SilentHawk - hybrid motorcycle in development for US military
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DARPA Funds SilentHawk Military Hybrid-Electric Motorcycle Prototype: UPDATED This is quite interesting. Alta Motors (formerly BRD Motorcycles) is using an existing EV dirtbike they have and slapping on a small genset to it to make a hybrid motorcycle. It'll have ~50 miles of range, and the genset can run on numerous fuels for versatility. Its also 2wd. |
AWESOME, but I doubt the military will go for it unless performance (range) is dramatically increased. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency funds all kinds of awesome research for military vehicles, but few of them ever actually make it to us (the troops). Frankly, any military vehicle needs to be able to go at least 200-250 miles to be usable as a patrol/convoy vehicle...because stopping to fill up is best done well out of harms way.
I did fix up a shot up/broken, neglected, and apparently abandoned M103M1 (or maybe M2 because it had auxiliary fuel tanks) when I was in Iraq last time. It was an awesome machine, basically a Kawasaki dirt bike with a diesel/kerosene engine. It was pretty slow for a dirt bike, but a tank of diesel would last for like, ever on base. |
My first post wasn't too clear. The total range for the bike is 170 miles, 50 miles of that is in electric mode. So, falls a bit short of the ideal range, with the benefit of silent operation.
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You've got to love the "more stuff" that industry likes throwing at them. It's a great tool, dramatically increasing the range that the troops can sneak around. But it can't be their only vehicle, so it's more equipment to haul around or tie them down to a fixed base.
Can you see those SF guys tooling around Afghanistan on their 4 wheelers... pulling trailers that had electric dirt bikes stowed? Sure, once they're set up at a base they're rocking, but in the meantime it's a mess. |
The M103M1 is the product of Fred Hayes of Vetter Challenge fame.
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No, the gas savings won't be enough to justify the cost difference. The military has dollars to throw at pure research on the off chance that they'll get a toy that gives them an edge somewhere, but everyone else needs to look at it as a business decision.
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