Electric bike and e-motorcycle company SONDORS is teasing something new, and it looks a lot like an electric dirt bike.
SONDORS just sent out a teaser email to their followers stating that “the next SONDORS product release is coming soon”.
There aren’t many details about the new model provided, other than that the upcoming product announcement will be referred to as “MetaBIG”.
The pun evokes the SONDORS Metacyclea small-scale electric motorcycle that the company first announced in early 2021 and eventually launched to consumers in late 2022.
The Metacycle uses a cast aluminum frame, giving it a distinctive frame sink. The company originally stated that three accessories would be available for the cavity, including a storage box, level 2 charger, or backup battery.
It’s not clear if the upcoming product will be built on the Metacycle framework, but CEO and Founder Storm Sondors will told electr during a Wheel-E podcast interview that the company was working on several models that would be based on the Metacycle platform.
An electric dirt bike would be a likely option, although it might just as likely be SONDORS developing some sort of electric trail bike in line with that Sur Ron light bee or other lightweight off-road electric motorcycles.
The teaser image doesn’t give much away, but we do see off-road tires as well as a distinctive disc brake guard typically only found on dirt bikes. The bike also features a beak-style front fender commonly found on dirt and adventure bikes, as well as a revised headlight.
The Metacycle in its current form uses a rear hub motor, which is not ideal for off-road riding. But then again, it’s not exactly the best option for on-road riding either, and that hasn’t stopped SONDORS from selling thousands of lightweight electric commuter motorcycles.
The company recently announced a $2,500 “loan.”bringing the price of the $6,500 electric motorcycle down to just $4,000 before shipping.
The loan apparently helped SONDORS Grab 1,000 reservations in a week for the bike, on top of that According to reports, 2,000 units have already been delivered.
Despite the increase in shipments, SONDORS has been metacycles roll out Complaints ranged from the bike not meeting its original performance specs to concerns about build quality to the inability to reach customer service to get answers in a timely manner. Many early reservation holders have had trouble canceling their reservations and receiving refunds, with some waiting several months to hear back from the company about pending refunds.
The company has a long history of lofty promises with optimistic delivery times. But with the exception of his three-wheel electric car projectSONDORS has generally lived up to most of what it promises, albeit usually several months behind schedule.
The practice has angered riders unaccustomed to the company’s rather “unique” method of operation, and often leaves frustrated riders wondering when they’ll get their new e-bike or e-motorcycle. So if history is any indication, it might be a good idea to extend the delivery timeline that SONDORS is announcing for the unveiling of this new vehicle by a few months.
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