Empulsive

VICTORY Motorcycles showed it wants to embrace an electric future by entering two motorcycles in the TT Zero race at the 2015 Isle of Man TT.

On the back of that impressive debut, Victoy will release its first production electric motorcycle, the Empluse TT in 2016.

The Victory Empulse TT is a fully electric street-legal sport bike with an alloy beam frame and adjustable suspension. It will be more than just a ‘commuter’.

“The Empulse TT was developed primarily as an electric motorcycle delivering a sporty ride,” said Victory Electric Product Manager Joshua Katt, “but with dual ride modes – ECO and SPORT – to choose from, and the addition of a gearbox, the Empulse TT is a versatile motorcycle that can be used for impressively sporty riding or as a casual commuter.”

Steve Menneto, VP Motorcycles, said Victory Motorcycles is committed to expanding brand awareness and sales globally, and the Empulse TT will allow the brand to reach more markets. “This is a company that does not fear technology and progressive products, and we want to be strong in the electric motorcycle segment,” he said.

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 draws from the Isle of Man Zero TT race bikes.

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 plug atop the bodywork in front of the seat. The bike’s Brammo Power Lithium Ion battery fully charges in just 3.9 hours.

In typical riding, the Empulse TT battery provides a rider with a range of about 100 km, but this can be eked out to around 160 km with throttle management and use of the bike’s regenerative charging.

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.

Victory Motorcycles Australian Country Manager, Peter Harvey said “it is certainly an exciting time at Victory; this bike embodies one of the new directions the brand is taking to deliver on performance and modern American muscle. We will go through a local evaluation process with riders before announcing our plans for the Empulse TT in Australia.”