Quantya Strada - my test ride

The "V is for Voltage" forums have been a wonderful resource for me. Not only have I learned a tremendous amount about EVs, but have also made good friends here. I'd like to contribute back to this community with some info :)

Yesterday during my lunch break, I had the great opportunity of test-riding a Quantya Strada, as well as meeting Dario (CEO of Quantya US) and Claudio (CEO of Quantya Worldwide), while they were on tour of the West Coast.

LEVEL OF CUSTOMER ATTENTION
They even met up with me right at my office building. This is just one sign of the fantastic level of customer attention that Quantya provides. All of my communications with Quantya have been promptly and professionally answered. Dario is very knowledgeable, articulate, patient ... and genuinely interested in hearing my feedback about the Quantya Strada.

Of course, Dario and Claudio had other meetings in the area, but it was certainly very nice that they went a bit out of their way to personally demo the Strada to me. If the pre-purchase attention is any indication of post-purchase customer service, then I'm all for it!

THE SPECS (from http://www.quantya.us/ )
PERFORMANCE Max Speed 45 mph
Range about 2.5 hours
COMPONENTS Braking Front 260 mm
Rear 200 mm
Fork Marzocchi Shiver 40 mm
Suspension Sachs Single Shock
BATTERY Battery Type Quantya LiPo Energy
Capacity 40 Ah
Voltage 48V plus 12V accessory
BATTERY Battery Type Quantya LiPo Energy
Capacity 40 Ah
Voltage 48V plus 12V accessory
Recharge Time 2 hours(100%)
Discharge Cycles 1000 plus
Warranty 2 Years
MOTOR & GEARBOX Motor Type Axial Gap D.C. Brush
Power Peak power 8.5 kw
Torque Rated torque 31.5 Nm
ELECTRONICS Controller Programmable Quantya
Telemetric System
DIMENSIONS Weight 195 lbs
Wheelbase 51.6"
Seat Height 36"
Wheels Front: 19", Rear: 18"
OTHER Warranty 24 months

As you can probably see from the components, Quantya built a motorcycle with an electric motor, not merely stuck an electric motor into a beefed up bicycle or BMX.

THE PHOTOS
Here are some of the photos I took after my test-ride.






You might have noticed that the mirrors and front turn signals are missing. Dario mentioned that those parts are often broken off during demos or transporting between demos, so it's easier to just leave them off the demo unit.

There is a photo gallery with close-up photos at http://www.quantya.us/index.php?page=gallery&content=photos

As good as the Quantya Strada looks in the photos, it looks just as good in person. The fit and finish is truly high-quality. A lot of attention has been paid to every detail of this production motorcycle.

MY TEST RIDE
My 7-mile test-ride (all on pavement) with the Quantya Strada was a lot of fun. As most of you on the forum can pretty much imagine, the experience was very different from riding gas-powered motorcycles.

IT'S QUIET! THE INVISIBLE "DIRT BIKE"
As expected for an EV, even when the Quantya Strada is turned "on," it's silent... which is no surprise for forumites. I must say that I enjoyed openly riding the Strada along the Bellevue Golf Club premises and none of the normally fussy golfers minded that a "dirt bike" was zipping around... they really didn't even notice me. Of course, I stayed on the pavement. Attitudes may have changed if I did venture onto the greens. :P

I also rode through the affluent residential areas neighboring the golf course. None of the residents out in their front yards minded that I was riding a "dirt bike" into their secluded cul-de-sacs. In fact, no one even realized I was there because the Strada was so quiet. A couple of resident joggers looked at me curiously, but didn't seem to object to my riding a "dirt bike" through their neighborhood.

I can easily see how the Quantya lack of noise emission opens up opportunities to ride in areas that would normally frown upon motorcycles, especially "dirt bikes" which are often associated with lots of noise and exhaust fumes.

NO SMELL
Typical of EVs, there was no foul odor of exhaust. Forumites already know this. :)

NO VIBRATION
Also missing from the experience was any vibrations from the non-existent ICE. The only vibrations coming up through the grips and seat were from the texture of the road surface transmitted up through the knobby tires, etc. Forumites already know this too. :)

PERFORMANCE
Typical of EVs, the Strada delivers torque as soon as you crack open the throttle. Dario mentioned that he can tune the performance curve to the rider's preference so if you want even more torque (can you say instant wheelies?), he can set up the Strada accordingly.

Dario can also adjust the limit on the speed governer. The demo Strada was set up for 40 MPH maximum, and pulled energetically to that max regardless of whether I was zooming along on a gentle incline or climbing up moderately steep hills (no truly steep hills were around).

Dario estimates that the range would be approximately 25 miles or so.

FOR MY DAILY COMMUTE
For me, I'd be riding the Strada for my daily commute... and for fun zipping around locally. My commute is 20 miles round trip mostly through residential neighborhoods, meaning stop signs and stoplights, as well as plenty of speed bumps. There are some hills and open stretches with 35 MPH posted speed limit. The Strada's performance and range is fine for my needs.

RECHARGING
The single red connector for recharging the main and auxiliary power packs are hidden under a protective flap on the right side of the mini-fairing. The auxiliary power pack is for running the DOT-required headlight, brakelight, and turn signals. Dario said it normally takes a couple hours to bring a depleted charge up to about 80% or so.

My test-ride of 7 miles used only one of the eight LEDs on the charge meter which sits where the filler cap would be if the Strada had a gas tank. Basically, it meant that there was plenty of juice left :)

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of the recharger, which was the size of a large phonebook.

FIT
I'm 6' tall and 215 pounds on the gym scale. The Strada felt comfortable for my test-ride and I imagine that it'd feel fine for my commute. Here are a couple photos to give you an idea of the "fit."

WHAT I THINK
Based on my test ride with the Quantya Strada, it will be fine for my daily commute and for fun local rides whenever the mood strikes me.

To avoid unnecessary arguments, let me say that the Quantya Strada is not a direct replacement for gas-powered motorcycles, and does not claim to be. It is something very different. It is for you to decide how you value top-end speed, maximum range, zero noise emissions, zero exhaust emissions, ease of maintenance, "clean" fuel/energy, etc., as well as whether the $10,700 USD price tag is within your budget.

These are my initial thoughts ... I'll add more as people jog my memory with questions. Feel free to ask!