VOL. 52 ISSUE 1 JANUARY 6, 2015 P75
and totally addictive. It
delivers immediate, con-
trollable but also powerful
acceleration without hav-
ing to fiddle with a clutch
lever or a gearshift. You
have a lot of punch from
low rpm, enough to make wheelies a cinch but in
total silence. Really, it always takes a while to get
used to the fact each time you ride an E-bike that
there's no engine noise, and how everything is so
accessible and responsive.
While at low speeds, the maneuverability of the
ultra slim KTM is very good.
For carving corners in city streets, or weaving
in and out of traffic is both feasible, and fun, be-
cause the low-down torque of the electric motor
makes riding the KTM practically intuitive. You
soon forget you haven't got a clutch lever, be-
cause you develop an alternative technique of us-
ing the rear brake lever that replaces it as a way of
slowing down, just enough as and when needed
after backing off the throttle.
You sit tall enough on the E-SM to be able to
plot a way through traffic very easily, and being so
slim it lets you split lanes like no other two-wheeled
device yet dreamed up.
Really, the E-SM would be an immediate fa-
vorite tool for couriers, if not for the high up-front
price that's projected to be $14,000 when deliv-
eries begin next spring. However, with near zero
running costs, it's worth considering. It's also
worth pondering how the KTM stacks up against
the American-made Zero DS, built by the world's
largest manufacturer of electric motorcycles (not
scooters). The Zero, which offers just the same
go-anywhere capability as the E-SM, has signifi-
cantly greater range and performance.
Whatever the case, you feel totally in charge of
the Freeride E at all times, and that's one of the
things that makes riding it so satisfying, along with
its feeling of robustness coupled with light yet pre-
cise steering and agility. The quite vivid response
of the twist-'n'-go power delivery is the icing on
the cake, coupled with the outstanding braking
available via the Formula brakes. Using them both
together delivers phenomenal stopping power on
such a light bike (not usually a word you can use
to describe an electric motorcycle), but working
the left handlebar lever in town to just adjust your
speed nicely to go with the flow is also satisfying.
All green and ready to go.
Flip-up seat makes battery
access a breeze.
"TO LAUNCH AN ELECTRIC
ROAD BIKE, AS I SEE IT, IS LIKE
CLIMBING MOUNT EVEREST..."
- HARALD PLÖCKINGER
