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NEWS
Green light for electric Yamahas
Yamaha's battery-powered PES1 sportsbike and PED1 off-road bike look set to enter volume production in 2016, following their unveiling in Japan last yearYamaha first revealed its PES1 and PED1 electric bikes as concept machines at the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show last November, but now it appears the manufacturer has given both machines the go-ahead for them to enter volume production.
British website www.visordown.com reports that Yamaha slipped the announcement into a recently released annual report, with both the sportsbike (the PES1) and the off-road bike (the PED1) set to enter volume production in 2016.
The move promises to shift the electric bike market into a higher gear – previous factory electric models have largely been limited to avant-garde firms like Zero Motorcycles and Vectrix, rather than the major motorcycle players.
The report says the bikes will offer buyers everything existing motorcycle fans demand in a bike.
“In sports motorcycles, we are working to create new value with EV sports motorcycles, which we aim to launch in two years, with the development of the small, on-road sports PES1, as well as the PED1, which is being developed to expand the scope of electric vehicles to the off-road world,” it states.
“In addition to the advantages of being electrically powered, these motorcycles will offer the operability expected by existing motorcycle fans, together with a new riding experience.”
The models, whose names denote ‘Passion/Electric/Street’ and ‘Passion/Electric/Dirt’, feature the same chassis and brushless DC motor, the latter powered with a lithium-ion battery.
The sportsbike is said to weigh less than 100kg, while the dirt bike weighs in at less than 85kg – numbers that are sure to provide a platform for plenty of thrills.
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Written byBikesales Staff
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