When news comes through of a new electric motorcycle coming to market, there is still a distinct lack of excitement, but with the name Erik Buell involved, suddenly everyone is pricking up their ears. It’s news to nobody that unlike in the car world, electric power is just not taking off on two-wheels and it hasn’t been for a lack of serious effort and investment from many of the biggest businesses in the game. But Fuell is a different kind of company, joining Buell is a wealthy French entrepreneur, as well as the current boss of the Scuderia Ferrari F1 team, Frédéric Vasseur. Their plan is simply to succeed where others have failed and the bike they intend to bring to market is the Fuell Fllow, a futuristic urban warrior, with an eye-watering 750nm of torque at the rear wheel.
In the last half-century of the motorcycle industry, few people have as interesting a story as American racer, engineer and AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer, Erik Buell. Born in Pittsburgh in 1950, his career has spanned the golden age of two-wheels, racing on the dirt and road as he studied engineering by day, landing a plum gig at Harley-Davidson, and always with a side project or two as he added his innovators touch to everything he could get his hands on. He left HD and founded the Buell Motorcycle Company, which would go on to produce nearly 150,000 motorcycles, and his dream of creating the first true American sportbike for the 21st century even included a stint in the World Super Bike paddock.
And yet despite all of these achievements that would have most mere mortals ready for a comfortable retirement, Buell has never been seen as a complete success, and nobody appears to feel that more than the man himself. So, when he launched his Electric Vehicle company called Fuell in 2019, it felt like this was the engineer’s final attempt to top the industry and cement his legacy in stone. In Francois Terny he’s added to his team someone with the ability to bring in the big money and Frédéric Vasseur not only runs the Ferrari F1 team, but his personal company built the original Formula E electric race cars, giving them an advantage when it comes to volts.
A prototype of the Fuell Fllow was built, heavily tested and displayed and the company launched an Indiegogo campaign page to take deposits and drum up sales. Then Covid-19 hit and with the supply chain thrown into chaos, things went quite on the Fllow as the company focussed on sales of their e-bikes, a popular product during the pandemic. Now deposits are being taken again, for a 2024 delivery and the company has an interesting offer. Put down a $US200 reservation deposit now and get a $2000 discount on the $US11,995 MSRP, an exclusive FUELL x VELDT luxury carbon helmet ($1,060 retail value), and be first in line to get your Fllow.
So, now you know the price and the back story, what exactly will you get if and when your Fuell Fllow is delivered to your door (Shipping to US/Canada/EU is included)? It all starts with a new frame, an area where Buell’s reputation is as good as any, and the man himself tells us, “It is the most radically innovative chassis design I’ve ever done, and from steering head to rear wheel, it is filled with new design concepts that no one has done before.” To support this main structure you get USD forks, with a decent sized single brake disc at the front end, and a single-sided swingarm with a side-mounted mono-shock at the rear.
The all-important motor is mounted in the rear hub and is rated at 47bhp, but like all things electric it’s the torque figure that counts and it pumps out an insane 750nm. The weight matches the bike’s mid-size dimensions at 180kg, which allows you to sprint from 0-100km in 3.5 seconds and hit a top speed of around 140km/h which is electronically limited. That’s plenty fast enough to get out on the highway and be comfortable, and the acceleration means you’re going to be winning the traffic light GP around the urban environment in which the Fllow is intended to live.
The power comes from a 10Kwh battery, but it is the charging times that really set the cat amongst the pigeons. Plug into a CCS fast charger and you can charge your Fllow from 0-100% in under 30 minutes, or top up from 20-90% in less than 15 minutes. Yes, it’s still longer than pouring gasoline into your standard bike, but then who has a fuel bowser at home and the office, as well as a growing infrastructure of charging stations around the world? For those with range anxiety, you get an urban range of more than 150miles/240km, which instantly will have many saying that’s not enough while forgetting that the average American only commutes 15 miles a day.
The looks are for you to decide, but there is plenty of tech to play with too, regenerative braking helps you extend the range, there are two rider modes including the fun-filled ‘audacious’ setting, and you get adjustable traction control and ABS. The interactive dash has a host of apps for navigation, charging, telecommunications and much more, and the safety gear is impressive with front and rear collision warning, blind spot detection and a walk and reverse assist mode. Throw in keyless ignition and a generous 50 litres of storage space and the recipe is there for one hell of an urban assault vehicle. The caveat is this, Buell has a history of both great success and immense failure, so only you can decide if you’re ready to go with the Fllow.
[ Fuell ]