Honda has filed design patents for a new electric motorcycle. The brand has been filing various patents for electric vehicle technologies. Recently Honda filed patents for an electric scooter that resembled the Honda PCX. But this time around, the Japanese company has filed patents for an electric motorcycle. The electric motorcycle appears to be the popular Honda CB300R which gets its ICE (internal combustion engine) replaced by an electric powertrain.
The design patent appears to come with a battery unit underneath the cover that originally is the fuel tank and power unit under it. The motor unit appears to be centrally located on the motorcycle enhancing its centre of gravity. The patents also show a chain drive powering the rear wheel. In the past, Honda filed patents for a liquid cooling system for electric powertrains. But the latest patents do not show a radiator or any other external heat exchanging system on the motorcycle.
The Indian market is showing a positive trend towards motorcycle electrification. This leads us to believe that Honda could be planning to launch the CB300R electric motorcycle in India, in the future. The bike will compete with various electric motorcycles and scooters in India, including TVS, Bajaj, Hero, Ather, Revolt etc.
The brand at the Honda Global CEO Inaugural Press Conference held on 23 April 2021, revealed that it will introduce 3 new personal e-mobility vehicles, including 2 electric scooters and an e-motorcycle. The Honda CB300R electric motorcycle could be one of the bikes planned for the Japanese brand’s electric future. Honda also revealed that the e-mobility vehicles will arrive by 2024. The brand could also be using the CB300R just as background art, and not really make a production version out of it. The brand in the past has also patented various designs to safeguard it as intellectual property, for the future.
Also Read: Honda plans to become 100% EV brand by 2040