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I see Motorcycling Australia has just approved the Varg for competition use in Australia, although not yet for national level events. They are still working on how to set up parity for the classes at national events.
It’s all good till they start winning everything.
The electric bike apocalypse?
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As many, I was skeptical on the Varg being real, but now that they are showing up more and more and I had the chance to test ride one, I'm starting to think if the cautious approach by the traditional brands (KTM in primis) is correct.
I have no idea if the 18.000 preorders they reported are a significant number, but it looks like Stark is at least filling a big slice of the currently possible electric marketshare.
If they can quickly deliver units, it will not be so easy for the competitors to outnumber them as there could be not enough additional customer for this to happen
Factory pros will still ride existing brands, if slower riders start beating them, it will change the industry.
After riding one on a flat turn track, I'm plotting how to convince my fiance to get on board with a 2nd new bike.
Because you can adjust it to 10hp mode and she can ride it.
It’s like you are buying her a new bike. 😉
Well I did get a grom for her to learn to ride on and she struggled with the clutch, so now I have my jumping off point...
No clutch, adjustable power, brakes on the handlebars. Available in white to match any clothing you want to wear.
That’s not what happened with four strokes.
Electric bikes are coming whether you like it or not.
Yes electric bikes are coming, but don't expect them to be allowed in the top pro championships anytime soon.
The big manufacturers had the rules changed to be biased towards 4 strokes and against 2 strokes, they will do the same with electric.
Personally I would allow electric in an "Open" class, with any capacity 2stroke or 4 stroke, then you could see how 80hp electric compares to 80hp 2s & 4s.
Well, there are no 80hp 2 or 4 strokes…. At least not in terms of production bikes.
I agree that Ktm Honda yam kawi will do everything in their power to stop e bikes competing in the 250 450 Mxgp and AMA series. But you can’t stop the public from buying Stark’s over their own products. If sales of traditional powered mx bikes collapses in favour of the stark, we’ll see how quickly the old guard can respond.
Starks will take over the amateur racing. No one likes to get beat because the bike is better so they will all start buying them.
Then when riders like A Ray start smoking factory riders at the local tracks the change will come very very fast to Pro racing and manufacturers.
There really is no other option but to conform to a better tech bike that is easier to ride faster.
*insert “I ride for the sound bro”.
I think electrics will come to competition pretty fast, I mean they're already scoring podiums and top 6 in UK and France championships in a handful of races.
Sure AMA and MXGP will take more time but once electrics become regular podium contenders in more national championships, and when they will also represent a significant volume of sales (compared to top of the line 450s) then it will be hard to keep them away in what is supposed to be the pinnacle of the sport.
On the other hand, the ICE bikes will stick around for a long time, it doesn't really matter if electrics become faster, obviously there are lots of competitions where electrics are clearly not ready (anything with extensive riding time, like some Enduros, rally raids and so on). Also appreciating something new doesn't mean you need to ditch everything you've loved before, a large part of MX enthousiasts, amateurs and some pros will stick to ICE, wether it's because electrics are not practical for their use, or because they cannot ride without the noise..., or because it's fun to ride all sorts of bikes... and they wanna keep riding while their electric bike is charging!
If you read what I said , I was talking about an "Open" class, not a 450 / 250 class, any manufacturer could quite easily build an 80hp 2stroke or 4 stroke if that was required to keep up with a Stark or other electric bike.
Although we haven't yet seen a stark in a pro race , only some podiums & top ten finishes in amateur races, so talk of them "taking over" is a bit premature.
I definitely don't see them taking over amateur racing for a long time , as cost is a bigger issue than in pro racing.
To do amateur racing with one of these I would want a spare battery ($7500) and a good generator ($3000) on top of the price of the Stark ($15000), that's a cost a lot of people won't entertain.
Thomas Do on the Stark got podiums in main events day 2 and 3 at Arenacross UK festival, it's a pro event.
Do You have a second ICE engine or bike? Other than not having enough time to charge between a set of motos, A second battery is not as likely to be needed as a spare ICE engine would be.
If the performance levels are that much greater, it is still a relatively small increase in cost.
To get an ICE bike to have the same peak HP ,You will spend a bunch on mods and race gas along with having a timebomb that requires more $$ and parts to keep going.
And like most things, the faster You want to go the more $$ You have to spend. If they start selling in even higher numbers, I really see the costs being able to come down in the long-term. If they also use the same parts to build other models.
Everytime I see a nex SXS being announced and the prices are higher and higher . I am blown away that they are selling so many. Polaris and Can Am now have many models that are over $40K. its just insane to me. And the average person who buys one spends close to half the MSRP in accessories according to dealership surveys.
I really hope that electric MX bikes can help bring the cost down in the long-term. say 5 to 8 years from now. As they become more common. And there is competition in the EMX space.
Pit Row
I wouldn't expect the electric bikes to bring down the price of other EMX bikes, in fact I expect the opposite - or status quo at best. I could see EMX bikes reducing sales of ICE bikes which could bring down the prices of those bikes due to supply and demand. I had the chance to ride a Stark Varg a month back on a MX track. Took a couple laps to get used to no foot back brake, but once I got comfortable with that I really liked the bike. I'd love to have one. I wouldn't sell my ICE bikes and I still plan to get a new ICE bike in 2024. But if I can come up with the $$, I'd love to add the Varg to my garage. It was fun as hell to ride and super easy to ride fast. 80 Hp would scare the hell out of me TBH. This bike will have its greatest advantage on the start of a race.
Thanks for the legit feedback SWAP, both pro and con. Having ridden an Alta and having a good understanding of the simplicity to ride an electric my only concern was battery life and the need to not have to buy and haul a generator to the track to make it through the day. Knowing SWAPs speed and track conditions here in SoCal it gave me assurance that I could make it through the day on a single charge it sounds. May have to give up a little on my last moto of the day but hell, I’m usually spent by that time anyway on the ICE. I’ll give that up for the lack of maintenance time that will be saved over the long haul. I see a Stark in my future once they are more readily available. Zingggg Zingggg!
Fast B rider on a Munn Racing Stark at Swan Pro Challenge and the Stark is not fair on the power in between jumps and out of turns. They look good in person, but the lack of sound and the instant power and no shift points just changes sport. Theyll need their own class like the PW Electric.
I would absolutely plan on bringing a generator with you, or setting up a battery bank in your van if you have one. I don't think it's realistic for most people to go through the entire day on a single charge unless you are riding a very hard packed track or are at beginner skill level based on my experience.
Entertaining follow-up video by Swap.
Live first impressions from a pro rider on the Varg: "holy shit". Summed up succinctly when he got off the bike: "So what did you think ?" "Fuck"
As far as pricing. I meant as there are more bikes sharing the same components a base model could be priced way lower. Since it will cost the manufacture much less to make. And with just about every new tech item , the models years down the road are less expensive and much better.
Example. Stark starts to manufacture the E drivetrain for other brands and they all used the same parts. They go from making 1000's of an item to 100,000's of an item. Cost per part comes down since tooling costs and engineering costs are spread over the overall number of units made. If They can use the most expensive parts in a wide range of bikes. The cost will come down to build those parts.And then When You have a company like Honda who makes cars,ATV's ,etc. If they could use those same motor and controller setups and minimize the number of unique drivetrain parts their cost per bike comes down. So then they can sell for less than the other guys. Say Honda wants to dominate the E powertrain world. They price their's cheaper since they can and still make money. Forcing the others to also price lower, until they get to the point that buying a Honda motor control and battery is the only way they can compete .
Yah it could go the other way and companies will just make a ton of money since the vehicles themselves will cost less to build. But the history of computers, big TV's, washing machines, refrigerators, VCR's , and many many other things have had a similar price drop.
I think that in raw materials the Varg costs about 500 euros. The rest is tooling,engineering, labor, and making those materials into a finished bike. All of which are spread out over the number of units built.
Thanks for that. I am not a beginner and know Swaps speed. If he said he did a warm up moto, two additional motos, then some fooling around on a single charge and was being truthful that would be a very similar day for me. Motos is a loose term on a practice day so I’m guessing 8 to 10 laps on Fox main as an example of said moto since that where they were.
Fair enough, I'm surprised he was able to go that long but maybe updates have been made since I rode one earlier this year. At any rate, if you decided to buy one I would go into it assuming that you may need to get a generator as well, just to avoid any potential disappointment down the road. I think in general people should probably budget for a generator along with the bike so they aren't blindsided by needing one at some point is all.
Another great review to add to the pile.
https://dirtbikemagazine.com/testing-the-stark-var-electric-bike-the-wr…
Wasn't a bad guess...
I tried to pick one up off the stand at a dealer last week. It is heavy!
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