Uncategories Electric motorcycle will stand up for itself

Thursday, April 7, 2016

| 6:13 AM

Electric motorcycle will stand up for itself

They use less fuel, accelerate faster, are more maneuverable, can be parked in more places, and don’t incorporate the weight of extra seating for passengers who are non-existent on solo commutes. As many other people will tell you, however, motorcycles also leave their occupants open to the rain and cold, and can potentially tip over and scatter those occupants across the road. That’s where Lit Motors’ C-1 comes into the picture. It’s a proposed fully-enclosed two-passenger electric motorbike that uses an electronically-controlled gyroscopic stabilizing system to stay upright when stopped, or even when struck from the side in an accident. Lit Motors is based out of San Francisco, and is headed up by industrial/automotive designer Daniel Kim. The idea for the C-1 came to him after he had traveled around the world for a year, seeing the transportation challenges and innovations in developing nations. “I met thousands and thousands of people, and learned how cultures function and how people get around,” he told us. “It was an amazing experience. That’s basically what informed me, for the rest of my life.”Kim and his team have developed an operating model of the C-1’s flywheel-based stabilization system, along with a full-scale fiberglass mock-up of the vehicle itself. They are now working on a hand-built steel uni-bodied working prototype, which should reportedly be complete within about three months. Plans call for an initial run of production vehicles to be available at a price of about US$24,000 by late 2013, with that price going down to $16,000 once full production gets under way in 2014. Different versions of the C-1 will be available for different markets. The model aimed at First World countries will have an 8-10 kilowatt-hour battery pack, while a model intended for developing nations will be rated at about 4-6 kWh. The vehicle will incorporate electric hub motors in both wheels, at least one of those motors being a high-performance Remy HVH unit. The top speed should be at least 120 mph (193 km/h), with driving range for the higher-end model expected to sit at around 150 to 220 miles (241 to 354 km) per charge, depending on the exact size of the battery. -
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