ElectricMotorcycleForum.com

As mentioned previously in this thread, it appears they are using the redesigned battery casing and system from the Moto E race program. Energica claims the new battery is both smaller and lighter - presumably referring to the fully assembled module.

https://www.motorcyclenews.com/sport/motogp/motoe-energica-ego-corsa/

"Initially the Ego Corsa MotoE bike started out as an Ego road bike that was stripped of its road equipment," Testoni explains. "However, we quickly changed the suspension, chassis, battery, brakes, electronics and in the end the only part that remains the same is the electric motor and the chassis’ geometry.

"The MotoE bike’s battery is both smaller and lighter than the road bike’s but contains almost double the energy due to new cell technology while the electronics are also updated. In a few months of concentrated development on the Ego Corsa we achieved what would have taken us years of road testing."

...


"The MotoE bike can already exceed 167mph, weighs less than 260kg and its battery has almost double the capacity of the current production bike with just over 20kWh," he said, "And every year the lap times have to reduce to show MotoGP fans we are advancing.

"This technology will come back to the Ego road bike and in 2020 we will unveil a completely new platform of electric sportsbike based on the MotoE bike’s technology. We are aiming for a range of 125-miles irrespective of use with similar torque levels to the current bike."

A&R also had a chance to examine the Corsa bike.

https://www.asphaltandrubber.com/bikes/energica-ego-corsa-photos/

Peering beneath the fairings, I could spot the absence of the grey cast aluminum battery housing, which has given way to a black plastic enclosure. I would wager 50 lbs is lost in this change alone. Of note though, the PMAC motor retains its cast aluminum enclosure.

A total bike 5% weight loss would be ~15 kg.

I can’t find any information on who supplies their battery cells - only a “Far East” manufacturer (presumably meaning S Korea or China).

I can’t ignore any electric motorcycle with 20kWh onboard, but I feel like this giant battery change has to involve some trade offs this article doesn’t cover.

Let’s find some article that describes the chemistry, see what warranty goes with it, and let a battery professional weigh in on what we can expect from these batteries.

I heard a mileage limit for the warranty thrown around that did not seem attractive for touring, so I feel like this might not be the magical touring machine recipe yet. The bikes are obviously built fine and have good numbers, but the designs show a track mindset that I can’t embrace.

Same warranty, cycle ratings for 2019 and 2020. Battery warranty is 31000 miles. Both years claim 1200 cycles to 80% remaining capacity. Older technology was NMC, don't think they've revealed what tech they're using now.

The absolute charge rate is down, both in terms of C rate and miles per minute. 2019 could charge 0-85% in 20 minutes at 26 kW, about 3 highway miles per minute charging.

2020 Energica+ charges 0-80% in 40 minutes - presumably at around 20 kW, or a bit over 2 highway miles per minute. Energica models prior to 2019 also charged at about this rate. Perhaps Energica will validate higher charge rates in time.

The situation feels very similar to the Hyundai Ioniq Electric - newer version has a ~35% larger battery but charges almost half the speed as 2019.

++ Very nice!
One thing I'd add -- correct me if I'm wrong, but the claim of adding 100mi of range in 20min yields 10kWh in 20min using Lightning's  own city range number for the "standard" model (100mi city range), which gives an average (not peak) charge rate of 30kW. On a 10 kWh battery, that implies a C-rate of 3 . Isn't that rather high?

I assume they're talking about the 20 kWh model, and charging 50% in 20 minutes (1.5C). The smaller bikes presumably would charge at the same relative charge rate, so 50 miles in 20 minutes for the $13k 10 kWh model.

If the 20 kWh battery is something like 355V / 55 Ah, then even a 50 kW CCS charger limited to 100-125A should be able to max out the charge rate.

I might be wrong! If they're talking about a 2C charge for 100 highway miles in 20 minutes - fantastic. A 2C charge rate should still be reasonable with a 125A CCS charger.

This is a lower relative charge rate than Energica, 0-85% in 20 minutes @ 2.5C. Note that the older model of the Energica, 0-85% in 30 minutes @ 1.7C, will begin to thermally derate after multiple sessions (good read) - I'm curious how the 20 minute quick charges work out on a longer trip.

Very interesting article. But there is an even more interesting quote at the end of the same article :

Journalist : Can you tell us about your long term view on Zero ?
Paschel : Well to be fair electricity is just a transition toward more efficient solutions.
Journalist : What do you mean ?
Paschel : In the really long term, hydrogen and compressed air offer the highest energy density, because with electricity you lose lots of energy turning coal or oil into electricity. This is why we are working on a new SR/G, based on compressed air technology. It will have a very low weight (300 lbs) because it will use an helium ballast, and the prototype already offers an impress 300 ftlb torque. We think that in the long term, governments will develop compressed air stations. in the short term, you can charge the SR/G at home in about 8 hours using a hand pump. Get out of the way, the new Zero is coming !

Nice job. I went and looked for the article, here's a link.

They claim they'll deliver the 20KWH one first, starting in July, but you have to pay half now if you want one.

I've added Lightning Strike Carbon to my long range electric motorcycle comparison spreadsheet.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1yWRS4EHtyGPexF4lcX4nlG5bTlSQ7Oh7tBTWL5zlbPo/edit?usp=sharing

I've also sorted the columns in order of availability, Harley Davidson is at the end, of course.  Lotta smoke and thunder from over there.

Really nice work on the sheet. I hope edits are okay as it's open for editing - I've added some information about range and charging speeds. I can back these out if not wanted.

This is what I want to see from electric bikes in 2019 - effective fairings for efficient highway riding, large-format batteries, and L3 charging. Basically my personal dream punchlist, and what I think electrics need to really move beyond a commuter product and reach mainstream bikers.

I hope Lightning can deliver, but I don't believe they can. Here are some of my concerns:


1. The specs are incredible - well beyond what Energica and Zero offer.

20 kWh battery, carbon fiber fairings, $$$ components, L3 charging, 6 kW L2 charger.. for less than the 12 kWh Zero SR-F Premium.


2. The battery weights don't make sense.

To the best of my knowledge, Alta (RIP) had the densest production battery at 185 Wh/kg.

Let's say Lightning has 200 Wh/kg. That's 55 pounds difference between 10, 15, 20 kWh batteries.

Lightning claims a difference of 10 lbs between 10 and 15 kWh models, and 20 lbs between the 15 and 20 kWh models.


3. The prices don't make sense.

$13k - 10 kWh Standard Range
$17k - 15 kWh Mid Range, same equipment as Standard Range
$20k - 20 kWh Carbon Edition, adds carbon fiber fairings, 6 kWh L2 charger ($1500 alone), L3 CCS support ($1500 alone), Brembo and Ohlins components, upgraded dash, etc.

I don't see any compelling reasons to buy the midrange bike.


4. The reservation deposit is fully refundable - provided the company has funds to return - but is not held in escrow and will clearly be used for development.

I would regard any reservations as a donation to the company in order to secure an earlier bike should it make it to production.



As I said - I hope Lightning makes it to production and can profitably produce the Strike. Their racing bikes still hold records, and they've been operating in the EV space for close to 10 years but have not yet offered a mass production bike.

Remember what happened with Mission - let's hope for more success for Lightning.

Reconfiguring all cells into a single string sounds hard.

Abandoning the Power Tank and using two slightly-larger longbricks in 30- or 32-series would allow for the dynamic reconfiguration BrianTRice describes. 125A "50 kW" CCS could support 2C charge for 0-80% in 25 minutes, which is probably pushing an air-cooled battery pretty hard.

Zero has a bunch of smart engineers - no doubt they considered this route. Perhaps they decided it added too much complexity, or maintaining a 32-series and a 28-series powertrain was too difficult, or they simply thought high-power L2 charging was a better option than a complex L3 charging setup.

However it went, I would be surprised to see L3 support from Zero now for several years.

I’m curious how many amps the full 12 kW system will actually need.

Farasis’s cells are rated at 32 Ah.

To charge 0-95% SOC in 1.3 hours, the chargers will need to supply about 94 amps.

From 3.5 to 4.0 volts per cell and 90% charging efficiency, the AC power needed will vary from 10.2 to 11.7 kW.

At 240 V this is 42.5 to 49 amps.

At 208 V this is 49 to 56 amps.

It seems like a 240 volt 48 amp EVSE would do just fine to support the 12 kW model. Even a 40 A EVSE or 14-50 plug would only be a small decrease.

Edit: Man. All the above is wrong - I misread the standard 1.3 hour 0-95% as the Premium.

With the 12 kW model, you'll need a > 60 amp EVSE to take full advantage - 55 to 64 amps.

J1772 EVSEs with sufficient power are few and far between..