2017 BMW C evolution
While the most recent incarnation of BMW’s electric
scooter was presented to the motorcycle press at Intermot in Germany, it was
actually announced at the Mondial de L’Automobile, in Paris
a week. This certainly suggests what market the Bavarian motoring
giant are aiming for with this scooter; urban mobility.
The new version of the BMW C evolution scooter will
be available in two variants in future – the Long Range version and the
European version, the latter meeting requirements for the A1 driving licence.
For the good of electric scooters of
any marque, these new versions of their electric scooters feature a new
generation of batteries. These are also used in the current BMW i3 car and so
the range has been significantly extended, something which has always been an
issue for electric scooters.
BMW Motorrad first moved into the field of electric
mobility in 2012 with the C evolution e-scooter. These latest versions now
offer both increased performance and models that meet the requirements for the
A1 driving licence.
They both also feature the new generation of
batteries that have a cell capacity of 94 Ah, which in turn mean the scooters
have a range of 160 and 100 kilometres for the Long Range
and European respectively. Of course that won’t be at full throttle, but it
does make these a practical option.
The new C evolution Long Range offers a continuous
output of 26 hp, which is 11 hp more than its predecessor, and
the top speed is an electronically limited 129 km/h. The less powerful A1 driving licence version
has an output of 11 kW to meet with EU regulations and produces a top
speed of 120 km/h.
Other changes include new paint finish options, a
new graphic has also been added to the centre tunnel trim of the Long Range
version, a new charge cable with a smaller diameter is now included as standard
and new optional accessories such as the smartphone cradle are also available.
As for the
price, the current RRP for a C evolution scooter is from £ 13,500 so it’s not a
cheap way to go green. Hopefully therefore, this may set a benchmark for other manufacturers of
electric scooters to up their game and develop a scooter with an even more
practical range before too long, at an affordable price.
