Friday, June 26, 2009

Best Buy specials......

Is Best Buy getting into the motorcycle business?

If speculation is correct, yeah, it is. But these aren't just your average hogs. Started in May at five stores on the West Coast, Best Buy will be selling the Brammo Enertia, an all-electric motorcycle that has potential to become the Chumby of the motorcycle world.

Has anyone seen these yet..I sure didn't...



the bikes' electronics components include a built-in Web server, open-platform software applications, and possible add-ons like onboard cameras that could download images to travel blogs.

What they're selling is a lot closer to consumer electronics than to motorcycles.

The Enertia draws power from a bank of six lithium phosphate batteries. Charging takes three hours on a standard electrical outlet and should yield a range of about 45 miles.

After crunching the numbers, Brammo reckons that works out to 40 cents per charge or about 1 cent per mile to keep the Enertia running.

And run apparently it does. With a max speed of 53 miles per hour, the Enertia is no toy and is highway-legal, making it a viable option for commuters. The company is working on a two-seater model with a range of about 100 miles and a cruising speed of 75 miles per hour

Brammo Enertia

7 comments:

Danny said...

Do 53 mph on the highways I travel on and you will quickly earn the nickname of either Crash or Road Kill. People would most likely start referring to you in the past tense too.

The range would be okay for my commute but would have to charge it at work.

The model they are working on is something I would consider but would prefer they got that top speed up there a little more (80 mph).

I have seen photos of riders on the current model and it looks more like a bicycle than a motorcycle.

mq01 said...

they have not sold me on electric bikes yet. i have tried some in the past and they did not seem to be 1/2 of what they were advertised. i will wait and see on this one...

Canajun said...

Interesting. I'm with Danny on this though - 53 mph on the highways around here will get you a one-way ticket.
Battery technology will have to advance considerably before these become viable for anything other than in-city, short-hop trips.
And all those electronics, exposed to the weather, rough roads, etc...?

Dr.John said...

But what will it cost?

Baron's Life said...

Danny, mq01, Canajun...
I am with you all on this. I'm not sold on electic motorcycles..I need to hear the huming of an internal combustion chamber under my ass.
But we have to be aware as to where the future is heading.

Dr. John...I think they vary in cost from 8 to 12 K depending on options

Mr. Motorcycle said...

What's next. Electric stations instead of gas stations? Until they can figure out a quick charge method, these will never fly as a mass mode of entertainment, or transportation for any kind of long haul. "Oops I've travelled 98 miles, running on low battery, in the middle of nowhere. Now I'm screwed." It's not like you can pull into you nearest gas station and steal their power for three hours while you re-charge. Besides, how inconvenient to wait three hours to ride again.
What a joke. This is a toy, not a motorcycle.

Sorry for the negativeness here, Just my thoughts rolling out of my head.

George said...

This might be an interesting start to something, but it seems to me to be only a start. We'll have to wait and see what comes next.