Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1420253
VOLUME 58 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 19, 2021 P117 a bit of a pile, but ride some of the company's 2021 models and the difference is pretty astound- ing. That's not a long time to gain such performance. It also makes the demise of Alta one of the great tragedies and travesties of modern motorcycling, because here was a company that hit the sweet spot and showed electric bikes didn't need to be gimmicky, offering a real alternative to the status quo. And besides, with govern- ments around the world hell bent on destroying the petrol vehicle in all its forms over the coming decades, we better get used to our bikes not making any noise or we won't be riding at all. One of the big complaints I hear verbatim from damn near everyone with regards to electric bikes is the lack of noise leads to a lack of engagement and therefore, connection, between rider and bike. While this is true to some extent, I can assure you I am just as connected to a LiveWire barreling into an Armco- lined, decreasing radius left hander at 80 mph as I am on my GSX-R. The lack of noise can go jump for all I care, because I want to master this corner, sur- vive it, and rip onto the next one. There are alternatives to the electric conundrum, however. Kawasaki has recently come out and said it will have 10 electric or hybrid bikes in its model range by 2025, and by 2035, the entire range will be either all-electric or hybrid. The company has been pretty vocal about the electrification of its range since debuting a Ninja 400 with its parallel-twin cylinder motor mated to a hybrid electric motor at EICMA in 2019, and the move towards a hybrid set- up (at least the development of one) has been long overdue by the powers that be in the global motorcycle industry. Kawasaki's system would allow for the bike—in whichever form/ forms it takes—to ride through the city silently on electric propul- sion, switching over to petrol for the canyons and then doubling the two via the press of a but- ton for full-send performance. Sounds pretty good, right? Kawasaki Heavy Industries, the gigantic conglomerate that it is, has also shown a keen interest in hydrogen power for its ships and jet engines, and they have the perfect building block to test it out for motorcycle power with the supercharged H2 motor. Kawasaki is developing a dual injected version of the super- charged motor that combines normal port fuel injection like we have now with a direct injection system that fires gas straight into the combustion chamber at mega high pressures. The direct injection system is a must be- cause the hydrogen gas needs to be added at high pressure after the cylinder has been filled with air, and when you consider the extra induction forces already present in a supercharged H2, it makes this motor perfect for pos- sible hydrogen power. The only emission would be water vapor, and Newsom won't get all pissy. Of course, that's a long way into the future as hydrogen isn't readily available in gas stations and the system isn't anywhere near production ready, but it gives the motorcycle internal combustion engine some hope that it's not quite on the mower's death row just yet. Make no mistake, the next 15-20 years will see monumental change in the motorcycle indus- try. I can promise you we are cur- rently in the last remaining years of the naturally aspirated super- bikes/sport tourers/naked bikes/ dirt bikes before electric assis- tance/propulsion starts to over- take these glorious dinosaurs. But we need not fear the coming change. It's coming, so we better get on board, just like electric lawn mowers and Go Trax scooters. CN I can assure you I am just as connected to a LiveWire barreling into an Armco- lined, decreasing radius left hander at 80 mph as I am on my GSX-R.