What do you do to make an electric motorcycle fast, or rather, the fastest electric motorcycle in the world? If you are White Motorcycle Concepts, you make a motorcycle with a hole in between and make an electric motorcycle so strange, most are likely to simply be scared off by its looks. Or fall in love with it.
That said, electric motorcycles have already proven that they can be super fast and pretty cool. As of November 2020, the fastest electric motorcycle in the world title has been held by Voxan Wattman, purposefully made to be able to break land speed records. It holds a 254 MPH top speed record and went on to collect 10 more land speed records, ridden by an exultant Max Biaggi, according to Robb Report.
The WMC250EV from White Motorcycle Concepts plans to trounce the Voxan Wattman and take the record for itself, and it already claims to be the fastest electric motorcycle. In the world. Only when you look at it, all thoughts of a traditional motorcycle get binned. So sure, it does come riding on two wheels but does so with one massive gap running through the motorcycle. And let’s not even talk about the riding position.
We won’t tease further. Here’s what we know about the coolest but strangest electric motorcycle concept we have seen yet. This is the WMC250EV from White Motorcycle Concepts, and this is how it plans to be the fastest electric motorcycle in the world…
What Is The White Motorcycle Concepts?
White Motorcycle Concepts is the brainchild of Robert “Rob” White, an engineer with 22 years of experience in motorsports, having worked with top-notch Formula One teams. He got to know the ins and outs of everything that goes fast like the Prodrive’s LMP1 prototypes, Aussie V8 Supercars, and Mercedes’ F1 car. And to make the world’s fastest electric motorcycle White Motorcycle Concepts has collaborated with several other experts to get a grant of 2.5 million pounds.
WMC’s website lists out collaboration with "RML Group (supporting pioneering battery technology), TotalSIM (computer fluid dynamics), and Ace Technologies (specializing in lightweight composites)" all of which have gone into the making of the WMC250EV.
Introducing The Motorcycle With The Hole: WMC250EV
So let’s first talk about the elephant in the room, the hole in the motorcycle’s middle. Called “V-Air”, it is a longitudinal duct at the center of the motorcycle and reduces drag by 70 percent, by forcing air through the bike rather than around it.
Now before taking a power drill to your motorcycle, remember this is possible only because this is an electric motorcycle and EV powertrains can be rather flexible in size and shape, as opposed to the traditional combustion engines that are fixed with the frame, and cannot have holes in or around them.
The electric mill in the WMC250EV sits right at the bottom and gives it a better center of gravity, and lets the motorcycle hug the ground all the better while it flies.
Another thing that White has put into this motorcycle comes inspired by his time at motorsports. And just like the F1 cars, there is energy restoration that comes from regenerative braking. The key thing about this is that in the WMC250EV, the front wheel is connected to the drivetrain. This is called “D-Drive” where two 20kW motors power the front wheel, making this motorcycle a two-wheel drive.
Another two 30kW motors go to powering the rear wheel, so you get 100kW on a motorcycle that weighs 300 kilos, for a horsepower reading of 134. Pretty mind-blowing, right?
But why did White Motorcycle Concepts create the WMC250EV? According to AutoBlog, Rob White says, “If you want to demonstrate to the rest of the world that you’ve just invented a new aerodynamic concept that means you can go faster for a given power, the best thing to do is go as fast you can”. So they are.
Got To Hug The WMC250EV
Well, even if you don’t want to, the rider has to, because to make it fast, the WMC250EV has a rider position akin to a toddler. The rider lays flat on the bike, with his arms and legs almost hugging it, and his face protected behind the windshield. The idea is to meld the rider with the motorcycle to reduce drag and let the WMC250EV rise to the challenge of speeds excess of 254 MPH.
So will they also get Valentino Rossie to challenge Max Biaggi, given their rivalry? After all, to keep calling itself the fastest electric motorcycle in the world, the WMC250EV from White Motorcycle Concepts has to break the record of the Voxan Wattman. Something they are more than ready to take on with the all-carbon-fiber body built over an aluminum billet chassis. Oh, and the suspension is the Multimatic DSSV damper tech, the one the Chevy Colorado ZR2 rides on. So you are definitely in safe but insanely fast hands. Or wheels.
Sources: RobbReport, WhiteMotorcycleConcepts, Autoblog