When the first self-powered vehicles appeared on roads in the late 19th century, they were as likely to use electricity for power as they were gas, steam or any other fuel. The lack of progress in batteries, and the steady march of fossil-fuel burning engines, knocked them off of the streets for about 100 years. But if you need more proof that the era of electrics may rise again, look to how the fastest woman on a motorcycle shattered records at Bonneville with a battery-powered bike.
Colorado resident Eva Håkansson and her husband Bill Dubé, both engineers, have been building their KillaJoule streamlined sidecar machine for five years in their Colorado backyard, powered by a brace of A123 Systems' lithium-ion batteries and electric motors generating some 400 hp and 800 ft.-lbs. of torque. Last month, at the Bonneville Speed Week, Håkansson ran a two-way average of 240.726 mph over the six-mile course.
