 months old ( please provide video that prove she explaining ) explain to me, if not nobody will believe you 🥰🥰🥰, and yes, there's more direct drive than this.
Never thought about being able to get rid of the chain and the rest of that bollocks, which is pretty cool. I've never been into motorbikes and never really wanted one, but I might actually consider an electric one, if I can find one cheap enough. Someone rode past the other day on an electric motorbike, and it might sound obvious, but when he passed by almost silently, it was ten times cooler than the noisy smeggers that normally irritate everyone in the village. I'd love to ride through the countryside in virtual silence, I think it would be heavenly.
"if I can find one cheap enough" Good luck. As of now they are incredibly expensive, just like E cars. "I'd love to ride through the countryside in virtual silence, I think it would be heavenly." The truth is that, depending on your speed, as a rider you don't necessarily hear the noise from the engine. It's the wind noise. But at slower speeds it would be quite nice.
I'm actually worried about motorists not seeing you coming. Saying that I ride a bike in London so what's the difference. Kinda really want one, just shit scared of driving a motorbike in London 😅
@@tmarritt "Kinda really want one, just shit scared of driving a motorbike in London" Yeah. I've had several motorcycles. The fact that they are silent isn't really going to make a difference. People don't tend to hear motorcycles unless they are insanely loud. And even then, you're right, there isn't the same level of awareness. I don't have a bike now, but would love to have one for tooling around. Prices, though, aren't great. For me it wouldn't be worth it.
Truly a well designed bike. Love the low center of gravity and minimizing moving parts. Looks awesome too. Definitely a head turner, not because of the noise but the lack of. Well done people.
I've seen concepts from 2012 with hubless wheels and electric motors intergrated inside hubless. The easy way to understand hubless wheels is if you get a ball bearing, weld a swingarm to the center of the ballbearing rim put a tire on the outer rim of the ballbearing and there you go you've got your own hubless wheel.
What a spectacular bit of kit. Along with many others, was boggling at it last weekend in Farnborough, so this is fascinating stuff. And yet again, FC find us another brilliantly innovative genius to explain all. Great video as ever.
@@EdwinOtten oooh - good question. Not sure! But the point Andy made about noise in the video was such a good one. Standing by the track watching all test drives was fascinating. Silence! A reimagining of what cities could be like. Have a great time at the show in Amsterdam!
Very cool but, it would never replace my primary internal combustion bike. I love the sounds, the vibrations, the shifting, and yes, even the wrenching.
That is several orders of magnitude cooler than any of the Harley Davidson my 14 year old self used to dream about. Nice to see Andy again it's been a minute. Hope everyone had fun at FCL, wish I'd been able to make it
That big magnet hub is unsprung weight. That presents problems for handling/ tracking. Low enter of mass is nice, but a centrally located center of mass, between the wheels, is nicer. What is the weight distribution like?
This is a very nice concept and definitely the future for road going bikes if it turns out to be really reliable over time. The whole back wheel setup needs to mature of course. Motors are getting lighter and materials are getting better - and cheaper as well. So, that should go well. I wonder which of the big OEMs is gonna bring a similar bike to market first.
It's kind of sad... I mean, the sound is a big part of experiencing a motorcycle. Everything is becoming boring. They take the fun out of cars and motorcycles by electrifying them...
@@professormoriarty6875 The fun is still there. Sound is only an addition, but most of the enjoyment in a motorcycle are going to be related to how it rides.
What I'm missing is your opinion on handling and suspension, and a general riding comfort comparison to e-bikes with tradition drive trains. The advantages seem to be better power efficiency, even less/easier maintenance and a bigger battery.
Seems to also be performance, efficiency, reliability / simplicity, handling, and so on. That said, I suspect that rear wheel also significantly increases unsprung mass, which is generally a bad thing, so in terms of handling it may be a case of 'difference' rather than 'better'.
Bigger battery means it will weigh more than goldwing for a bike that is supposed to be sporty. It will effect handling. Also you are moving the main drive to the rear instead of the middle so that will most likey have weird effect on handling as well.
On the contrary, it was easier and less maintenance, as the introduction of electronics meant more complexity and more consumption and thus lower reliability.
I like the idea and in time, these could be made more compact and lightweight enough to be a reasonable replacement for the old chain and sprocket design, although I do wonder about the cost of replacing one if you dink it on a pothole or something! Also, as it's all contained in the wheel you could have powered front wheels as well. Imagine a 2WD adventure bike with that power!
Something tells me that if you could break it by dinking it on a pothole, they wouldn't have put it into production 😜. Cost of replacement is a big factor though. I did initially wonder about how you would get it serviced and whether the lack of standard components would make repair more expensive or very difficult. Could easily end up with a situation where only Verge can repair it.
@@marsrover001 Good to know. It's something I'd consider buying as long as I felt confident that I could rely on parts being widely available so that repairs are feasible and cost-effective.
We have toyed around with 2wd ect, but to keep the TS as pure as possible we chose to stick to a simple front end set up. As @WiSkify said, we've done our testing to make sure a simple pothole will not stop our motorcycles.
I would have liked this a lot more if 1. You'd shown us the bike pieces (suspension, steering, braking system up front, the mirrors, storage compartment) more carefully. 2. You'd told us how it makes you feel - How responsive, how it feels at top speed, seat comfort, head and tail lights, data readout, etc, etc.
This was quite impressive. And the bike was *beautiful*. I really liked how the wiring was done - the curves remind me of the exhaust lines on a petrol engine bike. Verge has hit a jackpot. I wonder what the retail price will be :D
@@jannepeltonen2036, You didn't know that Verge is the only motorcycle manufacturer in Finland. I was myself working with that when we build the first prototype (the company was called as an RMK then).
@@jannepeltonen2036 please tell me it's not supposed to be pronounced the way they do in the video! It means something nobody wants to talk about in my country...
Idk they didn't make much of difference from a hub motor. Hub motor also doesn't have much happening on the center. Verge just took out a bit of the material and put bearings somewhere else.
Interesting design, I like the minimalist approach unlike other motorcycles where they are adding more systems and items all the time. I have been riding for 45 years and was a Mechanic for most of those years one of my first thoughts was wheel changes dealing with those orange cables which as a Mechanic whom has worked around EV's knows that means Danger and to be careful working around them. Changing the wheel in five minutes not bad, good thing too, I can see tire changes will be a frequent item seeing how much torque this thing puts out you know burnouts will be a thing. 😆 I like the idea of no chain, filters or other maintenance items to deal with. €25k price not bad, here in the USA at the Harley Dealer I was looking at the new Nightster and with markups and fees its $20k USD. I rode Harleys for many years, I go look at them won't be buying one. I more interested in the newer Electric bikes coming out. I did look at the Livewire but its short range its not enough for me and my insurance is 3k a year to get one, I'll wait until the costs become more reasonable. I can hear some people complaining its heavy, yes compared to ICE super bikes that have had decades of development and big factories doing the R&D and bringing them to production, but its an interesting time its wide open for independents and creatives to try new things. LOL seeing that hubless wheel I thought of a custom bike built by Billy Lane years ago he has a similar looking wheel setup. The idea has been around for awhile, interesting to see it used in a Electric Motorcycle.
The three big orange cables at the wheel are not a big danger at all if the bike, specifically the motor controller, is turned off. The dangerous cables are the pair going from the battery to the motor controller. These will be kept as short and secure as possible.
@@grejen711 I also hope the bike has something like a bank angle sensor to shut off the controller in case of an accident. I have worked around high voltage systems and know the precautions to take and what not to touch. I just found it interesting to see those orange cables out in the open usually they are carefully routed and kept out of sight if possible.
I've been a beemer rider since the '90s and have been waiting for an electric equivalent to the BMW RT - so weight isn't a big issue for me ;-) The only riding I've done over the past decade or so has been the couple long road trips/year on my regular schedule - one from San Francisco to Southern California and one to the Pacific Northwest - and that's only because our intercity passenger rail system sucks. What's I've been waiting for is a full fairing with adjustable windscreen, capacious bags (side bags, topcase and tank bag and some built-in compartments would be nice too), 250-300 miles range at a spirited highway cruising speed and/or canyon-carving, and 30-60 minute charge time (and a Denny's or equivalent that incorporates charging into its parking so I can feed the bike and myself simultaneously). IMHO the 2007 model - the last one I owned before I decided to go with rentals - had a good ratio of useful tech : cruft. The later models which I rented in '17 and '18 & the one I bought in '19 (RIP) had _way_ too much technocruft, particularly the overstuffed menu that required a scroll wheel to go through just to get the two or three pieces of info you really want to have in front of you at all times, that I found dangerously distracting. And honestly I don't _want_ their nav and entertainment options, and resent the dash and menu space being taken up for them. What I want is somewhere to snap my mobile into, that will plug the power and antennae into the vehicle for charging & signal boosting, respectively, so I can use the nav and music options I've already got set up to my preferences. Can somebody help me?
@@dwc1964 do you realize a touring motorcycle has hardly less drag at spirited highway speed than a full size sedan with .20 drag coefficient like model s/MB EQS/lucid air. you don't want to be adding almost 1000lbs of batteries to your GT electric motorcycle, so you'll have to wait for a while before battery tech allows this kind of range. even next gen solid state batteries won't provide this kind of energy density. your only hope with current battery tech is an fully enclosed fairing two wheeler
It would look amazing to take 4 of those wheel assemblies and custom build a car using them. You could have the front and rear wheels tilt in opposite directions to steer. Low speed turns could be handled by turning the left and right sides in opposite directions or at different rates. Electric, in wheel motors give you so many options for amazing designs.
Have a poke about online for hub motor vehicle designs. The custom AMK brand hub motors used by certain Formula Student teams are worth a look, for example.
@@wayland7150 The whole point of using this particular design would be the motorcycle wheels, which are designed to steer by tilting. Regular tires aren't meant to ride along the side of the tread for turning like these are.
@@wayland7150 One, I think it would be a fun and interesting car. 2, it could possibly be a more efficient setup for lighter class vehicles. 3, to see if it CAN be done in a functional and cost effective way.
One of the problem area of a standard motorcycle is the fact that since the drive sprocket and the swingarm pivot are not coaxial, there must be slack in the chain to allow for rear wheel travel. This is a source of component wear and introduces forces for which the suspension must compensate. It would be interesting to hear if the bike had anti-squat and anti dive built into the design. With the amount of energy being recaptured by regen, it could be an interesting ride if the rear braking overwhelms the front brakes!
I am self teaching myself about Electric Motorcycle builds and this design is beautifully done. I would to visit and learn how to build a bike like is. Never knew there was a thing like a "hub-less electric motor."
Would love to see a custom bike building competition built around the hub less system. Custom bikes are already very popular and you might be able to get into that market this way as well as get some advertising for the cost of a few motors.
If you can find Biker Build Off episode on you tube with Billy May he builds a hubless rear wheel. I looked at making one about 14 years ago when I ran a custom bike parts business, but getting a bearing was the hard part, they were basically helicopter rotor blade bearings.
Wow 1 moving part! Other than fork seals, breaking system, tyres and bulbs looks like no other servicing required ! And such a good looking bike too. Love living in the future. This should be big hit :)
I am pretty split on the hubless motor thing, It being hubless and the novel swing arm attachment point will reduce the gyro effect to almost nothing at the rear wheel. But having the entire (very heavy) motor as unsprung mass is very concerning about its stability on even slightly rough roads.
I really like this bike. But is there anywhere I can put my topbox as I need to carry things to and from work. This is the first futuristic everyday motorcycle that's actually functional I would consider getting.
What's the process of changing the rear tire. I imagine with all that torque and weight is going to result in a fair amount of tire wear. And then I'm guessing that huge metal ring on the right of the bike is the brake disk?. I mean from a weight and a cost perspective this certainly isn't ideal but damn it looks cool.
EV bikes tend to have a horrible power to weight ratio. I wonder how the COG is with the main drive being in the back the video claims a lot of stuff but all the rolling shots were the rider going slow.
@@corail53 COG is super low as the battery and the motor are the heaviest and lowest parts of the motorcycle. as for changing the tire @nicoschurr, it takes no longer than 5 minutes. It is removed like a HGV tyre.
I’m not a biker but this caught my eye and can’t help but think it’s a super impressive feat of engineering and really stands out against regular bikes. Well done! But I wonder how quickly will the rear wheel structure fill with road grime and gunk, and how trouble free that will be in the long run. Also, aesthetically I’d prefer to have both wheels in same style, not one open and the other with spokes. Still, good job coming up with an original design and making it work.
This concept with hubless bikes have already been tried out in the late 80ies, by Sbarro. The biggest problems is that the bearings dont like these constructions from what I have understood.
@@alexfunk2047 if you're talking about the body then yeah, the CoG is pretty low, but I'm wondering why they didn't just go with a traditional motor that would sit in the middle of the wheel. There will be less inertia for accelerating and braking if the mass is concentrated towards the center instead of towards the edge of the wheel.
@@yummyhershey5902 The mass is concentrated in the centre, that's how centres of mass works. It doesn't matter if the wheel is hollow or filled, as long as the weight distribution is the same around the whole wheel, then the centre of mass will be in the middle of the empty area. The part that connects the wheel to the bike is only there to keep the wheel in place and acts as something for the wheel-motor to push against, thus moving the bike forward.
@@TextiX887 "center of mass" is nothing but the mean position of matter. The mass being concentrated towards the outside or center of the wheel won't change the center of mass, but it can still affect the inertia of a rotating object. For example, ice skaters bringing their arms closer to their center of mass makes them spin faster. Having the mass concentrated towards the center of the wheel will make it require less force to accelerate/decelerate to a certain speed.
Interesting concept. Fascinating that some of the selling points seem to be it's doesn't vibrate, smell of oil or make any sound. For an old duffer like me those are things that I like about bikes 😄 Heyho, can't stand in the way of progress. Good luck to Verve. I hope they're successful.
I don't really call this progress (ev's aren't solving any enviromental issues) Silence and no vibration just mean boring and lifeless. I have driven in EV cars and have been a huge RC guy my entire life - and while they have instant torque and are fast (credit due there) they somehow made that incredibly boring and sterile.
@@corail53 of course they are helping environmental issues - yes, ok the grid needs to move more than it’s current 30% renewables; but already no local particulate or gas pollution is a very big plus.
Thats nostalgia. Take a new generation. Raise them on EVs and then have them drive a vehicle with an engine. My bet is most will not like it. Just wait and see.
A beautiful bike, and the tech on the rear end is really intriguing. Disappointing that everything front of that is very conventional... switching to a swingarm front end would not only bring significant handling improvements (less dive, lower COG, minimal changes trail/wheelbase due to suspension travel, less dive, etc), but would also allow for a more flexibility in the design of everything in between.
One disadvantage that in-hub motors have in general is that they have to absorb all of the road shock directly, whereas if the motor (gas or electric) is centrally located that shock can be largely mitigated between the wheels and the engine via various shock absorbers and linkages. I worry about this fact with the Aptera too. Every pothole is felt _directly_ by the wheel and its hub motor.
I suppose it is comparable to one very large bearing and the stress that would come under - you may well have a point, though I do wonder whether an effective bearing of that size relative to the mass of the bike would probably have a longer life than the bike itself - I wouldn't have thought it was too difficult to give it the necessary longevity - though if cheap copies come out, that would be a different matter, ^oo^
@@bernardthedisappointedowl6938 Its not the bearing that's the worry.. The windings are of thin wires only insulated from each other with varnish. What will impacts and vibration induced internal rubbing do in the long term? Also an unmodified manual tyre changer will be of no use in changing the rear tyre
@@xtc2v That's a very good thought - I guess it in part depends on the design of the motor, normally the wire windings are fixed and the magnets move - though as you say, they would still come under stress and may cause problems - Often in high vibration settings the windings are immersed in resin as well to set them solid to help with that potential problem - a solution commonly used in small wind turbines - again - resin has its problems too - not least weight, but it might alleviate some of the inter-wire stresses, ^oo^
@@bernardthedisappointedowl6938 Its not a resin in industrial applications its a varnish. A resin once set would be impossible to take for a rewind if it developed a short.
There's a difference between a hubless wheel, and one with a huge hollow axle. This is the latter, which is why it might work reasonably well. True hubless wheels are goofy junk with all kinds of disadvantages but no advantages.
As a car-nerd, I have to say that this was the first motorbike I really felt like wanting to try - Also - would the wheel design work on small sports cars, similar to an Ariel or Caterham? That would be interesting yo see and drive!
Fantastic concept and impressive engineering! I really hope you have all of your IP, patents etc in order because everyone of your competitors will want to copy this concept. I can see the whole motorcycle industry going in this direction for e-bikes! How can small private investors invest in your company? I'd be interested to put some money down and I bet lots more people would too. I think you have a winner! Good work Verge!
I've driven an e-scooter since 2019 and I love it with the exception that it kills chains and gears quite easily. This is a great solution. My only question is, why didn't you make an electric center stand.. I think having the front wheel also be hubless would look great
To have a hubless wheel is a massive weight, and only makes sense if you are designing it around a motor. The front wheel only needs to be a normal rolling wheel. And if you made it 2WD so you had that as a powered motor too.... you are introducing a whole new wave of problems that simply aren't worth the time and hassle.
Lots of cleverness here. I always enjoy a different approach. They need to all be explored to find the better fit for purpose solutions right now. For electric vehicles. Because many of our existing design instincts are still informed by ICE constraints. I don't think many people realise how very different the future can be. I saw an electric skateboard with tank treads the other day that speed over almost any terrain. Climb stairs, etc. And this really comes across as fairly quiet if I'm hearing right around 8:50. Real quiet. Which is amazing to me.
The existing design instincts are automotive constraints and constraints from the fact you still need axles, still need steering, all the stuff that makes up a vehicle regardless of drivetrain. We aren't magically going to get rid of that stuff because it is an EV. That Tank tread skateboard you are talking about is using tech that is over a hunderd years old in EV and tread design. Nothing innovative in it. It is just taking what is old and putting on things that don't need it for the sake of what.
@@corail53 You are being disingenuous. I'm not talking about the underlying technology of transportation. I'm not talking about wheels and axles, treads, etc. I'm talking about the vehicle form factors enabled by more compact drivetrains which require less auxiliary mechanisms to function. Less design constraints from the driving train. Less moving parts. No exhaust. No oil. No water cooling. No combustion timing. Flat power curves which make gearing optional. Etc. Etc. Etc. You can't get an internal combustion engine to do what was done with this bike. It's practically impossible. And it's an extremely efficient design for a wheel which even extends the range of the bike. Maybe that's what has you in a tizz... New technology that makes EVs even more viable... This exact design need not even be limited to motorbikes. An EV car could most likely get better range with something like this. And the car itself could be massively less complex for it. You can't create a practical tank treaded skateboard with an internal combustion engine drivetrain. You probably could make something that will sort of work, but it would not be a good product. Then look at water craft - We've already seen electric designs with small but sufficiently powerful electric motors built into the waterfoil. Making even waterfoil surfboards possible. No need for fuel lines and a large, complex engine nor exhaust. Just power lines down to compact motors. Already small VTOL aircraft are in the works, nearing market readiness that are designed to serve as flying taxis as affordable as an Uber. You cannot do that with internal combustion engines. This is what I'm talking about. Where drivetrains are concerned electric motors make internal combustion engines look like dated steam power technology. Opening up a wide range of design options, and even types of vehicles that were just not available before. For what you ask? Is this now fatalism hour? Go search for that tank tread skateboard. Watch the videos. That is a mean, lean personal transportation device that can go many places, over a wide range of obstacles, that will appeal to many people.
that radical new motor for the rear.... can you drive it through wet leaves? Or mud? Is it well sealed from the elements? If so then thats a brilliant job!
Striking bike and really interesting video. I was at FCL and was really impressed by the bikes and scooters I saw. It would be good to get a review of how the bike handles. How does it compare to ICE bikes; weight, handling, suspension, acceleration. 1000Nm just sounds like it would flip you over. Presumably it has anti-wheelie, traction control etc....?
Yes, this is a good point. I think all that torque probably isn't necessary, as the traction control willl be endlessly cutting power to stop you ending up in a hedge. I own a Zero SR/F and it has 140 ft-lb (190 Nm) which means my TC is endlessly saving me from cartwheeling down the road :D - this Verge has almost 5 times the torque.. that's a huge difference and I'm not sure it'll ever be able to put that amount of power down on the road. Would still love to try it though!
@@SpottedCreeper It's only got one gear so no opportunity to multiply torque like a geared bike has. With the right electronics it should be able to wheelie like a unicycle.
Cover more electric motorcycles! It's a very exciting space. Even Harley Davidson (Livewire) is doing exciting things with their new bikes where the battery acts as part of the frame.
an interesting technology review but little on the way that it rides. I wonder if it is still being finalised in terms of feel? The lack of any acceleration figures (which should be astonishing given the power and torque available) suggests you might have been asked to skirt around some areas?
We aren't skirting around anything. We advertise the 0-60 as under 4 seconds so that potential riders don't feel it is too fast, becasue the TS can be ridden however you wish. Some of our team have flirted with 3 seconds flat, some haven't. So under 4 seconds is an honest representation.
2017 honda fireblade does 0-60 in 3.0 and costs around 11k. MPG around 40-45. Lets say you ride 6k miles a year (most people don’t) thats 133 gallons of fuel per year at $5/gal = $670/yr fuel costs, oil change once a year $50, chain cleaning and wax around $20 entire year. So for around 12k I get a bike thats waaaay faster, lighter, better engineered, and its reliable and easy to work on. Plus you can take the cash you saved on not buying the obsolete electric scooter and you can buy a second bike or car, invest the money, etc. Am I missing something here? Oh and it sounds like a fucking F1 car as you shoot past the scooter that has no where to fuel up on long rides in the mountains…. 😎
@@hondafanboy1856 Yea you are missing the fact that this is a different type of machine. No where in the video did anyone say it was a 1:1 replacement for the standard motorcycle. It is type of tech that has not been used in this way much at all, whereas gas motorcycles have been standard for over 100years. Straw manning the bike into calling it an electric scooter is weak. I’ve yet to see an electric scooter hit anywhere near those speeds or have anywhere near that range much less have that electromagnetic motor on the wheel. You can keep your Honda, which is a fine machine, and still appreciate the work that went into something else.
if only the battery technology was better. Would look soo much cooler if it wasn't so bulky, also the weight reduction. or else it should have been like Tron light cycle. The exciting part is this can be designed differently much more easily.
That shouldn't be too much of an issue. The total weight of the wheel isn't too much more than a standard one. The total weight of the bike isn't anywhere comparable to a full sized car, which should make it much more manageable
@@thomasreese2816 Given that it contains the electromagnets, and a much larger bearing than usual I would expect that the wheel would be heavier than a normal one, although I don't know this for a fact.
@@vergemotorcycles Thanks for correcting me there - I had a vague memory of the Honda coming in at about 210kg. How do you assess the unsprung mass issue? I mean, how does the arm/wheel/tyre setup compare to a similar-sized chain or shaft-driven bike?
I still wonder how much of a challenge does the hubless wheel add to changing rear tire. Other than that it look so delicious. 😋😁 It definitely is an engineering wonder. 🤘🏼👍🏼
It looks like a very imp[ressive piece of engineering but it sounds as though there is a tremendous amount of unsprung weight in that real wheel. I wonder how that affects the handling and road holding.
@@MarkBlance True. I can't see any benefit of this set-up over a standard hub motor, which has all the benefits of the hubless design but with the same downside of unsprung weight.
In motorcycle crashes, no one ever says, I didnt hear the bike! You always see it first before the roar. You might wanna be more careful around pedestrians though.
It looks like a concept vehicle rather than commercial final with question mark about the riding experience specifically the "Geometric" seat and the hand bar. Goodluck and sell well!
Really nice Episode guys, I saw this bike at Fully Charged live, is the Crewekerne I spying you riding through? Would have been nice to have more of a review / Rider experience and feedback from you, if it has that much torque what was it like to ride compared to other electric bikes, did it feel like it wanted to wheelie everywhere , how did it feel flip flopping around the corners? Was it comparable to a BMW boxer engine with the weight low down etc.???
Different way to put the motor together for sure, but still just a normal-ish DC electric motor with permanent magnets and electromagnets. There's still a hub, but they made it bigger and pushed the bearing surfaces out to the perimeter.
Interesting - would like to know more about how it felt to ride. e.g. "Stable" is not usually a massive compliment for a motorcycle - one might want to know how it corners, what the acceleration feels like, etc.
I've never owned anything with more than two wheels and don't use any kind of personal vehicle on the daily (horray for mass transit and walkable neighborhoods!) so the only vehicle I've owned over the decades is a tourcycle - various iterations of the BMW RT from the 1982 model year to 2007 (and briefly 2019 but that's a sad story) - for the purpose of making (usually) two long road trips per year. As such, I've been following developments in electric vehicle technology specifically for this sort of thing. But even more so, I'm waiting, and waiting, and waiting, for someone to build an electric equivalent to the BMW RT - a tourer/sport-tourer with a full fairing (& adjustable windscreen please), full suitcase-sized sidebags and a topcase that can fit two full-sized helmets, and the ability to go 250-300 miles at spirited freeway speeds and to charge up in half an hour to an hour (long enough for a leisurely lunch). (The other development I'm looking for is the first major diner chain, e.g. Denny's, to put charging in _all_ of its parking spots in _all_ of its restaurants, in recognition of the fact that before too long _all_ the vehicles pulling up are going to be electric and are going to want to plug in. But again, that's another story.) Zero has been the top contender so far, but they haven't shown any interest in putting a proper fairing on any of their bikes, despite the obvious aerodynamic benefits at speed. I'm hoping these folks consider it.
Stunning and amazing. Just this one example of EV innovation proves to me that things like rear axles, diffs, prop shafts, chains, gearboxes, water pumps, radiators, carburettors, fuel injectors, petrol tanks, exhaust systems etc etc will all be just stories told by grandparents by the time the current infants finish school and get their first “car” ….
You still need water pumps (batteries can be liquid cooled because they get hot under load), gears, diffs, axles in EV's plus you need miles of cables an inverter (also usually liquid cooled). You still need bearings, axles, suspension, tires, wheels, plastics - lots of plastic) It is almost like you know nothing about cars but think an EV is some magical hover craft.
No mention of price? I'm sure way out of my budget. Too bad, it IS an attractive ride albeit a heavy one. Wonder with all that power if it can still lift the front wheel off the ground. Also how well it carves.
I see two problems - changing the tire on a rim which is the motor sounds delicate … and having everything in the rear wheel means there is a lot unsprung mass…
it's going to be a bitch and a half to change the tire on this thing. Not to mention it has a ton of un-sprung weight that won't be damped by suspension.
They said right in the video that they could do it in 5 minutes, I'd probably want to see that demonstrated but I believe that they've made it possible. Also when it comes to unsprung weight you have to think of it as a ratio to the rest of the mass. The battery and the rider are the really heavy parts and they are above the springs, that motor probably doesn't weigh that much.
Does this motorcycle have the ability to be powered in reverse, at least, in a slow speed mode? In some parking situations on my current bike, I have to struggle to back the bike up when on in incline where I must fight gravity. This would be a nice feature on a bike, especially on one with a substantial mass. I would think that with an electric motor, it would be possible to incorporate without a major design effort.
Curious as to the weight of that real wheel - given the width of the tyre and the presumably heavy weight of that rear wheel, I imagine the suspension will struggle and it’ll be a pig to turn.
You can put extra batteries inside the empty space inside back wheel and using same desing for front wheel u can also use that extra space for extra batteries. This will add extra range and lowers the central gravity point.
3:27 "so that's 700 brake horsepower" Oops! Nope, that's 700-ish foot/pounds of torque (still impressive!). A 700 HP motorcycle would be drag bike territory. But anyway, that instant torque for electric vehicles isn't just for racing. It is useful all the time, and it's one of my favorite things about my EV which is an otherwise quite modest 109HP 2016 Kia Soul EV+. Merging or just moving from one lane to another is just effortless and really surprises people inside the car who have not ridden inside an EV before.
@@corail53 Has nothing to do with the driver if the car can't deliver. Have you ever driven an EV? It is night and day to a gas car in driving characteristics. When you depress the accelerator there is zero - zero - delay. Power is delivered instantly which is not always the case with ICE cars. I've been driving cars for over 40 years so I know what I'm talking about.
@@corail53 It's much easier in my 4 litre Jag than in my 1 litre Panda. When changing lanes you really need to increase speed smoothly and rapidly without gear changes. Torque allows that. If you have to notch it down a gear or two and scream the revs then it's not smooth. If you have to wait for a turbo to boost up then you lose the best opportunity.
I know several people, including myself, who have been talking about this for years...not least because we've been riding 'Akira' style ICE bikes for decades!
Now picture 4 of those bikes attached to a center frame like spider legs able to squat low for roads and go higher for offroad individually articulating for going over obstacles and multiple surface angels.
What about cold & rain season, pot holes etc. Also I've never seen in the ads about having ABS in any electric bikes, whereas in petrol bikes, it is the second thing that comes up (either single abs or dual abs)
9:25 - this right here is big for me. From what I understand, Zero's standard modes are set up so that Eco uses a relatively high regen but Sport cuts regen to minimal, and you can't reset those, only the Custom mode. But I'm used to riding a big boxer twin - the BMW RT - and so I want _maximum_ engine braking in _all_ modes - _especially_ when I'm canyon-carving and would really like to control my speed entirely with my throttle if possible. So I'd really like for that to be an option to set in all modes, rather than having just one or two "Custom" modes available for that setting.
Hi Mate, I had a Zero SRS, and set up my own custom mode - Max regen, max power, and that was perfect, always having full power on tap - why limit yourself ! and as you guess I like to ride, which means accelerate, then slowdown: fast. Cruise - the Zero has a great cruise control. But the slow charge cripples all the Zero's, and I'm back on Petrol (MV Agusta) - I live in the country, so not a city commuter. Nice to see Verge have DC Fast charge.
Love your show. Can you cover the Yatri motorbike next? It is a Nepal built (in itself a feat) electric motorbike that can gain a lot of international traction if you feature them. At the same time. reviewing them would teach us consumers a lot about this new electric bike.
It would be interesting how the unsprung mass of the rear wheel assembly compares to a conventional set-up. Convention indicates that a reduction in mass improves handling and ride.
Just what I was questioning as well.
Really isn't hugely relevant for road riding. Two key points; it's the ratio of sprung to unsprung mass that's the important part (& the factor that usually gets missed); and considering the swingarm etc as part of unsprung mass, it's likely to be equal to or less than something like a BMW Paralever (I did work it out once).
A 2002 generation GSXR 1000 has about 45lb of unsprung rear weight. My first thought was that this would be much heavier. But without the axle and center hub, there was some definitive weight savings. I'd like to pull the rear shock and set the tire assembly with swing arm attached to the bike on a scale.
I suppose we will have to wait for an unbiased review once they get into the wild?
I can see gyroscoping being an issue - surely? 🧐
I'd love to see what the process of changing the rear tire would look like.
If I had to guess, and I’m definitely not an expert, I’d say that you can just screw off the bolts, disconnect the wires and then remove the tire from the motor, shouldn’t actually be too much of a hassle I think.
This has me curious. As well as how much they made the rim fit conventional tyres or if it's a custom designed affair.
As well as the integrity and what was done to mitigate the forces involved in hitting a pothole at speed.
They should focus on these matters since not mentioning it just leads me to believe in it being the weakness in what is an aesthetically pleasing design.
@@sepro5135 The interviewee says it takes 5 minutes to change the tire in the video. Cant be too complicated.
@@Pimpemans potholes Defo a worry.
That was my first thought when he introduced the rear wheel concept
This is the first bike (motor or electric bicycle) video I've enjoyed. What a brilliant piece of design and innovation. I hope it's a huge success!
A few things...
1) The colour code...
The flex cables really stand out as a feature & flow into the body of the bike... The white body panels parts should be matched to the orange flex cables providing continuity & vibrancy...
2) The sound...
An audible, futuristic, fluctuating high/low electric pitch matching power delivery would really set this apart & also increase safety for all road users...
Brilliant venture!
I bought the 'chainless' Soco ..Bosch motor, supposed to be 50cc equivalent but delivers 40 mph, lots of fun, 50p to do 30-40 miles. The issue is lack of streamlining so that is the battery killer ..not the motor.. not weight..simply pushing the sail that is your body through the air
Exactly, this is why motor bikes are inefficient, ducking down whilst riding add more mpg and mph.
Imagine the efficiencies that could be gained if aerodynamics were properly sorted, but this would mean encapsulating the rider taking away some of the Joy's of riding.
@@FlyingFun. My bike EV has a purpose..it is the eco run around that goes on the back of my camper.. for trips into the hills, to save fuel, to venture into cities.
30 mile range is fine.
Bike makers have to be clear on what the bike is for.. the do everything of a modern ICE bike is not really an option.
This super bike really needed super fast charging as standard & a 150 mile range
@@julesdingle I have converted some pushbikes to electric they do 30mph, range is dependant on pedalling but easily 30 to 60 miles.
It really is plenty for all the local chores and having fun exploring.
Biggest issue is security, too many theives about..
yeah I'm on a soco too, the tc max so it's not a hub motor but instead has a belt drive. Still lovely to not have a chain to oil or rattling away. Biggest thing for me commuting daily is it's so smooth - no vibrations may be a bad thing when riding for short periods for pleasure but as a commuter experience it's so much more restful having a smooth bike.
The air resistance is substantial though as you say - no streamlining and a very upright position, a fairing would be nice :D still spanks any tesla in efficiency round town though.
I'd love a bigger bike, but at the moment there is such a huge price jump between what I'm on and the faster bikes.
@@asharak84 I would be tempted to convert a classic , buy the biggest hub motor and squeeze as many batteries into the frame
Fantastic innovative engineering... Right off the bat to come up with a winner in version 1 as it were... Wow! Excellent.
Reminds me of that Tron film back in the early 80s - the future is here! Yep it has been mentioned in this video I know, but that'll teach me to comment too early! :)
Not really, hubless wheels have existed for decades now and have always been a gimmick, including this
@@Jeppelelle Hardly a gimmick, you cannot get any more direct drive than this.
Syd Mead would be proud
@@electroplank587 It exited for long time, nobody used it, because it's not idea for anything, not in racing, not in long distance transportation, not in rail road, it's not rigid enough to hold the circle shape, too much rolling resistance, and yes there's more direct drive than this.🥰🥰🥰
@@electroplank587 I don't think you know what you're talking about, why don't you let your 6 months old ( please provide video that prove she explaining ) explain to me, if not nobody will believe you 🥰🥰🥰, and yes, there's more direct drive than this.
Wow, congratulations for the people of the Verge... it looks fabulous with that crazy engineering in the back wheel !
Never thought about being able to get rid of the chain and the rest of that bollocks, which is pretty cool. I've never been into motorbikes and never really wanted one, but I might actually consider an electric one, if I can find one cheap enough. Someone rode past the other day on an electric motorbike, and it might sound obvious, but when he passed by almost silently, it was ten times cooler than the noisy smeggers that normally irritate everyone in the village. I'd love to ride through the countryside in virtual silence, I think it would be heavenly.
Yes! Can you imagine riding through the countryside on a quiet Sunday morning as the sun is coming up? Heavenly indeed...
Agreed!
"if I can find one cheap enough"
Good luck. As of now they are incredibly expensive, just like E cars.
"I'd love to ride through the countryside in virtual silence, I think it would be heavenly."
The truth is that, depending on your speed, as a rider you don't necessarily hear the noise from the engine. It's the wind noise. But at slower speeds it would be quite nice.
I'm actually worried about motorists not seeing you coming.
Saying that I ride a bike in London so what's the difference.
Kinda really want one, just shit scared of driving a motorbike in London 😅
@@tmarritt
"Kinda really want one, just shit scared of driving a motorbike in London"
Yeah. I've had several motorcycles. The fact that they are silent isn't really going to make a difference. People don't tend to hear motorcycles unless they are insanely loud. And even then, you're right, there isn't the same level of awareness.
I don't have a bike now, but would love to have one for tooling around. Prices, though, aren't great. For me it wouldn't be worth it.
Truly a well designed bike. Love the low center of gravity and minimizing moving parts. Looks awesome too. Definitely a head turner, not because of the noise but the lack of. Well done people.
For me, reducing complex and energy-hungry electronics and eliminating losses that occur due to the electrical system is the most important.
WOW! By far the coolest E vehicle I’ve ever seen.
I've seen concepts from 2012 with hubless wheels and electric motors intergrated inside hubless. The easy way to understand hubless wheels is if you get a ball bearing, weld a swingarm to the center of the ballbearing rim put a tire on the outer rim of the ballbearing and there you go you've got your own hubless wheel.
What a spectacular bit of kit. Along with many others, was boggling at it last weekend in Farnborough, so this is fascinating stuff. And yet again, FC find us another brilliantly innovative genius to explain all. Great video as ever.
Fascinating indeed! Did they let people take this bike for a spin at Farnborough?
I'm going to FC Live in Amsterdam and would love to try this thing 😄
@@EdwinOtten oooh - good question. Not sure! But the point Andy made about noise in the video was such a good one. Standing by the track watching all test drives was fascinating. Silence! A reimagining of what cities could be like. Have a great time at the show in Amsterdam!
@@shhhyouknowhoo3753 I will definitely go and watch, thanks!!
@@EdwinOtten bring your gear and your licence to the show. Get there early to book a time.
Very cool but, it would never replace my primary internal combustion bike. I love the sounds, the vibrations, the shifting, and yes, even the wrenching.
That is several orders of magnitude cooler than any of the Harley Davidson my 14 year old self used to dream about.
Nice to see Andy again it's been a minute. Hope everyone had fun at FCL, wish I'd been able to make it
That big magnet hub is unsprung weight. That presents problems for handling/ tracking. Low enter of mass is nice, but a centrally located center of mass, between the wheels, is nicer. What is the weight distribution like?
This is a very nice concept and definitely the future for road going bikes if it turns out to be really reliable over time. The whole back wheel setup needs to mature of course. Motors are getting lighter and materials are getting better - and cheaper as well. So, that should go well. I wonder which of the big OEMs is gonna bring a similar bike to market first.
It's kind of sad...
I mean, the sound is a big part of experiencing a motorcycle. Everything is becoming boring. They take the fun out of cars and motorcycles by electrifying them...
Also battery technology is changing very rapidly, which potentially means more miles/kw and more power for the same weight /size battery.
@@professormoriarty6875 The fun is still there. Sound is only an addition, but most of the enjoyment in a motorcycle are going to be related to how it rides.
@@professormoriarty6875 yeah but this is not completely silent ..and the work will blow you away !!!! deff enough for me to buy electric !!!
What I'm missing is your opinion on handling and suspension, and a general riding comfort comparison to e-bikes with tradition drive trains. The advantages seem to be better power efficiency, even less/easier maintenance and a bigger battery.
Seems to also be performance, efficiency, reliability / simplicity, handling, and so on. That said, I suspect that rear wheel also significantly increases unsprung mass, which is generally a bad thing, so in terms of handling it may be a case of 'difference' rather than 'better'.
Bigger battery means it will weigh more than goldwing for a bike that is supposed to be sporty. It will effect handling. Also you are moving the main drive to the rear instead of the middle so that will most likey have weird effect on handling as well.
@@corail53 The TS weighs 248kg and will be lower on official release. The Centre of gravity is so low, it makes manoeuvrability very easy.
On the contrary, it was easier and less maintenance, as the introduction of electronics meant more complexity and more consumption and thus lower reliability.
This is remarkable. Beautiful design. Job well done.
I like the idea and in time, these could be made more compact and lightweight enough to be a reasonable replacement for the old chain and sprocket design, although I do wonder about the cost of replacing one if you dink it on a pothole or something!
Also, as it's all contained in the wheel you could have powered front wheels as well. Imagine a 2WD adventure bike with that power!
sorry just seen this after I wrote mine.
Something tells me that if you could break it by dinking it on a pothole, they wouldn't have put it into production 😜. Cost of replacement is a big factor though. I did initially wonder about how you would get it serviced and whether the lack of standard components would make repair more expensive or very difficult. Could easily end up with a situation where only Verge can repair it.
In most hub designs the rim can be unbolted from the motor. I ride a hub motor motorcycle and I'm not worried about it at all.
@@marsrover001 Good to know. It's something I'd consider buying as long as I felt confident that I could rely on parts being widely available so that repairs are feasible and cost-effective.
We have toyed around with 2wd ect, but to keep the TS as pure as possible we chose to stick to a simple front end set up. As @WiSkify said, we've done our testing to make sure a simple pothole will not stop our motorcycles.
I would have liked this a lot more if 1. You'd shown us the bike pieces (suspension, steering, braking system up front, the mirrors, storage compartment) more carefully. 2. You'd told us how it makes you feel - How responsive, how it feels at top speed, seat comfort, head and tail lights, data readout, etc, etc.
maybe a roll race vs an mt 10
This was quite impressive. And the bike was *beautiful*. I really liked how the wiring was done - the curves remind me of the exhaust lines on a petrol engine bike. Verge has hit a jackpot.
I wonder what the retail price will be :D
Wait what? They make them in my country? This gets curiouser and curiouser :D
...I did think that license plate style looked familiar :D
I think it's supposed to be around 25,000 euros.
@@jannepeltonen2036, You didn't know that Verge is the only motorcycle manufacturer in Finland. I was myself working with that when we build the first prototype (the company was called as an RMK then).
@@jannepeltonen2036 please tell me it's not supposed to be pronounced the way they do in the video! It means something nobody wants to talk about in my country...
Idk they didn't make much of difference from a hub motor.
Hub motor also doesn't have much happening on the center.
Verge just took out a bit of the material and put bearings somewhere else.
Interesting design, I like the minimalist approach unlike other motorcycles where they are adding more systems and items all the time.
I have been riding for 45 years and was a Mechanic for most of those years one of my first thoughts was wheel changes dealing with those orange cables which as a Mechanic whom has worked around EV's knows that means Danger and to be careful working around them.
Changing the wheel in five minutes not bad, good thing too, I can see tire changes will be a frequent item seeing how much torque this thing puts out you know burnouts will be a thing. 😆
I like the idea of no chain, filters or other maintenance items to deal with.
€25k price not bad, here in the USA at the Harley Dealer I was looking at the new Nightster and with markups and fees its $20k USD.
I rode Harleys for many years, I go look at them won't be buying one. I more interested in the newer Electric bikes coming out.
I did look at the Livewire but its short range its not enough for me and my insurance is 3k a year to get one, I'll wait until the costs become more reasonable.
I can hear some people complaining its heavy, yes compared to ICE super bikes that have had decades of development and big factories doing the R&D and bringing them to production, but its an interesting time its wide open for independents and creatives to try new things.
LOL seeing that hubless wheel I thought of a custom bike built by Billy Lane years ago he has a similar looking wheel setup.
The idea has been around for awhile, interesting to see it used in a Electric Motorcycle.
The three big orange cables at the wheel are not a big danger at all if the bike, specifically the motor controller, is turned off. The dangerous cables are the pair going from the battery to the motor controller. These will be kept as short and secure as possible.
@@grejen711
I also hope the bike has something like a bank angle sensor to shut off the controller in case of an accident.
I have worked around high voltage systems and know the precautions to take and what not to touch.
I just found it interesting to see those orange cables out in the open usually they are carefully routed and kept out of sight if possible.
I've been a beemer rider since the '90s and have been waiting for an electric equivalent to the BMW RT - so weight isn't a big issue for me ;-)
The only riding I've done over the past decade or so has been the couple long road trips/year on my regular schedule - one from San Francisco to Southern California and one to the Pacific Northwest - and that's only because our intercity passenger rail system sucks.
What's I've been waiting for is a full fairing with adjustable windscreen, capacious bags (side bags, topcase and tank bag and some built-in compartments would be nice too), 250-300 miles range at a spirited highway cruising speed and/or canyon-carving, and 30-60 minute charge time (and a Denny's or equivalent that incorporates charging into its parking so I can feed the bike and myself simultaneously).
IMHO the 2007 model - the last one I owned before I decided to go with rentals - had a good ratio of useful tech : cruft. The later models which I rented in '17 and '18 & the one I bought in '19 (RIP) had _way_ too much technocruft, particularly the overstuffed menu that required a scroll wheel to go through just to get the two or three pieces of info you really want to have in front of you at all times, that I found dangerously distracting.
And honestly I don't _want_ their nav and entertainment options, and resent the dash and menu space being taken up for them. What I want is somewhere to snap my mobile into, that will plug the power and antennae into the vehicle for charging & signal boosting, respectively, so I can use the nav and music options I've already got set up to my preferences.
Can somebody help me?
@@dwc1964 do you realize a touring motorcycle has hardly less drag at spirited highway speed than a full size sedan with .20 drag coefficient like model s/MB EQS/lucid air. you don't want to be adding almost 1000lbs of batteries to your GT electric motorcycle, so you'll have to wait for a while before battery tech allows this kind of range. even next gen solid state batteries won't provide this kind of energy density.
your only hope with current battery tech is an fully enclosed fairing two wheeler
Tron coming to life
YESSS!!!!! The future has arrived! :D Thank you so much, Fully Charged Show and Verge!
It would look amazing to take 4 of those wheel assemblies and custom build a car using them. You could have the front and rear wheels tilt in opposite directions to steer. Low speed turns could be handled by turning the left and right sides in opposite directions or at different rates. Electric, in wheel motors give you so many options for amazing designs.
Have a poke about online for hub motor vehicle designs. The custom AMK brand hub motors used by certain Formula Student teams are worth a look, for example.
Make the wheels huge and you have the racing game GRIP.
@@wayland7150 The whole point of using this particular design would be the motorcycle wheels, which are designed to steer by tilting. Regular tires aren't meant to ride along the side of the tread for turning like these are.
@@hellcat1988 I know why you do that on a bike but why in a car?
@@wayland7150 One, I think it would be a fun and interesting car. 2, it could possibly be a more efficient setup for lighter class vehicles. 3, to see if it CAN be done in a functional and cost effective way.
One of the problem area of a standard motorcycle is the fact that since the drive sprocket and the swingarm pivot are not coaxial, there must be slack in the chain to allow for rear wheel travel. This is a source of component wear and introduces forces for which the suspension must compensate. It would be interesting to hear if the bike had anti-squat and anti dive built into the design. With the amount of energy being recaptured by regen, it could be an interesting ride if the rear braking overwhelms the front brakes!
Wow, this is fantastic! Finally a proper ground up electric motorcycle! This definitely needs some LED lighting for that Tron look. 😃
Damn I didn't think of it, now that I read this comment I can see how practical it can become. It will be lit af for us 90s kids! :D
I am self teaching myself about Electric Motorcycle builds and this design is beautifully done. I would to visit and learn how to build a bike like is. Never knew there was a thing like a "hub-less electric motor."
Would love to see a custom bike building competition built around the hub less system.
Custom bikes are already very popular and you might be able to get into that market this way as well as get some advertising for the cost of a few motors.
If you can find Biker Build Off episode on you tube with Billy May he builds a hubless rear wheel. I looked at making one about 14 years ago when I ran a custom bike parts business, but getting a bearing was the hard part, they were basically helicopter rotor blade bearings.
Wow 1 moving part! Other than fork seals, breaking system, tyres and bulbs looks like no other servicing required ! And such a good looking bike too. Love living in the future. This should be big hit :)
I am pretty split on the hubless motor thing, It being hubless and the novel swing arm attachment point will reduce the gyro effect to almost nothing at the rear wheel.
But having the entire (very heavy) motor as unsprung mass is very concerning about its stability on even slightly rough roads.
you still have the front wheel and the invisible rotating parts inside the rear one
Or if all the magnets are in the rim the Gyro effect is bigger than if they were in the centre?
But it looks cool
Good point
The point of the unsprung mass is very fundamental. Its a negative in my opinion. Elon musk has talked about it as well in the Tesla context
I really like this bike. But is there anywhere I can put my topbox as I need to carry things to and from work. This is the first futuristic everyday motorcycle that's actually functional I would consider getting.
What's the process of changing the rear tire. I imagine with all that torque and weight is going to result in a fair amount of tire wear. And then I'm guessing that huge metal ring on the right of the bike is the brake disk?. I mean from a weight and a cost perspective this certainly isn't ideal but damn it looks cool.
EV bikes tend to have a horrible power to weight ratio. I wonder how the COG is with the main drive being in the back the video claims a lot of stuff but all the rolling shots were the rider going slow.
@@corail53 COG is super low as the battery and the motor are the heaviest and lowest parts of the motorcycle. as for changing the tire @nicoschurr, it takes no longer than 5 minutes. It is removed like a HGV tyre.
Since when are Ferrari’s known for their torque?
Your friends must really like you.
😂😂😂😂@@matthewbridges1438
@@matthewbridges1438Jesus loves him! Jesus loves you just as much, but in your own special way 😉
@@matthewbridges1438You must have none
They aren't, but they are a sports car, this is a bike
I’m not a biker but this caught my eye and can’t help but think it’s a super impressive feat of engineering and really stands out against regular bikes. Well done! But I wonder how quickly will the rear wheel structure fill with road grime and gunk, and how trouble free that will be in the long run. Also, aesthetically I’d prefer to have both wheels in same style, not one open and the other with spokes. Still, good job coming up with an original design and making it work.
I think they should have hidden those ugly orange power cables better. And the price is a bit to much.
@@JayDee-xj9lu It's matter of preference. I personally really dig that they left the phase wiring like that. So cool.
I was thinking the same. Cleaning and maintenance just the rear wheel would be hell.
This concept with hubless bikes have already been tried out in the late 80ies, by Sbarro. The biggest problems is that the bearings dont like these constructions from what I have understood.
@@JayDee-xj9lu yes accidents happen slide on that side and pinching those baby’s on what ever
Love the interview. The loose tobacco leather sofas drove me nuts, I Would have gone with chesterfields. Sick Bike
I'd like to know how heavy that rear wheel/motor is - must be an awful lot of unsprung weight!
But just look where the center of gravity is for that weight. You can't get much lower than that!
@@alexfunk2047 if you're talking about the body then yeah, the CoG is pretty low, but I'm wondering why they didn't just go with a traditional motor that would sit in the middle of the wheel. There will be less inertia for accelerating and braking if the mass is concentrated towards the center instead of towards the edge of the wheel.
@@alexfunk2047 True. I would love to ride it to discover how it feels, especially in corners.
@@yummyhershey5902 The mass is concentrated in the centre, that's how centres of mass works. It doesn't matter if the wheel is hollow or filled, as long as the weight distribution is the same around the whole wheel, then the centre of mass will be in the middle of the empty area. The part that connects the wheel to the bike is only there to keep the wheel in place and acts as something for the wheel-motor to push against, thus moving the bike forward.
@@TextiX887 "center of mass" is nothing but the mean position of matter. The mass being concentrated towards the outside or center of the wheel won't change the center of mass, but it can still affect the inertia of a rotating object. For example, ice skaters bringing their arms closer to their center of mass makes them spin faster. Having the mass concentrated towards the center of the wheel will make it require less force to accelerate/decelerate to a certain speed.
I'm impressed. Well done to the engineers to simplify it so.
Interesting concept.
Fascinating that some of the selling points seem to be it's doesn't vibrate, smell of oil or make any sound. For an old duffer like me those are things that I like about bikes 😄
Heyho, can't stand in the way of progress. Good luck to Verve. I hope they're successful.
I don't really call this progress (ev's aren't solving any enviromental issues) Silence and no vibration just mean boring and lifeless. I have driven in EV cars and have been a huge RC guy my entire life - and while they have instant torque and are fast (credit due there) they somehow made that incredibly boring and sterile.
@@corail53 of course they are helping environmental issues - yes, ok the grid needs to move more than it’s current 30% renewables; but already no local particulate or gas pollution is a very big plus.
Thats nostalgia. Take a new generation. Raise them on EVs and then have them drive a vehicle with an engine. My bet is most will not like it. Just wait and see.
Hmm. I gather you've never watched planet of the humans?
A beautiful bike, and the tech on the rear end is really intriguing. Disappointing that everything front of that is very conventional... switching to a swingarm front end would not only bring significant handling improvements (less dive, lower COG, minimal changes trail/wheelbase due to suspension travel, less dive, etc), but would also allow for a more flexibility in the design of everything in between.
9:33 Love the reaction from the family. Genuine surprise and not annoyance of a loud CE motorcycle ruining their pleasant walk.
It was staged.
I imagine the person filming was on a CE motorcycle tho
Annoyance? I always love the sound. And when I drive through villages, all kids want me to rev it up.
What you call annoyance is sweet music to us great heads 😂
Impressive, I love it. Using electric power as the beginning tech has produced a stellar product.
Very interesting design. Love the 3 cables feeding the motor. Kinda replaces the chain idea. I see this going places.
so you mean like every single other motor of this type and the vast majority in existence?
comment screams "i dont know shit about motors durrr"
@@Blox117 I'm a lifelong electrician, so kindly take your durr and stick it.. Thanks.
@@thetravellingpicker5096 LOL even more embarrassing! by like 100x!
careful not to shock yourself while sticking your tongue on power lines LMAO
@@Blox117 What are you, 12?
One disadvantage that in-hub motors have in general is that they have to absorb all of the road shock directly, whereas if the motor (gas or electric) is centrally located that shock can be largely mitigated between the wheels and the engine via various shock absorbers and linkages. I worry about this fact with the Aptera too. Every pothole is felt _directly_ by the wheel and its hub motor.
I suppose it is comparable to one very large bearing and the stress that would come under - you may well have a point, though I do wonder whether an effective bearing of that size relative to the mass of the bike would probably have a longer life than the bike itself - I wouldn't have thought it was too difficult to give it the necessary longevity - though if cheap copies come out, that would be a different matter, ^oo^
I hope it's worth the weight.
@@bernardthedisappointedowl6938 Its not the bearing that's the worry.. The windings are of thin wires only insulated from each other with varnish. What will impacts and vibration induced internal rubbing do in the long term? Also an unmodified manual tyre changer will be of no use in changing the rear tyre
@@xtc2v That's a very good thought - I guess it in part depends on the design of the motor, normally the wire windings are fixed and the magnets move - though as you say, they would still come under stress and may cause problems - Often in high vibration settings the windings are immersed in resin as well to set them solid to help with that potential problem - a solution commonly used in small wind turbines - again - resin has its problems too - not least weight, but it might alleviate some of the inter-wire stresses, ^oo^
@@bernardthedisappointedowl6938 Its not a resin in industrial applications its a varnish. A resin once set would be impossible to take for a rewind if it developed a short.
There's a difference between a hubless wheel, and one with a huge hollow axle. This is the latter, which is why it might work reasonably well. True hubless wheels are goofy junk with all kinds of disadvantages but no advantages.
I agree! They should not call this "hubless" because it isn't and it would be worse if it was. Great engineering with questionable marketing.
What is a hubless wheel then, I don't understand the difference. Does it just mean there's no center?
I think for marketing terms and the layman alike, “hubless wheel” is sufficiently accurate because it has no conventional hub.
As a car-nerd, I have to say that this was the first motorbike I really felt like wanting to try - Also - would the wheel design work on small sports cars, similar to an Ariel or Caterham? That would be interesting yo see and drive!
A similar wheel design is being used on a car in California. Called an Aptera
As a former car guy, get a motorcycle. I will never own another car again.
if all 4 wheels were this magnetic bearing type, I don't see why it wouldn't work for every car, every size
@@TheMythicalAce 100%
ew gross, imagine being addicted to motorized wheelchairs
Was skeptical but DAMN it is beautiful. No chain and sprocket, incredible. Good on you fellas
Wonder how much is the unsprung weight of the back wheel?
Fantastic concept and impressive engineering! I really hope you have all of your IP, patents etc in order because everyone of your competitors will want to copy this concept. I can see the whole motorcycle industry going in this direction for e-bikes! How can small private investors invest in your company? I'd be interested to put some money down and I bet lots more people would too. I think you have a winner! Good work Verge!
Right? If they have the necessary patents in place they needn't lift a finger... just let the license fees roll in
I've driven an e-scooter since 2019 and I love it with the exception that it kills chains and gears quite easily. This is a great solution. My only question is, why didn't you make an electric center stand.. I think having the front wheel also be hubless would look great
To have a hubless wheel is a massive weight, and only makes sense if you are designing it around a motor. The front wheel only needs to be a normal rolling wheel. And if you made it 2WD so you had that as a powered motor too.... you are introducing a whole new wave of problems that simply aren't worth the time and hassle.
gearless and chainless are inefficient and unreliable.
I'm waiting for my eMotorbike :) Keep up the good work and One love from West Pacific Canada, Sincerely DJ Lyndon from SUMOLab1.
Lots of cleverness here. I always enjoy a different approach. They need to all be explored to find the better fit for purpose solutions right now. For electric vehicles. Because many of our existing design instincts are still informed by ICE constraints. I don't think many people realise how very different the future can be. I saw an electric skateboard with tank treads the other day that speed over almost any terrain. Climb stairs, etc.
And this really comes across as fairly quiet if I'm hearing right around 8:50. Real quiet. Which is amazing to me.
The existing design instincts are automotive constraints and constraints from the fact you still need axles, still need steering, all the stuff that makes up a vehicle regardless of drivetrain. We aren't magically going to get rid of that stuff because it is an EV. That Tank tread skateboard you are talking about is using tech that is over a hunderd years old in EV and tread design. Nothing innovative in it. It is just taking what is old and putting on things that don't need it for the sake of what.
@@corail53 You are being disingenuous. I'm not talking about the underlying technology of transportation. I'm not talking about wheels and axles, treads, etc.
I'm talking about the vehicle form factors enabled by more compact drivetrains which require less auxiliary mechanisms to function. Less design constraints from the driving train. Less moving parts. No exhaust. No oil. No water cooling. No combustion timing. Flat power curves which make gearing optional. Etc. Etc. Etc.
You can't get an internal combustion engine to do what was done with this bike. It's practically impossible. And it's an extremely efficient design for a wheel which even extends the range of the bike. Maybe that's what has you in a tizz... New technology that makes EVs even more viable... This exact design need not even be limited to motorbikes. An EV car could most likely get better range with something like this. And the car itself could be massively less complex for it.
You can't create a practical tank treaded skateboard with an internal combustion engine drivetrain. You probably could make something that will sort of work, but it would not be a good product. Then look at water craft - We've already seen electric designs with small but sufficiently powerful electric motors built into the waterfoil. Making even waterfoil surfboards possible. No need for fuel lines and a large, complex engine nor exhaust. Just power lines down to compact motors. Already small VTOL aircraft are in the works, nearing market readiness that are designed to serve as flying taxis as affordable as an Uber. You cannot do that with internal combustion engines.
This is what I'm talking about. Where drivetrains are concerned electric motors make internal combustion engines look like dated steam power technology. Opening up a wide range of design options, and even types of vehicles that were just not available before.
For what you ask? Is this now fatalism hour? Go search for that tank tread skateboard. Watch the videos. That is a mean, lean personal transportation device that can go many places, over a wide range of obstacles, that will appeal to many people.
that radical new motor for the rear.... can you drive it through wet leaves? Or mud?
Is it well sealed from the elements?
If so then thats a brilliant job!
Absolutely. The motor components will not be affected by day-to-day weather variants.
Striking bike and really interesting video. I was at FCL and was really impressed by the bikes and scooters I saw. It would be good to get a review of how the bike handles. How does it compare to ICE bikes; weight, handling, suspension, acceleration. 1000Nm just sounds like it would flip you over. Presumably it has anti-wheelie, traction control etc....?
Yes, this is a good point. I think all that torque probably isn't necessary, as the traction control willl be endlessly cutting power to stop you ending up in a hedge. I own a Zero SR/F and it has 140 ft-lb (190 Nm) which means my TC is endlessly saving me from cartwheeling down the road :D - this Verge has almost 5 times the torque.. that's a huge difference and I'm not sure it'll ever be able to put that amount of power down on the road.
Would still love to try it though!
@@SpottedCreeper It's only got one gear so no opportunity to multiply torque like a geared bike has. With the right electronics it should be able to wheelie like a unicycle.
Cover more electric motorcycles! It's a very exciting space. Even Harley Davidson (Livewire) is doing exciting things with their new bikes where the battery acts as part of the frame.
an interesting technology review but little on the way that it rides. I wonder if it is still being finalised in terms of feel? The lack of any acceleration figures (which should be astonishing given the power and torque available) suggests you might have been asked to skirt around some areas?
We aren't skirting around anything. We advertise the 0-60 as under 4 seconds so that potential riders don't feel it is too fast, becasue the TS can be ridden however you wish. Some of our team have flirted with 3 seconds flat, some haven't. So under 4 seconds is an honest representation.
@@vergemotorcycles how difficult is replacing the rear tire? With accel numbers like that, i'd assume you'd wear them out quick.
@@vergemotorcycles surely you can get way under 3s?
2017 honda fireblade does 0-60 in 3.0 and costs around 11k. MPG around 40-45. Lets say you ride 6k miles a year (most people don’t) thats 133 gallons of fuel per year at $5/gal = $670/yr fuel costs, oil change once a year $50, chain cleaning and wax around $20 entire year. So for around 12k I get a bike thats waaaay faster, lighter, better engineered, and its reliable and easy to work on. Plus you can take the cash you saved on not buying the obsolete electric scooter and you can buy a second bike or car, invest the money, etc.
Am I missing something here?
Oh and it sounds like a fucking F1 car as you shoot past the scooter that has no where to fuel up on long rides in the mountains…. 😎
@@hondafanboy1856 Yea you are missing the fact that this is a different type of machine. No where in the video did anyone say it was a 1:1 replacement for the standard motorcycle. It is type of tech that has not been used in this way much at all, whereas gas motorcycles have been standard for over 100years. Straw manning the bike into calling it an electric scooter is weak. I’ve yet to see an electric scooter hit anywhere near those speeds or have anywhere near that range much less have that electromagnetic motor on the wheel. You can keep your Honda, which is a fine machine, and still appreciate the work that went into something else.
if only the battery technology was better. Would look soo much cooler if it wasn't so bulky, also the weight reduction. or else it should have been like Tron light cycle. The exciting part is this can be designed differently much more easily.
After a Brammo and two Zeros I definitely want a Verge. I just ordered one
Hoffentlich nicht passend in grün🤭.
@@ministeriumfurstartsicherh9895 wird sie gar nicht angeboten
Welcome to the Verge MC family!
My biggest grudge with motorcycles is the ungodly loud noise they make. Electric motorcycles are definitely the future!
This is the way to do an electric motorcycle, ground up design, just like Tesla did. Designed and developed in Finland 🇫🇮💪 btw.
Soon to be Russian tech.
Great to see the Cotswolds! The bike looks great!
This is going to suffer from high unsprung weight at the rear wheel. How was ride comfort and handling on rougher roads?
How much will it cost?
That shouldn't be too much of an issue. The total weight of the wheel isn't too much more than a standard one. The total weight of the bike isn't anywhere comparable to a full sized car, which should make it much more manageable
@@thomasreese2816 Yeah, but this weighs more than a big cruiser like a Honda ST1300, so it's hefty for a bike...
@@thomasreese2816 Given that it contains the electromagnets, and a much larger bearing than usual I would expect that the wheel would be heavier than a normal one, although I don't know this for a fact.
@@examinerian The TS weights 248 KG (on official release will be 242kg). 40kg less than a Honda ST1300
@@vergemotorcycles Thanks for correcting me there - I had a vague memory of the Honda coming in at about 210kg.
How do you assess the unsprung mass issue? I mean, how does the arm/wheel/tyre setup compare to a similar-sized chain or shaft-driven bike?
Congratulations! Brilliantly designed Electric Bike!
I really like this bike. Good looking, interesting tech, wonder if we'll see a comparison to the Zero and Livewire bikes.
Just saw that motorbike at my Tesla supercharger, they were making a charging demonstration. Pretty impressive and quality looking bike.
I still wonder how much of a challenge does the hubless wheel add to changing rear tire. Other than that it look so delicious. 😋😁 It definitely is an engineering wonder. 🤘🏼👍🏼
He says in the video it takes under 5 mins to change a tire
@@eomhS He said "wheel." Really not specific if he meant removing/installing the metal wheel with tire, or swapping out the rubber wheel.
And how it manages puddle of water
@@anshulbhardwaj4038 he said it was impermeable
@@lemongavine how impermeable monsoon impermeable I doubt because even Tesla has not launched its cars in such climate.
Love electric bikes, and would love to ride this. But i do have 2 concerns: 1. The unsprung weight of the rear wheel, and 2. Changing that rear tyre.
It looks like a very imp[ressive piece of engineering but it sounds as though there is a tremendous amount of unsprung weight in that real wheel. I wonder how that affects the handling and road holding.
That's a really good point I didn't consider
In addition to the handling penalty I wonder if the extra amount of jostling on the motor will effect anything.
That is why a good ebike don't use hub motor rear wheel. Bad unsprung weight and balance of handling.
@@MarkBlance True. I can't see any benefit of this set-up over a standard hub motor, which has all the benefits of the hubless design but with the same downside of unsprung weight.
@@kl9518 Plus the benefit of multiplying the torque at the rear wheel through the bike's gears.
Not sure how Andy manages to look super awesome whatever he does but that’s very enjoyable to watch. 👌🤩
If I ever ride a electric motorcycle, I'll be really worried about drivers around me, with something that makes absolutely no noise.
In motorcycle crashes, no one ever says, I didnt hear the bike! You always see it first before the roar. You might wanna be more careful around pedestrians though.
@@Abarenboshogun000ehem fully disagree.
A hubless setup is prime for 2wd application. It would be a game changer in motorcycle off-roading.
Very interesting take on the EV bike lads top work. Love seeing development in this sector.
It looks like a concept vehicle rather than commercial final with question mark about the riding experience specifically the "Geometric" seat and the hand bar. Goodluck and sell well!
Really nice Episode guys, I saw this bike at Fully Charged live, is the Crewekerne I spying you riding through? Would have been nice to have more of a review / Rider experience and feedback from you, if it has that much torque what was it like to ride compared to other electric bikes, did it feel like it wanted to wheelie everywhere , how did it feel flip flopping around the corners? Was it comparable to a BMW boxer engine with the weight low down etc.???
Different way to put the motor together for sure, but still just a normal-ish DC electric motor with permanent magnets and electromagnets. There's still a hub, but they made it bigger and pushed the bearing surfaces out to the perimeter.
Interesting - would like to know more about how it felt to ride. e.g. "Stable" is not usually a massive compliment for a motorcycle - one might want to know how it corners, what the acceleration feels like, etc.
I've never owned anything with more than two wheels and don't use any kind of personal vehicle on the daily (horray for mass transit and walkable neighborhoods!) so the only vehicle I've owned over the decades is a tourcycle - various iterations of the BMW RT from the 1982 model year to 2007 (and briefly 2019 but that's a sad story) - for the purpose of making (usually) two long road trips per year.
As such, I've been following developments in electric vehicle technology specifically for this sort of thing.
But even more so, I'm waiting, and waiting, and waiting, for someone to build an electric equivalent to the BMW RT - a tourer/sport-tourer with a full fairing (& adjustable windscreen please), full suitcase-sized sidebags and a topcase that can fit two full-sized helmets, and the ability to go 250-300 miles at spirited freeway speeds and to charge up in half an hour to an hour (long enough for a leisurely lunch).
(The other development I'm looking for is the first major diner chain, e.g. Denny's, to put charging in _all_ of its parking spots in _all_ of its restaurants, in recognition of the fact that before too long _all_ the vehicles pulling up are going to be electric and are going to want to plug in. But again, that's another story.)
Zero has been the top contender so far, but they haven't shown any interest in putting a proper fairing on any of their bikes, despite the obvious aerodynamic benefits at speed. I'm hoping these folks consider it.
Does this design mean you could eventually upgrade your motor by replacing the rear wheel?
Yes. And with the battery being the only major component in the body, that will be easier to upgrade as well.
Awesome bike and always top notch production.
Stunning and amazing. Just this one example of EV innovation proves to me that things like rear axles, diffs, prop shafts, chains, gearboxes, water pumps, radiators, carburettors, fuel injectors, petrol tanks, exhaust systems etc etc will all be just stories told by grandparents by the time the current infants finish school and get their first “car” ….
You still need water pumps (batteries can be liquid cooled because they get hot under load), gears, diffs, axles in EV's plus you need miles of cables an inverter (also usually liquid cooled). You still need bearings, axles, suspension, tires, wheels, plastics - lots of plastic) It is almost like you know nothing about cars but think an EV is some magical hover craft.
@@corail53 watch this particular video again, (a little more carefully this time) and then check you comments again buddy.
@@philtucker1224 Sorry phil but corail is completely correct and you are wrong.
No mention of price? I'm sure way out of my budget. Too bad, it IS an attractive ride albeit a heavy one. Wonder with all that power if it can still lift the front wheel off the ground. Also how well it carves.
I see two problems - changing the tire on a rim which is the motor sounds delicate … and having everything in the rear wheel means there is a lot unsprung mass…
The battery is sprung, which will counteract any wheel flung you might worry about.
@@aby0ni you can’t counteract unsprung weight!
@@SkysaxonDragonslayer
You just need some mass to press the tire on the road, to counteract its inertia.
@@aby0ni 😂😂😂😂😂
@@aby0ni that's not how it works..
Damn heavy and considering the motor is in the rear wheel, the battery range isn’t great.
Looks great, just not convinced yet
One moving part - amazing
Keep the bike stuff up, loving it!
it's going to be a bitch and a half to change the tire on this thing. Not to mention it has a ton of un-sprung weight that won't be damped by suspension.
They said right in the video that they could do it in 5 minutes, I'd probably want to see that demonstrated but I believe that they've made it possible.
Also when it comes to unsprung weight you have to think of it as a ratio to the rest of the mass. The battery and the rider are the really heavy parts and they are above the springs, that motor probably doesn't weigh that much.
If they're to be believed, 10:55 (can change it in 5 minutes). Whether _anyone_ can with minimal training is to be seen, I think...
Does this motorcycle have the ability to be powered in reverse, at least, in a slow speed mode? In some parking situations on my current bike, I have to struggle to back the bike up when on in incline where I must fight gravity. This would be a nice feature on a bike, especially on one with a substantial mass. I would think that with an electric motor, it would be possible to incorporate without a major design effort.
sure does
Curious as to the weight of that real wheel - given the width of the tyre and the presumably heavy weight of that rear wheel, I imagine the suspension will struggle and it’ll be a pig to turn.
I was thinking the same.. unsprung weight should be as low as possible...
You can put extra batteries inside the empty space inside back wheel and using same desing for front wheel u can also use that extra space for extra batteries. This will add extra range and lowers the central gravity point.
3:27 "so that's 700 brake horsepower"
Oops! Nope, that's 700-ish foot/pounds of torque (still impressive!). A 700 HP motorcycle would be drag bike territory.
But anyway, that instant torque for electric vehicles isn't just for racing. It is useful all the time, and it's one of my favorite things about my EV which is an otherwise quite modest 109HP 2016 Kia Soul EV+. Merging or just moving from one lane to another is just effortless and really surprises people inside the car who have not ridden inside an EV before.
yeah bit of a clanger :D the guy being interviewed answered correctly but still
Merging from one lane to another should be effortless in every car unless you suck at driving.
@@corail53 Has nothing to do with the driver if the car can't deliver. Have you ever driven an EV? It is night and day to a gas car in driving characteristics. When you depress the accelerator there is zero - zero - delay. Power is delivered instantly which is not always the case with ICE cars. I've been driving cars for over 40 years so I know what I'm talking about.
@@corail53 It's much easier in my 4 litre Jag than in my 1 litre Panda. When changing lanes you really need to increase speed smoothly and rapidly without gear changes. Torque allows that. If you have to notch it down a gear or two and scream the revs then it's not smooth. If you have to wait for a turbo to boost up then you lose the best opportunity.
'Akira' motorcycles are finely starting.... holy hell this flipping awesome.
Here is the future, and damn I want one.
I've heard that chain and sprocket drives are really efficient, but no part is always better than a part.
Awesome! The tunes are great too :) Thanks :)
When we finally reach actual "Akira bike" in the EV bike market, then I'll consider getting a bike. 😂
I know several people, including myself, who have been talking about this for years...not least because we've been riding 'Akira' style ICE bikes for decades!
Now picture 4 of those bikes attached to a center frame like spider legs able to squat low for roads and go higher for offroad individually articulating for going over obstacles and multiple surface angels.
If only they could get rid of the battery
Battery is good 🎉
I wonder how durable that back tyre is when going over potholes etc
What about cold & rain season, pot holes etc. Also I've never seen in the ads about having ABS in any electric bikes, whereas in petrol bikes, it is the second thing that comes up (either single abs or dual abs)
9:25 - this right here is big for me.
From what I understand, Zero's standard modes are set up so that Eco uses a relatively high regen but Sport cuts regen to minimal, and you can't reset those, only the Custom mode.
But I'm used to riding a big boxer twin - the BMW RT - and so I want _maximum_ engine braking in _all_ modes - _especially_ when I'm canyon-carving and would really like to control my speed entirely with my throttle if possible. So I'd really like for that to be an option to set in all modes, rather than having just one or two "Custom" modes available for that setting.
Hi Mate, I had a Zero SRS, and set up my own custom mode - Max regen, max power, and that was perfect, always having full power on tap - why limit yourself ! and as you guess I like to ride, which means accelerate, then slowdown: fast. Cruise - the Zero has a great cruise control. But the slow charge cripples all the Zero's, and I'm back on Petrol (MV Agusta) - I live in the country, so not a city commuter. Nice to see Verge have DC Fast charge.
Love your show. Can you cover the Yatri motorbike next? It is a Nepal built (in itself a feat) electric motorbike that can gain a lot of international traction if you feature them. At the same time. reviewing them would teach us consumers a lot about this new electric bike.