Motorcycles

Sub-$10K Emflux One electric sportsbike makes some mighty claims

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Emflux One: India's own electric sportsbike is set to hit the street in 2019
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Emflux ONE: charges 0-80% in 36 minutes on a WARP fast charger
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Emflux One: tail section is reminiscent of a current model R1
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Emflux One: 180-section rear tire
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Emflux One: single sided trellis swingarm looks nice
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Emflux One: India's own electric sportsbike is set to hit the street in 2019
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Emflux One: twin disc Brembo ABS brakes
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Emflux One: motor controller built in-house
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Emflux One: the team has built the main componentry itself. Here's the motor controller
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Emflux One: in-house EVSE (electric vehicle service equipment)
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Emflux One: charger circuit
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Emflux One: in-house battery management system (BMS)
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An Indian startup has put its first electric sportsbike prototype on display at the 2018 Auto Expo in New Delhi. The Emflux One has a claimed top speed of 120 mph (200 km/h), a range between 90-120 miles (150-200 km) at road speeds, and a price under US$10,000. It hits 62 mph (100 km/h) in 3 seconds and charges to 80 percent in 36 minutes.

Emflux is a 25-person team that's been grinding away on the challenge of a performance electric sportsbike for nearly 18 months now. Unsatisfied with commercial motors, controllers and battery packaging, the team says it chose to go its own way: "Barring the brakes, tires and the suspension," reads a recent press release, "every single component on the motorcycle has been designed and engineered in-house."

The Emflux One places a 60-kilowatt (80-horsepower) single-speed, air-cooled motor and a 9.7 kWh cylinder Lithium-ion cell-type battery pack into a tube-steel trellis frame.

Emflux ONE: charges 0-80% in 36 minutes on a WARP fast charger
Emflux

The bike weighs in at an impressively svelte 169 kilos (373 lbs). The motor controller limits max torque to 55 pound-feet, and max power to 71 horses – that's a touch more horsepower than the current model Zero SR makes, but with less than half the torque. Given that it's geared for 120 mph, where the Zero bikes don't really go much faster than 100 mph, we're highly skeptical about Emflux's claims that it will hit 62 mph in 3 seconds. The SR hits 60 in about 3.3 seconds.

Emflux claims a 36-minute charge to 80 percent from a WARP fast charger, or 3 hours from a 15 A wall charger. We're not sure what EV infrastructure is like in India, but nobody is looking at electrics for touring at this point anyway.

There's a single-sided trellis swingarm, Brembo ABS brakes to go along with regenerative braking, a 6.8-inch touchscreen dash, dual front and single rear cameras, built-in navigation systems, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and 4G connectivity and a custom-designed Emflux NEXT user interface, all built around an NVIDIA Jetson TK1 brain – a device designed to assist drones and other compact devices in machine learning. I'm not sure what the relevance of an AI brain is to a motorcycle, but hey, it's got one. The bike is said to update and upgrade itself in over-the-air updates much like your smartphone does.

Emflux One: twin disc Brembo ABS brakes
Emflux

The Emflux website also claims "bike to bike connectivity," although the purpose of this is unclear. Perhaps a touch screen can replace any number of universal biker hand symbols from pointing at the tank for "I need to fill up" to repeatedly tapping one's temple for "reconsider your choice of transport."

Emflux is planning to build 199 of these bikes for the local market in India, and a further 300 for export, at a price of 6 lakh rupees, or around US$9,350, on the road. That's unnervingly cheap for a fully faired, 120 mph electric performance bike, let alone one with its own built-in nav system and action cameras.

Emflux will upgrade you with Ohlins suspension, forged alloy wheels and carbon fiber bodywork instead of the standard bike's fiberglass if you're prepared to go as high as 11 lakh rupees, or about $17,150. Production is targeted for 2019.

If Zero's experience getting working, reliable machines to market in the USA is instructive, Emflux has quite a journey ahead of it. And while the performance figures don't look like they add up in our eyes, there's plenty of people out there waiting for a fully faired, affordable electric sports machine. So we'll keep an eye on Emflux's progress and see how close these guys get to their claims!

Source: Emflux

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11 comments
Jason Catterall
Finally electric bikes are starting to come down in price. I'm in, ship one to New Zealand please.
MartinVoelker
This also shows how much lower the barriers to entry into this market are with EVs. Loads of parts and systems are simply not there in the first place, saving space, weight, and complexity so an EV can be designed from the ground up for electric propulsion. And India has some of the brightest engineers anywhere.
thatmanstu23
This is just one more step in the evolution and inevitability of e-motos. Speed claims attract attention, but range and price are the limiting factors at this point...When price points can consistently hit under $10k and range advances to a comfortable 200 miles, then you will see them on the road in droves.
Gizmowiz
Come on all you guys making electric bikes--make a cruiser style bike in the format of the Yamaha Raider, etc. 25 inch seat height for us OLDER farts who have lost the strength to ride those bikes with 32+ inch seats as our legs are too weak but our hearts are strong for riding we just can't ride the electric junk that's out there as you keep making them ONLY for those wanting to race bikes. Come on guys!
ljaques
That's great news, India. I'm with Vincent in requesting a lower model which I can raise my bursitis-filled leg over. I'd be happier with an enduro style, 15hp model with 150km range. China has those $1,300 250cc enduros, so an electric clone for that niche would be perfect. Two different American markets are ripe for them (teens and old fartes), so hurry, please.
DavidRogerBrown
Without a doubt EV's are the future. While sales of motorcycles going down in the west,in Asia they are still going strong by the hundreds of thousands sold annually. Seems they did a bang up job of engineering from scratch. Will be interesting to watch their progress. It's a dog eat dog world out there though and only the strongest survive. Loz,like his boss,never fails to write a interesting article. Thanks
Darus Zehrbach
To an engineer experienced with designing such vehicles, Loz skeptical comments are right on target. No one has tamed the fire hazard of lithium ion batteries just yet. They are usually reserved for race vehicles, not daily use vehicles for that reason, but they do let you get the price down. Some of the pricing issues is that dealers in India work for pennies. $25 a bike is not uncommon. In the West they want 30% or more. So they can sell bikes cheaper by selling direct, no dealer, no dealer support, no Western techs on standby, and have a fire hazard. The price is also held down by the small size of the battery pack. 22% less than say a ZEV Electric M-S or even a ZEV scooter. The cameras and electronics are cheap to make, expensive to engineer. And they claim that they designed absolutely everything. At the prices claimed, they will have a rough time making any return on the huge investment they have made. About a year ago they wrote to their followers saying they had no idea this type of project was so tough. They also are claiming performance for something that does not exist. They are going to get competition in India from the new ZEV factory that is to open in Pune about May just to supply India only. Four of the ZEV MS bikes are on their way to the ARAI India certification testing in Pune.
Towerman
I thumbs up from me, ticks almost all the bells of a winning product. Get the price down, and you're in business.
swaan
@Darus Zehrbach, what fire hazard are you talking about? Just about anything with enough energy potential is a fire hazard in an accident. I don't see how a modern li-ion pack is more dangerous than a gas tank or a hot exhaust pipe.
Towerman
I agree Swaan, I'd take a lithium powered bike anyday over a stove stoker.