The long-awaited SONDORS Metacycle electric motorcycle is now beginning deliveries nationwide in the US, according to the latest update from the company.
The news follows a rocky rollout for the popular electric motorcycle, which debuted in early 2021 with a $5,000 introductory price tag.
The bike wowed new riders by offering a top speed of 80 mph (130 km/h) and a range of 80 miles (130 km), all for a price that no other US-bound electric motorcycle had ever approached.
That made it one of the first low-cost yet highway capable electric motorcycles built for the US market.
Hype grew for the new commuter e-moto, but the timeline for delivery grew with it.
Now the company has announced that not only are deliveries back on track, but they have expanded from delivering to just local California reservation holders to beginning nationwide deliveries.
Along with the announcement, SONDORS shared images of dozens of Arctic White Metacycles lined up for delivery. The Arctic White colorway is the last of the three versions of the bike thought to be imported to the US, which had originally left some early reservation holders scratching their heads and wondering when their motorcycles would arrive.
Both the original Naked Silver and Supermassive Black colorways have already been spotted in the country.
Now it appears that SONDORS has stock of all three versions of the Metacycle stateside, though exact numbers are unclear.
The company also appears to be doing a better job updating customers and communicating with the e-bike market in general, based on an increasing number of blog posts on the SONDORS site.
The SONDORS Metacycles currently being delivered were part of the $5,000 pre-order offer, though riders must still pay several hundred dollars in additional delivery fees that vary based on their location.
The current version of the Metacycle that is available for reservation is now priced at $6,500.
More than just the bike’s price has changed along the way. Throughout the lengthy development process, company founder and CEO Storm Sondors often surprised reservation holders with updates to the bike.
Some changes seemed to improve the overall design, such as a more comfortable saddle and offerings of future accessories to fill that front cavity, including a faster charger, a range extender battery, and a storage box.
Other changes were often seen as sacrifices, such as the battery’s quick-release design being changed into a several minute process that requires additional tools and the removal of ABS braking on future generation models of the Metacycle.
The bike’s performance and tech specs also changed over time, with the weight increasing by around 50% and the top speed of 80 mph (130 km/h) becoming a non-sustained top speed that was reachable only for brief spurts when engaging the temporary sport mode.
Echoing the words of hydrogen critics everywhere, Mahle Chairman Arnd Franz says that building out a hydrogen infrastructure won’t be possible without “blue” H made from fossil fuels.
With that in mind, I don’t want to misrepresent the words of the esteemed Mr. Franz, who claims to be bullish on H’s prospects as a fuel. What I intend to do here, then, is shine a light on the space between Franz’ lines, read whatever’s in there, and then ask if you see what I see.
“We can’t achieve any CO2 emission reductions if you use natural gas or any other fossil sources to produce hydrogen,” Franz is quoted saying. “Today, the overwhelming portion of hydrogen production worldwide is around 90 million tons. That number is going to go up to 130 million tons until 2030. Currently, we have a flourishing and growing portion of that being more sustainable. By more sustainable, I mean blue and, eventually, green hydrogen. In our opinion, [blue hydrogen production is needed] to get the infrastructure going in order to get the ecosystem.”
I read that as saying that, today, there are no carbon emissions reduction benefits from using hydrogen as a fuel, because the overwhelming majority of those 90 million tons is being produced by natural gas and fossil fuels.
What’s more, everyone involved seems to trying to justify that with claims that fossil-generated hydrogen is some kind of “necessary evil” (my words) to build out a viable H ecosystem. See if you hear it, too.
“We will fail [with hydrogen technology] if we don’t use blue hydrogen,” Franz clarified. “Right now, hydrogen is produced from fossil sources with carbon capture, meaning we don’t let the carbon reach the atmosphere. Eventually, we need to get to wind and solar as the sources of energy to make hydrogen, and we believe the US has a really impressive program [thanks to] subsidies from the Inflation Reduction Act.”
He was right then, and he’s still right now. “It’s one thing to have the technology and another thing for the technology to be viable,” Vlaskamp told the magazine Expansión (translated from Spanish). “Green hydrogen is not available for transportation and there is no point in switching from diesel to hydrogen if the energy source is not sustainable.”
The UAW union’s Stellantis Council met yesterday to discuss the beleaguered carmaker’s “ongoing failure” to honor the agreement that ended the 2023 labor strike, and their latest union memo doesn’t pull many punches.
In an email sent out by the UAW earlier today (received at 4:55PM CST), UAW President Shawn Fain wrote, “For years, the company picked us off plant-by-plant and we lacked the will and the means to fight back. Today is different. Because we stood together and demanded the right to strike over job security—product commitment—we have the tools to fight back and win … We unanimously recommend to the membership that every UAW worker at Stellantis prepare for a fight, and we all get ready to vote YES to authorize a strike at Stellantis.”
Kia promises the new EV9 GT will have “enormous power,” but that’s not all. For the first time, the Kia EV9 GT was caught with an active spoiler, giving us a sneak peek at potential new upgrades.
The brand’s first three-row electric SUV is already making its presence known in the US, helping push Kia to back-to-back record sales months. Meanwhile, a more powerful, sporty variant is on the way.
Kia confirmed the EV9 GT will top off the electric SUV’s lineup in April. Packing “enormous power,” the high-performance GT model can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph (0 to 100 km/h) in 4 secs.
With a “high-output” dual-motor (AWD) system, the EV9 GT can quickly pick up speed despite weighing over 5,000 lbs.
Kia also equipped it with other high-performance features, such as a reinforced suspension and electronic braking system, for better control and stability.
We’ve already caught a glimpse of the performance electric SUV out testing, revealing aggressive new bumpers and wheels. Now, a new design feature has been spotted.
Kia EV9 GT could come with an active rear spoiler
The latest video from HealerTV shows the EV9 GT with what appears to be an active spoiler. As the reporter noted, it could be similar to the one spotted on the Genesis GV70 Magma.
Tesla’s Model X also used to come with an active spoiler until it was dropped a few years back. Although the GT model was spotted with one, Kia could just be testing new features, so don’t get too excited yet.
Earlier this week, a video from HealerTV showed the front row of the EV9 GT, comparing it to the current GT-Line model.
Several differences can be immediately noticed, including a more aggressive, all-black design with a yellow stripe down the center of the seat.
Kia is set to launch the EV9 GT in early 2025. It will rival other performance SUVs like the Tesla Model X Plaid.
Although prices have yet to be confirmed, the GT model is expected to sit above the current GT-Line at $73,900. In comparison, Tesla’s Model X Plaid starts at $94,990 and can sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 secs.
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