We can add Ujet, Evoke, Sondors, Stilride, and twenty more names. The point is the pointlessness of some efforts. Maverick designers and sharp engineers often don’t make a commercially viable product.
All the above brands started with products that appeared brilliant on paper but were full of expensive components and complexities for series production.
The last two weeks have been quite tumultuous for the electric two-wheeler industry, as some of the most talked-about start-ups have closed their doors. First was Energica, and we wrote last week:
The Italian electric sportbike manufacturer was one of the first on the electric performance motorcycle scene. They had been around for over a decade, and Energica’s biggest contribution to E2Ws was being the sole supplier to MotoE between 2018 and 21.
Soon after came the news that Fuell Inc. had filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
We didn’t like the way the Fuell Fllow electric super-commuter looked. It was too bulbous, and we never found it desirable. But in terms of tech, it did pack a punch—a monocoque structure carried a 10kWh battery for a claimed 240 km range and still had a 50L storage tucked away. The 47kW / 750Nm wheel motor promised 0-100kph in 3.5s. Fuell promised deliveries of the USD 14k commuter at the end of 2024.
A few months before, it had been another company that we once loved.
Arcimoto, like Energica, had been selling its electric reverse trike three-wheelers for a few years. The Oregon-based manufacturer has been around since 2007 and even acquired a potential competitor, Tilting Motor Works, in 2021. Then belly-up in 2024.
Many months before that had been Arc Motorcycles.
The British firm known for its GBP 98k motorcycle had delivered a handful to customers before running out of cash. This was the second time that Arc went bankrupt.
We should not forget that we started the year with the poster boy of electric motorcycles—Cake, filing for bankruptcy.
Cake was special. It was a good example of form over function. Every motorcycle from Cake had the design language of a high-end Ikea piece…if there was anything called a high-end Ikea piece. Strip the styling away, and these were overpriced motorcycles with somewhat compromised engineering and mediocre specs.
Even before that was Sondors. The US-based manufacturer had launched the Sondors Metacycle e-commuter motorcycle. Like most other cases, some customers likely received nothing against their deposits.
Problems? Packaging is one…
When it comes to lifestyle machines, the electric two-wheeler business is a difficult play. There are nuances with electric, and a lifestyle-electric product has to go against legacy brands with strong customer loyalty.
In addition, electric lifestyle machines have inherent packaging and weight problems. Batteries are heavy, and they take up space. The motor may be compact compared to an IC engine, but the battery more than compensates. Electric Motorcycles may not need a fuel tank, but the fast charger and the charging ports occupy that space. Large motors also need liquid cooling, so a radiator has to hang somewhere.
Overall, it is a challenging exercise for a motorcycle designer to design an electric motorcycle that will appeal to the lifestyle segment while staying true to the cause.
One needs to be deft in packaging, and some of the best lifestyle electric motorcycles on the road or awaiting production have focused heavily on packaging.
BoM Cost: The other problem
The other Achilles heel is the price - electric cannot get it right, and everyone struggles with BoM cost. Make a mass-market electric commuter scooter, and the BoM costs go much beyond an ICE equivalent unless the market is China, where industrialization has narrowed the gulf. Manufacturers can still sell them in Taiwan, ASEAN, and India because of government subsidies and/or a battery-as-a-service business model.
The lifestyle segment does not have these advantages, so there is a greater onus for designers and product planners to keep things in check.
However, the industry’s core thought is to overcompensate for a higher BoM cost by trying to build more desirability.
It doesn’t work.
Electric brings freedom
While electric powertrains have packaging constraints, they have greater flexibility in moving the components around. For example, engineers and designers may use in-wheel or hub motors, using the space in the rear wheel to liberate more space between the two wheels. A commuter scooter may have the battery in the floorboard or under the seat. And so on…We would expect this freedom to create innovation and greater usability.
Instead, they have mostly created ‘Fundoable’ products. They look good and grab attention but are a pain when it comes to BoM costs, getting to serial production, or serviceability. At times, motorcycle designers and product planners do not quite comprehend the complexity of mass manufacturing on a moving conveyor line. Beautiful creations are like Picasso's originals…expensive. What the world demands are prints.
Sondors Metacycle
The now-bankrupt Sondors always left us confused. On one end, it was excessive; on the other, it was underwhelming. The compact size indicated that this was a commuter lifestyle motorcycle. It was a solo rider machine, as rear footpegs were never offered. Why were they casting the aluminum frame out as a single piece? If the claims are valid (and we cannot verify them now), this was excessive frame engineering not needed on a motorcycle with a top speed of 130 kph. Single-piece-casted-machined-then-polished aluminum is expensive, and a mature manufacturer would save it for high-end sports bikes.
On the flip side, Sondors put a hub motor in the rear wheel. Even though this was a (claimed) 14.5 kW peak hub motor, a heavy motor has no place in the motorcycle’s rear wheel (unless you are planning for the motorcycle to fold), especially when trying to conserve weight with machined aluminum everywhere else.
All the above were (obviously) claims at the time of the product concept unveiling. The real production motorbikes were anything like that. Many things happened, as highlighted by the media at that time: the polished frame was replaced by a grey-painted one; the weight went up by 45kg from the target weight, eventually settling at 136kg; and the battery no longer had a quick-release system. Instead, it could be removed using some tools. Calling it portable was a stretch.
Oh, and the price went up from USD 5000 to USD 6500. Still, it's not too bad if only they delivered.
This is what Micah Toll of Electrek wrote after a first ride:
ARC Motorcycles
We wrote about ARC earlier, and while the world was impressed and gaga over what the company had created, we found the exercise a bit pointless. This is what we wrote in May:
Here was an electric motorcycle carved out of carbon fiber with the battery as a structural element. We expected it to be an insane challenger to the best hyper naked from BMW and Ducati. Instead, it fell two degrees short.
The Vector was limited to 200 kph, which was disappointing if someone was looking for an electric alternative to the Ducati Streetfighter. All the carbon fiber did not bring the desired weight optimization, and the Vector still tipped the scales at 240 kg, about 40kg more than a liter-class, hyper naked, 30 kg more than the full-faired Damon Hypersport’s claimed weight, and 15kg more than the full-faired Lightning LS 218’s claimed weight.
All the carbon fiber did not help except to justify the eyewatering GBP 99k price tag. From a logical perspective—and there are not too many in the electric startup world—the Arc was a living room ornament.
Arcimoto
Make an electric reverse trike without doors and half-hearted weather protection at the price of a Mitsubishi Mirage small hatchback. Name it Fun Utility Vehicle (FUV). What can go wrong?
Plenty. Arcimoto suffered from the typical startup problem of thinking its idea was bigger than the customer. The TAM for these vehicles is naturally small, even with the liberal Autocycle regulations in various American states (Iowa, New Jersey, Nebraska, Colorado, and Pennsylvania).
Not many customers wanted one, and sales were slow. Even customizing the FUV to special user applications like Deliverator and Rapid Responder did not change much.
But why was the Arcimoto so expensive? It’s the damn BoM cost: There were two motors, a fairly large battery, a double reduction gearbox, and steering through handlebar-driven linkages driving the two front wheels. In addition, off-the-shelf components and low volumes ensured they never received any volume discount from suppliers.
Cake
Cake is the best case study of the founder working in an echo chamber and not clued in on the market needs. We have covered the bankruptcy in detail in the past. This is what we wrote in May:
Not every weirdness is weird
Sometimes, the product is an advertisement of the firm’s capabilities, and we happily discount those cases. Those are not failures, they are marketing spend, and the world is a better place because of them.
Start-ups and Eco-Chambers
Most electric mobility startups make the grave mistake of taking themselves too seriously. They often create atrocities in the quest to develop a unique product. Sometimes, the form factors are questionable—scramblers with 45 kph top speeds, trikes, reverse trikes, and tilting three-wheelers. You name it, and there is one strange product format around the corner, all because batteries and motors give you some independence in packaging. The electric startup world is bonkers with product ideas, all with microscopic TAMs.
At other times, we have seen grave mistakes in design and engineering: using complex linkages, exotic materials, sky-high metallurgy, large castings, and off-the-shelf components.
However, the biggest sin remains trying to find a market in a micro niche and putting large amounts of money into the cause.
Insight EV tracks more than 220 electric mobility players and the world’s most important 2W markets. Connect with us on X at @editor_ev