Electric Minibike

T-Town Mini

Well-Known Member
#1
Some new manufactures are making electric retro looking minibikes. They may look cool and they've got a few good ideas but, the price is stupid expensive for what you get.

[video=youtube_share;M-sohmqeAJk]https://youtu.be/M-sohmqeAJk[/video]

Take a look at some of the others that pop-up in the youtube recommendations.

Would you own one?
 
#2
Nope! Definitely not for me. I simply cannot get excited about an electric mini bike. Same for electric scooters, cars, etc. A mini bike without a thumping single cylinder engine just doesn't seem right to me.


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olddog

Active Member
#5
I love the 73, if it was 2k I'd own it, but I wasn't going to buy at 3k and now I think it's a few hundred more so it's not going to happen.


I meant to add originally that this is not to replace a mini by any means to me, but just to be able to cruise around legally, hitting the beach, around the corner to get some beer, etc.

I just think it's cool.
 
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#6
LOL, $3k for the limited. You don't need a limited do you?? I don't. $1,300 model is positioned well. BTW, these are not mini bikes and should not be compared to a "vintage" 60/70s looking gasoline-powered mini bike. I personally think it's ridiculous to produce a frame that looks like this when EVERYONE else offers traditional frames including those with fat tires. Best of luck to you LC!

It's getting to be a crowded little field for electric bikes and if you know anything at all about them, you will realize they are not cheap- $3~5K for premium models.
 
#7
I can think of far better things to spend $3,000 on and an electric bicycle isn't one of them. Just not a priority in my life and furthermore, I have 6 bicycles in my garage and all of them are human powered. The Idea I suppose is kinda novel, but I'm clearly not the target audience for such a product.

Now....on the other hand if somebody came out with a street legal mini-bike like the old Honda Z50 from the late '60's, I'd be all over that like white on rice.


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#9
Tango, the China people make a Z-50 knockoff with a side car that is street legal...you supply the rice.
Are you referring to Skyteam by any chance? Seen those online before and from what I learned recently, they're out of business.


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#12
Tango, I think it was one of those large import companies that sold a wide assortment of bikes, it might be Safer Wholesale (sp) just can't place the name. So many places selling these bikes it's hard to keep up with them.
 
#14
#15
Wow, these 125cc bikes look like a great deal starting at $1500. I wish I wasn't so chicken about riding on the street, even though I've done a lot of dirt bike riding. Everyone I know who rides on the street has had some sort of accident. There are a lot of great back roads where I live and I'm sure an old 305 Honda would be a lot of fun for me.
The Honda 305 Dream. What a great classic bike that was. I'd love to have one also. Ya know...you meet the nicest people on s Honda. [emoji16]


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#16
The Honda 305 Dream. What a great classic bike that was. I'd love to have one also. Ya know...you meet the nicest people on s Honda. [emoji16]


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You are making me laugh! As Honda tried to mainstream motorcycle riding I remember their ads that showed nice looking young people on Hondas, as opposed to the seedy punks such as Brando in The Wild Ones. I remember riding on the back of a friend's 305 Scrambler in about 1965.
 
#17
I'd love to retrofit a good electric motor like 36 volts and use lightweight 12v gel cell batteries or build a bank of high quality rechargeable ni-cad hobby batts to 36v and skip all the series wiring but either would work. The big cost is a good a truly good controller and equally good throttle control potentiometer which are going to cost you a chunk no doubt because quality does not come cheap and without that level of quality and a lot of YouTube stars substituting with E scooter stuff seems sketchy to me seems you'd have an unreliable ride and potential for a thermal event way too near the nether regions running something that cheap. It's why the electric minis posted originally are likely so high priced I would thing because the use good components. The E-bikes at Isle of Man were hitting blistering speeds and were quite the spectacle on the chicane going through crazy fast and wobbly but they did well throughout. E-racing is an exciting sport to me, unmatched acceleration and incredible top speeds too.
 
#18
You are making me laugh! As Honda tried to mainstream motorcycle riding I remember their ads that showed nice looking young people on Hondas, as opposed to the seedy punks such as Brando in The Wild Ones. I remember riding on the back of a friend's 305 Scrambler in about 1965.
Ahhh....gee wiz, those Honda's sure were nifty! They're the bees knees. Ha! Ha!



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#19
I'd love to retrofit a good electric motor like 36 volts and use lightweight 12v gel cell batteries or build a bank of high quality rechargeable ni-cad hobby batts to 36v and skip all the series wiring but either would work. The big cost is a good a truly good controller and equally good throttle control potentiometer which are going to cost you a chunk no doubt because quality does not come cheap and without that level of quality and a lot of YouTube stars substituting with E scooter stuff seems sketchy to me seems you'd have an unreliable ride and potential for a thermal event way too near the nether regions running something that cheap. It's why the electric minis posted originally are likely so high priced I would thing because the use good components. The E-bikes at Isle of Man were hitting blistering speeds and were quite the spectacle on the chicane going through crazy fast and wobbly but they did well throughout. E-racing is an exciting sport to me, unmatched acceleration and incredible top speeds too.
I admit, as a guy who was born with gasoline in his blood, while I still prefer an internal combustion engine in most vehicles I operate, I do find the e-technology to be somewhat interesting. I do have 30 solar panels on the roof of my home and I reap the benefits of generating my own electricity and I did own a hybrid Lexus RX400H as well. So I'm on board partially, but I'm still very reluctant to seriously consider a fully electric vehicle, like a car, motorcycle or minibike. Still, the technology is quite impressive and getting better. Since you mentioned watching e-motorcycle racing, let me introduce you to something similar....Formula e-racing. The FIA (Motorsport racing) who's know for Formula 1 racing (Ferrari, McLaren, etc) created a new category a couple years ago, where fully electric race cars compete on international circuits. It's quite fun to watch. These cars race at blistering speeds and the instant torque that they make is impressive. Check it out. Formula E


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#20
I've watched Formula E and it's bad ass. I'm a gas and oil guy too but damn that electric stuff is fascinating and powerful, just expensive for quality stuff. An old man near me has a 47 Chrysler with a Cat Forklift motor mated to a 727 trans he used the controller and throttle too. looks like he gets shot from a gun when he nails the throttle but he has to get a rolling start or the tires want to come off. He has a few other E vehicles as well.
I admit, as a guy who was born with gasoline in his blood, while I still prefer an internal combustion engine in most vehicles I operate, I do find the e-technology to be somewhat interesting. I do have 30 solar panels on the roof of my home and I reap the benefits of generating my own electricity and I did own a hybrid Lexus RX400H as well. So I'm on board partially, but I'm still very reluctant to seriously consider a fully electric vehicle, like a car, motorcycle or minibike. Still, the technology is quite impressive and getting better. Since you mentioned watching e-motorcycle racing, let me introduce you to something similar....Formula e-racing. The FIA (Motorsport racing) who's know for Formula 1 racing (Ferrari, McLaren, etc) created a new category a couple years ago, where fully electric race cars compete on international circuits. It's quite fun to watch. These cars race at blistering speeds and the instant torque that they make is impressive. Check it out. Formula E


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