Four hours to charge?

The batteries themselves can charge in about half an hour.  The limiting factor is the charger.  That is, how much of a charger do you want to buy and how much of a charger do you want to carry around with you.  At BERI we felt that the 12 amp Delta-Q charger was the best compromise -- and engineering is fundamentally the art of compromise.  However, we build each Spark M4 to our customer's specifications.  If you want a faster charging time, let's talk.

You don’t claim zero emissions like the other guys – are your bikes dirty, or something?

Sadly, there is no zero emission method of moving us around short of walking or riding a bike.  But an e-moto is the cleanest powered way to travel around town on the highway, hands down.  If you are concerned about global warming (and we all should be), the Spark M4 is responsible for less than a tenth of a pound of CO2 per mile traveled (assuming the US-average carbon intensity of about 1.75 lb CO2/kWh).  Compare that to half a pound for a light electric car or about a pound for the average petro-fueled 4-wheeler on the road.  If you get your power from solar electric on your roof, then you truly are zero emissions.  And we all give you a big "thank you!" 

$9000 – WTF?

Electric motorcycles are inherently more expensive than their dinosaur-fueled brethren at the moment, due to the high cost of batteries and the power electronics.  If you are really making your decision on what type of 2-wheeled transport based on a feature list, we've probably already lost you.  However, the world of the e-moto has a petro-cycle beat in a ton of ways.  First, it's WAY easier and more fun to ride.  There's no engine noise.  And, of course, it's a babe magnet. 

Offsetting the high OTD price are the state and federal tax credits.  In Colorado, the fed/state credit covers about half the price.  Other states are less generous, but the credits take much of the sticker price sting away almost everywhere.



Why are you hedging on the 40-mile range in the specifications table?

Unfortunately, when it comes to stating range, the EV industry's relationship with the truth is a bit fuzzy.  The fundamental problem is that the range is extremely sensitive to the way the thing is driven.  A steady 25 mph around the office park on Sunday will return some awesome numbers but who amongst us drives that way?  Below are our estimates for the range of the M4; we'll have better numbers soon:

Moderate, in-town driving - 40 miles.

Heavy-on-the-throttle, in-town - 32 miles.

Steady highway, 55 mph - 20 miles.

When evaluating different brands, it is best to compare the size of the battery pack (measured in kilowatt-hours or kWh) rather than the stated range given in the marketing information, because the energy consumption, Watt-hours per mile, of all e-motos is about the same for the same driving cycle.  The Spark M4 has a 3.8 kWh pack.