Honda presented its new electric motorcycle Motocompact, a model inspired by the new Motocompo produced between 1981 and 1983 which seeks to be an ally to those looking for comfortable and efficient transportation in the city.
The Honda Motocompacto presents variations on the Motocompo of the 80s, which was discontinued due to not reaching sales goals, although it remains essentially the same: a portable and foldable motorcycle designed to facilitate movement in urban environments.
The Japanese brand has sown the first seed of a portable motorcycle with the Motocompo, which is in the market along with a Honda City whose trunk is designed especially for the motorcycleand now after 40 years they are reaping the fruits.
Design
The handlebars and the seat, the footpegs and the wheels of the Motocompacto are retractable allowing it to be carried more comfortably. Folded it measures 74.2 cm long, 53.5 long and 9.4 wide with a total weight of 18.7 kilos and it has a handle to be carried as a briefcase… A briefcase that weighs almost 20 kilos.
Honda Motocompacto: electric motor
The data on autonomy leaves some 19.3 approved kilometers and a charge that takes 3.5 hours to complete one hundred percent. Its power of 490 W allows it to reach a speed of 25 km/h maximum. This means that it is in the same category as standing electric scooters or electric skateboards, with no license or registration required.
The rear wheel is very unique because it is not motorized but instead This new Honda model is front-wheel drive with an electric motor mounted on the front wheel hub leaving the rear to take care of braking with a cable-actuated drum.
It also has a The LED screen with basic information where the cell phone can be connected through an application where you can control the light intensity as well as the different driving modes.
The design is quite minimalistic. The seat and handlebars can be brown or black while the “briefcase” is white but adjustable. from Honda they emphasize that it is a “perfect space for decals and personal designs“.
Jane Nakagawa, Vice President of the Research and Development Department of Honda Motor Co. Inc of the United States said: “The Motocompacto is a unique product from Honda – a fun, innovative and unexpected part of our wider electrification strategy. Sold alongside our new all-electric SUV, the Motocompacto supports our carbon neutrality goal by helping customers end-to-end zero-emission transportation..
Nick Ziraldo, project leader, added: “The Motocompacto is easy to use and fun to ride, but it’s also designed with safety and durability in mind. It uses a strong heat-treated aluminum frame, a bright LED headlight that has a taillight and side reflector.
The Motocompacto may not match the performance or range of the Motocompo of the 1980s, but it sacrifices those aspects to solve the problems that led to the failure of the original bike. Although at the time the idea of a motorcycle that could be stored in the car was smart, The Motocompo is uncomfortably big and heavy for that purpose and its gasoline engine also means the inevitable smells. in a limited space with the risk of oil stains.
Price
From Honda they confirmed that the sales of Motocompact It will launch in November with a price tag of $995 and will initially be limited to the US market.
He was born in 1981 and is a sports journalist who graduated from DeporTEA in 2001. Since March 2004, when he joined Motorpress Argentina, he has fully dedicated himself to the world of motorcycles.
At Motorpress Argentina he started creating content for the “Autos” and “TC 2000” channels of the Terra Argentina portal and then held various positions in all the publisher’s special publications: Auto Test, Auto Plus , La Moto, Transporte Mundial and Maxi Tuning.
In 2007 and 2008 he was a New Products Judge at SEMA in Las Vegas (USA). And then he also collaborated with other magazines in the sector. In addition, he is the editor of the various scale car and motorcycle collections he has created for Random Penguin House.
Since the beginning of 2018 he is the Content Director of digital media at Motorpress Argentina.
