Introduction

[Jonah_X]

Howdy Folks,

Just thought I would drop a line and say hello. I have been following the Pursu for quite a while now and I'm anxiously awaiting news, any news. I'm a retired Deputy Sheriff Motor Officer and was seriously injured (actually died on scene) in a collision while on my Police Motor back in 2005. I have since been medically retired from my department. I was an active Defensive Driving Instructor, Dirt Bike Coach, ATV Rider Coach as well as an instructor in many law enforcement related subjects. I only mention this because I did a little research by reading the past posts and I would hate to be accused of "not having control of the English language", LOL. Also, safety is a major factor in regards to this project.

Anyway, I just sold my 2006 BMW R1200RT and have left motorcycling forever, mostly due to the pain involved in riding. I was extremely intrigued by the improved safety of an enclosed cockpit vehicle with the characteristics of a motorcycle and the styling of a fighter jet. As a Private Pilot I would love to be performing some extreme low altitude maneuvers in the Persu.

I look forward to keeping up with the company's progress and reading the past posts to get a feel for the membership and their passions and feelings. Right now, it is extremely difficult for these small start-up companies to get going, I wish them luck. I drive a Mini Cooper S right now and the only thing I can see that could make me change vehicles is the Pursu. FUN FACTOR + FUEL MILAGE = MY CASH

Cheers Pilots, dr:ive1)
Jonah

[MVRacing]

Hi Jonah!!

wel;co;m;e101))

[Derwin]

Howdy Folks,

Just thought I would drop a line and say hello. I have been following the Pursu for quite a while now and I'm anxiously awaiting news, any news.

I look forward to keeping up with the company's progress and reading the past posts to get a feel for the membership and their passions and feelings...

Welcome to the club, Jonah! wel;co;m;e101))

We're happy to have you as a new member of our FTRC Team!

As you look through all of the past threads, I think you will notice that there are those here that have been VERY passionate about this vehicle, and it shows in their posts! The club is about 30 days shy of it's second anniversary, and we have talked about every imaginable thing there is to talk about pertaining to this vehicle.

In case you don't know, this club has a contract with Persu Mobility to use their name and logo on various items. As Howard told me on the phone the other week... "Derwin, you are the only entity on the planet that has the legal right to use our name and image...", and that's true. So far we haven't really done anything with this "name and image", but hope to be doing quite a lot as the vehicle progresses in development.

Please look around the club, and if you ever have any questions, don't hesitate to give me a holler.

By the way, you might want to check out this vehicle that is available NOW! It's a really fantastic three-wheel ride, with that open air feeling. The only thing that it lacks is a tilting capability. But if you are looking to get back into biking, along with security and stability, this is your best bet:

http://spyder.brp.com/en-US/

Again, welcome to our little group of Persu Hybrid enthusiasts! thu:mbs:up:22

Derwin

[rickb]

Welcome Jonah! Obviously a BMW fan given your choice of rides. Check out the Spyder that Derwin mentioned. Also, check out one of my favorites the MonoTracer a high performance cabin motorcycle which is also available to purchase if money is no object. Nice to hear from a new Persu Hybrid enthusiast as you join the discussion.

[Jonah_X]

LOL, yeah, there's a Spyder dealer here in town, there's a bunch of those things running around. With highs in the 100's and no benefit of splitting traffic, gimme air conditioning. LOL

[wireman]

HA! Man after my own heart, Jonah! Welcome to FTRC! By the way, do check out Revolution Motors also. Most of us here are very big on Persu, but the guys at RevMo have a cool concept also.

[rickb]

LOL, yeah, there's a Spyder dealer here in town, there's a bunch of those things running around. With highs in the 100's and no benefit of splitting traffic, gimme air conditioning. LOL
The MonoTracer has comfort seating, heating and AC along with many other comfort and safety features. I am still curious about how an avid cycle enthusiast feels about the MonoTracer and the new ETracer concept. The MonoTracer may be moving towards mass production and much more affordable pricing.

[rickb]

If interested go to the Peraves Monotracer official website for specs and movie. I can't seem to get the link.

[Jonah_X]

I have been following the MonoTracer for many years now, since it's introduction in Europe. At that time the price was very expensive. I love the concept, but question the safety in regards to maneuverability at low speeds. The "landing gear" concept helps, I would be curious to see what the final production price turns out to be and the power plant option. If I remember right these were originally powered by BMW K motorcycle engines. I have actually been closely following Aptera's E2/G2 model. Maybe too space ship looking, but they are pretty close to production. Just not sold on the look. $30k is looking like the new starting price. The nice thing about these concepts, but also a disability, is they are all classified as "Motorcycles" by the feds. On the up side they can ride in carpool lanes with a solo pilot, without a helmet because of the enclosed cabin, on the down side these startup companies are having difficulty getting federal funding for the "green machine" money. I hear that is being ratified. I think I'm going to enjoy this site.

[rickb]

The 2010 MonTracer is $75-80K which for me is outrageous, however, a sales rep tells me a plan to mass produce is on the table bringing the price point way below $40K. I am curious why you have safety concerns at low speeds. The retractable wheels operate up or down at 1/2 second. I had safety issues too, until I saw the video of a MonoTracer going down at high speed on a racing track, slid on it's side with only the wheels touching the ground. The driver and pit guy set it up and drove it back on the track with no noticeable damage..............impressive video. I agree .......the Aptera is a bit extreme design wise, although design is a personal pref. and no tilt.

[wireman]

I think I'm going to enjoy this site.

You certainly will J. Being a newbie here is informative and fun! It's a bit slow right now due to the holding pattern we're forced to endure while Persu is trying to ramp up to production. I recall my own enjoyment when I found Derwin's "little" club over a year ago. Man! Things were jumpin' round this joint then, because PM's (then Venture Vehicle's) design phase was on, and they were asking for mega input from FTRC. As soon as PM shows it's stuff I expect it to get totaly crazy again. 2thumb:up

[Jonah_X]

The 2010 MonTracer is $75-80K which for me is outrageous, however, a sales rep tells me a plan to mass produce is on the table bringing the price point way below $40K. I am curious why you have safety concerns at low speeds. The retractable wheels operate up or down at 1/2 second. I had safety issues too, until I saw the video of a MonoTracer going down at high speed on a racing track, slid on it's side with only the wheels touching the ground. The driver and pit guy set it up and drove it back on the track with no noticeable damage..............impressive video. I agree .......the Aptera is a bit extreme design wise, although design is a personal pref. and no tilt.

VERY Pricey, LOL. The low speed maneuvering does not have to do with the wheels down mode. With the long wheel base and weight I would be concerned about handling at town speeds 20 to 30 mph. On a bike the rider induces a counter steer to initiate a lean along with body control, an experienced rider can very quickly whip from full lean one direction to full lean the other direction to perform an emergency avoidance maneuver, hopefully, without low siding onto the pavement. Once your down, you are at the mercy of inertia and whatever solid object decides to end your forward progression, LOL. As a Motor Officer we practiced these maneuvers a lot. We did a 35 mph cone weave which honed our skills with the counter steering technique. There is a lot of hip action to allow the bike to tilt under you while your upper body remains square with eyes forward. Squaring your upper body is not possible in the Mono, besides, with that much weight, once it had a hard input to initiate the tilt there would be no turning back, you're either down or continuing an unwanted turn to somewhere.

That being said, there is give and take. Would I consider a MonoTracer if the price were more realistic? In a heart beat!! I'd drive the freakin' wheels off it!! I think there will be a bit of a learning curve for new driver/riders, a track day would be a good idea, yeah that's the ticket, lot's of track days!!

[rickb]

I understand..........but at least you would be surrounded by an enclosed safety roll cage with harness seatbelts. Curious about your concern, I emailed the question to a MonoTracer contact. I will let you know his response. The new MonoTracer is smaller and more streamlined than the older Ecomobiles. Watching the movie on the MonoTracer website shows what seems to me to be typical handling during highway high speed rather quick manuevers. They do set up a track day during the year allowing enthusiasts to test ride the vehicle. One could fly out.

[rickb]

Jonah...........this is the response I got back from MonoTracer re your concern about quick response manuevering at slow speeds. I could be the only PH enthusiast interested but here it is.

there is no other single-track vehicle that has less inertia to turn from one side to the other than the MonoTracer. The CG with two up is lower than the wheel axles. For an emergency lane change on a conventional motorcycle, you need to accelerate the masses of the bodies of the rider (and the passenger, if there is one), who are sitting very high up and therefore have to cover a long distance from one side to the other. They have to be as agile in their movements as those monkeylike jockeys à la Valentino Rossi to overcome lateral inertia. The respective mass of the carbon/kevlar upperbody/roof of the MT is much lighter than those humans! The long wheelbase is not a factor here to be considered, because that is corrected via the steeper front fork angle. The only concern is that some average riders may find the steering of the MT too "quick", you only have to think of flicking it into a corner and it already goes...we like it like that, but it needs some getting used to. I like to compare the handling of the MT to flying a competition aerobatic aircraft like a Pitts or even an Edge. Low roll inertia, huge movements on low inputs, knife-sharp handling, no slag or wobble because the is no bike frame out there that has this torsional stiffness and no one has a larger diameter front fork (2,2 inches upside down Marzocchi). Make no mistake, this is a high performance machine, and a lot of your money goes into the bill of material.

If a massed produced MT hits the marketplace at under $40K before the Persu Hybrid is available I would buy the MT in a heartbeat for the sheer fun factor which really is the same reason for buying a Persu.

[Jonah_X]

I think I just peed a little!!! Very interesting and I love the reference to a Pitts. This would indicate a "snap" roll rate as apposed to a "slow" roll. An emergency lane change is exactly what I was referring to in regards to the emergency maneuvering capabilities. My goal would be to avoid using the absorbing factors of the body and restraint system, I can't imagine what that kind of damage would cost to repair. If my wife sees this I may not be able to find my wallet, LOL. What fun to watch these two companies (PH and MT) race to production.

You know what would be fun is to put a artificial horizon and altimeter in the cockpit, just a thought, heheh. You da bomb on the info, thanks a ton Rick.

[rickb]

The MT has already won the race because Peraves has been building the Eco for the past 10 years and are now hand building 100 2010 MTs......just not affordable. There is no production PH (I'm guessing their is a production prototype). The big differance is that engineers are in charge of designing, building, and daily operations at Peraves MT and Lawyers are in charge at PM. However, I think PM will get it done. Hopefully, both PM and Peraves will get their mass production plans off the back burner as the world economy stabilizes.

I would be happy to email your wife all the info I have on the MonoTracer and just leave your wallet in plain sight. The MT would make a great anniversary gift.