A D-I-Y electric/solar bike for you!

Techtree News Staff, Sep 30, 2008 1749 hrs IST

Prometheus LLC's first attempt at a solar-powered bike. This might be the ultimate tree-hugging technology ever.

Electric cars and bikes have become mainstream technology today. No one blinks when they see an electric bike speeding along in the city. However, for the extreme eco-conscious bikers, even these so-called eco-friendly bikes leave a slight dent in their minds. Why, you may ask. The reason is simple. You have to charge these bikes after all! And the power for charging these comes from that plug point in your garage, which, in turn, uses power generated by burning fossil fuels (mostly!). Ok, that might sound a tad far-fetched, but well, it's the truth.

Enter the ubiquitous little solar panel. This might be the ultimate tree-hugging technology ever. Generate your own electricity using the power of the ever-shining Sun! The following is what you get if you cram a geeky, eco-conscious guy with access to solar panels and give him a bike to toy around with.

That's Prometheus LLC's first attempt at a solar-powered bike. While it may look a bit gaudy, it does its job pretty well. Based on a Kawasaki Ninja 250, this unnamed model packs in an unknown number of lithium -ion phosphate batteries rated at 4.6 kWh mated to a 10 HP Perm PMG 132 motor. The result is a 70mph top speed with a range of about 50 miles. If you're still looking for solar panels on the bike, I'm sorry, you won't find any. The panels come separately - so that you can generate electricity on your own for your bike.

Oh, and did we say that this bike is not for sale? If you want one, you'll have to make one. All instructions are in a do-it-yourself format at the Prometheus website.

Before you decide to take the plunge, make sure you have a nice bank balance, and in case you do finally manage to build it, get a full-face helmet as well so people don't recognize you as the guy with the ugliest bike in town.

Via: Engadget

USER COMMENTS

I would like to know more about this bike

by Dilip Thakkar, Sangli, on Sep 30, 2008 11:40 PM, Report abuse Reply

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