[Moto] The structural battery, key in the new platform for Harley-Davidson electric motorcycles

[#Wittels-]

Harley Davidson engineers have created Arrow, a new modular platform for mid-size electric motorcycles that features a structural battery, and will lead to cheaper models than the current Livewire One.

The Harley-Davidson Livewire, the first electric motorcycle of the American company that later became the Livewire One already under the new sub-brand, dedicated only to this technology, gave an idea of what the manufacturer could achieve in the high range. The new Arrow platform has been developed in-house to generate medium-weight electric motorcycles from it. It promises to lower production costs while also reducing the final sale price.

The main difference of the Harley-Davidson LiveWire Arrow platform from the rest of the platforms designed for electric motorcycles by the Harley engineering team is that the battery is no longer part of the frame, but instead becomes the frame itself. In reality, what the brand has done is to make the battery become a structural component of the motorcycle to which you simply bolt the head tube, the engine, the power electronics, the rear swingarm and the rest of the components.

 

The new LiveWire (Harley-Davidson) Arrow platform electric motorcycle battery becomes the frame.

The result is a modular platform that can be used to create several different motorcycle models. The battery pack will consist of 21700 format lithium-ion cylindrical cells (21mm in diameter and 70 in length) that will be produced in various voltages and capacities.

The first model to be based on this platform would be an electric motorcycle with the S2 designation and the name "Del Mar" that would seek its potential customers among the youngest riders, an age range that Harley-Davidson does not reach with its current models. This second Harley-Davidson electric motorcycle, the S2 Del Mar, should become a more affordable model than the current Livewire One, which currently, in Spain, has a starting price of 33,700 euros.

In the Livewire S2 del Mar the technical specifications and performance will be reduced compared to those of its older sister, which has an engine of more than 100 HP capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km / h in 3 seconds. This reduction in power coupled with the use of the modular platform, which offers much lower production costs, could lead to a series of commercially very competitive electric motorcycles.

The S2 Del Mar will be the electric motorcycle to inaugurate Harley-Davidson's new Arrow modular platform.

With this strategy, Harley-Davidson could compete with manufacturers and established in the market such as Zero Motorcycles or Energica, which are expanding their offer both in the European and American markets.

 

Link: https://www.hibridosyelectricos.com/articulo/motocicletas-electricas/bateria-estructural-clave-nueva-plataforma-motos-electricas-harley-davidson/20211216114240052419.html