Feell The Fllow: Erik Buell Follows Up His Flluid Ebike With An Equally Unconventional Electric Motorcycle

Engineering innovator and motorcycle racer Erik Buell has followed up the release of his Fuell Flluid 1 ebike project with a promised second electric vehicle, the Fllow electric motorcycle (yes, two “L”s). The launch recently went live on Prelaunch.com.

The 400-pound $11,995 (base) Fllow will be available in two versions, a 15-horsepower low-powered urban-focused machine that will allow lower-tier license holders to legally cruise around, and a full-power 47-horsepower “S” version that makes just over 550 pound-feet of torque, with a top speed of 85mph and a 0-60 time of just 3.5 seconds. Range is a hopeful 150 miles/240km miles at best in urban riding. As always, electric range depends on numerous factors, including rider weight, speed, terrain, riding demands (urban vs. freeway, etc.), and how heavy the rider’s right wrist is. Both versions of the Fllow will be visually identical with essentially the same features. The speed restrictions will be software-based, according to Fuell.

Fllow tech includes a 400-Volt, 10kWh modular battery pack, plus Level III CCS-2 DC charging ability at 50kW that Fuell says enables a quick charge option as fast as a “traditional stop for gasoline.” In a press release, Fuell said the Level III CCS charging time could be less than 30 minutes. “As you never charge 100% of the battery, but rather from 20% to 90% usually, the real charging time is around 15 minutes. Just enough to get a coffee, check emails, and be back on the road,” Fuell said in their latest press release.

When it comes to unique features, the design of the bike definitely reflects Erik Buell’s consistent approach of function informing form with a dash of panache, from the magnesium monocoque frame design to the aerodynamically slippery full-coverage bodywork (trade secret: most motorcycles, including those sharky-looking sportbikes, are about as aerodynamic as a brick). “It is the most radically innovative chassis design I’ve ever done, and from steering head to rear wheel, it is filled with new design concepts that no one has done before,” Buell says in press release.

Indeed, there are clever Erik Buell touches tip to tail, including a large lockable 50-liter (10 gallon) storage area where the gas tank would be on an ICE machine. It’s large enough to hold a full face helmet and more. Turn signals are built into the ends of the handlebar (a la vintage BMWs), and twin stacked LED projection headlights sit under a transparent front fascia that grows into a small windscreen. The Fllow is designed to ride two people but seating space looks to be… minimalist. Owners can also customize the Fllow with different colored accent panels at the front of the bike and in some other spots (as below).

Unlike almost every other full-size electric motorcycle on the market, Buell has placed the motor for the Fllow inside the back wheel, something more common with electric bicycles – but not Buell’s Flluid ebike. Of well-known full-size electric motorcycle makers, only Sonders also uses this approach on their Metacycle.

Unsurprisingly, Buell’s rear wheel motor design is a hub of innovation. The rear wheel also rides on a single-sided swingarm like that found on much more exotic motorcycles. That choice makes rear wheel work – from changing tires to upgrading the whole wheel – much simpler and quick. The motor system is also protectively sealed inside the wheel.

Buell’s dedication to simplicity is holistic on the Fllow; he says the bike uses “60% fewer parts, and is assembled in 40% of the time” compared to gas bikes. Seeing how it does not have a complicated gas engine and drivetrain/transmission, that makes sense. Buell also says the bike will be built in the U.S. and and “parts and components will emphasize the US and/or western provenance.”

The hub motor’s interior design also riffs on one of his best known technological touches: the unconventional ZTL rim disc brake system from his Buell motorcycle days. Except in this case, the way the motor is designed, the motive forces – like the ZTL brake system – more efficiently transfers load to the wheel rim instead of to the hub like a conventional chain-and-sprocket setup. A hub motor also avoids parasitic driveline inefficiencies a chain (or belt) and sprockets inherently causes. There’s no clutch or gears, no chain or belt, and few moving parts (possibly just one, the wheel itself). And while this approach adds unsprung weight to the rear wheel, on such an urban-focused machine that’s less of a concern than on a sportbike – and the motor can get lighter over time as updates become available, updates Buell says the Fllow will be able to use due to its modular architecture.

MORE FROM FORBESRide Review: The Twin-Battery FUELL Flluid-1E Perfectly Blends The Best Of An Ebike And A MotorcycleBy Bill Roberson

The hub motor choice also has several advantages beyond just simplicity; it frees up the “motor space” in the chassis for more battery real estate or storage space, and hub motors also tend to be very quiet. While the rear wheel styling looks a bit flat and plain on the pre-production bike seen here (and it’s an actual bike, not a render), the motor cover can certainly be restyled for a different look by the time serial production commences, hopefully next year. Speaking of the ZTL brake, the Fllow does not have the ZTL setup as it’s more suited to high-speed, high-load sport bikes (and it’s expensive). The Fllow uses a more conventional but still modern single disc and monobloc-style caliper setup. Rear braking also includes regeneration to extend battery range.

As mentioned, Buell is looking far down the road with the Fllow; it’s designed to be very modular and easily upgradeable as time goes on, whether that means slotting in a new and better battery when that tech arrives, or slimming down the rear wheel motor’s weight as electric motor technology continues to mature, which it is doing quickly. Even the charging socket is designed for an easy swap if EV makers ever come to an agreement on a single charging port type (currently, there are numerous types). But for now, it has the most popular J1772 port with the DC Fast Charging (aka CCS) points included for a charge time of “less than 30 minutes” according to Fuell. Or, riders can use a Level II charger, or just plug it into a wall outlet for an overnight charge.

Of course, the Fllow uses a smartphone app for adjusting things to a rider’s preference, as well as offering security, tracking, GPS, OTA updates and more. Speed and so forth is displayed on a large LCD display, it’s not clear if it’s a touchscreen. There will also be a key fob for security.

Staying with high tech features, the latest information from Buell indicates they are also looking at offering the rider safety and awareness tech, including front and rear radar, front and rear cameras, blind spot detection, ABS, regenerative braking and a high degree of connectivity to smartphones.

While Buell is an admired icon in motorcycling circles, the Fllow motorcycle and Flluid ebikes are a departure from his typical big-horsepower, lightweight racing machines many riders are used to seeing with his name on them. In an interview in 2021, Buell told Forbes.com that he was all in on ebikes and electric motorcycles, but more as modes of affordable transportation than high-powered road toys. It’s good to see things moving forward for Buell and his team and Fuell after the pandemic and supply chain chaos caused understandable delays in the Fllow’s design process.

So who is this unique machine for? Buell says the Fllow “has the luggage capacity and practicality of a large scooter, but appears and handles like a mid-size motorcycle.” With its unusual design and styling, approachable power and innovative ideas, Buell is angling the Fllow towards an audience that is unusual for him: Beginning riders who want something a bit more potent than a small-wheeled machine they’ll quickly outgrow. But given his fan base and the unique design of the Fllow, we’d bet experienced riders looking for an affordable urban-focused machine with equal parts performance and practicality will also take a long look.

We’ll have to see if his instincts are on the mark when the bikes begin production next year. $200 gets prospective buyers a spot in the pre-order line, which Fuell says will also earn a $2,000 discount on the bike – and a $1,060 FUELL Carbon Helmet by Veldt (below) that wouldn’t look out of place on a SpaceX launch.

Forbes.com is hoping to get time on a review Fuell Fllow-1S in the near future.