Zero Motorcycles

The first one of these I had ever seen (last year) was at Velocity, this is the one I saw today. Interesting design; an all-electric motorcycle. Zero makes four models; the Zero X (the trail model, seen here) at $7,495, the MX (Motocross) for $8,295, and the S (Street) for $9,995 and the DS (Dual Sport) which is also $9,995 (at the time I write this). Also as I write this there is a Federal Tax Credit, which can equal up to $1,000 off of those prices. For the price you do get a bike that has limited range (40-50 miles depending on the model) but uses no gasoline, needs no oil changes, has no transmission and needs only a short time on the charger to get back on the road. The company started in 2006 and is based near Santa Cruz, California. The founder is Neil Saiki who has an aviation design degree and worked as an engineer at NASA. He brought a lot of technology from NASA and aviation; creating a bike that is amazingly light (the frame of the Zero X is 13 pounds and the whole bike weight is 161 pounds total; or as they say "100 pounds less than the average 250cc motorcycle". While horsepower is low at 23hp, torque is in the range of 50 foot pounds (for the Zero X) which makes for some great acceleration. Top speed is around 55 mph for the Zero X, though the street and Dual Sport are somewhat faster (and have lights too).
While motorcycles get great mileage (as a rule) the rising cost of gasoline, and the problems with supply will impact us too. Development is certainly in the early stages, but range and top speed will increase. The potential is certainly there...as I write this the electric bike record is a hair over 175mph (for the quarter mile). Other bikes are under development with longer ranges, higher speed, more torque, and greater horsepower. Zero is also constantly improving its bikes as technology improves.
They don't yet match internal combustion engines by a long shot, but are certainly coming along quickly toward that target. Whatever happens with them, they are an interesting side to motorcycling, and will most likely be a part of the future of the sport.
More information on Zero Motorcycles including current pricing, tax credits, and other information can be found at their web site via your favorite search engine.