It’s January, which means the Consumer Electronics Show is right around the corner. In the past, CES was about the latest in technology. Now, it’s another stage for an automaker to show off an EV. Electric motorcycle builders also love bringing out their latest wares to CES as well. This year, Chinese company Horwin wants to make a splash with three weird concepts it’s bringing to CES. One of them is an electric scooter that it wants to sell in America later this year with 100 HP, 186 miles of range, and a 2.8-second sprint to 60 mph time.
If you haven’t noticed, my motorcycle content has shifted towards scooters lately. That’s entirely by coincidence. I just keep finding these things out there! Besides, some of you really love scooters, so I hope you’re happy. Yesterday, I wrote about John Piper, a man who wants you to spend $50,000 to buy one of his bespoke J-Series scooters. You could argue that the J-Series is just a KTM motorcycle wearing the body of a scooter. Still, 67 HP and 120 mph sounds like a ton of fun. As it turns out, some people want even faster scooters. Horwin, a brand hailing from China, thinks you’ll want to ride a scooter that has 100 HP and can accelerate faster than many sports cars.
That sounds like a quick way to end up as road pasta, I’m in.
Horwin
Horwin was founded in 2016 in Changzhou, China. The company says it consists of an international team of technology enthusiasts and businessmen and some of them came from the “early drone field.” Apparently, some of this team has also worked on China’s space station efforts. Horwin operates research and development centers in Asia, Europe, and North America while Europe is currently the brand’s largest market.
Currently, the brand sells two different models of electric scooters, plus one Bird scooter-style stand-up electric scooter. The Horwin scooters look pretty neat, with designs that stand out in the crowd. However, the scooters don’t have much in terms of performance. Horwin’s best scooter is the EK DS, which has a maximum range of 100 miles and a top speed of 60 mph. In terms of power, you’re getting a whopping 8.3 ponies on tap.
It would appear that the folks of Horwin are not content with making little city scooters. Now, the team is setting its sights on performance. The brand will be making its U.S. debut at CES 2024 with the Senmenti series of motorcycle concepts. Horwin says that they are “a dynamic new line of EV motorcycles born of the all-American ideals of freedom on the open road without compromising performance, styling, and sustainability.”
Alright, that’s a pretty big claim. Let’s take a look, and I’ll start with the concept renders. The wildest of the bunch is the Senmenti X.
This is supposed to be what Horwin says is the ultimate performance touring motorcycle. Horwin claims a WLTP-estimated range of at least 250 miles, which is pretty wild. Other features include a DC power outlet, an adjustable riding position, a 60 mph time of under 4 seconds, and a top speed of 125 mph. Horwin says the concept feeds from a 25.9 kWh battery and has a 99 HP motor. In terms of aesthetic, it looks like a Tron Lightcycle got in bed with the motorcycle from Akira.
Next, we have the Senmenti 11, and I don’t know why we went from X to 11. This one comes with even less information than the Senmenti X, but Horwin says it’s a concept for a motorcycle built for thrill-seekers.
Horwin also says this bike has “variable body covers in different styles,” which sounds like swappable panels to me. The instrument cluster of this bike appears to be a transparent screen and the rear wheel is a weird split affair which seems to involve two wheels moving around an inner swingarm of some kind.
Now, both of these two bikes are just concept for now and have been renders for over a year, but Horwin says it plans on putting them into production. The Senmenti X is supposed to arrive in 2025 while the Senmenti 11 is slated for 2026. If these motorcycles ever see the light of day, I doubt they will look anything like the concepts. I mean, how do the concepts in these renders even steer? And look at the “seat” of the Senmenti 11. That would get get painful in no time at all. They look cool, but just aren’t realistic bikes.
The only machine that looks realistic, and the one Horwin says you’ll be able to buy in America late this year, is the electric scooter.
Senmenti 0
Finally, we arrive at the Senmenti 0, a scooter that started as another concept in 2022. If you’re wondering what Senmenti is even supposed to mean, Horwin CEO Wendsor Zhou Wei says it’s the Chinese word for “organism.” Horwin says the concept bikes, as well as the Senmenti 0, are the results of what it calls Project Horizon. Reportedly, Project Horizon is supposed to result in motorcycles that combine practicality with technology and pleasing aesthetics. Horwin has partnered up with custom bike builder and designer Arjan van der Boom, who ran Ironwood Custom Motorcycles in Amsterdam.
So, Horwin appears to be doing this the right way by getting a helping hand from someone who knows their way around a bike.
Still, the Senmenti 0 sounds wild. Let me run you through the specifications. Under the body sits a 16.9 kWh battery that Horwin says is good for a maximum range of about 186 miles at 55 mph. That battery powers a 100 HP and 659.3 lb-ft torque electric motor, which Horwin says is good for a 60 mph run in 2.8 seconds and a top speed of 125 mph. Horwin does not say how it calculated that torque. Horwin notes that the scooter should be able to charge from dead to 80 percent in about 30 minutes.
You get all of this in a scooter with an 84.4-inch length with a 59.1-inch wheelbase. The whole scoot weighs a hefty 507 pounds. Horwin says the bike is suspended with KYB shocks and stopped with a J.Juan dual-piston caliper up front and a single-piston caliper in the rear.
Really, none of these specs are too surprising. Ignore the crazy torque figure and this scooter is said to put out about the same power as the 2023 Zero DSR/X I’m currently testing. So, it’s not like Horwin is claiming the impossible. What is questionable is the range claim. My Zero tester, which has a roughly similar battery, will run out of juice at around 100 miles at 55 mph. I’m not sure where this scooter will be finding another 86 miles going the same speed.
What is properly nutty is how the 100 HP reaches the ground. Remember the Italjet Dragster 559 and yesterday’s Piper Moto J-Series? Both of those send their power out through tall motorcycle tires. It’s the same deal with the Zero. Horwin says the Senmenti 0 punches power out through a small 14-inch wheel in the rear. That kind of power through a scooter tire must be a rip.
However, Horwin says the scooter will be quite safe. The company says the production scooter will have more than 30 sensors and cameras to monitor what’s happening in and around the scooter. The scooter will then use its software to help the rider. This seems to mean using a combination of adaptive cruise control, hill descent control, front and rear collision warning systems, and a lane detection system to try to prevent crashes. The scooter also has automatic high-beam headlights, hill descent and ascent control, and a Tesla-like Sentry mode to monitor the scooter when it’s parked.
It Costs How Much?
Are you sitting down? No? Go do that. So, you’re probably expecting that since this bike hails from China, it’s going to be cheap. However, Horwin seems to be setting a pretty high price expectation. Horwin says that when the Senmenti 0 launches in the third quarter of this year, the starting price will be $16,800. That’s only a few grand cheaper than a high-end Zero and makes BMW’s $12,195 CE 04 electric scooter seem like a deal.
At the same time, this price seems realistic. If this spec sheet were paired with an $8,000 price tag it would seem quite suspicious. $16,800, which presumably could climb with options and accessories, sounds like it could be legitimate. Previous reports have shown that Horwin does have a working prototype, too.
As always, I would recommend waiting until a new machine comes out before putting your hard-earned money into it. But, if you’re already convinced, Horwin is currently taking refundable $100 deposits. Horwin says the first 500 pre-orders will get three years of free charging, free over-the-air upgrades, and an $800 discount on the scooter.
If this thing becomes a reality, I want to ride it. That much power through tiny tires sounds like a total riot. Hopefully, if it does get sold, you can turn off the electric nannies and convert some rubber into smoke.
(Images: Horwin)
I was liking this until you got to the 14 inch wheels.100HP through those?No.Just ****ing no
And yes,quoted torque figures can be nuts right? The most sensible thing would be to measure at the rear wheel which evens the field.But then the numbers look wrong next to ICE vehicles which measure at the crank.
Of course this assumes people understand what torque does,and thats pretty rare
The split rear tyres on the Senmenti II would wear atrociously at all lean angles.
My road rash has finally healed. Four wheelers from now on.
better gear, and get back on that pony.
Is it me or does the Senmenti X rendering has some Kaneda bike ( from Akira ) vibes ?
Edit : apprently I’m not the only one 🙂
Sounds a bit optimistic… all that torque and range… even for the high projected pricetag.
I love scooters and motorcycles (no idea why my brain waited till I was in my 40s to fully manifest that love, but whatever…) and have owned a couple of early electric bikes/scooters (Lee Iacoca’s EV Global Motors eBike, and a Chinese Vespa knock-off, both with lead acid batteries and neither with available hernia insurance). And though I’ve yet to own a modern EV or e-moto/scoot/bike, I’m pretty sure that’ll happen eventually too.
Though it’s not necessarily yet a deal-breaker, I have to admit feeling some reticence about buying a Chinese-made vehicle, in spite of the fact that probably more than half of the stuff in my house/garage was made there no matter how American or European the brand seems. To buy stuff made in a place where it’s not possible to criticize the government seems iffy to me… there are a zillion problems/issues/inequities in the U.S., but at least you don’t get punished or disappeared for blathering about it as much as you want. I’m awed and respectful of the longevity and accomplishments of Chinese culture, and I’m inclined to feel very warmly towards Chinese people, but the CCCP is no more appealing to me than the administrations in Russia or North Korea. And I’d not go out of my way to buy products from those countries.
Sorry if this is off-topic/too political, but divorcing products/vehicles completely from their countries of origin (and all that entails) is just too pollyannaesque for me. Which is why I’d be more interested in the Horwin 0 if Horwin weren’t a Chinese company.
PS: Mercedes (speaking of cyberpunkish modes of transportation) have you ridden or reviewed Husqvarna’s Svartpilen or Vitpilen 401s yet? They’re basically KTM 390s in Swedish suits tailored by William Gibson, and they’re only US$5K if you can find one. Being on the shorter side, I think they might be a bit too tall for me, but I’m eager to at least sit on one and find out for sure. There’s a ton of stuff about them (overwhelmingly positive in general) on Youtube if you’re not familiar with them yet. Would love to get your take on them, if they’re not too tall for you too of course. 🙂
Oh man, those look cool as hell. My GF is tiny and looking to take an MSF course in the next couple weeks, maybe they have a low-height option. The idea of even trying to learn the basics on my 895cc scares her (that and wrecking my bike).
Bonus, maybe I can fix it with chainsaw parts!
I’ve one colleague with the KTM, and another with one of the 401s. I love the look of the 401.
The rider of the 401 is a big guy, close to 6’4 / 190cm maybe 260lb/120kg. The bike looks sadly tiny under him. Both his overall size, but his height as well.
The KTM rider is similar height, but probably closer to 160lb/70kg and the KTM looks like it fits him well.
The net says the Svartpilen 401 has a seat height of 835mm, which is a smidge under 33 inches, which is pretty far off the ground (for my 30-inch inseam anyway). There’s no way I’d be able for put even one foot flat on the ground (well, not without wearing boots with heels/lifts to make my legs 4″ longer, as a certain presidential candidate likes to do) though I might be able to put the toes of one foot onto the pavement. Maybe.
Won’t know till I sit on one.
The Vitpilen might be a tiny smidge lower (being the more cafe racerish of the two) but if so, it’ll be a tiny difference and I’d rather have a standard, upright seating position as on the Svart, as opposed to the hunched over posture needed on the Vit.
Realistically, both bikes are probably too tall for me, which makes me sad, because I really like them in terms of performance, price, simplicity/features, and style.
Mechjaz, if your GF is petite… under 5’5″ or so, then I strongly suspect the 401s will be too high off the ground for her too. Does the MSF course near you not provide bikes for training and the test? If so, they’re probably old SJMs or Honda Rebels, with seats much lower to the ground, making them much easier for new riders (the current Rebel 300 has a seat height of just 27.3″, which I could flatfoot with both bare feet ;-). Something short like that, and relatively light, would probably improve her confidence a lot. I bought a Suzuki Vanvan which is a small citybike (200cc thumper) in the SJM vein (the fat rear tire gives it a psuedo-scramblerish look and soft ride) and it’s great for smaller riders (as is the ditrtbikey Yamaha TW 200). Suzuki also has a TU250 which is just a bit bigger than the Vanvan, but is also good for short riders. These bikes aren’t designed for highway cruising, though they’ll get to 60-65mph with a light rider) but rather for bopping around town/easy trails while having fun.
My crazy younger self is saying “Sign me up for the Senmenti X if it ever gets produced.” Anything with that many Akira/Japanese cyberpunk vibes has my attention.
Almost $17k? How about no.
Even if Horwin doesn’t make the Senmenti X, I want someone to. PLEASE, we’re already basically in a cyberpunk dystopia, can we at least have the neon aesthetic?
“HORWIN” lolol
I’ll take the BMW CE 04 that costs less, looks just as ridiculous (I mean that as a compliment), actually exists, and doesn’t say HORWIN on the side.
Whore Win.
Company director: “Come up with a name that says ‘Gets you a new girlfriend!’ “
But it says BMW on the side…
I’m all in if their exhaust turns into a physical neon wall other people crash into.
At these speeds, is this really a scooter? If you’re going 100+ aren’t you on a motorcycle?
There are maxi scooters that do this handily.
I love how these things are legal, but we can’t have European subcompacts or tiny EVs because they are unsafe for the driver.
I don’t understand how any 4 wheel enclosed (or partially enclosed) vehicle can be considered unsafe for road use while motorcycles are legal. I’m a big fan of motorcycles, but they’re impressively unsafe in a collision.
My feeling is that all drivers should be required to learn to ride a motorcycle or trike, and ride only that for a year before being allowed to drive a car. It’s a quick and lasting education in how dangerous inattentiveness and unsafe driving on the road is — both as a rider alone and as a rider surrounded by idiots in cars and trucks.
I feel like the overall level of driving safety and skill would go up a notch or two if everyone behind the wheel truly experienced just how fragile and squishy we meatbags really are without a couple of tons of metal and plastic to protect us.
…Maybe this is why in some parts of Europe, being able to get a “moto” license for small scooters and mopeds at a younger age is a good thing. It’s an opportunity to learn not just the rules of the road, but also to develop safety skills prompted by a healthy sense of self preservation form being one of the smallest things on the road.
Wait until you find out that when driving a car you’re required by law to wear a seatbelt, but in most US states you can ride a motorcycle without a helmet 🙂
I -imagine- that an argument can be made that a motorcycle rider is (generally speaking) riding solo and this exercising his or her personal right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness, The risk is solely to the rider who has made a willing choice.
However, Kei class and smaller cars all have passenger seats and thus accommodation for children and other innocents. Perhaps if these vehicles only had a driver’s seat you could make the argument I’ve posited for motorcycles. However the second you argue that they lose usability by adding a passenger seat, you spoil that argument.
In any case, I positively f’n hate it when people make the argument you’re making, because the real-world result of winning that point would NOT be permitting ‘micro cars’ (to coin a phrase) onto the roads, but the banning of motorcycles so please and kindly shut the F up, okay? I like motorcycles and I don’t want you giving any politicians any bad ideas. They have too many already.
Whoa, settle down there Beavis… or maybe take the vitriol back to Jalopnik. Most motorcycles have a passenger seat too, so your point is kind of moot.
Your Alfa avatar reminded me of this first time this irked me. I was thinking of buying an Alfa 4C pre-pandemic before the prices shot up, but decided not to when I found out that the US version weighs ~500 lbs. more than the Euro version, I assume for additional bracing and/or safety equipment. It’s a 2-seat sportscar, not a kid hauler. If I can buy a motorcycle, I should be able to have the choice to die alone in my sub-2000 lb. sportscar dammit.
Every time someone says this, I recommend they go watch ‘Stunt Man Mike offers Pam a Ride Home’ from the film ‘Death Proof’ (Warning: it ends in bloody mess.)
The mere existence of a steel enclosure does more harm than good without energy dissipating crumple zones, seat belts and a full airbag system of a modern car to keep the occupant protected, and in place.
Most motorcyclists lay their bike down at moderate speed at some point in their riding career, and live to walk away. Especially with a proper helmet and full riding gear.
That was not the case with mid-century and older vehicles. Moderate speed crashes on neighbourhood streets were common fatalities. Skull + windshield/A-pillar = dead.
Any vehicle that travels faster than a bicycle, while trapping you inside a steel cage without some combination of a racing helmet and full body restraints, crumple zones, full curtain airbags, etc (and isn’t a train or a city bus) is a death sentence worse than a motorcycle.
I think my wife would have gone with the EK DS instead of a Primavera 150 if it was in the price range.
X is the Roman numeral for 10. So 11 is one louder.
The iPhone is made in China. They probably just figured that’s how Americans count. . . 7, 8, 9, X, 11, 12. . .
Pushing the technology envelope is good for the overall forward momentum of the technology. But otherwise, this is ridiculous.
That price is a good deal for something that does 0-60 mph in 2.8 seconds. Especially considering this is a fairly low-volume item relative to a mass-production car.
I’ve said before that a 3-wheeled enclosed microcar if mass produced could cost something akin to a moped and have hypercar performance and Tesla-like range on a very tiny battery. This scooter comes close in many regards.
I’m here for content that takes the drive train from this scooter and put it in a 3-wheeled enclosed microcar.
Maybe. The parts in this scooter may prove too heavy for what I have in mind. I’m considering a monocoque with an embedded roll cage with an ebike motor/controller in each wheel. There are ebike systems on the market today that can do like 50 horsepower peak in a sub-30 lb motor, and prototype systems not on the market that can do 50 horsepower peak in a 7 lb motor. I’d want to build a one-seater car with the aerodynamics of a velomobile(CdA < 0.1 m^2) and a mass ready to ride of under 250 lbs. Imagine only needing like 8 horsepower to hold 120 mph on flat ground, and then having like 150 horsepower and AWD available to move this thing along.
The vehicle a friend and I have in his shop is a one-seater car based upon my “bicycle”. It will weigh about 250 lbs complete, and I have a 40 lb Hubmonster motor that can do like 80 kW peak going in the rear wheel. Streamlining is not as nice as what I propose above, but a CdA value under 0.3 m^2 should be doable, outboard wheels and exposed suspension components be damned.
My current “bicycle” project is looking at an upgrade to AWD and 25 kW peak from the combined output of 3 motors(which depending on controller settings, could make upward of a combined 550 lb-ft of torque or so!), in a vehicle that will be at about 100 lbs total, maybe 260 lbs laden with me plus my tools. I’m targeting a CdA value od under 0.1 m^2 with the current in progress body shell, and should only need about 4 horsepower to hold 90 mph on flat ground. On paper, that should be enough to fuck with a Hellcat at a stoplight to about 70 mph. All from hobbyist-grade ebike parts from China purchased cheap. We’ll see how it does when I get it all together.
As it has been, my naked trike weighing 70-ish lbs, with a single Leafbike motor in the rear, running 10 kW, took a V6 Dodge Charger at a stoplight a few months back, to about 30 mph before it overtook me. I was running a low voltage battery at the time so top speed was only 50 mph and the acceleration dropped off a cliff at 30 mph. I have not probed the limits of my current 72V system, as I need to get a roll cage and safety harness on this thing, and the new body. It’s a death trap from hell right now without the shell on it. Deceptively stable dynamically(something COULD always fail…), but I don’t like the feeling of all of that wind rustling against my body feeling like it’s going to push me out of my seat while I’m pedaling it with the motor assisting to 50+ mph.
Maybe this scooter system will prove to be the best available regarding peak power per unit of weight. I need specs on the mass of the components.
I’m looking forward to reading your article on this. When’s it come out?
Hard to say. I got to get my bike finished before I’ll be ready to write an article on it. I make piecemeal progress on weekends. Currently awaiting more parts to install on it.
The battery is a pack of Molicel P42A, arranged in 20S6P layout, held together with a custom housing ordered from Lithuania that allows 200A without having to permanently spot weld the batteries together. 72V 25.2AH. I have an ASI BAC4000 controller powering it, and it is well under stressed at only 10 kW. The single Leafbike motor in the back is at its limit with this 10kW, so more power means I need the front motors to arrive and controllers to match.
There’s a higher voltage controller I want with a long lead time that will allow an upgrade to 108V, that I don’t yet have, and a 30S BMS from China I ordered that I’m also awaiting, but when it is ready for use, I will be able to disassemble the pack and permanently spotweld it into a 30S4P configuration, for 108V 16.8AH. More voltage = more speed, and that will allow me 100+ mph top end.
In either case, this pack can do close to 50 kW peak for short bursts, far more than the motor or my bike can handle. The pack weighs under 20 lbs.
I absolutely love the thought of you embarrassing a Charger owner in a homemade trike. I should be a better person, but the people who drive them seem to have such an emotional investment in their machines that I can’t help enjoying them being poked.
I’m waiting for a fuel crisis to hit. Should that come to pass, used Hellcats are going to be CHEAP, and I’ll snatch one up. I think they’re going to be highly collectible in the future.
On the trike, I haven’t timed my 0-60 with the 72V upgrade. I haven’t even taken it to 60 mph since the upgrade, but I’m certain it will go much faster. Without the body, I get a bit scared over 45 mph or so because of all of the damned air rushing up against me. And it’s brutal in the cold. Simulation calculated a 0-60 mph time of just under 8 seconds with the current configuration at 10 kW and just the rear wheel motor, and the 0-30 mph time I’ve gotten thus far is about the same as what the simulation predicted, 2 seconds. Surprisingly, the Mitas MC2 tire hooked up adequately for the launch.
Y’know, the Indy Motor Speedway is empty most of the year. How about taking these bonkers, crazy fast scooters and putting them in a racing series on high speed ovals?
Maybe put in some temporary whoop-dee-doos on the track, just to make it interesting…
Scooter are popular because, at least in my state, only need an operator license to ride and good show short runs. I can also them as an RV alternate to towing a full car. A toy hauler or small trailer can do two with ease.
I saw HORWIN on Amazon a few months back when I was looking for wire mesh colanders for the kitchen. They have a sister company named ZICGGIHY that makes iPhone cases and another named KRANLDM that makes “Genuine Leather Mid-Century Sofa Chrome Leather Ikea”.
These look so dumb. I want all of them.