A professional rode an electric motorcycle to the highest volcano in the world. With a gasoline bike, that wouldn’t have been so easy or would at least have come with significant challenges. The low oxygen content at high altitude is a problem for gasoline engines. An issue that electric motors do not have.
A team led by Swiss rider Jiri Zak rode a production Stark Varg EX to 6,721 meters at Ojos del Salado, the highest active volcano on Earth (via Enduro.de). The volcano is located in Chile (South America). According to the manufacturer’s website, the Stark Varg EX is the fastest electric off-road motorcycle in the world.
The remarkable thing about the record ride was the fact that the vehicle is a purely electric motorcycle. With a gasoline-powered motorcycle, the rider would likely never have made it this far. This is reported by the magazine Motorpassion.com
Electric motors work even at extreme heights, gasoline engines do not
What is the problem at high altitudes? As altitude increases, gasoline engines face a major issue: They need oxygen to function properly. For this reason, internal combustion engines lose significant power with increasing elevation. A conventional gasoline engine cannot operate without oxygen, as oxygen is essential for the chemical reaction of combustion: Gasoline needs oxygen from the air to release energy.
Electric motors, on the other hand, always deliver the same power, regardless of how high or low the air density is. Where gasoline engines fail to function properly, electric motors continue to operate because they do not require oxygen for combustion and consistently deliver torque.
The record demonstrates the power of the electric motor, but its everyday usefulness is limited
The record of Swiss rider Jiri Zak clearly shows the advantage of an electric bike at high altitudes. At the same time, it must be noted that this record has limited usefulness for most of us. After all, very few people ride at elevations of over 5,000 or 6,000 m, which is anyway impossible in Europe: The highest mountain in Europe is Mont Blanc (4,810 m).
For us, other factors play a more significant role in the purchasing decision, such as the availability of charging infrastructure, the overall range of the vehicle, or whether the engine will start in winter. A problem that electric vehicles face because lithium-ion batteries perform poorly in cold temperatures.
Therefore, the record is primarily a strong marketing and image project that showcases a real technical advantage, but only represents a very specific special case and does not determine the general everyday suitability of both concepts.
A user switched to an electric car after more than 15 years. He no longer wants to drive a gasoline vehicle for one simple reason: the gasoline car suddenly feels uncomfortable and old-fashioned. An experience shared by many other users who have changed cars: A user switches from gasoline to electric car after over 15 years and explains why he can never go back
