There are more than a few motorcyclists wondering if there will be a Sport Tourer that has both the range and a low-enough charging time to make cross continent riding on an electric feasible. Based on the amount of money that some Japanese and European manufacturers are putting into electric research, it won’t be long before new bikes with long distance abilities will in the market.
In an upcoming blog post I’ll be looking at the leading manufacturers of electric motorcycles in the North American and European market, primarily because most other electric motorcycle manufacturers are Chinese in origin and therefore building motorcycles primarily for the domestic Chinese market. The blog will address company sales for the five top manufacturers in 2024. It appears that 2024 will be the first year where major motorcycle manufacturers, besides Livewire, the Harley Davidson spinoff, will be introducing electric, or electric hybrid vehicles in the North American market.
The North American market needs to be differentiated to some degree from the European market, for two reasons. First, the distances that electric vehicles need to cover in North America in order to be viable are substantively higher, and secondly, in Europe due to increased density and pressure to reduce tailpipe emissions, many Cities, Cantons and Towns are planning to ban motorcycles that don’t effectively deal with the issue of pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
Financial Investment in Electric
Honda, the largest manufacturer of motorcycles on earth is investing a huge amount on electric motorcycles.
“Honda will invest ¥500 billion ($3.4 billion) in its electric motorcycle business by 2030 and has raised its target for annual sales to 4 million units for that year, up from a previous goal of 3.5 million.
The company plans to introduce 30 new electric motorcycle models worldwide by 2030 and will start operating dedicated electric motorcycle plants globally from around 2027, it said in a statement Wednesday. New technology will reduce the length of assembly lines by about 40%, it said.
“We aim to sell electric motorbikes at the same price as ICE models,” Daiki Mihara, head of Honda’s motorcycle electrification development division, said during an online news briefing, referring to internal combustion engines.”
Suzuki is also committing to electric, but is, with Kawasaki invested in Hydrogen technology and ICE. In fact, it is fair to say that every motocycle manufacturer has electric or hyrodgen motorcycles in its production plans for the forseeable future. https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/suzuki-general-manager-talks-about-the-motorcycles-of-the-future/ar-AA1luBBt
By 2030, almost all motorcycles will be either electric or an alternartive green fuel. What is incredible is that this will all occur in less than 7 years. Will the infrastructure support the changes? Oil companies see the writing on the wall as well, and are investing heavily on the infrastructure necessary to make electric motorcycle recharging available everywhere.https://www.gencellenergy.com/resources/blog/oil-and-gas-giants-are-jumping-into-the-ev-charging-industry/#:~:text=Shell%20has%20announced%20plans%20to,7%2C500%20to%2070%2C000%20by%202030. The Biden administration has committed to the installation of 500,000 charging stations in the US by 2030.
Manufacturer’s get it. Petroleum companies get it. Even governments, loath to spend money on regulation, get it. Ducati, no diffently than Kawasaki, Honda, Suzuki, BMW and even Harley Davidson have or will be introducing electric motorcycles in their 2024 lineup.https://www.ducati.com/ww/en/news/ducati-begins-its-electric-era-it-will-produce-the-bikes-for-the-fim-enel-motoe-world-cup-from-the-2023-season#:~:text=The%20goal%20is%20to%20study,able%20to%20satisfy%20all%20enthusiasts.
I know what most of you think. Change is hard. As someone whose job it was to be a change manager and strategic planner, I get it. We, collectively have a lot invested in the culture of motorcycling. But the one thing this world absolutely guarantees, is change.
Having said that, most of us will ride our ICE bikes as long as possible, but the fat lady is singing, loud and clear.
Ciao.
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