First Ride: Can-Am Pulse Electric Motorcycle

The dual-sport Origin has a city range of 90 miles and a combined range of 70 miles. Riding flat out at average speeds above 55 mph, I saw about 50 miles of range. That’s enough of a difference to notice it in day to day use. The off-road knobby tires probably didn’t help those numbers, either.

Both bikes come with the same 8.9-kWh battery pack. In the city, the Pulse delivers 11.2 miles per kWh. That slightly bests the efficiency of the nearest competitor, the Zero S ($14,995 and up) which delivers 154 miles of city range from a 14.4-kWh capacity battery and has an efficiency rating of 10.7 miles per kWh.

And, if you prefer retro styling, let’s not forget Maeving, which WIRED loves, with its new sportier city EV option, the RM1S, that has a 70 mph top speed and 80 miles max range, but with two important advantages: The batteries are removable and swappable, and it costs under $9,000—considerably less than the Can-Ams.

Both Can-Am bikes are equipped with a Level 2 AC (SAE J1772) charging port. Charging is available up to 6.6 kW. Can-Am says that the motorcycles will charge up from 20 to 80 percent in roughly 50 minutes. When asked about future versions supporting NACS (SAE 3400, aka the Tesla port), Can-Am stated it would adapt in step with the evolution of the market and would offer adaptors if needed.

Active Regen Braking and Backing Up

One particularly interesting feature Can-Am has added to its bikes is active regenerative braking. Passive regenerative braking on electric bikes has been around for years. The rider twists off the accelerator and the bike slows itself using the electric motor. The happy byproduct of this system is that the motor sends the electricity created by this deceleration back into the battery.

But Can-Am has added something else to the mix. On its two bikes, this active regeneration means that, after rolling off the throttle, the rider can twist the throttle beyond its neutral position up to roughly 6 degrees to enable additional regen braking. It’s an interesting solution to the challenge of how to best increase the efficiency of a motorcycle without adding regen to the traditional friction brakes.