The Yamaha EC-03

Yamaha offers electric scooters for green errands

TOKYO —

Yamaha is targeting fashionable green-minded consumers with a new electric scooter designed for short city commutes.

The 240,000 yen “smart minimal commuter” EC-03 is zero-emission and super-quiet, making it convenient for late-night city driving, according to Japanese motorcycle maker Yamaha Motor Co.

Its maximum cruising range on a single charge is technically 43 kilometers but in regular road conditions, drivers should not count on more than 25 kilometers, Yamaha said.

“Aspiring to low-emissions societies is a certain global trend,” said Hiroyuki Yanagi, Yamaha president and chief executive.

The scooter, which recharges from a regular home socket, goes on sale in September in Tokyo and nationwide in October. It is being introduced in Taiwan and Europe in 2011. There are no plans for the U.S. market so far. Yamaha hopes to sell 1,000 in Japan in the first year

Yamaha believes it can compete against the Chinese and smaller manufacturers to gain top global market share in electric motorcycles in the next few years by exploiting its half-century of experience in manufacturing two wheelers.

It faces competition from electric bicycles, which are generally more simply constructed than the EC-03, and are already booming in China, with an estimated 20 million in use.

In April, Honda Motor Co showed an electric scooter, EV-neo, but that was planned only for leasing in Japan in December, targeting companies like newspaper publishers and pizza joints that make deliveries.

Honda, Japan’s No. 2 automaker, also makes motorcycles and competes with Yamaha in that sector. Overseas plans and sales to individual consumers for EV-neo are undecided.

Honda said it hadn’t decided a leasing price for the scooter because of the high cost of the battery, a lithium-ion battery from Japanese electronics maker Toshiba Corp.

Yamaha’s electric scooter is packed with lithium-ion batteries from Sanyo Electric Co, a subsidiary of Japanese electronics giant Panasonic Corp.

It is unclear whether Yamaha’s target buyers—Japanese women, who routinely use bicycles for grocery shopping and other errands—will opt for a green scooter.

Yamaha said it’s investing 6.2 billion yen through 2012, for introducing affordable motorcycles in emerging markets, developing green technology and products such as EC-03 and expansion in Southeast Asia.

› Login to comment

Latest 15 of 28 Total Comments Show All

IchyaWarFare at 02:09 PM JST - 30th July

@dreamland- too true. The JP over here are using "eco-police cars" and they hate them and rarely use them because they cannot afford to keep changing the battery. The only thing they ever did right was to stop using that damn car.

Why make "eco" crap when they still have stuff they can not properly recharge or get rid of. Just trying to make a buck. Where is Leo when you need him. (sarcasm)
MistWizard at 02:28 PM JST - 30th July

HonestDictator said: Toss in a portable solar cell to charge up the scooter when not in use and I'll be more likely to jump on this.

That would be like filling a swimming pool with syringe. Just carry a splitter, unplug a vending machine, plug both into the splitter and voila! Put 200 yen in the machine. Drive away. Done!
LoveUSA at 02:29 PM JST - 30th July

it is kawaii.
seaforte03 at 05:15 PM JST - 30th July

Dang - we can buy these things in China for about ¥3－4万. Even with a 100% import tax - that would only be ¥6-8万!!
knowitall at 08:29 PM JST - 30th July

seaforte03, Sure you could import a chinese knockoff, but you would never be able to register it to drive on public roads.
Seawolf at 11:29 PM JST - 30th July

drivers should not count on more than 25 kilometers, Yamaha said.

that is such a low-level statement to say about your own product, they should be ashamed to say it without blushing! I mean if your way back from work in the evening would be after dark that would mean even less km! So, if you are lucky to plug in your toy at work that would cut the battery's life into half! Too many minus to this products to even call it a finished product, maybe more like a "beta".
Smythe at 06:05 AM JST - 31st July

I can see a properly built electric scooter as going over well ESPECIALLY as it will only require 110 volt plug in to build up the battery.

Problem with most scooters of 49cc is that they are two-stroke & people do not know how to pre-mix the fuel. Now with an automatic lubricating system in it then it would gain again, but in some countries they are downing 2-stroke in lawnmore, power saw, compressore, & so much more.

Both Yamaha have a much better outlook in the world of m/cs to scooters as they have established parts to repair shops almost in every city around Canada. Something the Chinese do NOT have & it is hard to obtain parts let alone any shop service which is not like any of the big four m/c makers like Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, & Kawasaki HAVE.

It is a pity one chap mentioned how his battery broke-down in just one season. I ride m/cs & all are hooked up to a system called Battery Tender meaning as soon as I come home the bike is blugged in, for its battery, & the Battery Tender will charge up fully, but not overcharge. Meanining I am getting well over 9 yrs of use for my m/c batteries even in the Winter months of where the bikes are NOT used.
gaijinfo at 09:52 PM JST - 31st July

This

Yamaha hopes to sell 1,000 in Japan in the first year

and this

It faces competition from electric bicycles, which are generally more simply constructed than the EC-03, and are already booming in China, with an estimated 20 million in use.

Doesn't compute. They might sell a few to retired folks, but I can't see anybody spending that much cash on something that can only make one trip somewhere.

they also don't say how long, and how expensive it will be to charge the thing.

Lot of questionables about this product. Maybe it were under 10 man, and went three or four times as far. I also wonder how long before you have to replace the battery, since you'll be charging it every day or so.
alladin at 07:55 AM JST - 1st August

Those scooters are probably very expensive and makes so much noise that even a a monkey in the mountains will cover it`s ears as it goes by on the roads of Japan.
bicultural at 10:17 AM JST - 1st August

... is zero-emission and super-quiet, making it convenient for late-night city driving.

Geez, do people even bother to read the article before commenting? Yes, I'm sure "super-quiet" will mean that the monkeys in the mountains will cover their ears. What nonsense.
gaijinfo at 11:07 AM JST - 1st August

Yes, I'm sure "super-quiet"

Maybe to human ears. But perhaps to the sensitive ears to a monkey it might very well mean instant brain hemorrhage.

Sure it's nice to plants, and the ozone layer, but it may very well be death to our simian cousins.
apects at 06:02 PM JST - 3rd August

Someone please tell the post office obasans about these. Their noisy bikes are a consistent pain waking me up every 4 in the morning.
XXXXX at 10:11 PM JST - 3rd August

whats exactly a mamachari btw?
XXXXX at 10:14 PM JST - 3rd August

never mind, I think I got it mixed up.
Sarge at 10:18 PM JST - 3rd August

"targeting fashionable green-minded consumers"

"drivers should not count on more than 25 kilometers ( range )"

Obama would be the ideal customer for this scooter.