Roehr Stays Different. Only Now They’re Electric

NOT the eRoehr

Yesterday Roehr announced the eRoehr electric motorcycle series will be available spring 2010. The two electric models will be Walter Roehrich’s 4th Roehr project and this one has a lot of potential to help the company accomplish their mission:

Roehr Motorcycles LLC will become the premier builder of American made sports and racing motorcycles, passionately committed to producing beautifully designed high performance Sport bikes made in the USA

Since 1995, Mr. Roehrich and Gurnee, Illinois based Roehr Motorcycles have attempted to build a machine to compete with the modern sportbike. Roehr’s angle has been combining passion, creative thinking and a little help from established engine builders to give enthusiasts something unique, fun and American.

Walter Roehrich

Roehr’s first creation, a 500cc vTwin was based on 2 YZ250 two stroke cylinders joined by a custom crank case. I’m sure the engine was amazing but it proved expensive to mass produce. The Roehr RV 1000 had a 1000cc Highland engine and most recently, the $49K supercharged V-Roehr 1250sc was based on the Harley VRod v2. Each bike moved Walter closer to his goal. Everything Roehrich designed on his own was fantastic but the engine always seemed to be the weak link for one reason or another. In a nut shell, they were either too expensive, heavy or elusive.

With Roehr’s move to electric, the power plant is the easy and inexpensive part. Walter’s main intellectual property spend will be batteries and power / battery management engineering and he will pay the same price the rest of the world pays. A nice break for a guy who I assume has been paying a premium to license motor technology for the last 15 years.

Roehr’s brilliant designs will now work on a level playing field that the shift to electric drive is providing. If you read Cycle Worlds review of the 1250SC in 2009 it is obvious the bar is set very high in the ICE bike world. Electric drive is not new but it is relatively new territory in motorcycle applications. There is much room for innovation in battery technology as well as the logic that controls the drive system. Today’s heavy batteries  have a limited supply of energy that needs to be used efficiently.

Electric will probably not be a compromise for Roehrich. All along Roehr has set out to build a high performance bike that is fun to ride. With no gear box and seamless, instantaneous, highly tunable power electric has a lot potential to deliver in the fun department. It all makes the eRoehr series look like a great next step for the company that has always taken a different approach to motorcycle power plants.

Hit the jump to see a descripton of the two eRoehr bikes and some of their specs.

Roehr eSuperbike

The eSuperbike will be Roehr’s team entry into the TTXGP race series. The bike will use top shelf suspension, brakes and running gear to give it the highest possible competitive edge. It will be available for purchase by the public for use for both the TTXGP and the rival FIM ePower race series. At an unconfirmed price of $30,000 USD this is $10k cheaper than the Mavizen TTX02. It’s 10 kWh battery pack may be enough to get it around the Isle Of Man’s 38 mile mountain circuit 1 time depending on how much demand the AC motor puts on it. If you remember the dual DC Agni powered Mavizen TTX02, it’s “Snaefell” pack is 11 kWh and good for a claimed 40 miles. Considering CRP stuck with a 6 kWh pack in their TTXGP race bike it is hard not to wonder if Walter wants to scale the mountain and jump some bridges. If not, at least his customers have the option.

Specifications

Price: ~ $30,000 (price not finalized)
Motor: “state-of-the-art” AC induction
Torque: 210 lb/ft
Horsepower: 96 bhp
Battery Pack: high energy discharge, lithium iron phosphate
Capacity: 10 kWh
Top Speed: N/A

Roehr eSupersport

The eSupersport will be a less expensive entry point for electric sportbike enthusiasts. Roehr’s focus on building machines that are fun to ride and the seamless power of electric drive should make for a great riding experience. The 6 kWh pack should be enough for 25 miles of race pace riding if you go by Mavizen’s estimates for the TTX02.

Specifications

Price: ~ $15,000 ? (price not finalized)
Motor: AC induction
Torque: 105 lb/ft
Horsepower: 48 bhp
Battery Pack: high energy discharge, lithium iron phosphate
Capacity: 6 kWh
Top Speed: 100 mph

Photos and more detailed specs will be delivered over the next few weeks.