UK’s Triumph Motorcycles launches its first electric bicycle
Triumph, the British motorcycle brand most favoured by James Bond, is out with the latest two-wheeler of a distinctive sort. The Trekker GT is the world-famous motorcycle producer’s first electric bicycle, and, at first glimpse, it resembles to be a highly competent commuter model. It won’t be cheap, though: the bike will be working on sale in Europe, the UK, and the US for £2,950 ($3,318).
With a five-hour charge time, the bike weighs 52 pounds (24 kilograms) and can provide up to 60 Nm (or 29 ft-lbs) of torque. Triumph’s Trekker GT will be available for $3,750 at Triumph dealerships in the U.S. and abroad.
The bike has a minimalist design, with much of the battery, wiring, and drivetrain tucked inside the hydro-formed, lightweight aluminium frame. Triumph announces the Trekker GT is “perfect all-road option for commuting, fitness, and everyday riding fun” — although we’d have to examine it before we could agree.
The Trekker GT appears linked to the development of a production e-motorcycle by Triumph, though the company wasn’t ready to present a timeline on when that could be available.
“The launch of the Trekker GT is a unique approach from our research toward electric motorcycles,” Adam VanderVeen, marketing director of Triumph North America, told TechCrunch.
“We’ve introduced this e-bicycle in response to the growth of the e-cycle market, while we separately continue to research motorcycle engine platforms, including electric-powered.”
Most of the big-name motorcycle makers — Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki — have been potential to develop production e-motorcycles. That’s with the exemption of Harley-Davidson, which became the first of the big gas manufacturers to offer a street-legal e-motorcycle for sale in the U.S. — the $29,000, 105-horsepower LiveWire in 2019.
Austria’s KTM sells an off-road production e-moto in the U.S. — the Freeride E-XC. Italian high-performance motorcycle maker Ducati hasn’t released an e-moto concept yet but debuted e-mountain bikes in Europe last year.
Ducati, like Triumph, seems to view an e-bicycle as a soft-pivot toward the e-motorcycle market. Meanwhile, Harley-Davidson has already begun the EV arena with several e-moto startups that are striving to convert gas riders to electric and attract a younger generation to motorcycling.
One of the leaders is California startup Zero Motorcycles, with 200 dealers worldwide. Zero introduced a LiveWire competitor last year, the $19,000 SR/F, with a 161-mile city range, one-hour charge capacity, and a top speed of 124 mph.
Italy’s Energica is increasing the distribution of its high-performance e-motos in the U.S. And Canadian startup Damon Motors debuted its 200 mph, $24,000 Hypersport this year. The e-powered machine sports proprietary safety and ergonomics tech for flexible riding positions and blind-spot detection.
I have to admit, the release of e-bikes by leading motorcycle manufacturers as a replacement for full e-motos is a bit of a yawn at this point.
It’s essential that Harley-Davidson took a youth electric scooter maker, Stacyc, in 2019, and has committed to producing e-scooters and e-mountain bikes as part of its EV program. The plan is to use these platforms to generate a new bridge for young people to motorcycles in the on-demand mobility world.
With the Trekker GT, Triumph may be following that game plan in the run-up to its first full e-moto. The distinction is HD has already created an e-motorcycle to offer on the other side of the bridge and has the latest models on the way.
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