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| Honda, in the pursuit of new possibilities for motorcycles, has been developing and releasing products that use energy sources other than gasoline. For example, we released an electric scooter, which has attracted much attention as a clean energy vehicle, and subsequently unveiled concept models for next-generation hybrid and fuel cell motorcycles. Also, we are increasing our lineup of electric motor-assisted bicycles, which are becoming quite popular. |
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Honda has been developing electricity-powered scooters since the latter half of the 1980s. In 1994, we released a small scooter called the CUV ES as an electric scooter adopting a low-vibration DC brushless motor that produces very little operating noise. The built-in charger can recharge the battery on household 100-V power supply and the scooter runs 60 km on a single charge, which takes eight hours.
Since the release of the CUV ES, we have been continuously pursuing
the possibilities for new-generation motorcycles and have introduced various experimental
motorcycles at motor shows, etc. |
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In 1995, Honda released an electric motor-assisted bicycle, the RACOON, which uses electricity as an auxiliary power source. In 1998, we released the RACOON COMPO, adopting highly rigid aluminum frames. The RACOON COMPO is made foldable by the reduction of the battery weight. In 2000, we totally remodeled the RACOON to reduce its weight by 3.5 kg compared with the previous model. Furthermore, in 2001, we released the STEP COMPO, further improving the RACOON by the addition of an “ECO mode.” The cruising range of the STEP COMPO is almost double compared with that of the RACOON COMPO.
Honda will provide the products with little environmental impact that meet the various needs of society by aggressively developing products that use alternative energies, such as electricity.
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In 2004, Honda unveiled a fuel cell scooter prototype in addition to the hybrid scooter and electric moped developed as prototypes for eventual mass production. The Honda FC Stack, which was originally used in automobiles, was applied to the fuel cell scooter, after being made lighter and more compact to be the optimal size for scooters.
The 50 cc hybrid scooter prototype employs both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor and provides ample storage space.
The electric moped has a built-in 360kW light nickel hydrogen battery inside an aluminum frame. Being powerful enough to climb a 12-degree incline, the electric moped offers performance comparable to that of a gasoline-powered moped. |
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