Put on a couple hundred miles before the rain set in. I think I'll talk/discuss on some negatives about this bike. There aren't many but they are worth mentioning:
- I'm still not 100% sure about the rear suspension setup. It's Ohlins and still needs to be dialed in but overall the linkage-free suspension I feel is not ideal for varying conditions. It's pretty good as is but doesn't blow me out of the water. Quite possible that it just needs to be properly set up and then I'll be 100% happy.
- I put it in sport mode and it seems obvious that the bike kinda limits the torque output in some areas especially at slower speeds. I wish they could let us customize the map a bit so we could get more torque. C'mon man! Maybe this is what the RS model is for? It's still insanely fast obviously and the throttle response is the smoothest I've ever experienced on any motorcycle.
- There is basically zero aftermarket for this bike, which makes sense since there are only hundreds of them out there but I wish I could find something like a huge windscreen for winter commuting and quality frame sliders.
- The GOM range display is kind of a joke. It uses your last 10km of riding to estimate how much range you have left so during my lap through the Santa Cruz mountains it varied greatly and was pretty useless. Luckily this bike has enough battery where range anxiety isn't a problem. I'd say the range is roughly equivalent to a tank of gas on a few bikes I've owned.
- The dash display layouts are just ok and the app is completely useless. Both Zero and LiveWire can show nav directions on their dash now. It appears the Energica has this ability in theory but it's not really developed. It's not really super clear on the dash when the TC or eABS kicks in, there is no way to set a schedule for charging, the app doesn't work at all if the bike is off but charging, etc etc. Hopefully they focus on this further since there's a lot of potential there but the execution as it stands is weak.
- There are no OTA updates for Energica. At this time there is no reason for me to update anything since the bike is new but it would be nice for the future so I don't have to go out to the dealer in Livermore.
- It's surprisingly nimble but you have to be careful at parking lot speeds where you are reminded of the weight of the bike.
- The headlight looks nice and is great for day/dusk but the optics have a really sharp cutoff, and the high beams work more like spotlights instead of fill lights. I live in the hills and this is kind of a problem since the headlights don't shine into the turn. Fixed by aftermarket lighting.
- The factory luggage is really really small. It's just not great. Probably ok for a day trip but not touring, and there aren't any aftermarket options out there.
- There is no storage anywhere on the bike. At all. I don't even have a place where I could shove my reg card and insurance. And no built-in toolkit either.
- The cruise control buttons are literally impossible to press. Whoever designed this must have long af fingers.
- The kickstand is like 10 feet long. I could see the bike being blown over by a strong wind.
- The keyless works similarly to how it was on my Ducati Diavel, meaning it randomly displays key out-of-range errors when riding. The ignition is keyless but the seat is not. Would be nice to not have to take the key out at all.
