New bike

[b.walker5]

Hardly a problem IMO. It just means one has toi take more care re pedestrians walking out in front of the bike. I do not adhere to that 'loud pipes save lives' idea. More like 'loud pipes make everyone's life a noisy misery' more like.

A quiet bike... bring it on!

Thats just Hardley propoganda to get people to buy their ridiculously expensive, shiney add on bits, so they can go posing outside the local milkshake bar...

[jjz28]

Go for it man! I really like the look of the vetrix (?) and the other bikes.

[James England]

Update

Hi XSives

Here's an update on the Vectrix electric bike I bought. It's a 2008 Vectrix VX1. I would post photos but I got a nail in my back tyre and the wheel is off, waiting for a new tyre to arrive. So, I'll post pix very soon.

First of all... the bike is really big. It kind of dwarfs my XJR1300. Of course, a lot of that is the plastic panelling etc but it really is big.

It's not a slow bike. I got to 65mph dead easy on it the other day. The acceleration is impressive for a large, electrically-powered vehicle and it's a really weird riding experience! It feels safe and grips the road. The centre of gravity is very low but the silence takes some getting used to. There's a transmission whine from the rear planetary gearbox and that's normal but, apart from that, it's just the sound of the wind rushing. Then, when I stopped, I thought I'd stalled it because it makes no noise whatsoever. It's fast from a standing start because electric motors give instant max torque. There's no vibration at all. Doing, say 50mph, the bike sounds a bit like the top end frequencies of a jet engine.... a kind of powerful whizz.

I thought I would miss the exhaust sound and vibration etc of my XJR and, in a way I do but in another, I don't! It really is an excellent ride and quite a head-turner. Someone asked me "what's the CC's?" and couldn't believe it when I said "none. It's electric". Most people watch the bike as it goes past. It costs zero in road tax here in the UK too.

As with all electric vehicles, the downside is range. I reckon I'd get 30-40 miles max from the bike on its NiMh batteries but, for local pootling about, that's fine. I took 20kg of animal feed on it the other day and went to the shops, post office etc etc. and it was far better then starting my cold XJR and not even getting the engine warmed up properly. Same with the car.

So, once I get my new tyre on, I'll take some pix and I may even attempt a video (with camera strapped to my head).

I'm well pleased with the bike so far!

[James England]

Follow-up

Well, Folks

Here's some follow-up on the electric bike! I took the bike out for its maiden voyage and, within a mile, got a huge nail in the rear tyre. Original tyres front and rear meant replacing them anyway, so I bought a couple and got them on.

Here's a pic of the bike. It's huge:




It's quite a head-turner. I reckon 50% of the people I've ridden past have turned to look and I think this is not because of the maxi-scooter appearance , which is, after all, very common. I think it's the quietness of the bike. The only sound is a whine from the transmission, a planetary gearbox and the back right (visible in the photo). It's quite pronounced at about 20mph but at speeds higher than that, the pitch becomes less and less audible.

I did think I would not like the lack of 'feel'.. vibration, exhaust sound etc. I took the XJR1300 out for a burn this morning (in fog) and then went out on the scooter. It's a different kind of ride but exhilerating in a different way. It's really weird, stopping at a junction and hearing...nothing. People also looked at the bike when I stopped and were definitely wondering where the exhaust sound was. Someone asked me if I'd run out of gas. A few kids laughed as if they thought I'd stalled it.

The dashboard looks like this:



Apparently, the design and production are US. The build quality is excellent. It has none of that plastic, weedy cheap and nasty feel of some scooters. In fact, it feels a bit car-like in a weird way. I've stripped the gearbox and renewed several bearings (to get the gearbox whine down) and all the sizes are Imperial. Interesting.

I did about 6 miles today round the town and then got brave and headed off into the countryside, with visions of me having to push it back. However, not so.... I came back in style with a final turbine-whizzing blast up the main road.

Verdict? Great fun! It will never replace an XS1100 or XJR1300 or similar for touring or monstrous power and a generally straddling a mighty machine feeling. But.... round town and outskirts, it's actually better than the XJR. It's more suited to the urban environment... zippy, stable and quiet. I'm really very surprised at how rideable and safe it feels. I fitted Dunlop Maxxis tyres, it has Brembo discs and calipers front and rear, Sachs shockers and it really does take off from a standing start, easily achieveing max. speed.

I came back home and .... plugged it in to charge up!



It's free from road tax here and insurance cost about $150 for the year, so fixed costs are low.

[James England]

Ps

PS

The bike has NiMh batteries but these are now a bit dated in terms of battery technology. The bike can be upgraded to lithium batteries and this increases the average range to about 70 miles instead of 40. The only thing is the cost! An official Vectrix conversion, which means 42 lithium cells, a new on-board charger, software update and 2 year warranty costs a staggering $7,600! It can be done on a DIY basis and the user forum abounds with information about an excellent conversion but, even then it would cost $4,600, and means importing the batteries from China, using the OEM on-board charger and there's no warranty to speak of.... plus the uncertainty of messing up the software that runs the bike.

So, I'll be using the OEM batteries until they explode or whatever they do (gradually decrease in range, I think). You can buy a lot of bike for £7,600 but I suppose that's not the way to look at it. It is a bit experimental and batteries are not as simple as I thought. The bike really is a computer on wheels which does a very specific job. The motor controller circuitboard, the main brain, as it were, is about a foot square and contains about 5 million bits, by the look of it. That must be why, if it burns out, it costs $3,500 to replace.

So, it looks like the technology has a way to go in order to get the costs down and it is a bit pioneering, I suppose. Vectrix now produce two versions of this bike, both revamped since the days when the company went bust. That was after making my bike so I'm surprised to find that all parts for it are still available... at a price.

There are some very interesting electric bikes being made in the USA.... have look at Brammo... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brammo

[foreda]

NiMH

Do these batteries develop a memory like the NiCd batteries? Have you tried to wheelie yet? hehe

[TomB]

Well, Folks
It will never replace an XS1100

It appears to have replaced yours James








.

[James England]

It appears to have replaced yours James








.

Oh no... the XJR1300 did that, to a large extent. But, it's not through lack of trying re an XS1100. I keep bidding on them on eBay and looking for a sensibly priced one to restore. But prices have gone mad and I just cannot get one at the right price. But, my time will come (around Christmas, I hope, when people need some money) and I'll get one. In the meantime, I have the XJR and the e-bike, so I'm still out there, biking (despite the cold here)..........

[James England]

Do these batteries develop a memory like the NiCd batteries? Have you tried to wheelie yet? hehe

No, there's no memory effect like htere is with NiCd, thank heavens, You can partially charge or fully charge or whatever. They call is "opportunity charging" in the handbook.....

I tried to wheelie... no success. I tried a 'doughnut'..... I couldn't. A wheel spin.....no chance. Then I hit on the idea of making a high-pitched whizzing turbine noise like a jet engine starting up..... success!

[foreda]

Wheel spin

Try banana peels!!

[b.walker5]

No, there's no memory effect like htere is with NiCd, thank heavens, You can partially charge or fully charge or whatever.

Not quite correct James, while not as pronounced, or as bad as NiCads, NiMH's do in fact develop a memory, its just smaller, and develops over a longer period of time, so doesnt get noticed as much.

Their biggest disadvantage is the Self Discharge rate. They can lose as much as 20% of their capacity in the first 24 hours of charge, after that it's around 4% per day until flat. They're also less tolerant to over charging, and dont deliver as much power as comparable NiCads.

Save the dosh and go Lithium, or give up on the Girls Bike and get a Dinosaur Burning model....

[DGXSER]

That is a nice looking scooter. Everything I have seen and read on the electric models is that they have ALOT of torque. Not the kind that peels the rubber loose of the road, not that much weight involved. But 0-60 is quite respectable, as the motor just goes as fast as you ask with the throttle.

[James England]

get a Dinosaur Burning model....

Does a Yamaha XJR1300 fit into that category then??

[madmax-im]

I like it James...its by far the nicest looking one out there...I think its a cool experiment...and a neat alternative while still enjoying 2 wheels...

[Crusty Snippets]

Scooter

Way to go James.
An electric bike did lap the Island at over 100mph average this year.
Built in Portland Oregon.
I too have an electric scooter. A cheap one that does not run. Hope to figure it out one day. Over here Electric scooters and pedal assisted scooters get a free trip on BC Ferries. As I am on an island this is a popular mode of transport, too the Island is only about 12 miles long.
Also as a senior ( over 65 ) riding the ferry is free Monday thru Thursday.
BC Ferries charges a fee for the passenger or plural, plus a fee for the vehicle.
If I add free senior to free vehicle, I figure I get free ferry rides.
Another plan was to put a 70cc motor in my bicycle which would be faster than the scooter.
Usually tho I am on the XS11 or the SV1000.
Unkle Crusty, originally from Croydon.