#projectbluesmoke

I purchased my first motorcycle when I was about to turn 16 and got my A1-license. It was Aprilia AF1 Sport Pro, the greatest bike ever - in my opinion. After several breakdowns I had a vision to convert the bike to electric. At the time it would have been too expensive since I was still studying and needed to buy a car.

Seven years later and I’m now a bachelor of engineering and I’m still riding motorcycles. The vision of electric motorcycle hasn’t gone anywhere. My Suzuki SV650S is all that I want from a motorcycle and it’s relatively inexpensive to own as well. But unlike with the Aprilia, I don’t need to get my hands dirty all the time and I kind of miss that.

One day I was browsing the motorcycle adverts online and found a nice 2003 Aprilia RS 125. It wasn’t running becouse of an engine seizure. It seemed like a perfect project bike so I called the seller. We agreed that he would strip off the 2-stroke engine and related parts (carb, exhaust, power valve, ignition parts etc) and sell the rolling chassis to me at 200€.

Now the Aprilia is waiting for a new life as a electric motorcycle. I haven’t purchased any of the main components yet (motor, controller and battery). I want a brushless motor that can handle about 10kW continuous power and 2-3 times that in a peak. The battery will most likely to be around 3kWh of LiFePo4, or some other non-lead-acid chemistry. It won’t give me a lot of range, but I still have the Suzuki for longer rides.