Is Tesla the missing link | Tesla Superchargers and motorcycles
The automotive brand is helping to speed up electric vehicle uptake with Tesla Superchargers for all vehicles
TESLA has announced an interesting pilot scheme that could help speed up the use of electric vehicles in Europe, with universal charging for all vehicles being trialled.
While Tesla isn’t totally down with building an electric motorcycle just yet – although it has been talked about, lots! – they might be throwing electric bikers a helping hand, with the introduction of a pilot scheme in Europe.
The general idea is that instead of the Tesla Supercharger stations being purely reserved for those driving a Tesla electric car, the charging ports will be open to all-electric vehicles. Including bikes.
It seems that Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been musing about the idea for a while now, although he’s testing the water with this small-scale trial before diving right in. The pilot, launched at the tail end of last year, is ongoing in France, The Netherlands, and Norway. And should you visit those countries, you can only participate and charge your non-Tesla vehicle if you are from those countries plus Belgium and Germany. Small scale it might be in comparison to the current 30,000 or more Tesla Supercharger stations globally. But it’s a significant and helpful step.
There is also currently only a small group of vehicles able to take up the option of bagging some electricity courtesy of Mr. Musk, with BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen-group cars reportedly already on board.
Can electric motorcycles use the Tesla Superchargers?
Errr, no, not yet – we don’t think. We can’t find any information to say that can, but that is not really the point of it all. Once Tesla, and possibly the other EV makers above, get their head around this sharing is caring vibe, there isn’t any reason it can’t be pointed at an electric vehicle with fewer wheels.
Granted electric motorcycles have much smaller, less power-hungry batteries, but the Supercharger can be programmed to accommodate this, taking that smaller size into account. While 200-miles in 15-mins might be a bit much for your average electric two-wheeler, halving the average from the current half an hour to 45-minutes would be a massive step in helping the electric motorcycle concept along.
Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
