Yamaha has finally revealed its first electric scooter offering. The scooter has been named EC-03 and is the first in the series of electric scooter that the company plans to launch in its home country, Japan.
The E03 has been launched with a tagline that it is a smart minimal commuter. The bike is powered with a 50v Lithium Ion battery pack that will be supplied by Sanyo and is powered by a Yamaha Integrated Power Unit (YIPU).
The YIPU includes a brushless DC Motor control unit and a planetary gear transmission system, and is entirely integrated to the hub of the rear wheel of scooter.
The YIPU of EC-03 provides a power and torque outputs of 1.9 hp and 7.1lb-ft respectively. The scooter can ride a range of 43 kilometers with a top speed of 30kmph when it has a rider of 55 kg. The EC-03s batteries take six hours to take up full charge. The bike easily weighs 56 kgs that is 30% less weight then a conventional petrol powered 50cc scooter.
The company has started bookings for EC-03 in Tokyo since July 15 and will accept country wide booking in Japan starting September 15 2010. The bike will be up for sale from September 1 in Tokyo and one month later whole of Japan can start owning the bike.
Yamaha already has plans to be a market leader by 2020. The company later also plans to extend its presence in the electric two wheeler market to more than the home country. Indian is currently not a great market for electric bikes, but considering the global need, we might soon expect a rise in sale of these bikes.
