ElectricMotorcycleForum.com

One of Farasis’s battery packs’ big applications right now is electric motorcycles.

“We just recently completed a build for Brammo’s Isle of Man motorcycle,” says Edwards. “The bikes performed flawlessly and everything went great.”

Another notable name on their customer list is Zero, known for their high-performance electric motorcycles.

“They are right in the middle of their build year right now, making 17 bikes a day,” Edwards explains. “Going to a production-level status with them is pretty fun.”

Zero’s bikes use somewhere between 56 and 140 of Farasis’s battery cells, and the Farasis team has also made some 3D printed test fixtures and parts for their validation builds.

from r/motorcycles

The Victory, however, is hampered by severe driveline lash, particularly at low speeds. Also, the Victory’s transmission takes away a key advantage of an electric vehicle—the simplicity and lightness of direct drive—and replaces it with an unnecessary, heavy gearbox with notchy shifting and a stiff clutch.

Even with the Power Tank installed, the Zero is 16 pounds lighter than the Victory and its motor generates much more horsepower and torque. In side-by-side acceleration tests, the Zero left the Victory in the dust. Although both claim a top speed in excess of 100 mph, the Zero’s air-cooled motor limits the bike’s sustained top speed. When the controller senses the motor approaching its maximum allowable operating temperature, it limits torque output and top speed. The Victory’s liquid-cooled motor is less susceptible to spikes in temperature.

We didn’t achieve anything close to these bikes’ claimed maximum range, which is 140 miles for the Victory and 185 miles for the Zero. Like measuring fuel economy, we diligently recorded battery usage and mileage, and in mixed riding we averaged 60 miles of range on the Victory (high of 81, low of 50) and 77 miles on the Zero (high of 121, low of 60).

Recharge time is 8-9 hours, and for much of that time the bike’s noisy cooling fan is running. A Level 2 charging station like you might find at the shopping mall and Victory’s accessory 240V/Level 2 charger ($399.99) reduce recharge time to just under 4 hours.

The Victory Empulse TT has sportier styling and ergonomics and higher-spec components, but the Zero SR is the clear winner here. It’s lighter, makes more horsepower and torque, is more comfortable, has smoother power delivery and more range, and comes with standard ABS. Zero also has a free smartphone app that connects to the bike via Bluetooth for tracking performance parameters and adjusting top speed, maximum torque and regen in Eco mode. With a base price of $15,995 and an as-tested price of $18,490 with the Power Tank (excluding dealer installation), the Zero also undercuts the Victory’s $19,999 price tag. For 2016, Zero promises 10-percent more range, a new internal permanent magnet motor with better cooling and higher sustained speeds, and a Charge Tank accessory for use with Level 2 charging stations. The Victory falls short of the Zero for now, but we expect Polaris will put its significant financial and engineering muscle toward closing the gap.

The heart of the charger is APEI's 1 MHz+ high-frequency capable multi-chip power module allowing for 200 °C+ high junction temperature operation which, when coupled with high switching frequency, allows for an order of magnitude increase in power density -- with a simultaneous increase in system efficiency over currently used technologies.