RANGE:
In real-world riding, I have gotten a minimum of 22 miles and a maximum of just over 30 miles.
Of course this really does depend on speed, terrain, weather, etc. (Your mileage may vary!)
One thing I have found though, is that the actual number of miles per charge DOESN'T MATTER AT ALL!
The only thing that does is; can you get to where you want to go, or can't you?
I simply know that there are places that are within riding range or NOT within riding range.
In other words, does it work for you, or not!?
Where I live, I am about two miles outside a town of 11,000 people. There are stores, restaurants, the library, and pretty much all the civilization a person could possibly be on a daily basis.
This city is on the far outskirts of a metropolitan area of about a million people. But for me to make it to the big city, it ends up being about 80 miles round trip. (And I do have to do that on a fairly regular basis for work. Gotta earn a living!)
For me, an electric vehicle makes sense for all my local commuting. To design an EV with the range I would need to go to the city and back would be expensive and challenging. A Nissan Leaf could do it, but I would rather spend $36,000 on solar panels than on a car.
Heck, I could build a $16,000 electric car, and get $20,000 worth of solar panels for the cost of a commercially-built electric vehicle.
So, until I do that, I am perfectly happy driving my 30mpg pickup truck when the EV's don't have the range for where I'm going.
I also like the concept of the Plug-In Hybrid. In experiments with the Geo Metro, I've seen that it's completely possible for someone to build one themselves, with good results, but only if the system is really integrated. I may at some point build a plug-in hybrid as a replacement for a long distance vehicle.
I do have to say that an electric motorcycle is a handy vehicle. Doesn't take up much space in the garage, quiet, quick, just hop-on-and-go!
