Victory’s New Electric Motorcycle. The 2016 Victory Empulse TT. Triple-Digit Speeds In Relative Silence.

1VictoryTTEmpulse3Polaris sees electric as an important part of the company and is in the future of all their vehicles. As a proof, after working with Brammo for three years Victory is launching the 2016 Victory Empulse TT, a road-legal electric motorcycle featuring race proven electric power with the quickest charging battery on the market and a top speed over 100 mph.

2VictoryTTEmpulse33VictoryTTEmpulse3The Victory Empulse TT is built on the innovative design and engineering that produced the fastest U.S. electric motorcycle at the 2015 Isle of Man TT Zero race. Objective of this 1st Victory electric model? Of course to reinforce Victory brand image as being about American performance. Everybody in the motorcycle industry knows that more battery storage in less space at a lower cost is going to create new huge opportunities for manufacturers and riders. The Victory Empulse TT demonstrates that the company is ready to compete with the electric technology.

The Victory Empulse TT is a fully electric road-legal street bike featuring an aluminum beam-frame, adjustable suspension and strong brakes. It is announced as delivering outstanding overall performance, zero-emission output and has a torquey electric motor. “The Empulse TT was developed primarily as an electric motorcycle delivering a sporty ride,” said Victory Electric Product Manager Joshua Katt. “With dual ride modes – ECO and SPORT – to choose from and the addition of a gearbox, the Empulse TT is a versatile motorcycle that can be used for impressively sporty riding or as a casual commuter.

4VictoryTTEmpulse3The key features that allow Empulse TT to deliver a sporty riding experience include: fully adjustable suspension featuring a single rear shock and inverted front forks; dual-disk front brakes; lightweight cast aluminum wheels; the greatest lean angle in the electric class; and a sport bike-style riding position.

Steve Menneto, VP Motorcycles, said Victory Motorcycles is committed to expanding brand awareness and sales globally, and the Empulse TT will allow the brand to reach more markets. “This is a company that does not fear technology and progressive products and we want to be strong in the electric motorcycle segment,” he said.

The Empulse TT shares some DNA with the original Brammo Empulse R motorcycle. Victory has been working with Brammo since 2011, but in January 2015 Victory’s parent company, Polaris Industries, acquired Brammo’s motorcycle assets. Since then, Victory engineers worked with the Brammo product team to achieve improvements in battery capacity, display function and handling.

The Victory Empulse TT is capable of top speeds over 100 mph and it has a high-capacity 10.4kWh battery. The bike has a built-in battery charger and an easily accessible SAE J1772 plug atop the bodywork to the front of the seat. The bike’s Brammo Power Lithium Ion battery fully charges up in just 3.9 hours using a Stage 2 charger (available as an accessory utilising a 240V outlet).

2016_Vic_Electric_015In typical riding, the Empulse TT battery provides riders with a range of about 65 miles and a range of 100 miles is possible with throttle management and use of the bike’s regenerative charging. In preliminary testing, the bike demonstrated a Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC) city range of 94 miles. The bike delivered an MIC “combined 70 mph highway and city range” of 57 miles.

Riders can make the most efficient use of the battery’s 10.4kWh of electricity by using the six-speed gearbox. Shifting and downshifting helps to create regenerative power (when the bike is under deceleration) and also produces a feeling similar to the compression braking that riders experience on petrol-powered motorcycles. The clutch only needs to be used when shifting between gears, not for taking off or coming to a stop. To take off from a stop, the rider simply needs to twist the throttle to unleash the liquid-cooled electric motor’s impressive torque.

5VictoryTTEmpulse3In the Empulse TT’s proprietary transmission, neutral is found between 2nd and 3rd gears and a rider can leave the bike in 3rd gear for most riding speeds and conditions. To begin riding, a rider can simply turn the bike’s power on, select 3rd gear (without the clutch), twist the throttle and go. Not all competitive electric motorcycles have gearboxes, so the Empulse TT gearbox gives the bike a significantly sportier feel and it enhances a rider’s engagement with the bike.

In everyday riding conditions, the Victory Empulse TT can be operated in ECO mode, but it also has an optional SPORT mode for high-performance riding. In SPORT mode, 20 percent more battery power is released to the motor, resulting in enhanced acceleration. SPORT mode also increases the amount of regenerative braking – or “regen” – that further increases the feeling similar to compression braking when the rider rolls off the throttle. Regen uses the inertia of the motorcycle to return energy from the motor back into the battery pack. To select SPORT mode, a rider presses and holds the start button for 1 second.

The bike’s LCD data display features a speedometer, tachometer, gear indicator, and clock. It also displays the battery level as a horizontal bar accompanied by the percentage of battery energy remaining and provides an estimate of remaining riding range.

The new Victory Empulse TT electric motorcycle is scheduled to be available for purchase in the United States in late 2015.
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26 Responses to “Victory’s New Electric Motorcycle. The 2016 Victory Empulse TT. Triple-Digit Speeds In Relative Silence.”


  1. 1 Rodent Jul 29th, 2015 at 8:21 am

    Time to race a Harley Electric against the Victory Electric in Sturgis City Park next week. Let the best bike win.

  2. 2 P. Hamilton Jul 29th, 2015 at 9:44 am

    Problem is that the LiveWire from Harley looks 100 times better. Victory needs to consider design as a big part of the sale. Looks like a Brammo not like a Victory. No doubt that Victory masters the technology, but is very poor on aesthetics.

  3. 3 troll Jul 29th, 2015 at 9:58 am

    I just did an 850 mile day on Sunday with my 1500 Drifter…how long would it take to do that on one of these “miracle” electrics? I can’t be stopping every hundred miles for a recharge…..not if I actually want to get anywhere…When you can actually GO somewhere one one of these contraptions, then maybe…

  4. 4 Matt W. Jul 29th, 2015 at 10:14 am

    Glad to see Polaris going all the way with their electric bike rather than just parading it as a PR campaign. Also happy to see Victory branching out into the sport market as well. Is nice to see a major American manufacturer compete in this segment again be it gas or electric.

  5. 5 Matt W. Jul 29th, 2015 at 10:47 am

    Troll: Even if this bike wasn’t electric why would you want to take a 850 mile day trip on a sport bike to begin with?

    Obviously this bike is not intended for touring so comparing it to a cruiser is a little silly. Personally I wouldn’t mind adding a Empulse to my stable just for sporting/commuting around the city (what it is mostly intended for) but currently the cost of quality electric bikes is still very prohibitive unfortunately.

  6. 6 X-HD BRIDER Jul 29th, 2015 at 10:54 am

    Guessing Brammo will be building them with the Vic name on it.
    If you want to stay in town I think it would be a lot of fun.
    As I sit here and think how far thirty miles out is and then turn around to get home it’s not much of a ride.
    Victory should sell a backpack to carry the extension cord in so you can charge it when the battery dies one you.
    They told us all the stuff about the bike but how many times can you recharge it. The salesman isn’t going to know for sure

  7. 7 Loony Jul 29th, 2015 at 11:35 am
  8. 8 NoH2oh Jul 29th, 2015 at 11:45 am

    So Polaris is the first major manufacturer to bring out a viable electric sporty bike. Cool. And yes they had to purchase another firm to assist in the tech and speed up development, so what? Not invented here mentality does not lead to improvement or inovation. Even HD went to Porsche for an engine, no? And the electric bike from HD, still a prototype PR mule by the way, was produced by another company.
    I love ICE’s, but the day we have 300-400 mile range WITH performance from electric I am in.

  9. 9 Woody's Jul 29th, 2015 at 1:00 pm

    I think they’re hitting the right target market for now, obviously things can and will change when battery technology advances and allows greater distances. For the moment a super performing sportbike with a short range will fit the normal usage pattern of a lot of current squid mounts anyway. Loved my 1L sportbike back in the day, but doubt I ever did a 100 mile day on it in the 5-6 years I owned it. Folks with a 10-30 mile commute to work should love it, plug it in your own garage every night and never change the oil or winterize it.

  10. 10 Reyn Mansson Jul 29th, 2015 at 1:02 pm

    I was hoping to set a sport or at lease cafe version of something with the “Scout” motor from Victory this year.

  11. 11 troll Jul 29th, 2015 at 1:26 pm

    Matt W: To ride the Dragon, of course….and the Moonshiner 28, and the Blue Ridge Parkway, and and and….

  12. 12 nicker Jul 29th, 2015 at 2:54 pm

    As a platform for developing much needed new batter technology… sure.

    As a no-maintenance grocery getter, errand runner, and parts chaser …well, OK.

    But as an engaging motorcycling experience….???
    Perhaps in the context of a life absorbed in social media…..

    The Energizer Bunny is more entertaining.

    -nicker-

  13. 13 Roscoe Jul 29th, 2015 at 3:08 pm

    65 miles??? (I’m sure that is on a good day)
    That ain’t gonna work.
    $20K for a bike I can ride to/from work.
    I wonder what the economics are when you calculate how much it’s costs to charge it.
    That’s like “investing” in solar energy panels for your house here in Seattle.

  14. 14 Blackmax Jul 29th, 2015 at 4:24 pm

    Still not a fan of electric bike no matter who puts it out
    (The Livewire does look better )
    The market will show whether they are viable or not if you like it $20,000+ worth
    Go buy one !!!!
    Thanks, but No thanks

  15. 15 Blackmax Jul 29th, 2015 at 4:25 pm

    I’ll save my $$ for either a Victory XC Tour or an Indian Roadmaster
    They’re going to get my $$$ either way

  16. 16 KEN Jul 29th, 2015 at 5:05 pm

    they are very dangerous if you happen to fall or get hit, expect a possible fire and a hard electric shock, LIVEWIRE for sure.

  17. 17 B. D. Jul 29th, 2015 at 8:54 pm

    This bike is being mass produced and offered for sale, the Livewire is not.

    It can got 65 – 100 miles on a charge (depending on how hard you wanna ride) and then it takes two and a half hours to recharge – how long is your commute?

    Guys, we are looking at the future here. Not the immediate future, but someday, there will be places (cities) where only zero emission vehicles will be allowed on the roads. If it’s either an electric bike or mass transit (subways and the like), well, heck, who knows who will live long as to see that!

    Besides, who knows what gas will cost twenty or thirty years from now?

  18. 18 J Jul 30th, 2015 at 12:21 am

    Fine by me. Inevitably, motorcycle manufacturers will be subject to the same fleet MPG standards that cars are now, so bring on the electric putts, they’ll offset the guzzlers most of us will ride.

    As to what gas will cost in 20 or 30 yrs, it’s a moot point- as most electricity is produced via petroleum-based products, the cost spread between gas and electric won’t vary much into that future;

    What WILL improve will be battery technology- if you figure an average 5% annual increase in battery performance, we’ll see range doubled in about 15 years, or the same work done now with only half (cheaper) the battery mass;

    Promising, but then they’ve been working on this electric battery stuff for about 150 years now, so I’m not gonna sweat not being able to find 87 octane ethanol bio-swill anytime soon, lol.

  19. 19 John J. TEXAS Jul 30th, 2015 at 5:19 am

    What no impulsive buying??? Come on…!

  20. 20 Lyle Landstrom Jul 30th, 2015 at 11:44 am

    I’m all for it. Although it’s not near as good looking as HD’s LIvewire, as stated earlier it’s being mass produced with a look towards the future. Although it may not be for everyone and probably won’t make Polaris much money, there may be other benefits. Are manufacturers going to be held to a “average MPG” for their fleet? If so, this will really help.

  21. 21 Chris Jul 30th, 2015 at 11:46 am

    Ken,

    Care to elaborate? Claiming this bike will likely burn or zap you in the event of an accident is a pretty bold statement.

  22. 22 Lyle Landstrom Jul 30th, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    Yeah, cause bikes filled with gasoline are real safe in a collision.

  23. 23 Johno Jul 30th, 2015 at 5:47 pm

    All it needs is a loudspeaker on it, that goes, potato, potato, potato.

  24. 24 Mike Corbin Aug 4th, 2015 at 9:29 pm

    Permanent magnet motors are not induction motors .

    There is no such thing as a permanent magnet .

  25. 25 Mike Corbin Aug 4th, 2015 at 10:12 pm

    Live Wire does look very good ,
    But not room for enough batteries nor an on board battery charger .
    Motor drive energy goes through a 90 degree gear box , steeling power .
    Little on lame side when designing for efficiency .
    I like the look , but range is sorry .
    HD will need EV people involved with new bike design .

  26. 26 Boomer Aug 6th, 2015 at 12:57 am

    Electric bikes are in our future. This one is smaller than I thought it would be when I sat on oñe in Sturgis last week. Gotta start somewhere tho. I really want to ride one soon.

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Cyril Huze