Lightning Motorcycles, the popular electric motorcycle manufacturer makes the fastest products on the planet and it is well known for the land speed record it broke in 2010 and 2011. In 2010, Lightning Motorcycles was successful in setting a new land speed record whereby it hit 173.388 miles per hour marker at El Mirage dry lake bed.
Later in 2011, at the same venue, the company broke its own land speed record and created a new one wherein the motorcycle hit 215.960 miles per hour. As per the latest news, the electric motorcycle company has recently set a new record for a 1.3 mile course at the El Mirage dry lake bed. The motorcycle touched 189.086 miles per hour which is new record not just for electric motorcycles but gas powered ones also.
The new speed record has given the company the Southern California Timing Association (SCTA) record for production motorcycles – electric or gas-powered – for that track venue.
Significantly the motorcycle from Lightning Motorcycles that created this new record was not a conventional electric machine but was powered by a portable array of solar cells. This solar array feeds into the motorcycle via a 48 kWh battery pack that is attached to and fuels the bike’s on-board batteries.
The motorcycle which set the record featured an aerodynamic body cladding. Excluding this cladding, the bike is essentially the same model that the company will put into production and sell within a couple of months. Presently the company manufactures custom build electric sport bikes, which are priced at $38,888. Stay tuned to Ride Talks for latest updates on Motorcycles across the world.