Harley-Davidson Confirms Electric Motorcycle Project

Harley-Davidson has started working on a production-spec electric motorcycle. The announcement was made by Sean Cummings, senior vice president Harley-Davidson who in an interaction with the US media said that an electric motorcycle from the iconic two-wheeler manufacturer will debut within the next five years. Harley-Davidson had showcased the LiveWire electric motorcycle concept few years back which had surprised many Harley loyalists as the iconic American bikemaker is known for its high displacement cruiser bikes. For the LiveWire concept it had sought help of the now defunct Mission Motors and it seemed that the electric motorcycle project was shelved.

But with its arch rival Victory Motorcycles acquiring Brammo’s electric motorcycle business and copyrighting the “Victory Charger” moniker it was clear that its rival is working on an electric bike. The above would have been among the many reasons prompting Harley-Davidson to green light the electric bike project. The Harley-Davidson LiveWire had received positive response globally but the hurdle for the American bikemaker was that production cost for the motorcycle was almost $50,000 (Rs 33.4 lakh) and the current battery range was just 80km.

Harley has five years on its hand to develop the motorcycle and by then we are sure that the pricing of the bike will come down and the range will also increase. But whether the traditional Harley-Davidson owners will welcome an electric powered offering in their fraternity is something time will only answer. But the above bit of news confirms for a fact that it will be mostly the Americans who will pip their Japanese and European rivals in launching a production version of an electric motorcycle.