Kawasaki has released a set of videos on their Youtube channel of a new electric motorcycle in the making and the best part is that it gets a four-speed transmission.
The EV race is already underway for a couple of years now and motorcycle manufacturers have been on the forefront of it right from the start. Harley Davidson surprised the world with the Livewire last year when everyone thought the American brand would be last to give in to this race. Any how, EVs are becoming more mainstream now and a certain Japanese manufacturer has come up with something quite interesting. Kawasaki has dropped a few videos on the internet as teaser for their upcoming electric bike, the Kawasaki EV Endeavour.
Kawasaki hasn’t revealed any time for the launch of this motorcycle but looking at these videos on the brand’s Youtube channel, you can tell that the motorcycle is already well under development. Each of these videos last for only about 21 seconds but give you a brief insight about several aspects of the motorcycle like the electric motor, a lap around a track and most importantly, a four-speed transmission. The gearbox even seems to come with a quickshifter and Kawasaki seems to have opted for a chain final drive instead of a belt drive as seen in most electric bikes.
Yes, finally an EV with a transmission. Perhaps now you are a little more interested in this motorcycle. The electric motor on this motorcycle looks somewhat small when compared to the electric motors we have seen on electric motorcycles from Zero or the H-D Revelation motor seen on the Harley Davidson Livewire. This leads us to believe that it will be a small capacity sportsbike. But with the addition of a four-speed gearbox, it will likely allow Kawasaki to pull out more torque from a smaller motor.
Also Read : 2020 Triumph Street Triple RS Gets Same Price as the BS4-Spec Model
In terms of styling, this prototype motorcycle looks distinctly like a Kawasaki and with its full-body fairing, it seems inspired by something like the Ninja 300. In fact, its actually quite difficult to distinguish it as an EV until you notice there’s no tail pipe jutting out at the rear. The space which is used to house the engine on a conventional internal combustion engine houses the large batteries, with the electronics and the built-in charging system sitting on top.
Also Read : Will the Honda CBF190R Come Dressed as the new BS6 CB Hornet?
The electric motor is reported to produce around 26bhp, which is not really that much in today’s day and age, but being an EV, it sure will have the amazing boost of torque we have come to expect from EVs. The frame seems to be a steel trellis type, something the Kawasaki Z650 comes with. As of now, there’s no word on when we could see a close-to-production model but you can expect it sometime around the end of this year, perhaps in a prototype form. But an EV with a transmission certainly has got us excited.
