– Why have you chosen the electric? How has your life changed since then?
Petrol-heads require an almost obsessive amount of maintenance, and must be in the most perfect condition in order to be able to drive many kilometers for both entertainment and professional reasons. I’ve never managed to accept the fast deterioration of vehicles with internal combustion engines.
And this was the primary reason that seven years ago I approached the first electric scooter. Well that and my innate passion for the technology itself, which has served as a natural bridge between the world of motorsport and the technological development of transportation.
From there I began to watch a rapid evolution of the electric vehicle, that today I not only choose for the reduced maintenance and depreciation, but also and especially for the performance, which is already well above the majority of the best petrol engines.
An added bonus is a driving relish that cannot be compared for those who drive tens of thousands of miles every year like myself. This is accredited to a constant torque and lags in acceleration given by the already obsolete gear.
We also enjoy a nice feeling of “peace” with the outside world for driving a vehicle that does not leave smoke behind it…
– From Tesla to Energica Ego: why have you chosen Energica in order to widen your stunning electric vehicle fleet?
Since I first became aware of the Energica brand, I immediately compared it to Tesla.
The vehicle’s proposal had no compromises in performance, a really nice aesthetic and point of view that could only bring the two companies closer.This feeling was definitively recognized after a chat with Giampiero Testoni, CTO Energica. I was able to understand how his team works hard to integrate the bike’s complex management software, to create a vehicle that is beautifully fluid and user-friendly. The end result is only what matters – a quick response user-friendly machine. This makes the motorbike look like an extension of itself, ready to respond instantly and without hesitation to its own commands.
This is absolutely impossible in a combustion engine, where each pilot’s command is “filtered” by the voids of the gearbox, the torque without a constant supply of the motor and by many other factors related to the mechanical complexity and the inefficiency of the internal combustion engine.
By now I have traveled nearly 200,000 km using Tesla vehicles, and I can say that I know them relatively well. Because of this I understand the feeling of driving vehicles with an electric engine, which is accredited to the raw performance, its shape and absolutely by the operating software and disbursement of the available power.
After having rotated the throttle grip for the first time in the saddle of the EGO, I immediately found myself in front of perfection connecting pilot-machine, with a mutual feeling of absolute control.
It is something that you cannot explain in words, but must be experienced firsthand.
Those who have driven a Tesla or an EGO know exactly what I’m talking about!
– Do you know you are our first customer worldwide to buy a type-approved Electric superbike for normal road use. How do you feel about it?
Firstly, I am honored to be the first customer to drive this gem of technology on the road, but even more so for knowing that it is entirely developed and manufactured in Italy!
It is a great source of pride to see a product totally “Made in Italy” being compared to the best of the US market, specifically in Silicon Valley which is home of the top technology products.
What is happening now in the engine market is a revolution that will be long remembered in the years to come. And to know that one of these milestones was set here in Italy, can only make me even more excited. I am absolutely certain that I will feel more enthusiasm with every single rotation of the EGO’s throttle…
– Energica Ego Ride Experience: what do you feel riding an Energica Ego? Please, give us some feedbacks about your driving and performance feelings
The EGO prototype that I was lucky enough to drive through the beautiful hills of Castelvetro made me realize how much this was not simply just a “prototype”, but really a vehicle ready for the road.
The bike itself is noticeably quite large, but though it seems impossible when you start the drive all of its weight vanishes.
A motorcycle with almost 600 pounds of weight may be as handy as a 600cc!
But this is just what you feel riding the EGO … I understood only by testing the motorbike exactly how much study has been placed in the weight balance. The battery pack is specifically placed in an elevated position, raising the center of gravity of the bike. The cornering folds are incredibly comfortable, but at the same time you feel the vehicle firmly planted on the ground, and in full control.
Rotating the throttle grip, the torque delivery is incredible. I already knew the “aggression” that an electric motor may have, especially if equipped with almost 200 Nm of torque, but what impressed me the most was the motorbike’s fluidity. As I can never stop to repeat, it is the sophistication in the management command that gives the rider that difference between a simple electric vehicle and a Energica superbike.
Its acceleration is breathtaking: in less than 3 seconds the bike will go from 0 to 100 km / h proving that the engine never gives up!
When riding a normal motorbike, every time change gears it takes a fraction of a second to settle again in an optimal driving position. When riding the EGO, the only thing you have to think about is to keep a firm grip on the handlebars, trying not to “kick” away from so much wickedness …
For the more technical riders when on the track, it means higher concentration available to plan your curve trajectory, without having to waste time in useless gear calculation to be shifted in the right moment.
The rest of the components are top of the range: Brembo, Marzocchi, Bosch … I do not think they require any introduction.
And do not even begin to talk about the incredible LCD screen that replaces the now obsolete analog instrumentation; it is perfectly visible even in bright sunlight, and it can communicate in real time telemetry through the Internet. This screen is also capable of driving the pilot to your destination with navigation directions clear and legible, which is also easily upgradeable to the cellular network in your own home …
As I said before, we are the ultimate man-machine interface, to levels previously achieved only by Tesla.
– Energica Motor Company guarantees a 360° customer service, with personal assistant to customize the Energica Ego45: can the customer perceive it as a service or can it be assimilated to a special experience?
The way Energica starts allows me to perceive clearly that I am not simply buying a pre-packaged product. I realize that I’m interfacing with a company that really listens to the needs of its drivers.
And the attention that is given to every single request, which could also be seen as superfluous in some cases, it makes me really feel “part of the team.”
It is definitely not just a service, it is a special experience. Surely it is one of the highest purchase experiences and pre-sales services I have ever taken part in.
– Final considerations
Unlike many start-ups that have tried to break into new and unexplored fields, often failing due to lack of experience, CRP has nearly half a century of experience in the racing world behind itself.
This has been clearly seen in the development of EGO: not a simple prototype thrown into the fray, but a finished product in every detail. This is a product that has not been launched in the market at all costs to cash out (EGO was originally out in 2013), but which was instead continually redesigned and refined, in order to give the end user the feeling of “perfection” that few brands in the world can boast.
I appreciate CRP’s willingness to present a new and innovative product, but also its desire to challenge the industry, trying to undermine some of the key tenets in the passionate world of two-wheeled motor vehicles.
After convincing the most skeptical of what the electric engine can do, including its ability to exceed the performance of the combustion engine, I can say with confidence that the only point on which some veteran “old school” could be against CRP and his EGO is to have killed the “roar” of the engine.
Well, I suggest these people to try Energica at least once.
The sound is definitely there. Different, yes, but so exciting that after having tried it once you could not get it out of your head.
After having heard it, you will look at the old internal combustion engines a lot differently …