Instructable of the day: Build a 70 mph, 72 volt electric motorcycle
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, On Two Wheels, Green Daily
Three months and $3,000 is what it took Instructable's poster Stryker (aka Ben) to build this great electric motorcycle. Unhappy with rising gas prices and ready to learn, Ben took a 1984 Honda Interceptor 700, gutted the gasoline components and added a 72V Advanced DC motor and 6 Yellow Top Optima batteries. He's explained the process here and here.
If a company offered this bike for sale, it wouldn't sell in great numbers. The 70 mph top speed is fine but it can only go 10-15 miles on a charge. Considering that Stryker lives just three miles from work, though, that "limit" is nonexistent for what he wants the bike to do. Of course, three miles is well within bicycle distance for some people, but the fun of creating a zero-emission motorcycle should not be dismissed. Don't believe me? Stryker is selling this bike so that he can build another.
[Source: Instructables via The Kneeslider]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-11-2008 @ 8:11AM
Phil L. said...
Nice conversion: Done well enough to be useful, and not such a science project that it can't be completed. His Instructables write-up is useful - enough information to understand what's going on, but he doesn't drag you into the details that are the reality of EV conversions.
The range would be a problem for many people, but I suspect his next project will address that limitation.
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4-12-2008 @ 2:41PM
Manu Sharma said...
How fast you go and how far you go in your electric essentially depends upon how powerful is the motor chosen for the conversion.
This particular conversion sacrifices range for speed.
Max speed: 70 mph
Range: 10 miles @ 45mph
Not really a very useful EV. Something to impress your friends with? Yeah. Something you can use everyday? No.
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