Harley-Davidson’s latest motorcycle is not a Harley-Davidson. It’s a LiveWire – a new autonomous brand for electric two-wheelers.
“We are committed to making Harley-Davidson the electric leader,” Harley-Davidson President and CEO Jochen Zetz said in a statement announcing the new brand’s first bike. Introduced Thursday, the LiveWire One is an electric motorcycle designed for urban driving.
It’s been preparing for years. Harley-Davidson introduced its first electric motorcycle, the LiveWire, in 2019, after five years of real-world consumption testing. The LiveWire One is an evolution of that bike that imports many of its features, including a haptic system that lets riders know it’s working by pulsing the seat, and an app that can track its charging status.
The LiveWire One has a range of 146 miles – the same as the original LiveWire – and a similar recharge time of 0-100% of an hour. Its styling is almost identical, with a silver motor topped with a black battery pack presented in a trellis frame.
What’s different with LiveWire One is its cost. With a starting price of $ 21,999, that’s almost $ 8,000 less than the Harley version.
With its spinoff brand, Harley caters to a different audience: urban, affluent, young and tech-savvy. Similar to many modern sports bikes, the One incorporates a new advanced steering system that tracks bike acceleration, wheel direction, and wheel lift to measure, monitor, and anticipate its movements.
According to the LiveWire website, “Our vision is to create the next generation of motorcycles with products and experiences that merge the power and technology of electric vehicles with the unique and moving connection of an analog machine. Together, the two create a new emotion that defines LiveWire. “
Unlike traditional Harley-Davidsons which run on gasoline and are also praised for their style, status, and nearly trademarked ‘potato-potato’ exhaust cadence, the LiveWire brand aims for a more understated experience with a look and tranquility. minimalist Apple. . Being electric, it does not roar. He purrs.
It is also easier to ride than a traditional motorcycle. There is no hot exhaust pipe. Riders do not need to coordinate all of their ends to operate the controls because there is no clutch or shifting. They just turn the handle, and they’re off.
The LiveWire One will make its public debut on July 18 at the Progressive IMS Outdoors show in Sonoma, Calif., But it’s already available to order on LiveWire.com, where potential buyers can also schedule demos.
LiveWire One will be available from 12 LiveWire branded resellers in California, New York and Texas. Southern California Harley-Davidson dealers who will carry the LiveWire brand include Glendale Harley-Davidson, Huntington Beach Harley-Davidson, Riverside Harley-Davidson, and San Diego Harley-Davidson. Other dealers will be added in the fall.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated the name of the motorcycle show where the LiveWire One will be featured this month. The error has been corrected. (July 8, 2021)