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Harley takes its electric motorcycle company public via SPAC
ABC News ^ | 12/13/2021 | Associated Press

Posted on 12/13/2021 6:23:55 AM PST by Scarlett156

MILWAUKEE -- Harley-Davidson will take its electric motorcycle division public through a blank-check company, valuing the enterprise that has been part of the Harley for 10 years at $1.77 billion.

The news gave a jolt to long-suffering shares of Harley-Davidson, which jumped 12% before the opening bell Monday.

(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: economy; freeperhooligans; harleydavidson; motorcycles; technology
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To: Scarlett156

The beach is about 200 miles from Charlotte...about a four hour ride on a gas-guzzler motorcycle.

The same trip on an electric motorcycle will be 2 hours+8 hours+2 hours. And maybe an additional 8 hours if you don’t quite make it the last few miles to the beach. Anywhere from 12 hours to 20 hours on the E-motorcycle vs 4 hours on the gas-powered ride. Then there’s the problem of finding a charging station.

Let me think about that a moment...


21 posted on 12/13/2021 6:46:56 AM PST by moovova
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To: Scarlett156
The electric motorcycle manufacturers need a reality check. Right now with very few exceptions they seem to fall into one of two categories: high end "premium" electric crotch rockets. Basically electric sport bikes. Or, low end electric scooters / urban motorcycles.

The sport bikes are no-doubt fun and capable, but not everyone wants to go 150 mph or pay 2x the cost of a gas sport bike.

The scooters / urban bikes make a lot of sense - if you have an urban setting where you can reasonably/safely park & charge the bike.

That leaves the rest of us kind of out in the cold. Someone who wants/needs highway speed capability but not sport-bike zoom, enough range to commute and run errands for several days without having to find a place to charge it every time it is parked.

How about these specs EV bike manufacturers:

200 mi range, which includes about 50 mi of 65 to 70 mph highway. The remaining 150 mi a mix of urban/rural.

100 mi range two-up.

75 or 80 mph top speed.

Recharge overnight (8 to 10 hrs) from 0% through standard plug in my garage.

Recharge 50% or so in 15 min at an EV charging station.

Cost around $10K.

22 posted on 12/13/2021 6:47:25 AM PST by ThunderSleeps (Biden/Harris - illegitimate and everyone knows it.)
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To: Scarlett156
I am not a motorcycle guy, nothing against it, just never really had one beyond a little dirt bike as a kid. That said, to someone who rides a Harley, I would think an electric bike would be very gay:


23 posted on 12/13/2021 6:53:48 AM PST by Magnum44 (...against all enemies, foreign and domestic...)
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To: Scarlett156

How can you get to Sturgis in electric HD?
It would probably take two weeks to get there, one way!

And what about the HD sound?


24 posted on 12/13/2021 7:04:12 AM PST by AZJeep (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0AHQkryIIs)
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To: Scarlett156

Instead of spinning it out to existing shareholders who paid for the R&D. Way to go, HD.


25 posted on 12/13/2021 7:10:30 AM PST by bigbob
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To: Scarlett156

Without the ear splitting racket, do not see the usual “lifestyle” HD owners biting.

Budda, budda, pop, flatch, wheeze


26 posted on 12/13/2021 7:22:34 AM PST by doorgunner69 ("Those who vote decide nothing. Those who count the vote decide everything.." -Joseph Stalin)
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To: eyeamok

I was a WERA road racer in the mid to late 80’s.
All I can say is “Very nice”.


27 posted on 12/13/2021 7:25:39 AM PST by Iceclimber58
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To: Pollard

**Took us 4 days. It would take 4 weeks to do that with EVs.**

4 days! You must have mixed in some sightseeing.

The wife and I moved from northwest IL to South Central TN. Three round trips (2 vehicles down, one back, each time). 565 miles one way. One day down, one day back. Two trips was with the 4×4 pulling a 16’ 5th wheel livestock trailer. One of those loads was just under the 16,000 lbs weight that is the IL DOT chicken coop threshold.

I’m a truck driver, so driving with few breaks is natural. My wife likes to get to the destination a quickly as possible.

Next year we are going to visit her brother near Redding, CA. We’ll probably team drive the suv in 2 days going out, but sightsee some coming back. We both have had our fill of the airports, so If we are going anywhere in the 48, it will be by road.


28 posted on 12/13/2021 7:36:06 AM PST by Zuriel (Acts 2:38,39....Do you believe it?)
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To: V_TWIN

The only EV that makes sense is UTV side x side for hunting.

Having something that is silent would be a big help.


29 posted on 12/13/2021 7:40:07 AM PST by Beagle8U ("Per DNC instructions...Joy Reed is busy packing marbles up her @$$.")
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To: 1Old Pro
Real numbers: 2009 Fat Bob, 5 gallon gas tank. Delivered 49.5 MPG on an 1850 mile round trip between San Diego and Pocatello. Mostly highway speeds 60 to 80 MPH in 6th gear.

Compared to the same trip in my F150, I was more aware of the smells of the air in many places. I aimed for a break every 100 miles to stretch my legs and drink a 16 oz bottle of water. You get very dehydrated in the wind. I left San Diego at 5 PM so the desert crossing would be less hot. I deliberately stopped in Mesquite, NV to sleep at a hotel so that I could ride through the Virgin River Gorge with morning sun. Beautiful.

The temperature range on the trip ranged from +42F in Idaho after dark on day 2 and 116F passing through Baker, CA the first night. On the roll through the valley near Beaver, UT, I was hit with heavy rain from mile marker 120 to mile marker 222. Fortunately, I had my "Frog Togs" in the tail bag.

Could you do this trip on Harley LiveWire? Not in 2 days. The Fat Bob has the "touring class" V-Twin designed for long range highway riding. The LiveWire electric is in "in town" commuter bike. Rip around town and bring it home for an overnight charge. It isn't even good enough for a round trip to Idaho Falls from Pocatello (106 miles).

30 posted on 12/13/2021 7:42:47 AM PST by Myrddin
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To: Beagle8U

That sounds logical.

Serving on my church’s parking ministry I can’t tell you how many times I almost stepped out in front of one of those stupid battery operated cars because you don’t hear em coming.

It really is a safety issue that no one has ever talked about


31 posted on 12/13/2021 7:44:36 AM PST by V_TWIN (America...so great even the people that hate it refuse to leave)
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To: Scarlett156
I have a couple thumpers. Yamaha SR400 and Suzuki DR650SE. The SR400 gets 66 MPG on regular. DR650 gets 55 MPG on premium gas. Neither has a fuel gauge. I reset the trip meter to zero and aim to re-fuel as the trip meter approaches 100 miles. Good enough. By comparison, the Fat Bob has a 5 gallon fuel tank with an accurate fuel gauge.
32 posted on 12/13/2021 7:47:15 AM PST by Myrddin
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To: Zuriel

We had two kids and a dog with us but the biggest issue was the 1 ton Chevy was a 1973 that had sat for 9 years when I got it and the box truck was a mid 80s that had sat for 4 years when I got it. In other words POS vehicles that cost $1000 between the two of them. We used CB’s to communicate and my handle ended up being Mr Chugs because the truck I was driving would chug up the hills and I’d end up dropping down to 2nd gear on some and doing 20-30mph by the to of the hill.(that and I like beer)

If I’d have gone through a weigh station, they wouldn’t have let me drive out of there. We walked across tool boxes to get to the bed in the back. 35 foot 5th wheel and you couldn’t see the floor due to all the stuff, mostly tools.

I made sure brakes and steering were good but the fuel tanks were both rusty inside. I had 3 carbs and at some point in the day, I’d swap one truck’s carb, usually the Chevy and every night, I’d clean up a carb to have for tomorrow’s needed swap.


33 posted on 12/13/2021 7:49:28 AM PST by Pollard (PureBlood -- youtube.com/watch?v=VXm0fkDituE)
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To: Scarlett156

I’d be willing to bet there are some Xiden bucks in there for them on this endeavor....


34 posted on 12/13/2021 7:52:47 AM PST by Gaffer
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To: digger48

—”
If it doesn’t go putt putt putt putt, whats the point?”

Careful about making H-D sounds!

Now the Wisconsin company wants the government to protect its investment with a trademark. Harley says the competition is copying its sound.

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-03-27-fi-57205-story.html


35 posted on 12/13/2021 7:53:33 AM PST by DUMBGRUNT ("The enemy has overrun us. We are blowing up everything. Vive la France!"Dien Bien Phu last message)
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To: ThunderSleeps
I entertained the purchase of a Zero electric bike while working the contract in San Diego. If I constrained my use to commuting to the office 7.5 miles one-way on a surface street, it would have worked. Reality: I had places to go and things to do all over San Diego county. I needed a freeway capable bike with good range. The DR650SE hit the tine-textured concrete freeway and the MeFo Sport enduro tires nearly shook me off the bike at 65 MPH. I traded it in on a Kawasaki Versys. 53 MPG using premium gas and a 5 gallon gas tank. Planted on the freeway surface like a good crotch rocket (17 inch wheels, street tires). Later, I acquired a Harley Sporster XL1200R. Again, planted nicely on the freeway with 46 MPG after adding the windshield. The Fat Bob succeeded the Sporty. I put 60,000 miles cumulatively over the Versys/Sportster/Fat Bob. Dealer maintenance on the Harley is a bit pricey. The Versys was much cheaper to operate.
36 posted on 12/13/2021 7:56:37 AM PST by Myrddin
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To: Scarlett156

Harley-Davidson LiveWire full specs
So far we’ve known that the LiveWire has a city range of 146 miles (235 km) and a 0-60 mph (0-97 km/h) time of around 3 to 3.5 seconds.

We also knew that Harley-Davidson’s first electric model would feature Level 3 DC Fast Charging that would top up the battery from 0-80% in 40 minutes or 0-100% in 60 minutes.


37 posted on 12/13/2021 8:01:43 AM PST by TexasGator (UF)
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To: Pollard

Dang! Old fuel tanks, yeah, that’s a problem. A friend of mine had that problem back in the 90’s, driving a rusty 65(?) chevy pickup back and forth to work. The aftermarket inline filter would plug after a while, but it was the in cab tank dripping a few drops a day that had to be dealt with. His temporary 20 gallon tank (off of an old grain truck) was bolted in the bed. Iirc, it was temporary for about three years.


38 posted on 12/13/2021 8:11:12 AM PST by Zuriel (Acts 2:38,39....Do you believe it?)
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Damn

I hadn’t seen that


39 posted on 12/13/2021 12:50:14 PM PST by digger48
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To: Zuriel

I know a guy that lives near Redding

He loves it there.

Likes to hunt, and he was recently telling me about the the illegal pot farms. Accidentally wander into one their grows, and you won’t come out.


40 posted on 12/13/2021 12:57:39 PM PST by digger48
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