Electric vs Gas Motorcycle: What I Missed on Vacation — SkimNews
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- The author and his wife swapped their electric motorcycles for rental gasoline bikes while island-hopping in the Philippines, finding the experience 'eye-opening' compared to his usual electric steeds back home.
- Gasoline fueling in the Philippines proved remarkably convenient, with roadside shops selling recycled liquor bottles filled with gas for a couple of dollars — a distributed infrastructure that electrics lack in developing regions where charging outlets are scarce.
- Single-cylinder gas engines produced sustained vibration the author felt in his hands, arms, and seat for minutes after rides, while waste heat turned the under-seat storage compartment into a 'warming drawer' for water bottles and left the exhaust pipe hot enough to threaten his wife's ankle.
- Engine noise from high-RPM riding — especially on hills — drowned out natural sounds like wind and birds in forests, creating what the author called mental fatigue over a full day in the saddle.
- Routine maintenance like oil changes, air filters, spark plugs, warm-up waits, neutral hunting, and low-speed clutch work is absent on electric motorcycles, which the author describes as 'twist and go — no headaches.'
- The LiveWire S2 Del Mar, the author's 80-hp electric motorcycle that does 0-60 mph in 3.1 seconds, was likened by his brother-in-law to 'basically a big e-bike.'
- The Philippines is well-suited for electric motorcycle adoption, the author argues, citing heavy existing motorcycle use, short trips, and poor urban air quality — bad enough in Cebu City that he and his wife bought masks at a local pharmacy.
Why it matters: The Philippines relies heavily on short motorbike commutes, electricity is easier to distribute than liquid fuel, and Cebu City's air quality was bad enough that the author stopped at a pharmacy to buy masks — framing electric two-wheelers as a public health upgrade, not just a comfort one.
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