Harley-Davidson expects to convey its electrical bikes to Japan by subsequent 12 months, in line with the corporate’s CEO.
The information comes straight from the highest, as Harley-Davidson’s CEO Jochen Zeitz defined to Nikkei that the American motorbike producer would convey its electrical bikes to the island nation.
Harley-Davidson was one of many first legacy motorbike producers to embrace electrical drivetrains. Almost a decade in the past the corporate started work on Venture LiveWire, which ultimately resulted within the Harley-Davidson LiveWire electrical motorbike. The bike acquired rave opinions for its efficiency however noticed meager gross sales resulting from a excessive sticker value of practically US $30,000.
The LiveWire was ultimately relaunched with slight adjustments below H-D’s new all-electric motorbike model, additionally known as LiveWire. The brand new bike, now referred to as the LiveWire One, is priced at practically US $7,000 lower than the unique H-D LiveWire, bringing the value right down to round US $23,000.
LiveWire’s second electrical motorbike mannequin, referred to as the LiveWire S2 Del Mar, is predicted to rollout to prospects later this summer season.
That bike is barely smaller and likewise extra inexpensive, beginning simply north of US $15,000. LiveWire has used the launch to focus on an expanded market of youthful, city riders which may have been priced out of its flagship electrical motorbike a number of years in the past.
Zeitz didn’t elaborate on which of the LiveWire fashions would enter the Japanese market, however it’s seemingly that the smaller S2 Del Mar can be superb.
That might make sense contemplating that Zeitz additionally revealed that Harley-Davidson might convey its smaller Chinese language-made X350 motorbike to Japan as properly, although that mannequin is powered by a combustion engine.
The information of an American motorbike producer bringing its electrical bikes to Japan comes at a time when Japanese motorbike producers are nonetheless largely dragging their toes on e-moto improvement.
The Large 4 of Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, and Kawasaki have largely ignored the burgeoning electrical motorbike market over the past decade.
Solely not too long ago have they begun to rollout ideas and prototypes, although a number of have been relatively weak efforts with pitiful specs, particularly in comparison with Harley’s greater energy electrical bikes that boast 0-60 mph instances of simply three seconds.
The 4 Japanese motorbike makers joined a consortium to develop a typical for a swappable electrical motorbike battery, although hopes for the next efficiency product have been quashed when it turned out that Honda’s small Gogoro-style battery would turn into the seemingly commonplace.
For its half, Honda has pledged to current a number of electrical bikes over the following few years, however the few fashions we’ve seen up to now are nearer to electrical scooters and mopeds, such because the Honda e-Cub under.
