Is a Brammo Empulse a Practical EV?

I was asked by a reader about the true cost of owning and operating a Brammo electric motorcycle. While I have not personally owned or even seen one in person, I feel that I can provide some helpful insight.

The cost of the Brammo Empulse (there newer bike, with up to a 100 mile range and 100mph top speed) is slated between $10,000 and $14,000, depending on the range needed. While this is much higher than a comparable, or even much nicer ICE(internal combustion engine) bike, the Brammo has its benefits.

There are a couple of factors that lower the cost, such as the 10% federal rebate incentive for buying a new EV, and New York state also offers free chargers to buyers of electric vehicles, but the cost overall is still very high initially.

The Empulse would be a great commuter vehicle for in-city commuting, or if your commute is less than the advertised range of the model in question. The battery pack should not suffer major degradation over time since it is a lithium chemistry battery, and should be good for between 3000 and 5000 charges. While the battery pack would likely degrade after a few years and would greatly benefit from replacement, it will still have a 70-80% range. Additionally, battery technology is rapidly decreasing in price, and I would expect third party batteries, or OEM replacements for significantly cheaper in the next 3-5 years.

As for reliability and maintenance, you would need to replace tires and brake pads at about the same rate as any other bike. Other than that, charging the batteries properly and practicing good battery management will make this bike last for years with no major services.

Overall, if you want to get into the world of EV's, a Brammo would be a good place to start, if you want a factory assembled bike. An alternate route would be to convert an ICE motorcycle to electric drive, which is surprisingly easy, and would likely be 1/3-1/2 of the cost of the Brammo to build a comparative bike.