A friend of mine got to beta test the Harley Davidson LiveWire motorcycle! His review below! B-) (John Sibley) First riding impressions of Harleys Livewire: - This is one polished prototype. For only having 30 or so in existence this looks and feels like a solid, road-ready machine. Hopefully this means that its close to mass production. The bike is heavy due to the large battery pack but the weight is low and once youre moving you dont notice it. The design is spectacular. - Great suspension, fully adjustable, not cheap. Ate up NYC streets as a proper bike should. Feels like a real bike. Standard Harley controls. - Riding position is slightly body forward, controls under you. Standard-ish. Comfy. - All the bikes I saw had solo seats but it seems to have enough power for a passenger. - The acceleration is like nothing youve ever felt before in your life. Instant, full-throttle power (no torque curve!). Harley claims 0-60 in 4s and Im sure it could be less by modifying the power curve in software (sport mode, anyone?) - There is no shifter, no gearbox, no clutch. One gear. A little weird to have my left side not doing anything. Speaking of weird, it uses regenerative braking that feels similar to compression braking when you let off the throttle, but you cant modulate it like you would with a clutch, and the brake light doesnt engage. Under many circumstances you wouldnt need the brake to slow down. Harley could fix this by having the brake light come on under hard regen. For the moment you need to remember to touch the brake lever when letting off the throttle, which sucks. This would need to change for NYC. - It also sounds like no other bike, a high-speed futuristic whine that electric purists and the Harley faithful will both hate. I could get used to it, but its... odd. It is so quiet that many pedestrians in midtown would completely miss it, so expect to fit a good air horn. - Verdict - when can I have one? If it can manage 75+ mi range at under 10k Id put a deposit down right now. Its a great, fun bike that is like nothing else Ive ever ridden. If Harley is not careful they may find themselves a technological leader for a change, and bringing in a whole new ridership in a way that the Blast could never dream of. Harley is being very generous with this one - theyll let anyone with a valid license and gear sign up for a test ride at one of their LiveWire events, and all they ask is that you sit down and tell them what you think afterwards. Good deal.
Posted on: Wed, 25 Jun 2014 02:14:50 +0000
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