Upcoming ebikes||Triumph Electric Bike Latest Updates 2022

Upcoming ebikes||Triumph Electric Bike Latest Updates 2022

Triumph’s electric motorcycle plans have taken a giant leap forward, with the British marque player unveiling the prototype frame, battery, and motor unit for its ‘Project Triumph TE-1’ electric bike platform. It is an all-UK effort, with Williams Advanced Engineering, Integral Powertrain, and WMG at the University of Warwick providing their expertise in building Triumph’s electric bike.

While details are scarce, Triumph has shared an interesting point about the motor output. The bespoke motor, built by Integral’s e-Drive division, puts out close to 180 horses and weighs just 10 kilos! To put that in perspective, the engine output of the new Speed Triple 1200 RS is the same, but its 1160cc triple heart isn’t anywhere as light as the proposed motor.

Of course, the battery and battery management systems weigh more than the motor itself. But given the amount of work put in by all four companies to make the TE-1 as light, compact, and mass-optimised as possible, there’s a high chance that the Triumph electric bike will weigh significantly lighter than the Speed Triple (and perhaps even the smaller Street Triple).

The bike is due to be completed in a prototype avatar by the end of 2021. Hence, 2023 is the earliest we could see the TE-1 hitting Triumph dealerships.

Triumph TE-1 prototype: Motor

Integral Powertrain Ltd.’s e-Drive Division has integrated the normally separate motor and inverter into one compact package. The company claims that this has helped reduce the mass and volume of the drivetrain.

In addition to this, the motor is said to have a power density twice that of the target set by the UK Automotive Council for 2025. Andrew Cross, Chief Technical Officer at Integral Powertrain Ltd has said, “One of the most influential factors in how well a motorcycle handles and performs is mass, so at Integral Powertrain we have focused heavily on making a step change in motor and inverter design, removing heavy high voltage cables for example. This delivers a product that is significantly more compact and lighter than anything currently available on the market. The motor produces 130kW or almost 180hp, but weighs only 10kg, much lighter than existing technology and clearly a small fraction of the mass of traditional internal combustion engines.” 

Triumph TE-1 prototype: Design

Triumph has also confirmed that the upcoming electric bike will feature styling that’s inspired by the Speed and Street Triple family. While the sketches do show some resemblance to the sport-naked models, there are a few futuristic design elements that we hope make their way to the production model.

The British two-wheeler company has also said that it has developed an all-new advanced vehicle control software which incorporates all of the electrical systems to ensure intuitive throttle response, regen braking and traction control.

Triumph TE-1 prototype: Production model

Towards the end of the reveal video for the TE-1 prototype, Steve Sargent, Chief Product Officer for Triumph went on to say that the company is on track to have a rideable motorcycle ready in 2021. However, that could still be the final prototype model and a production version could arrive sometime next 2023