Poll BIG BEAUTIFUL POLL: A big fixed battery vs. a small swappable battery

[Philip]

Hi Electric Dirt Riders!

Hypothetically speaking, a dirt bike manufacturer wants to make a premium full-size electric motocross/enduro bike with cutting-edge tech and top-level components. Which one would you reserve with a deposit? Vote for your next dream dirt bike! Share your choice in the poll above and share why you picked it in the comments!

Bike 1: 253 lbs (115 kg); 10.0 kWh; 60-70 hp bike with a fixed battery
- The fixed battery can be fast-charged.

Bike 2: 231 lbs (105 kg); 6.0 kWh; 60-70 hp bike with a swappable battery
- The bike with a 6.0 kWh battery will cost $1K less.
- Additional 6.0 kWh swappable batteries would cost $3K and weigh 55 lbs (25kg). This battery may experience an earlier derating and a faster degradation if it's pushed past 50 hp.
- Larger 8.0 kWh swappable batteries would cost $4K and weigh 73 lbs (33kg). The bike with this larger battery would weigh 249 lbs (113kg).

 

[DaveAusNor]

Good poll idea. Its very detailed on some of the specifics though. I would keep it simpler to find if people prefer
1. a larger battery/range
2. a lighter bike
3. fixed or swappable battery.

Obviously I would take the best of all, bigger battery, lighter bike and swappable battery. But knowing where the tradeoff limits for people are if what the manufacturers really need to work out. I personally would sacrifice having a lighter bike and swappable battery for more range in a fixed battery. (as long as the bike isn't much over 125kgs)

 

[Philip]

The main point of this poll is to find out if folks who shop for full-size electric dirt bikes would consider a 253 lbs (115 kg) bike light enough and the range associated with a 10.0 kWh battery long enough. A big fixed battery vs. a small swappable battery.

Folks who haven't yet bought a Stark or an Alta, or those who have bought them but are unhappy with their characteristics for one reason or another, have been vocal about the large weight, the short range, or the long charging times of these bikes.

Newer, higher-capacity batteries with fast-charging ability address these issues in one way.
Smaller swappable batteries address the same issues differently.

Do you want to carry a big and heavy battery on board at all times?
Or would you rather have a 22 lbs (10 kg) lighter bike but have to yank the battery out every once in a while?

This is something to think about. The answers will be very different for those who:
- Are pros vs. amateurs;
- Race in 40-60 minute races vs. 20-minute or 1.5-hour races;
- Ride nonstop all day long vs. a few minutes at a time;
- Ride/race to the back of the woods and then return vs. ride/race in shorter laps;
- Want to buy and bring a generator to the track vs. buy and bring a spare battery;
- Have 30 minutes to charge vs. those who have not;
- Have Level 2 or Level 3 chargers where they ride vs. those who have not...
^ ^ ^
- Thus... prefer Bike 1 vs . prefer Bike 2.

 

[RCard42]

I like the simplicity of the fixed battery. The weight only bothered me when comparing specs before my purchase. That concern has more or less gone away after 30 hrs of riding. Yes, I would love to be able to hot swap a battery at the lunch stop of an enduro, but you still need 30 miles of range up to that point, so the 6kw hr swappable battery doesn't fix that. I would never pull off having 3 or 4 batteries and swapping at every or every other reset even if I could afford it. I can do most trail rides, some hare scrambles and all sprint enduros with the current setup. I am ok with that especially since trail riding is >50% of my bike time now and going that way more every year. I'll just have to be ok with running the 300 at enduros and other high mileage events even though I would prefer the Stark. (And that sounds just as cheap if not cheaper than having extra batteries)