Confederate Motorcycles to partner with Zero for electric bike

Confederate Motorcycles, the American company behind bonkers bikes such as the Hellcat and P51 Combat Fighter, have announced a partnership with electric motorcycle manufacturer Zero Motorcycles.

The partnership means Confederate’s latest bike, the Combat Bomber, which costs $155,000 (£118,372), will be their last machine with an internal combustion engine.

Confederate President, Matt Chambers, told the LA Times, “We can’t go any further than this. We’ve hit the ceiling. This is it.” The Combat Bomber makes 150bhp and 165ftlb of torque.

TOP STORIES

• MotoGP: Rossi already in physio as Maverick flies solo
• Gallery: MCN 2017 adventure bike of the year
• Get 4 issues of MCN for just £1 #MCNWednesday
• MCN Fleet: How hard is it to pick up a Harley?
• Video: Marc Marquez on taking risks and winning races

The first electric bike to come from the two American companies will reportedly be a cruiser powered by twin Zero electric motors. Claimed power is set to be 175bhp, but that pales in comparison to the claimed torque figure. An incredible 290ftlb!

The move will also see the end of the Confederate name, with the company going under the banner of Curtiss Motorcycles going forward. The Curtiss name comes from Glenn Curtiss, a builder and racer who set numerous motorcycle speed records in the early 1900s.

The name change comes after the recent controversy in the US around the historical connections to the civil war with the Confederate name. There are nine complete motorcycles left in stock at Confederate, and they’l build 13 of the new Combat Bomber, before focusing completely on their electric future as Curtiss Motorcycles.

Have a browse for your next bike on MCN Bikes For Sale website or use the MCN’s Bikes For Sale App.