This Distinctive Electric Motorbike Is a Ground-Up Reinvention of the Motorcycle

The Johammer J1 electric motorcycle is a head-turning e-mobility solution that can double as a home battery storage device.

An electric motorcycle from Austrian electric mobility firm Johammer is like nothing else on the road, and for good reason, as it breaks almost completely with traditional motorcycle design in favor of a decidedly unconventional approach to electric transport. Sure, it's still got two wheels and a saddle and a pair of handlebars, but that's about where the similarities end, which is probably why some are comparing the Johammer J1 to a Tesla, as they both are products of a radical reimagination of what personal transportation looks like.

"Achieving awesome range doesn’t happen overnight. Everything that benefits our customers on the road is the result of our consistent innovation concept. A Johammer bike not only looks different, it really has been designed from scratch from the ground up." - Johammer

The aluminum-framed Johammer J1 is wrapped in a funky polypropylene body, which hides the 11 kW (16 kW peak) electric drivetrain and 72V 12.7 kWh battery pack on its low-slung chassis. The bike, which has a 200 km (124 mile) range and a 75 mph top speed (electronically limited), also incorporates regenerative braking to recapture some energy for optimal range, and can be fully charged in about 3.5 hours. The bike weighs in at 390 pounds, and its low center of gravity is said to offer a comfortable ride and secure handling.

© Johammer

Here's Johammer CEO Johann Hammerschmid introducing the bike in 2014:

The bike doesn't employ a dashboard of any type, and instead uses the two rear view mirrors to display speed, distance, charge, etc., which keeps the streamlined look intact and presumably helps the rider keep their eyes at road level.

Johammer builds its own battery packs using lithium-ion cells, and has developed its own battery management systems in order to meet "the precise electrical and mechanical power specifications" of electric motorcycles, and the battery packs are said to have "exceptionally high power density." The battery packs are said to have a useful life of 200,000 km (~4 years) and can be swapped out once they reach their limit, after which the old units can be reused as energy storage for other uses (solar electricity storage) for "up to 20 years," and can then be recycled.

There are currently two different models of the Johammer J1, the J1.150, with an 8.3 kWh battery pack capable of traveling up to 150 km (93 miles) on a charge, and the J1.200, which has the specs listed above. The bikes are available in 5 color schemes, with prices starting at € 22.900 (~US$23,000). According to the company, it is developing a newer iteration, the J2, which is said to have the capability of being used as a home energy storage battery (think Tesla Powerwall) when not being ridden.

Bloomberg took a closer look at the Johammer J1: