Global specialist in energy management Schneider Electric has contracted Orange County Choppers to build their first hybrid motorcycle about which Paul Teutul , Sr. says it will be "capable of traveling farther, without refueling or recharging, than any other OCC bike in history." The parallel hybrid powertrain will be supplied by Schneider Electric while the guys at OCC bring in their design ideas as well as top quality build.
Obviously, you’re gonna see the whole story and the actual bike during a future American Chopper episode scheduled for next year, unless you’re a selected Schneider Electric contractor partner, meaning that you’ll see the hybrid chopper later this year and even get the change to win one of the eight such bikes that OCC and Schneider Electric give away.
After the jump, we’ve attached the video and the press release that resulted from this partnership. We’re eagerly waiting for the actual bike.
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It looks more like a scooter to me, but it’s true. The word in Europe is that Yamaha and Toyota will team up to build the first hybrid motorcycle. We’ve even heard that it’s gonna be dubbed the ‘Prius’ (no, not the buzz car) and that it will be powered by both a 20bhp internal combustion engine and an electric motor, but that’s more than we can take. How’s that for you?
The internal combustion engine will be a 250cc horizontal single with two jobs to do: send power to the rear wheel and to a generator in order to supply the batteries with electricity. Everything is supposedly done through a high-tech ECU.
Piaggio has released a video explaining how the technology behind the MP3 Hybrid works. The revolutionary Italian scooter has a claimed 140mpg and it is the world’s first plug-in, lithium ion, hybrid leaning three-wheeler. So now you know why there is so much fuss about it.
Hit the jump to see the official video.
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If you ever wondered how a chopper would be like without the characteristic massive V-twin engine, sound as well as flawless lines and came to the conclusion that it would be rubbish, I say reconsider. This, for instance is a chopper concept featuring a hybrid powertrain in an attempt to offer pretty much the same riding position, feel and attitude, but in the green way.
The author at Fish Design considers it "A future concept with environmentally friendly techniques. The purpose was to find a future concept for custom motorcycles, without a "real" engine, sound or traditional design. I wish to attract a cool target group. The hybrid power train is not as beautiful as the traditional custom engine (v-twin). How does that affect the esthetical function? The keyword for my design is “powerful elegance”
To us, the bodywork looks like a stylish suitcase from the future as we suppose that the battery pack lays there and it has to be removed in order to be recharged, but those are details that the author should worry about. In what concerns the Fat Boy-like wheels, they integrate perfectly in the overall design and add a cleaner look to the bike apart from showing that it is actually made to roll down the future’s highways.
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Before sharing our personal opinion on this bike, let’s see what the artist itself has to say about it: "Red Widow - Motor Fantasy. A Futuristic revolutionary motorcycle, conceptual motorcycle design. A concept bike, a hybrid between your classic motorbike and sci-fi motor vehicle."
Ok, that’s a nice idea to wake up in mind with and the name is appropriate too, but as much as we’d like to revolutionize this industry we shouldn’t forget the basics. For instance, the round tire profile should never be dismissed if we plan to lean the bike in order to take it fast around corners. Once we do that, it is very likely to scrap the knees so better use protective gear…though the virtual legs look good, don’t they?
