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That my friend is what I mean by perfect dirt.
Ha ha nah no lights on my track, and I live a fair way from Perth.
But yes I will definitely try a battery full at a low regen setting, I'll try 55hp and 20% regen and see how that goes. Should be a good test of whether that makes a difference. Hopefully try tomorrow and will let you know.
Shoot one thing I forgot to ask you, how much do you weigh? Reason I ask is that makes a huge difference on my stark. So I can get the range I mentioned above. But when my friend who is somewhat faster than me, but he weighs roughly 260, whereas I weigh 150. He kills the battery so much faster then I do, not as bad as you say but still much closer to your results then mine.
Makes me think there is something wrong for certain. Another backup to what I am saying is there are 2 guys in the +50A class which is a very competitive class, my friend I mentioned above is in this class too. Their races are 1:45 minute harescrambles. Those 2 guys usually have between 10-25% battery left at the end depending on conditions.
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Ummmmm aren't all dirt bikes just toys? 😉
Here they come....
Can you share a video of your track and you riding it? Like you said everyone’s version of what is “proper sand” varies so would be good to see what you are dealing with
Honest question, does the bike's phone show your entire last ride in GPS and show the battery rates? I just don't get why guys argue on here if you could easily just show a pic of your last rides and compare. Not that I doubt you, but providing the maps with battery rates would be pretty cool. Then maybe other Stark riders could post theirs and compare.
That outfit fits you nicely.
Not looking for an argument but thinking if something was causing an abnormal electrical load with his sled that could account for both reduced battery run time and extra heat causing the thermal trigger.
Oh course I am sure that is impossible.
Sounds like its mostly a cooling issue. Not that it is not still an issue . If the battery is still above 50% charge and power drops after 10 minutes. There is still a lot of life left in the battery. Reducing the regen sounds like it should help with the heat . From my simple understanding of regen , it would give the motor and battery a little rest with less. When You put power into or take it out of a battery it creates heat. And heat creates resistance.
I would love to see videos of the track, mostly because I enjoy seeing the amazing private tracks that people have. But it could also help somebody notice something that may help. Most likely though it will open you up to people being critical of something. Maybe some sort of info from the phone that charts the power and heat , if that is something it keeps track of might be more helpful in figuring out what is different from the people who get a longer runtime.
Hope You are able to get something figured out. At least the battery is not at 15 or 20% after 10 minutes. So there has to be something that You can do. Have you tried watching video of Yourself riding and see if You are just spinning the wheel a ton more than it feels like?
I figured that sand would be the area they were not as strong in. Perhaps a video would also help potential buyers see what type of sand the Varg will NOT work well in too? Hopefully its something simple that can be fixed.
I don't think anyones lying(broadly speaking) when I hear all these battery experiences. I'm a vet b rider also and I couldn't imagine killing a battery in 10 minutes.This going off my experience of riding "deep sand"(liesure time) on my friends varg.
I bet if people compared how much gas they use in ice bikes, they would end up with very different #'s. There are so many factors between rider weight, riding style, then with the electric HP and regen settings. Add in peoples differents definitions of sand, loam, hardpack...
I thought the varg was awesome, but liking sand tracks and long motos I know its not for me. Pick the right tool for the right job.
It seems like heat is the primary issue here. He said he gets a reduced power output and will sometimes have over 50% of the battery life left. Meaning that the software is limiting the power output because of the heat, not because of a lack of power stored.
It sounds like as far as Stark could tell when they looked at the available Data they think it is OK. I wonder if there is something that could be increasing the resistance and causing heat, that would not be able to be remotely diagnosed. Some sort of physical thing that would be difficult to see via data.
I hope for the sake of the OP, that it is some sort of bug that can be fixed. I figured there would be some strange bugs that may pop up as people learn the little things that can go wrong , or settings that are not going to work in certain conditions, etc. like any different type of thing has when it gets into the hands of people who did not build it . And I hope that it is just that. It might be that electrics will just not work well in his specific use. I hope that is not the case for him though. It would suck to have the bike, and love it. But have the runtime so abnormally short.
I feel your pain. I sold my 10yr old 08 Big Bore Honda 490 holeshot at will cheater bike for a new KTM sans test ride and havn’t won a race or pulled a holeshot since. Hope you figure it out, I’ll probably just buy another Honda but not after test riding it against a 350. We both should’ve known
Did you just assume a role for your bikes!?
When Jeff Walker tested it, he burnt through 20% in less than 5min on 80hp on a hard packed track. Sand track you can cut it in half. 15% at 60hp not unreasonable. That's 90% in 30min on hard packed. 15-20min on sand.
Lines up pretty well with what I have seen and what Stark says.
Had a c rider friend running his some weeks ago. More hard than soft track. Got 2 20min session then it was down on power. Tracks had some smaller incline but nothing crazy.
Of course tire choice, track elevation, rider weight and riding style can easily make up 20-30% difference.
As mentioned, I don't have V2G in my E-tron, and for sure not in my race van. If I did, I would consider them.
Your second paragraph gave me flashbacks to the first generation Kawazuki 250Fs.
Pit Row
I think we all just have to accept the fact that battery technology isn't quite there yet. Yes, the motor technology is there. The performance you get is insane, especially considering the size. Electric motors are superior to gas engines in this regard. It makes sense, as internal combustion engines have been around for over 200 years.
I don't see much of a performance increase out of electric motors, they are almost at the top of their performance. Frankly, they don't need to be faster either.
However, what DOES need to improve is battery technology. Everyone can agree that the Stark would be a much better motorcycle if it can be ridden longer and charged quicker. We will get there, especially considering the big push for electric vehicles. I'm excited for that future when electric vehicles will last just as long as gas engines and charge up just as quick.
1: all mx bikes are toys.
2: your needs are very specific, therefore, irrelevant to 99.9% of others.
I weigh around 95kg so I new this was going to increase battery usage a bit. I'm willing to accept my battery range given all my circumstances. If I could go out and get 20 mins solid at any hp and regen setting I wanted then I'd be ok with that. I would like longer because I hear these stories of how long other people get but it is what it is.
Sorry i don't actually have any video of me riding my track and very few photos, 99% of the time I am riding on my own. My profile pic is from my track so you may see a bit on that. I will take some photos of the dirt and post them.
Wasn't Emig surprised about the battery drain when he rode one?
Branch Stark Vargians out in full force here
It is very fine powdery sand.
I retract my first statement in this thread now knowing that info. From my testing on my Stark, a persons body weight has a big effect on battery range.
Looks like its time for me to loose some weight 🤣
Do you think running a scoop tyre would help or hurt battery life? On one side it will get more traction and probably create more load but on the other it will lessen wheel spin which may help.
"I wonder if there is something that could be increasing the resistance and causing heat, that would not be able to be remotely diagnosed. Some sort of physical thing that would be difficult to see via data."
Wasn't there issues with Dunlop tires rubbing on the swingarm because they had a larger diameter than the Pirelli?
Totally off topic…
Do you ride at Southern Cross? Is the MX track at Norseman still open?
That looks like beach sand. The front tire is plowing the whole time.
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