In case you're missing the green wheels...

If you visit Mesquite Hugger for the bikes and cars and scooters and trucks and my weird obsessions with vintage electric cars and cargo bikes, they've all rolled over to a new home:

Click here to get to 2 Wheels Maybe

If you want to look at older wheeled posts, they're still around:

Electric Cars!

Pedal Bikes, Cargo Bikes, and Lubbock on a Bike

Electric Bikes and Conversion Kits

Electric Scooters and Mopeds

Electric Motorcycles

And, of course, the CitiCar! 

All the other Mesquite Huggery stuff will still show up here - local wildlife, DIY, gardening, Personal Carbon Reduction, tiny houses, activism, spirituality, and all that other good stuff.

As always, thank you for reading this blog! May your life be steadily less wasteful and steadily more joyful!

EICMA Electric Motorcycles and Scooters (minipost)

Yep, this one is a lazy post, but Grizz, the Canadian Knievel, and I have been perusing this New Atlas post with lots of lovely bikes from the 2017 EICMA (Italian International Motorcycle Expo) show. I was so excited that I thought I'd pick out the electric models to share with all of you. I also tried to find relevant manufacturer website links to help you learn more about the ones that tickle your fancy. Enjoy!

My favorite in this lineup - the e-Schwalbe (Germany)

Energica Esse Esse (Italy)

Energica bikes get more and more appealing to me, and this model is the most appealing so far. And yes, they sell Energicas here in the US. Check out this site to learn more.

Evolve Electric (Not much luck finding their site)

The KTM FreeRide E-XC (Available in the US!)

Kumpan electric Model 1954 (Canada)

Niu N1S Smart eScooter (China)

Torrot Velocipedo (Spain)

Vespa Elettrica (Finally!)

Volta BCN City (Italy)

Volta BCN Sport/Forest

Vuuk Rieju (Had trouble finding anything on this one - Spain)

Lots of fun stuff in there - and they don't burn fossil fuels! Woohoo!

May you be inspired to make greener choices!

Fossil Free Friday Minipost - Crazy EV Trike in Dallas

Just wow! Batmobile looks, long EV range, solar-paneled rear wing, wheelie bars, can be used as a dragster or a daily rider! (And the thing is surrounded by lots of glorious mesquite trees!)

 

 

I ran across it on Dallas Craigslist. There's no price. There's obviously a lot of time, money, and (possibly) love in this wild machine.

 

 

 

 

May your ride be swift, quiet, low-carbon, and far from boring!

Electric Euro Cycles We Can't Have #4: Super SoCo

Yep, this electric cycle popped up on the internet this week. It was a bit of a surprise, but not really. I've been waiting for somebody to start building this bike - it just makes too much sense. You take a fairly simple frame, put the electrical components and battery in the center of the frame, and use a hub motor in the rear wheel. It's the same concept as the Motorman Cycle from last week's post, but on a larger scale. No chain. No gears. No problem.

 

techradar: Super Soco Article

 

I ran across the Super Soco in a techradar article. It's intended to be an urban commuter, not a hardcore sportbike. Really, its closest competitors will be scooters, not motorcycles. Let's say that you're that person who loves the idea of a scooter but does not love the idea of being seen on a scooter - the Super Soco could be your machine.

 

Super Soco Website

60 volt, 1200 watt Bosch powertrain - nice!

 

Ready for the entire European market - hmm...

Pretty simple - I like it!

You can find the owners manual on their site

Yep, it's another of those green vehicles you just can't get over here.

 

But not being able to buy a Soco may be okay. You see, the Super Soco, while pretty darn cool, doesn't make much financial sense over her. Looking at conversion rates (and ignoring import taxes) this bike would cost around $3000 here in the states. And it would need to be registered and insured. And most states (like Texas) would require a motorcycle operators license to ride it. Pretty soon this little eco-friendly money saver would cost a fair amount of cash but would barely outperform most electric bikes. It is limited to 30mph. Here is John Porter's conclusion in the techradar article:

 

 

While this particular patch of grass may look a little greener, I'd rather have a Karmic Koben S e-bike or something similar (that we can have over here). But then again, if the Soco were a 50mph cycle, I might have to reconsider.

 

May your quest for green transportation be a joyful one, regardless of which side of the Atlantic you find yourself on.

Fossil Free Friday Videos: Monday Motorbikes and a DIY Electric Motorcycle

Okay, this is a very lazy FFF post, but there's some very good stuff here!

Just a preview of the last video (and a run-on sentence)

 

I stumbled across a couple of Monday Motorbikes videos which answered a few questions for I've had on battery removal and such. (However, I am still unsure about the voltage - two 33 volt packs?) They are definitely worth watching and helped me to appreciate this thing even more. If you are confused about the name, these are from way back in the past when they still called it the Bolt Motorbike.

TechCrunch: Bolt's High-Tech Motorbike (4 minutes)

Monday (Bolt) on Twit Bits (13 minutes)

 

And finally, here's a video from a crazy German guy who builds an electric motorcycle on almost no budget whatsoever. I won't give too much away, but I love his very simple approach to mounting the electric motor on the old bike. (For those of you with sensitive eyes and ears, there's one cuss word on the video, and I completely agree with the sentiment surrounding it!) Enjoy!

DIY E-Bike/Motorcycle (How to build) (8 minutes)

(Please wear a helmet when you ride.)

 

(This post is dedicated to all of those lovely folks at Exxon who bring us destruction, denial, and Rex Tillerson.)

 

May we continually choose better and maybe have a little fun along the way.

Fossil Free Friday: Updates on Electric Scooters and Such

In the quest for a vehicle to help us move on...the quest for an oh-so-cool pair of eco-friendly wheels to haul us about!

Fido (An electric scooter built by vintage scooterists)

This one is hard for me. You see, I have loved the Fido since before there was a Fido. And the first photo brought me in even closer.

Yep, it was love at first sight!

 

I love the idea of it -  a very simple and elegant form designed to do what you need it to and to be repaired by the average human being. I love the reality of it - it's a very practical machine that has a realistic range and realistic speed and lots of little perks to make it perfect for lots of jobs. I have never met them in person, but I am a big fan of the people who dreamed it up, invested their lives in it, and have now built it. Jeb Gast, the Fido founder, was a big inspiration to me when I decided to build my electric Vespa and he has continued to impress me since. I even love the old building they restored for the factory and I wish they were a little closer so I could swing by and check out their coffee digs. I can't imagine a cooler scooter company anywhere.

Check out the Fido Useful video

 

But that level of coolness comes at a price. I can't imagine what they have had to invest to get this thing off the ground and I know that a 72 volt, 35 amp-hour battery pack is a big investment in itself.

Check out the cool 'stache! and the teaser video

On the more personal side, I know my own finances and have known all along that I can not afford to buy ANY new electric scooter. But I have held onto a hope of buying a new Fido all through its development. And I held onto that hope until the price was finally announced. The first batch is up for pre-order with a price tag of $10,500. When I found that out, I realized that the Fido is out of my reach and I worry that it will be for many others as well. I wish them great success and hope that they find buyers who are able and willing to make the investment for a very cool and capable machine.

Monday MotorBikes (Formerly the Bolt M-1) (An electric moped built by vintage mopedders)

Love it with the spoked wheels

While I've never looked at the Fido and thought - hey I could build (a reasonably acceptable version of) that, I have done that with the Monday. [If you're ambitious in that way, check this out: 1977 Mopeds Indigan Roller. Just order that without the gas motor, add batteries, a motor, some brackets, a controller, and a throttle. ;-) Everything is so simple on the internet!]

That looks like fun to me!

To be fair, you'd spend a lot of time and money doing it, but a reasonably acceptable version (with a lot fewer cool features) could be built in a garage.

but it's pretty cool with mags too

On the other hand, for $6,000 you can buy this rather cool bike with very few headaches and lots of cool features like Bluetooth this and USB that and keyless other stuff. (You know you love instant gratification.)

The Monday is definitely an interesting machine as far as it capabilities. It's a 20mph e-bike in Economy mode, but it's a 40mph motorcycle in Sport mode. (I believe that Sport mode doubles the voltage from 24-48 volts.)

It is a very cool machine, and $5,995 is an attainable number for some of us.

Motochimp

Now, let's go a little goofy! Double K sent me this link this week and I knew I had to share it with you!

A Video with a lot of photos and a British voice-over

 

48 volt, 350 watt, 19 mph, all the usual stuff

 

Just your friendly neighborhood MotoChimp

 

I haven't found anything to indicate that it's headed to the US any time soon, but goshdarnit, it's adorable!

 

Can't you just see this thing in a Gorillaz video?

 

Other Bits of Related News this week:

 

Piaggio announced that they are finally getting ready to produce an electric Vespa.

 

Zero Motorcycles announced their 2017 line-up.

 

I think that's everything.

 

May you find your gas-free ride and may the air clear.

Fossil Free Friday: Hope for a Vintage E-Vespa Kit

Vintage. Retro. Classic. Old school.

It's a rough thing sometimes to be a reformed gashead.

Old cars, trucks, motorcycles, they still turn my head.

 

Oh, the choices - but I prefer all those on the left!

 

But that whole gasoline thing messes it all up. Yes, cool vintage vehicles still turn my head, but if it burns gas, I don't want it.

No room for negotiation on this one.

 

For me, there is no vehicle more enjoyable than a vintage scooter, I am especially fond of old Vespas. But there's that whole messy gas-and-2-stroke-oil-destroying-our-ability-to-live-and-breathe issue thing that ruins the whole thing.

 

Here and there I run across news of someone who is working to create a green upgrade for old scooters (and the people who love them). Keith (good friend and accomplished Vespa restorer) shared one such venture with me earlier this week, and I am smitten!

 

Unlike almost all Vespa electric conversions I have seen, this one does not use a hub motor in a redesigned swingarm - this one uses the original swingarm, transmission, and clutch. The top-end of the engine is replaced with a specially designed brushless motor conversion. Ah, the best of both worlds. More power, no emissions, and you still get to chunk through those original gears! Sweetness!

 

ScooterLab UK - Stoffi FlowEr Power Vespa Interview (Video included)

 



Here are my two favorite quotes from the video:

 

"The guy who is doing this [at CRANK-e], he is a freak, and he's doing it perfect!"

"There will be, for the future, a kit." (!!!!!!!!!) 

 

Stoffi's Garage is an Austrian Vespa shop known for their high-quality work and components. I am excited to see them working on green alternatives for vintage eco-dorks like me! The electric motor setup is from an Austrian company called CRANK e. It is a very cool design. They refer to it as an electric crankshaft.

 

May your inner eco-dork be granted its greenest wish!

 

PS. The video also mentions a kit for the Vespa Ape (3-wheeled pickup), the large-frame Vespa, and the Lambretta. Whoohoolio!!!

Razor Does It Again! My new favorite EV - the Street Fighter!

[Two electric motorcycle posts in one week - unheard of.]

It happens at least four times each year - I find myself wanting a motorcycle: Spring, summer, fall, and mild winter days.

You may not think so after reading the post earlier this week, but I really like motorcycles. The simple act of riding one engages my brain in a way few other things do - leaning, shifting, braking, not getting run over - it's all exhilarating stuff. It takes up a lot more of your consciousness than most activities in life. And I find it highly addictive. It's also expensive, impractical, and downright dangerous. This is why I find myself wanting a motorcycle instead of having one.

On top of all that, it's hard to find a decent, affordable, electric motorcycle, and I am doing my darnedest to give up fossil fuels. So, snagit, no more motorcycles for me. But they still catch my eye.

One of my favorite gas-powered motorcycles is the Ducati Monster. I love the lines, I love the trellis frame, I love the shape. I just don't like the internal combustion engine.

This Ducati parks in the parking lot outside my office every day, tempting me. If only it came in a less expensive, electric version.

Actually, now it does! It's just a little smaller than I had hoped:

The Razor RSF650 in all its glory!

Will and Connor Armstrong (The Twins!) Review the RSF

Billy Griggs tells about the Razor Street Fighter

For about $600 you can have one of these fully electric (junior) bad boys of your very own. It can go 17mph, run for more than 50 minutes per charge, and carry 220 pounds. Honey, I am going back on my diet again - only 20 pounds to go!

[My eco-hot-rodder brain has already been at work: new front forks, a heavy duty rear shock, 48 volts of lithium batteries, and an upgraded controller with regenerative braking. Yep, that little bike is gonna burn up the streets very quietly. Maybe I need to look at upgraded brakes and an air horn too!]

Honey, I know what you're getting for Christmas! I hope it comes in matte black (The Ducati Monster Dark is my wife's dream bike) by then!

Here are a few Bonus Razor posts for your hooligan enjoyment:

I found my new dream electric vehicle - move over Tesla

Razor Ecosmart Scooter vs. the Storm Ebike

My we all find our dream vehicles, and may they not have tailpipes belching poisonous gases.