Killer DIY Electric Motorcycle Becomes Creators Resume
Filed Under: green automotive technology, zoomilife.com on October 10, 2009
In two months, a bare frame became this awesome ride. That’s all it took Tom Micelito build his electric motorcycle, which he calls the Ion. Now, it’s his resume as he looks for a career in industrial design. The Ion was his senior project at Appalachian State University. Hope he got an A+.
The bike started as a 1996 Kawasaki ZX6 Ninja. Tom stripped it down, took his measurements, and began his design and build. With several CAD model iterations, motorcycle magazine cutouts, and some real talent for aesthetics, he finally had what he wanted on paper.
To make it real, he had only two months if he wanted to get the grade. He started work on the chassis, adding 24 40Ah li-ion phosphate batteries (about 3kWh), a 95lb-ft torque motor (AC), a controller, and a quick test ride to make sure it all worked. At that point, the bike was weight equivalent to the original Ninja. Exactly as planned.
His weight distribution put the center of gravity at roughly bottom-center, just as the original had.
Miceli then began on the body work and street-legal components (lighting and so forth).
The bike’s top speed is 70mph and it has a range of up to 60 miles on a charge, which takes about six hours at 110v. Miceli continues to tweak the Ion, post-graduation, as he uses it to find himself a new job as a moto-designer.
With the help of his father, an electrical engineer, the graduate is planning some serious upgrades to the bike. He doesn’t think the acceleration is as good as it could be and he wants more speed and range. So he’s going to upgrade to 60Ah batteries and will ad a self-designed 2-speed transmission that will get up to about 50mph in first gear and double that in second. Yep. 100mph.
And yes, he got an “A” from his professor for the bike.
Thanks a lot for the article.