… the consumer demand test.
Series production of BMW’s battery-electric BMW C evolution maxi-scooter has now begun at the company’s Berlin plant. The electric scooter — which is BMW’s first to be mass produced — began development back in 2011, as the BMW E-Scooter concept.
The storage modules used in the BMW C Evolution are, interestingly, the same as those used in the i3 — as such, these will be supplied by BMW’s plant in Dingolfing.
Image Credit: BMW
Speaking about the beginning of series production, Plant Manager Dr Marc Sielemann stated: “We are very proud to herald the launch of electric vehicles in the two-wheeler segment, the BMW Group here in Berlin. We anchor the topic of electric mobility production in Berlin BMW plant. In addition, the BMW C evolution fits perfectly into the activities of the showcase region for electric mobility Berlin-Brandenburg.”
The press release from BMW provides more:
The C evolution is powered by a drivetrain swing arm with liquid-cooled permanent magnet synchronous motor via a toothed belt and ring gearing. The rated power output is 11 kW (15 hp), with a peak output of 35 kW (47 hp). This enables the C evolution to achieve a top speed of 120 km/h (75 mph, electronically limited) and gives it better acceleration than some maxi-scooters powered by engines with displacements of 600 cc or more.
The 8 kWh air-cooled lithium-ion high-voltage battery allows the two-wheeler to cover a range of up to 100 kilometers (62 miles) before it needs to be charged from any domestic mains supply. When plugged in to a standard 220V domestic socket with a 12A charge current, recharging fully from empty takes around 4 hours (with 220V / 16A = 3 h).
Interesting take on an electric scooter. I’m not too convinced that it’ll be commercially successful, though. I guess that we’ll just have to wait and see. Not that long off now.
Image credit for images in gallery at top: Zachary Shahan / EV Obsession / CleanTechnica (CC BY-SA license)
BMW C Evolution Electric Scooter Is Ready For The Big Test was originally published on EV Obsession.
