TSY photography of Harley-Davidson’s LiveWire NYC Launch by Chris Logsdon & Ashley Smalley

After four-plus years of R&D, and a lot of toil, Harley-Davidson kicked-off #ProjectLiveWire with a tour of 30 dealerships across the country that launched 6/23 in NYC. Lucky motorcycle enthusiasts will have the opportunity to test ride the new electric bike and give Harley-Davidson their feedback that will help gauge consumer appetite, and the viability of their LiveWire platform. It’s been a long road for Harley-Davidson, who produced 33 pre-production prototypes at a cost of over 200K per bike, optimistically assuming back then that advances in battery efficiency would be much more robust than they are now. No such luck, it remains the technology’s achilles heel. Harley-Davidson is well aware that 53 miles per charge will not light the world on fire, but strides will surely be made. It’s definitely a well-made and ambitious bike for a new generation not beholden to Harley-Davidson’s V-Twin heritage. The big questions are–  to what degree and how soon can ride range improve, and what will the production LiveWire sticker price look like?

TSY contributor, Chris Logsdon, on his firsthand experience riding Harley-Davidson’s LiveWire electric motorcycle–

“Seeing the all-new LiveWire electric motorcycles at the Harley-Davidson of NYC dealership gave me chills. I couldn’t help but think I was about to take part in a historic occasion for the iconic brand. Straddling the bike for the first time I immediately noticed how compact it was, it felt small. Other areas that took a few seconds to get used included the left hand grip, particularly the absence of the clutch lever as well as shifter peg – everything would be done by the right hand & foot. The feeling is comparable to switching to an automatic car after had driving a manual your entire life.

The bike is quite responsive. Thumbing the rocker switch located near the right grip to ‘On’ awakens the LED dash which prompts you to select one of two modes: Range or Power. Hit the ‘Start’ button and with a slight twist of the throttle the bike begins to move. Quiet at first, the buzzing sound quickly builds as you gain speed and recalls a similar sound created by The Dark Knight’s ‘Batpod’. It was all smiles inside my helmet.

Naturally, speeds were kept to a modest 25 mph due to downtown NYC traffic, however LiveWire was extremely agile as we rounded corners and dodged moving buses. Having spent my entire riding career on the Cafe type, I was pleased with the more forward, pedals back, riding position of the bike. Everything considered, I am a fan. Now it’s up to the rest of the community to see if Harley-Davidson keeps it around.”

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