HomeReviewsMotorcyclesVictory Motorcycles Reveals its First All-Electric Motorcycle: The Empulse TT

Victory Motorcycles Reveals its First All-Electric Motorcycle: The Empulse TT

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Building on the innovative design and engineering that produced the fastest U.S. electric motorcycle at the 2015 Isle of Man TT Zero race, Victory Motorcycles has introduced the 2016 Empulse TT, the first all-electric addition to the Victory lineup. The Victory Empulse TT is a fully electric street-legal sport bike that is as capable of carving tight lines on twisting roads as it is powering the daily commute. Building on Victory Motorcycle’s focus on performance, the Empulse TT features a sport bike-style aluminum beam-frame, an adjustable suspension, and aggressive brakes. With a combination of advanced technology and stylish, modern design, this unique new motorcycle delivers outstanding overall performance, zero-emission output, and a torquey motor.

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The key features that allow Empulse TT to deliver a sporty riding experience include: a fully adjustable suspension featuring a single rear shock and inverted front forks; dual-disk front brakes that deliver confidence-inspiring high-performance stopping power; lightweight new cast aluminum wheels; the greatest lean angle in the electric class; and a sportbike-style riding position.

The Empulse TT shares some DNA with the original Brammo Empulse R motorcycle. Victory has been working with Brammo since 2011, but in January 2015 Victory’s parent company, Polaris Industries, acquired Brammo’s motorcycle assets.  Since then, Victory engineers worked with the Brammo product team to achieve improvements in battery capacity, display function, and handling.  The result is a Victory Empulse TT with advanced technology, impressive performance, and sporty styling that draw from the Isle of Man Zero TT race bikes.

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The Victory Empulse TT is capable of top speeds of over 100 mph, and it has a high-capacity 10.4kWh battery.  The bike has a built-in battery charger and an easily accessible SAE J1772 plug atop the bodywork in front of the seat. The bike’s Brammo Power Lithium Ion battery fully charges in just 3.9 hours using a Stage 2 charger (available as an accessory utilizing a 240V outlet). The bike will fully charge in 8.9 hours using a regular household 120V outlet.

In typical riding, the Empulse TT battery provides a rider with a range of about 65 miles, and a range of 100 miles is possible with throttle management and use of the bike’s regenerative charging. In preliminary testing, the bike demonstrated a Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC) city range of 94 miles. The bike delivered an MIC “combined 70 mph highway and city range” of 57 miles.

Riders can make the most efficient use of the battery’s 10.4kWh of electricity by using the six-speed gearbox. Shifting and downshifting help to create regenerative power (under deceleration), and also produce a feeling familiar to experienced riders of the compression braking on gasoline-powered motorcycles.

The rider only needs to use the clutch when shifting between gears, not for taking off or coming to a stop. When coming to a stop, a rider can leave the bike in gear, or choose to click the shifter down (without pulling in the clutch) to put the bike in neutral.  To take off from a stop, the rider simply needs to twist the throttle to unleash the liquid-cooled electric motor’s impressive torque.

In the Empulse TT’s proprietary transmission, neutral is found between 2nd and 3rd gears, and the transmission can be left in 3rd gear for most riding speeds and conditions. To begin riding, a rider can simply turn the bike’s power on, select 3rd gear (without the clutch), twist the throttle, and go.

Not all competitive electric motorcycles have gearboxes, so the Empulse TT gearbox gives the bike a significantly sportier feel, and it enhances a rider’s engagement with the bike.

In everyday riding conditions, the Victory Empulse TT can be operated in ECO mode, but it also has an optional SPORT mode for high-performance riding. In SPORT mode, 20 percent more battery power is released to the motor, resulting in enhanced acceleration.

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SPORT mode also increases the amount of regenerative braking – or “regen” – which further increases the feeling similar to compression braking when the rider rolls off the throttle. Regen uses the inertia of the motorcycle to return energy from the motor back into the battery pack, which increases available energy. To select SPORT mode, a rider presses and holds the start button for 1 second.

The bike’s LCD data display features a speedometer, tachometer, gear indicator, and clock. It also displays the battery level as a horizontal bar accompanied by the percentage of battery energy remaining, and provides an estimate of remaining riding range.

Genuine Victory Accessories immediately available for the Empulse TT include Victory performance forks, frame sliders, tall and short windscreens, and side bags that hold cargo.

The new Victory Empulse TT electric motorcycle is scheduled to be available for purchase in the United States in late 2015. Victory is in the process of determining global demand for the bike before announcing its international sales plan.

Goodyear f1 650x85(DSF)

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
ENGINE

ELECTRIC MOTOR

PEAK MOTOR POWER

PEAK TORQUE

TRANSMISSION

EMISSIONS

 

Internal Permanent Magnet AC Induction

54 hp

61 ft-lb (available from a full stop)

6-speed gearbox with multi-plate, hydraulic activated wet clutch

None

BATTERY PACK

BATTERY

BATTERY CAPACITY

BATTERY VOLTAGE

CHARGE TIME

 

 

 

Brammo Power Lithium Ion

10.4 kWh

103.6V/117.6V (max)

2 hours (Level I/20% to 80% SOC)

3.9 hours (Level II/0% to 100% SOC)

8.9 hours (Level I/0% to 100% SOC)

BRAKES

FRONT BRAKING SYSTEM

 

REAR BRAKING SYSTEM

 

Dual 310mm Brembo floating discs with 4-piston radial mounted Brembo brake calipers

Brembo single disc with dual piston hydraulic Brembo brake caliper

PERFORMANCE

MAX SPEED

REGENERATIVE BRAKING

 

161+km/h / 100+mph

Extends riding range and provides familiar rider feedback on deceleration

SUSPENSION

FRONT SUSPENSION

REAR SUSPENSION

 

Adjustable 43mm Inverted Forks

Adjustable Direct-Acting Shock

CHASSIS

CARRY CAPACITY

DRY WEIGHT

GROUND CLEARANCE

LENGTH

RAKE/TRAIL

SEAT HEIGHT

WHEELBASE

 

167 kg / 368 lb

213 kg / 470 lb

18.54 cm / 7.3 in

206.5 cm / 81.3 in

24°/7.62 cm / 3 in

80.0 cm / 31.5 in

147.32 cm / 58 in

OTHER COMPONENTS

INSTRUMENTATION

 

TIRES FRONT & REAR

WHEELS FRONT & REAR

 

LCD display with: Speedo, tach, odometer, gear indicator energy consumption, battery status, estimated range, and system status

Continental Sport Attack II 120-70-ZR17 58W & 160/60ZR17 69W

17” x 3.5” / 17” x 4.5”

Daniel Sherman Fernandez
Daniel Sherman Fernandez
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