BSA Mahindra in the news

[Greybeard]

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/nov/16/bsa-electric-bike-motorcycles-uk?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

[RDfella]

And where is all the electricity going to come from to power all the electric vehicles the greenies want? As Germany has discovered, wind and solar power doesn't provide, which is why they're now building new coal powerstations. And that's not to mention the humanitarian, ecological and environmental casastrophy that bio-fuel and wind and solar plants are creating. Glad I'm getting old, as this world is headed down the toilet thanks to the ill-informed and science deniers.

[RichardL]

I know I may have to defend it, but I'm thinking Mahindra's plan may be a great idea. In fact, I don't see why they need to make internal combustion bikes at all. There are plenty. Would any of us really enjoy a modern internal combustion machine just because it has the name "BSA," but bears no real heritage with BSA nor has the caché? May as well get a new Ducati or Triumph. If they do it right, and in the Midlands, this could be a new BSA that is unique and has meaning.  As for RD's argument, I suppose he/you has/have a giant stash of dinosaurs and primordial vegetation in the final stages of transformation just before becoming oil. As for electric bikes in general, if you get a chance, try to take a look at "Long Way Up" with Ewan McGregor and his friend riding HD Livewires from Tierra del Fuego to Los Angeles. Here, it's on Disney+.

Richard L.

[Black Sheep]

The massive environmental destruction of ancient forest for open cast coal mining in Germany is a disgrace. There has to be a better way. In Scotland, wind farms are doing pretty well and still expanding. No, not the total answer but don't forget a lot of electric vehicle charging is done overnight when normal demand is low.
My wife is dependent on her electric off-road trike. Not all electric vehicles are bad.   

[bsa-bill]

Well, we have been here before many times but hope springs eternal they say.

As for the argument of Electric v internal fossil fuel combustion - what argument, the slippery stuff and the dirty black stuff are not everlasting, do we do nothing until they run out, of course not, Wind, Solar and nuclear all have a part to play and others

[BigJim]

Hoping they build a single and a twin along the same lines as Enfield. If they can get it to look like the early rigid i'll be well impressed>
 

[RichardL]

Jim,

Why not just buy an Enfield and bypass the new-brand problems?  If you extrapolate, riding a Mahindra internal combustion BSA might be the emotional equivalent to riding a tractor. Riding an electric BSA might be thrilling (with its own new-brand problems).

Richard L.

[BigJim]

I'm all for electric bikes, not a problem. Just saying. I like riding my tractor tho and if they can bang one out that lasts as long, is just as economical, charges the battery and stops when i pull the brake lever for under £4000 i may be tempted. Of course that would probably kill all the fun! It's taken me years to work out that you don't need lots of power to make riding exciting. All you need to do is ride like a loon and remember the brakes are not as good as every one else's around you.
 

[Greybeard]

... you don't need lots of power to make riding exciting....

I remember James May saying something like that on Top Gear when he was driving a Fiat Panda.

[mikeb]

you don't need lots of power to make riding exciting...

yes, more fun riding a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow, partly why i love my b33.
but i'm also keen on a super fast electric bike. the new Energica's  look amazing. could Mahinda match that? In NZ we've got most of our energy from renewables and overlooking the world's limited supply of lithium, the future looks fast and fun.

[Rex]

Sufficiently high capacity batteries for everyday vehicles are some way off yet, but the world will probably have those long before the limited energy supply problem is solved.
Windmills and solar panels are a great way for the wokey-greens to feel that "things are being done" but from an engineering viewpoint (which is the only one that really matters long term) they are very far from being any sort of solution, and even then that's turning a blind eye to the ecological and societal issues with the mining of the rare earth elements required.

[edboy]

why does electric vehicles remind me of milk floats and missed milk delivery.
gold tops , milk crates, empty bottles and cul de sacs.
the wheel turns.

[Black Sheep]

When I was a lad I used to accompany the milkman at weekends on his horse and cart. Now that's something I would like to see again. Ah, the clink of milk bottles, the waft of horse fart. And then of course there were the road teams with actual steam rollers we used to race on our kids' bikes. Amazingly, none of us fell off in front of one. And father used to commute to work by train from the local station. And we had a comprehensive tram network.
So much has changed in one lifetime. The world has come to be dominated by cars and their necessary infrastructure. Can it be changed back? Not an easy task.
 

[RDfella]

Rex is right. Opinions are fine, but not many on this subject are supported by fact. Germany tried the green route and is now returning to coal because wind and solar was too expensive and unreliable. Biofuel farming is causing ecological and human disaster - as is the grab for lithium etc. In reply to replacing oil, it's been reckoned there's almost a thousand year's of coal left, which will take us beyond the next ice age, the latter wiping out most of mankind and taking those left back to burning twigs in caves. Finally, an electric vehicle is less efficient than an ICE one, and therefore wastes precious fuel.

[RichardL]

Rex is right. Opinions are fine, but not many on this subject are supported by fact. Germany tried the green route and is now returning to coal because wind and solar was too expensive and unreliable. Biofuel farming is causing ecological and human disaster - as is the grab for lithium etc. In reply to replacing oil, it's been reckoned there's almost a thousand year's of coal left, which will take us beyond the next ice age, the latter wiping out most of mankind and taking those left back to burning twigs in caves. Finally, an electric vehicle is less efficient than an ICE one, and therefore wastes precious fuel.

I'm not an expert on the subject, like RD, but from what I'm seeing in a quick search, there is about 50 years of oil left on earth. Enough for me to enjoy my BSA for the time I have left, as long as I'm not riding when I'm 100, when the price of gas would have gone up exponentially in response to the diminishing supply. The world needs to take the long view on alternative energy. I believe that is what Mahindra is doing. Poo-pooing alternative energy because it does not provide the watts-per-$ for energy extracted, versus coal or oil, is not productive, IMHO. It needs to move ahead, even if the early steps that it is still taking are less than fully satisfying.
 

Richard L.