Electric bikes are coming and that isn’t news. But how the big performance motorcycles will shape up in the electric era is still anybody’s guess.
Triumph’s vision of this electric future isn’t a big departure from the styling theme that we have seen on the Street/Speed Triples, and while the characteristic soundtrack that we associate with these motorcycles won’t make it to the new era, the TE-1 certainly looks very promising.
The design is sharp no matter what angle you look at it from. Up front are headlamps with the same detailing as the Speed Triple, while the tail is sharp and stubby, fit for a supersport form.
The body panels follow an angular theme and help hide the electric power train that Triumph has been working closely with Williams Advanced Engineering,Integral Powertrain Ltd.and War wick Manufacturing Group from the University of Warwick for the development of their first production electric motorcycle, and the Prototype TE-1 is the first fruit of that alliance. The TE-1 is near production-ready and gives a glimpse of the design as well as the powertrain that will provide the motivation.
Integral Power train has managed to remove the clutter of the high-voltage cables and reduce the space required for the electric powertrain by integrating the electric motor and the inverter in one compact package. The resulting powertrain is not only small enough to fit into and power a performance street- naked, but is also significantly lighter (only 10kg!) than a comparable internal combustion engine. It also put out 130kW (approximately 180PS) which is comparable to the new Speed Triple 1200 RS’ power output. The power is fed to the rear wheel via a chain drive through a single step transmission.
The battery pack is developed by Williams Advanced Engieering and is built to Triumph’s specifications to achieve a low centre of gravity and a high energy density which helps it surpass all previous benchmarks. Triumph hints at a 190km range from the production-spec TE-1. Alongside the battery module, WAE has also developed the control module which is integrated with the battery pack, to contribute further to the goal of tighter packaging and space-saving. Triumph hints that the TE-1 could enter production by the end of 2021 if all goes according to plan.
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