Indian Motorcycle Working On Electric Bike

We are certainly living in interesting times as the the world of automobiles undergoes a major paradigm shift. While four-wheelers have adopted electric drive more willingly, the case hasn’t been the same with their two-wheeled counterparts. But all that could change by 2020 as most manufacturers are exploring electric drive. The latest to join this bandwagon is American bikemaker Indian Motorcycle which is rumored to develop an electric motorcycle. This really doesn’t come as a surprise, given the fact that its arch rival, Harley-Davidson already showcased the Livewire concept which it claims will hit production in the next few years. The new electric motorcycle will be positioned under the Indian Motorcycle umbrella and there will not be any separate brand. It will be marketed as a lifestyle product rather than a commuter or a tourer.

Indian is targeting a range of close to 200 to 230km from the new motorcycle since that is the biggest hurdle for electric two-wheelers. Polaris, the parent company of Indian Motorcycle feels that energy density of the lithium based batteries will improve in the next few years for them to achieve the targeted range. Also, Polaris already has the Victory Empulse TT electric bike which can be used as a base for the future Indian electric bike. We can, perhaps, expect to see a classic style cruiser electric motorcycle, but the American bikemaker said that the electric bike is in its early stage of development and the production model will need four to five years more. With more manufacturers jumping catching up on the trend, we feel the development of electric drive will be faster than expected. As these industry trends set the tone for the future, for a true biker the emotion and rush of an internal combustion engine will never be replace