How To Charge Energica EsseEsse9

This video features the 2021 Energica EsseEsse9 RS. This electric motorcycle features a 21.5 kWh battery, which is the biggest battery that you can get from an electric motorcycle. The range on this bike is about 200 km on a highway, 300 km if you’re riding in a city, and about 250 km mixed. 

The EsseEsse9 features upgraded Olin front forks and rear shocks, it also features the new EMC motor which is a lighter motor than most electric motorcycle motors. The controller for these bikes was developed for the MotoE racing series, so they’ve been really pushed to their limits. A controller like this means that your average street rider won’t even come close to pushing these things to breaking point.

The motor is liquid cooled and the controller is a compression gearbox, along with a chain drive which makes the bike sound pretty different to other electric bikes. It’s not like the Zeros with a belt drive that’s very quiet. 

You can really push these bikes hard on the track on the road, they’re not going to overheat and they’re not going to start to reduce the power to the motor like some of the other electric motorcycles. 

This RS version of the bike has 215 newton meters (Nm) of torque, now to put that into context, the only petrol bike that I can think of that has a similar power output is the 2.5L Triumph Rocket. This bike has been mapped slightly differently to the Energica Ego, it doesn’t have as an aggressive sport mapping. But it can still do 0 to 100kmh in about 2.8 seconds, so a tiny bit slower than the Ego but still extraordinarily quick. 

Unlike the other Energica models this has a classic style of motorcycle seat, which allows you to ride double or single. One other thing that sets this bike out from the other models is an Edgeco classic headlight as opposed to the sort of futuristic lights they put on the Ego and the Eva Ribelle.

It’s pretty much the exact same chassis and bike as the Energica Ego and Eva Ribelle it just has different fairings and mapping. The EsseEsse9 was more built for touring, so it’s a great halfway point between the two racing models of the energica (Ego + Eva Ribelle) and the Experia Green Tourer. It won’t go as fast as the racers, but will take you further in kms. 

The bike has the same display as the Ego and the Ribelle, a pretty simple digital display which can connect your Energica app via Bluetooth. Through the controls on the handlebar you can change the riding modes between urban, wet, sport and eco. You can also set your own custom riding modes to your preference. As well as cruise control, you also have a reverse gear, which is pretty impressive to us. 

To start the bike you have to hold the brake and engage the ignition. 

These Energica bikes have level 1, level 2 and level 3 charging capabilities which sets them apart from most other electric motorcycles. 

To access the charging port just open the seat block, this gives you access to a type 2 Charging socket, and also a CCS combo if you want a DC fast charge. Both of these charging ports have rubber caps over the top. Type 2 charging is the larger of the two charging ports, CCS uses a combination of both the larger and smaller socket, we will explain CCS charging later on. 

Most people are going to charge these bikes slowly from home or at work, so to do that you’re going to use a type 2 cable which fits into the larger section of the charger. Then you just plug it into a standard wall outlet. This will get you a full charge in about 8-9 hours. A good solution for charging overnight, or at work. 

You’re going to get about 2.5 kilowatts from that standard wall outlet. The onboard charger on this bike sets the AC charger limits it at 3 kW per hour so if you connect to a faster AC charger, you’re not going to be able to use the full capacity of the AC charger. 

Some of you may have an AC fast charger at home or at work. On most bikes this will allow you to charge quicker than a standard wall outlet. To AC fast charge, you just plug into the same socket that you did for standard wall outlet charging. With this charging setup you could probably charge the bike in about 6-7 hours. 

Your final option is the most advanced – DC fast charging, also called level 3 charging. The EsseEsse9 has a DC fast charging limit of 25 kW per hour, that’s a bit of a game changer really. It means you can charge this whole bike in about 40 minutes. You’re most likely to find a DC fast charging outlet at a public charging station. 

To use DC fast charging you need a CCS combo socket, those are usually found at the fast charging stations, people don’t tend to have those cables themselves. CCS combo sockets use a combination of both the larger charging socket, and the smaller double pronged socket located just underneath it. 

Just pull off the rubber caps over the charging socket,  which then gives you full access to the full CCS combo port. Some DC fast charging stations can charge up to 300 kW per hour. As a safety feature, this bike will not let you go above 25 kW. This is to protect the battery and the controller. 

If you try to charge any faster than that the bike will charge unevenly and damage the battery. 

While your bike’s charging, if you went off and got a coffee, no one can pull the cable out. It automatically locks when you take the key out of the ignition. It won’t come out until you put the key back in the ignition and start the bike.  

The Energica EsseEsse9 is my personal favourite of all the electric motorcycles we have in our shop. It’s the biggest battery, the longest range, but it’s got that more upright riding position which makes it a lot more comfortable to ride than some of the other sport bikes. If  you’re looking for the best electric motorcycle this is it there’s nothing better in the world right now.