Hybrids and the Future of Motorcycles*

*Johnstown, PA  Tribune-Democrat
April 17, 2011
as "Raise a cheer for big electric bikes"

Copyright © 2011 by Ralph Couey

The internal combustion engine is living on borrowed time.  Gas and diesel fuel are vulnerable to political and environmental pressures that make its supply and price unstable.  In response to these conditions, electric vehicles are attempting to move to the mainstream, but limited range and the fact that plug-in outlets still get electricity mostly from coal-fired power plants relegate them to novelty status.

There doesn’t seem to be a single inventor of the IC engine, but rather an extensive roster of inventors and engineers contributing to its development.  The first concept was done by a Mesopotamian named Al-Jazari in 1206.  The Chinese, Mongols, and Arabs developed a working model in the 13^th century.  Da Vinci produced a design in 1509.  But even with all the improvements, it’s still the same basic principal that has been around for over 800 years.

Hybrids have been a good compromise, combining electricity and a small gas engine.  The design combines the emission-less value of electrical motors with the range of the IC engine.  This development is encouraging, although no one has yet given me a satisfactory answer to the question of what do you do with the toxic battery packs after they wear out. 

I’m still holding out hope for hydrogen fuel cells, and the technology that would covert cheap ordinary materials to hydrogen, either for combustion or electrical generation.  But the technology mountain that must still be climbed to make this technology cheap and safe enough for the common human means that the hydrogen economy is still decades away

Electricity is now beginning to take on its toughest market, motorcycles.

This will be a difficult task, since the two requirements for a successful bike is that it be fast and loud.  Electricity is fast, but I’m unsure if bikers will surrender that throaty roar for a nasal whine.

Companies like Zero and Brammo Enertia are producing motorcycles powered by electric motors for street use, and another company, KillaCycle (cute name, that), has produced a drag-racing bike that delivers 0-60 mph acceleration in one second.

No, I’m not exaggerating.  I’ve seen the video.

But range is still the biggest problem. Commuting speeds limit these bikes to less than 60 miles.  60 mile rides are completely antithetical to the whole idea behind a motorcycle: the freedom of the open road.  Plus, these designs are mostly scooter types and others that look more like dirt bikes than street machines.  They’re small and, from the perspective of an “old guy,” look murderously uncomfortable to ride.  And no saddle bags, either

I am a “go-far” rider.  For me, a short ride is 200 miles.  This means not only commuting, but running errands, shopping, and most of the other duties for which one uses motorized transport.  I have often waxed eloquent about the marvelous Honda Pacific Coast.  Its efficiency, reliability, useable power, and capacious carrying capacity made it for some 8 years and 100,000 miles, my long-distance 2-wheeled pickup truck. 

But to get that kind of capacity these days means forking over twenty-five large for a Honda Gold Wing, BMW K1200LT, or some other 2-wheeled RV. 

The question that bothers me is why the hybrid hasn’t made it into the motorcycle market.  When I look at the Gold Wing, in particular, with its massive frame and long wheelbase, it would seem to be a perfect fit. Ditto for Beemer’s road sofa. 

A hybrid Gold Wing or K1200LT (or Vulcan Voyager or Road Star for that matter) would be, IMHO, an instant hit, and would likely expand the pool of possible buyers as well.  But the so-called “Big Four” (Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, and Suzuki) seem to be reluctant to take the leap, even though Honda already has that technology in several car models.  Traditionally, these firms have always been forward thinkers, which make their reluctance even more puzzling.  If they are waiting for the right time, I would respectfully submit that time is now.  Fortune favors the bold, as they say, especially those with the courage to seize the obvious moment.

I have abundant faith in humanity’s capacity for pushing back technological barriers.  I have no doubt that in the (hopefully near) future, batteries will be developed whose kilowatt-hours and charging cycle capacity will dwarf anything we have now.  Electric vehicles are definitely the future for human transport.

It’s just a question of how soon that future will arrive.