Take a KTM RC8 superbike. Whip out the powertrain and replace it with a battery pack and web-connected electronics. What have you got? The Mavizen TTX02 racer. This English-built motorcycle can be configured like a PC, with hot-swappable battery packs—plus a system bus that allows owners to change settings via a USB port in the ‘fuel tank’. (Predictably, it’s been described as a ‘130 mph laptop on wheels’.) It sounds like a sensible approach to us: after all, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And the RC8 definitely ain’t broke. If you have the $40,000 or so required to purchase a TTX02, you can choose from three power packs: an 11 kilowatt-hour unit designed for the full Isle of Man electric TTXGP course, a 6 kilowatt-hour ‘Circuit’ pack or a smaller ‘Sprint’ pack for short races. Let’s just hope the operating system isn’t Windows Vista. [Photo: MCN. Thanks to Chuck Squatriglia of Wired Autopia.]
Update: Next year, Infineon Raceway will host America’s first zero-emissions motorcycle race—on May 14 to 16, during the AMA Motorcycle Sonoma Showdown weekend.
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