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/997997
CURTISS ZEUS E-CRUISER FULL TEST P120 front wheel and downsized quar- tet of Beringer brakes helping speed up the steering, so that it switches direction from side to side pretty easily by E-bike stan- dards, albeit quite lazily due to the long 58.25-inch wheelbase and conservative steering geom- etry, with a 27.5-degree rake to the machine-hewn girder fork. But in spite of the dropped bars, this isn't a sport bike, and I occasionally had a hard time remembering that. Its steering and handling are already dialed in, straight out of the box, with no need for the absent steer- ing damper. That's despite the fashion statement of a rear tire that's been inflicted on the Zeus by the adoption of a massive 240/45-ZR17 Pirelli Diablo Ros- so II, which didn't heavy up the steering as much as I expected. Obviously, I couldn't make the same assessment at the rear, in terms of how well the Zeus will lay down the humungous torque available from those twin mo- tors once these are functioning properly, but Curtiss have surely made a head start with their choice of tires and suspension settings. But the need for trac- tion control will be overwhelm- ing, and Matt Chambers is right to insist on this. However, he also must tell his R&D guys to dispense with the trendy iPad that doubles as a dash. Though not yet functional for obvious reasons, it will be completely illegible in bright sunlight, and easy pickings for thieves when you park up, unless you unclip it and carry it around with you. Too much of a good thing, it needs to be replaced by a fixed/ permanent dash with every bit of data the rider could ever want to know displayed on it. With such a heavy weight to stop, the 230mm Beringer Aero- nal floating cast iron front discs that are doubled up on each side earn their keep, gripped by four-piston Beringer radially- mounted Aerotec calipers— though interestingly the Zeus weighs exactly the same as the Confederate Bomber they for- merly equipped, but with a more desirable 53/47-percent weight distribution which helps load up the front wheel in turns. These distinctive French brakes do an excellent job of stopping the Curtiss, with the rear brake lever moved to replace the now absent clutch lever on the left handlebar. They aren't as snatchy as they could be, a sign that Curtiss have used their years of experience in fitting these to all their models to get the choice of pads just right. Jordan Cornille has rein- vented the electric motorcycle with the Curtiss Zeus, and exclu- sively within the context of how it rides and handles, the result is dynamically satisfying, as well as visually arresting. Curtiss is off to a good start with this motorcy- cle, and it will be very interesting to see how it progresses once they get the electric powerplant properly dialed in. CN CURTISS ZEUS MOTOR: ................. E-Twin format with 2 x electric, air-cooled, brushless, perma- nent-magnet 3-phase DC motors coupled together via a single output shaft MAX POWER: ............170 hp at 8000 rpm MAX TORQUE: ...............290 lb-ft at 1 rpm CHASSIS: ..Machined modular aluminum monocoque FRONT SUSPENSION: ... Double-wishbone parallelogram fork with tubular alumi- num struts and linear-rate Race Tech G3 monoshock, fully adjustable for high- and low-speed compression and rebound damping REAR SUSPENSION: .................Fabricated aluminum swingarm with cantilever Race Tech G3 monoshock offering two-speed compression and rebound damping FRONT WHEEL TRAVEL: .................4.95 in. REAR WHEEL TRAVEL: ...................5.25 in. FRONT BRAKE: .............. 230mm Beringer floating Aeronal cast iron discs with 4-piston Beringer radially mounted Aerotec calipers REAR BRAKE: .......... 240mm cross-drilled Aeronal stainless steel disc with 2-pis- ton Beringer caliper FRONT TIRE: ... 120/70ZR17 Pirelli Diablo Rosso II on 3.50 in. BST carbon wheel REAR TIRE: ..... 240/45ZR17 Pirelli Diablo Rosso II on 8.50 in. BST carbon wheel WHEELBASE: ............................... 58.25 in. SEAT HEIGHT: ................................... 30 in. WEIGHT (CURB, CLAIMED): ......... 575 lbs. S P E C I F I C A T I O N S