Badass 150mph electric sportsbike with 150-mile range unveiled at TED
The world of electronic two wheels is getting closer.
At a recent press event Mission unveiled the most exciting piece of battery-electric motorcycle technology we’ve seen to date. The Mission One electric sportsbike will be the first machine to hit the market with genuine sportsbike performance and the range to make it a worthwhile addition to the garage.
A top speed of 150mph is well into supersports territory and more than enough for the road - but the shattering 100 foot-pounds of torque available right off idle should make this one of the quickest-accelerating tyre-shredding streetbikes on the planet.
By comparison the 2009 R1 only makes 85 foot-pounds of torque when it hits 10,000rpm. The brutal torque allows the Mission One bike to operate completely without the use of gears, saving the weight of a transmission. Sadly this means there’ll be no clutch for wheelies either.
Battery life is of course the key issue with these machines, but Mission One have used high energy, high-density lithium batteries to achieve not only the high power expected from a sportsbike, but a 150 mile range between charges on a standard driving cycle. A full charge can be achieved in 2 and a half hours with a 220v outlet.
The bike is equipped with a data acquisition system and a WIFI card, which lets riders download a range of performance data, and toddle away with a laptop computer designing new power curves to try out. This computer tuning replaces pretty much all engine maintenance and tuning - but you’ll still need to get the spanners out to work on the brakes and suspension.
Speaking of chassis, the bike is equipped with a handling package to rival anything on the market. Fully adjustable Ohlins units front and rear take care of the suspension, the brakes are Brembo radials, and the wheels are forged aluminum beauties from Marsechini. The rear wheel has a conventional disc brake on it, as well as a regenerative braking system.
The jaw-dropping bike will hit the market in 2010 as a special edition, costing around US$70,000 - not a surprising figure considering how advanced the battery pack is, and the top-shelf componentry elsewhere around the bike. The company has also committed to bring a ’standard’ model to market with a much less intimidating price tag, with details to follow later in the year.
See the Mission One website for more info.
