The world's fastest all-electric motorbike has been unveiled today at the international bike show in Birmingham.
The TTX01 is the most advanced emission-free bike on the verge of commercial production: it is already road-legal in the UK and its makers claim it can go from 0-60mph in 3.5 seconds, eventually reaching a top speed 125mph. A limited number will go on sale at the end of next year at a price of £20,000.
The bike, designed and built by British engineers, was commissioned by the organisers of the world's first emissions-free grand prix for motorbikes, which will be held on the Isle of Man's TT circuit next June.
Azhar Hussain, organiser of the TTXGP event and a keen motorcyclist, said the TTX01 was a showcase for technology that would feature in the mainstream electric vehicles of the future.
"One of the good things about motorcycles is that the technology is good enough today to give you a motor sport performance [with no emissions]," said Hussain. "There's an opportunity here to move the science and technology forward and to deliver a meaningful change in a meaningful time."
The only other electric bikes close to to commercial production are the American company Brammo's Enertia, due to hit the market next year, and the Vectrix scooter. But, since both of these are aimed at the commuter market, they have significantly smaller motors and top speeds — 50mph and 60mph respectively — than the TTX01.
The TTX01 runs on two battery-powered electric motors, each weighing 11kg and designed by Brighton-based Agni motors, attached to its rear wheel. It is rated at around 86 break horse power, equivalent to a the peak power of a standard 600CC racing bike.
In the prototype unveiled today, the electric drive assembly has been built into the chassis of a standard Suzuki motorbike. But the final production version, due out in a year's time, will have its own chassis made from lightweight carbon composite materials. It will also incorporate technologies such as regenerative braking, where dynamos harness the energy that is usually lost when a vehicle slows down, to increase its range.
The updated chassis design will have few of the constraints of a standard petrol-powered bike. "When the cylinders in normal bikes are exploding, that's an incredibly violent thing to contain so you need a frame which is incredibly strong," said Hussain.
"When you have a mechanical combustion engine, there's also a whole load of overhead you need to carry: a radiator, oil pumps, fuel pumps, a gearbox. When you take that away, it means you can have a much more compact and tight frame."
The TTX01's design also allows for a small electric motor to be attached to the front wheel. This would make the bike safer to drive since, if the back wheel lost some of its grip on the road, the bike's onboard computer could feed power to the front motor to keep the bike moving.
Electric vehicles are seen as crucial in reducing carbon emissions from the UK's transport sector, which accounts for around one-quarter of the UK's total emissions.
Friends of the Earth's senior transport campaigner Tony Bosworth welcomed the TTX01. "Electric bikes have a role to play in cutting emissions from transport — provided they are powered from renewable electricity. Manufacturers have a responsibility to minimise the environmental impact of their vehicles."
Bikers have welcomed the development. Jeff Stone of the British Motorcyclists Federation said: "The TTX01 is an exciting development. Like electric cars, it'll take some time to get used to but this is a pioneering venture. It's well known that racing improves the breed and the TTXGP is an exciting test-bed for clean-technologies."
Bertie Simmonds, former editor of Two Wheels Only magazine, said: "The TTX01 is a big step forward in the right direction as it's moving things from the utilitarian electric transport we've seen before, to something that many UK motorcyclists use for leisure and pleasure. However, it's early days to say that the TTX01 is going to open the floodgates for electric power, as there's still life in the internal combustion engine yet, and all the major manufacturers from the Far East, Europe and the United States are all working on making the motorcycle engine greener still, with advances in fuel-injection, engine electronics and cleaning up exhaust emissions."
After completing its preliminary tests next month, the TTX01 will start a battery-powered European tour via Portugal, France, Germany and Italy before coming back to the Isle of Man in time for the zero-emission TT race next June. On a full charge and at a moderate speed, the bike's 75kg battery will currently allow it to travel around 50 miles. Using a standard 13-amp electric socket, the battery can be recharged in under two hours.
The TTXGP race next year is meant to provide a platform for clean-emission motorbikes. Around 50 teams will compete, including bikes developed and backed by professional racing teams, universities, vehicle manufacturers, technology companies and amateur enthusiasts.
"Nothing drives innovation like competition," said Hussain. "Entrants into the TTXGP are not restricted by legacy technologies, business models and mindsets. The [race] offers new thinking a chance to prove itself in open competition."
The competition is supported by UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the government's international business development organisation, as part of its aims to promote the UK's engineering and green technology industries.
But there may yet be one sticking point before electric bikes become mainstream. "It hardly makes any noise," said Hussain. "Either we start making noise, which is quite an inefficient way of moving forward, or we start training people that these bikes will be silent so you need to start looking both ways before crossing the road."
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