Despite the fact that it was born from the world’s most prolific cruiser firm, the all-electric LiveWire model’s catalog has been curiously devoid of any cruisers… till now. Get a load of the brand new $15,999 LiveWire S2 Mulholland. LiveWire calls it an electrical efficiency cruiser—which is ok, supplied you’re completely satisfied to play quick and unfastened with the time period ‘cruiser.’
Accessible instantly in North America, the LiveWire S2 Mulholland is the second electrical bike to make use of LiveWire’s S2 platform. It follows the S2 Del Mar, however trades the Del Mar’s avenue tracker type for a laid-back, cruiser-inspired structure.
To get that proper, LiveWire raised the entrance finish with longer forks, diminished the rear shock’s journey, and swapped out the Del Mar’s 19F/19R wheels for a 19F/17R combo. The Mulholland nonetheless wears alloy wheels with Brembo brakes, however trades its Showa suspension for Hitachi elements, providing full adjustability and 5.3 inches [135 mm] of journey up entrance, and preload and rebound adjustability with 2.9 [74 mm] inches of journey out again.
It comes specced with Dunlop Sportmax Roadsmart IV tires, with a claimed lean angle of 55° and 50° on the left and proper respectively. The seat dips to an accommodating peak of 30.25 inches [768 mm], and the bars have been raised to create a knuckles-in-the-breeze driving place.
The muscular 6” bar risers and low-rise handlebars look nice, as do the bar-end mirrors and the intelligent positioning of the Mulholland’s spherical TFT sprint. Mixed with the tall forks and tucked headlight (which appears to be borrowed from the flagship LiveWire One), the complete entrance finish is a transparent nod to club-style efficiency cruisers.
The rear fender is equally straightforward on the attention, nevertheless it’s in the course of the bike the place the design falls flat. In keeping with LiveWire, they’ve “reimagined the profile and silhouette of the bike—historically knowledgeable by the fuel tank.” So, without having for a gas tank, the bike merely includes a neatly dressed hump up high that serves to cover a handful of elements, and to attach the seat and battery casing to the bike’s steering neck, visually.
That small space is a superb piece of design by itself, however its diminutive measurement leaves the seat to fill the remainder of the actual property on high of the Mulholland. The result’s a saddle that makes an attempt to mesh the look of a supermoto with the look of a cruiser—however finally ends up trying janky as an alternative. (TL;DR: The Mulholland has quite a lot of good particulars, however they don’t mesh.)
Add to that the Mulholland’s comparatively quick wheelbase (57.8 inches; longer than the Del Mar however considerably shorter than a Harley-Davidson Evo Sporty), and the bike doesn’t fairly nail the idea of a cruiser. Plus it appears notably cramped—significantly in case you add the non-compulsory pillion lodging and take a passenger alongside.
The passenger package features a rear seat, backrest, and passenger footpegs. Different aftermarket add-ons embrace completely different windscreens, mushy and laborious baggage, baggage racks, and a handful of dress-up elements.
The LiveWire S2 Mulholland can also be the model’s first bike to make use of sustainable supplies in its building. And whereas dyed-in-the-wool bikers are more likely to write that off as a advertising and marketing spiel designed to succeed in a youthful and extra enlightened viewers, it’ll definitely pique the curiosity of eco-conscious riders who see electrification as a method to sustainability.
The Mulholland’s fenders are created from a hemp bio-composite materials, whereas the radiator shrouds and wiring caddies are created from Hylon—a recycled materials that’s made utilizing discarded ocean fishing nets. The seat cowl makes use of a petroleum-free and recyclable silicon, eschewing the standard leather-based or vinyl choices.
Taking the idea one step additional, the Mulholland’s ‘Lunar White’ shade choice makes use of no paint, displaying off the hemp-based materials as an alternative. (You will get it in a painted ‘Liquid Black’ end too.)
Efficiency-wise, the 432-pound LiveWire S2 Mulholland trades a smidgen of the Del Mar’s zest for a smidgen of additional vary. Its motor kicks out the identical 84 horsepower and 194 fl-lb of torque, nevertheless it lists a zero to sixty time of three.3 seconds and a most vary of 121 miles (the Del Mar’s numbers are three seconds and 113 miles, respectively).
121 miles is listed because the Mulholland’s metropolis vary; LiveWire lists a spread of 73 miles of freeway driving, or 91 miles of mixed driving. These numbers will fluctuate in accordance with the way you trip in the actual world, and which of the LiveWire’s myriad driving modes you utilize. (There’s a full suite of digital rider aids, together with ABS, traction management, and rear wheel anti-slip management.
The ten.5 kWh battery pack can cost from 20 to 80 % in 5.9 hours and from zero to one hundred pc in 9.1 hours on a Degree 1 charger. Plug it right into a Degree 2 charger, and also you’ll get it from 20 to 80 % in 78 minutes and 0 to one hundred pc in two hours and 22 minutes.
If you happen to’re primarily based within the US or Canada, you’ll be able to snag your personal LiveWire S2 Mulholland instantly. However in case you’re in another a part of the world, you’ll have to attend till subsequent 12 months, which is when LiveWire says they’ll roll it out to different (undetermined) elements of the world.
The large query is whether or not there’s a marketplace for an electrical efficiency cruiser that doesn’t fairly really feel like a efficiency cruiser—particularly when its stablemate (the Del Mar) appears heaps higher and prices $500 much less. As my pal Jensen Beeler is fond of claiming, solely time will inform.
Supply: LiveWire
