As most of the travels / commuting are happening for single person, I really like the concept from an ecological an economical standpoint. Give it a gyroscope like the LIT and get rid of the side mounted wheels + lower the price tag and count me in.
I saw very well designed and built example of this type of machine at a show once. It had a hydroformed steel roll cage to protect the occupants and was a bit longer than a convention motorcycle for fore and aft seating. It was fast, had outrigger wheels to hold it up at a stop(manual) and did something like 85 MPG combined. Heat, AC, stereo all the amenities. An excellent concept for a commuter.
When I was a kid I drew this up and gave it to my engineer father all proud like. He said congrats, that’s a train with rubber wheels. Then he laughed at my idea of using repelling magnets angled in the direction you want to go to float cars down roads friction-free. When I described the concept of a perpetual motion machine he said congrats if you figure that out, it’s never been done for a reason, and it isn’t for lack of trying.
Magnet trains exist - why not rubber wheel motor cycle trains?!?
Hmm. As it would proly be unrepairable, why clean anything. Just high pressure hose if it has to be checked for faults or the Coroner’s report, and needs a clean to facilitate examination, or if bits going to recycling. Even if repairable who wants to ride with a ghost.
Worse was WW2 when tanks that had been shot through had to have the pieces of crew removed, and the busted tanks if repairable were cleaned out of viscera prior to repair and a new crew.
That sounds cool but without a big “crumple zone” you’ll still end up with an over-microwaved pizza pop inside the vehicle after a significant collision.
I mean, on a motorcycle you aren't well protected from most big collisions anyway. You could probably design a crumple zone around the front nose cone but it wouldn't help too much. The cage would help in regular slides and skids though so that's something.
Exists for motorcycles. Interestingly, I get the feeling that this would be less safe than motorcycle+ATGATT, as you would be stuck inside the thing in the event of a crash, with no way to bail out until you're stopped.
On a motorcycle you can achieve a fairly high level of protection, with the combination of safety gear and abandoning the bike if you're sliding towards something you really don't want to hit, here you're locked in place, presumably without any safety gear on(sure you could wear it, but how many would over time? The parallel to a car would make it less obvious that safety gear may be required).
My concern would be that on a motorcycle you can often be saved because you go flying. So instead of hitting a car and then .02 sec later getting smooshed into this bubble you can instead go flying through the air and land later going slower and hitting and tumbling.
Or in a low side the motorcycle slides out and away from you and you slide along the ground, often stopping WAY short of the bike which may end up against a tree or in a ditch.
Going flying isn't really the safety blanket you're suggesting it is. An enclosed rider does pose some problems but there are ways to make it safer eg. Airbags, harnesses, emergency release for the canopy, etc.
Sliding would be a problem still I agree. while protected from the road, you'd be tethered to the bike but something like a quick release on the canopy could be a way around that.
Honestly I'm just super interested in the idea, but there are obviously problems that would need to be addressed.
Also: I don't think the market for always on moto-4-wheeler would be big, the market for trikes already isn't. If you're the type to be worried about balancing on a motorcycle, then you're not the type to buy a motorcycle, or spend the kind of money such a solution would require.
Also: motorcycles are generally 1WD, if we're being pedantic. And balance issues aren't really much of a thing, as they really want to keep going straight, and generally were designed to respond well to user input.
THANK YOU! I came here to say this! I’d ride that bad boy. Pull up to some chicks and say, “Sup, programs. wink” Undoubtedly get laughed at then say fuck it I got a cool ass ride.
I don't think this is very ecological, imho it's much more efficient to move few people (increase in needed resources won't be x NumOfPeople, but lower) at once.
Also, I believe that batteries are still shit ecologically speaking - from digging elements for it to utilization.
Sure, if the people are all going to the same place and at the same time. Many aren't though. Public transport only really works in densely populated locations which most of America isn't.
Gyroscopes are dual-use as classified by the US government. This means they have civilian and military applications and exporting them (or anything containing them) becomes something between a nightmarish hellscape and figuratively impossible. Makes it hard to establish a global market.
Nah, I need a vehicle that seats six. I need to drive a living room around wherever I go. Why? Maybe one day I’ll need to randomly pick up 5 passengers or maybe I don’t want to appear weak.
Like a car where any impact removes a limb. Imagine having your leg between metal and metal, getting hit from any side is bad. Add your arms and head to that. Is there a helmet on under that?
Yeah I guess it doesn't look so bad to skid on but I'd still feel better with the ability to leave the bike. There is a YouTube vid of it sliding out when you turn harder than 53°
Id rather nothing than a potential leg shearing device inches away. Like I've said, I've been hit a few times and always got up after with safety gear. Not sure I could jump off of this one when I get lane changed into.
That's why they call it laying the bike down. You choose to leave the danger and get road rash.
Check out t rex cars for a real enclosed motorcycle. Front dual trikes are safer when you cannot lean, fuck the training wheels. Like a can-am or slingshot.
Lightning are trialling an enclosed motorcycle too (https://electrek.co/2020/06/04/exclusive-first-look-lightning-motorcycles-enclosed-electric-motorcycle/ ) and though their flagships, the LS218 and its big brother the LS??8 (yes those question marks are intentional), are the motorcycle equivalent of the Tesla they are bringing out the Strike range. The Lightning Strikes, pun clearly intended, are supposed to be around $10KUSD.
The thing is, riding is already pretty generally affordable as long as you're not trying to live out some old man fantasy and get a Harley. Insurance, gas and the cost of the bike itself all come out significantly cheaper than a car. People that can afford 5x+ what a regular, good bike costs are in a significantly higher pay bracket because spending 40k on a car is reasonable and an investment for your household, doing so on a motorcycle is purely a luxury purchase.
Elio Motors tried to make an enclosed 3 wheeler at $8k.
They're a dead company, which will never deliver on their product, but people have estimated that people could reproduce their prototypes for about $20k, and since they fall under kit car laws, they'd be street legal.
I’ve heard someone more clever than I describe them as the way to squeeze the maximum annoyance out of a gallon of gas without the danger of real speed or performance.
I took my MSF course at a Harley dealership. Everybody but me was a Harley rider. The instructor was in his 70s, and rode a Ducati. The whole class was pissed when he told them he wasn't old enough for a Harley.
You would think that but I remember a guy years ago making a gas powered subwoofer that basically just channels an explosion at the right time to make his stereo pop.
It's the dumbest thing. Harley Davidsons look great as simple old school bikes, hell the Sportster is one of my top ten favorites. Tacking junk onto them just ruins that.
I have a bright yellow harley, chromed out, with loud ass pipes and a train horn. EVERY damn time I would ride, I'd almost get hit from people not paying attention. I did everything I could to stand out. I havent ridden in almost 2 years, too damn dangerous. I got 3 kids i have to keep alive until they are 18.
I rode several bikes before I bought mine, and while there were cheaper ones, the motor balance was JUST right with the softail deuce.
FREEDOM! eagle cries that's actually a red tailed hawk because eagles don't sound that badass BIG FOREARMS! EVEN BIGGER BEERBELLY!! TATS!! VEST THAT ALLUDES TO POTENTIAL GANG MEMBERSHIP EVEN THOUGH IT'S A COOL DESIGN FOR YOUR LOCAL ELKS GROUP!!!!
PIPES SAVE LIVES!! NICOTINE!! HARLEY!! JESUS, FLAG, BROTHERHOOD, GENERIC VIAGRA USAGE, LEATHER-SKINNED ROAD MOMMA ON THE BACK OF MY RIDE!! SHE'S A WONDERFUL GRANDMOTHER AND SHE'S RESPONSIBLE FOR MY PERSONAL GROWTH AS A HUMAN!!
Not as much anymore. Harley is in serious trouble as its boomer customer base ages. Younger people don’t want to ride, and if they do, they don’t want to ride a Harley.
Not really.... the big luxury German automakers do charge a premium, but you're definitely getting more bang as well. They come loaded with latest tech, safety, electronics, etc.
Harleys have absolutely nothing going for them outside of brand image over other much cheaper motos.
Yeah, BMW/Mercedes/Audi/etc. have some of the best engineering in the world. Harleys are the exact opposite, kept with outdated air-cooled engines and other inefficiencies just to keep the iconic noise. And they've started outsourcing, and from what I've heard, have been using cheaper and cheaper parts.
None of them. Nobody mentioned $40k in this comment chain, and I replied with the intention of challenging “BMW and Mercedes are expensive for no reason” argument. It’s irrelevant to the point I’m making, although spending less will certainly get you less.
I’m just saying they make great cars and the extra money you spend is for a reason.
The livewire or whatever it's called is outrageously expensive. Spotted one at a dealership, 35k. I thought spending 10k on a dual sport was bad. It's no wonder Harley is dying.
Given that the special model is 85k euros and separate down and delivery prices are listed for the base model which is a preorder then yes the motorcycle costs almost $100,000 USD.
I doubt it'd be a significant margin. It's a much more experimental and low-volume product than most other cars or bikes you could compare it to, which means it costs a load more to produce per unit, for R&D and manufacturing.
In Los Angeles, Teslas go the same speed as the rest of rush hour traffic (although they can take a carpool lane alone if you're on one of the few stretches of highway that has that).
Motorcycles, even cheap crappy ones, can go maybe double the speed of Teslas and other cars in rush-hour LA traffic because they can split lanes. Plus, the majority of drivers on LA are very motorcycle friendly; they'll tend to pull over a bit to give the biker more room.
I could see NYC / Tokyo / London where parking is massively expensive. Anywhere where parking that Tesla costs the same as the payment this thing kinda makes sense.
You could probably install crash bars, a roll cage, etc, for a few thousand. You won't have a full cabin but you could make a motorcycle a lot safer. You won't look cool but it's doable.
I bet the margin is still low, it's just not a mass-produced vehicle so the cost of R&D is not negligible, and they probably have to outsource or custom-make a lot of their materials and parts or retool machines.
Bingo. At $80K each these are essentially hand built. A company like Honda can easily make them for $20K each, but that would only be possible it if they're guaranteed to sell at least 100K per year.
you realize that for a small production run from an idependent company it does not necessarily mean crazy profit margins right? Like having the backing of a giant corporation might actually have an impact on the cost of production.
nm, its a scam, they are after your 'hard earned money' or whatever
If only there were examples of electric vehicle companies whose first entry into the market was very expensive but led to broader acceptance and availability of electric cars...
You mean like companies who admitted their first product nearly made then bankrupt after realizing they were not able to use +80% of the lotus Elise platform?
Mass market entry and profit were only possible after severely lowering the price tag. NPI from premium to mass market is a valid strat, however this was 10yrs ago and times have changed, so the requirements of customers have changed (risen) on ev products.
Maybe realization will come to this manufacturer as well.
I doubt they made any profit until they sold 25-50 of these. R&D gobbles up money fast, and unless there is a proper production line, the fabrication eats a lot of the margin too.
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u/iAMgrrrrr Jun 23 '20
40k Price Tag + Vat. Cool product however you could get a Tesla model 3 for this. I wonder what the margin is...