騎上哈雷戴維森（Harley-Davidson）的首款電動摩托車LiveWire，你會感覺它與該公司的其他車型沒有什么區(qū)別。它的外形不太一樣，不過很堅實，而且很快就能與你的身軀合為一體。

不過之后，它的駕駛體驗就完全不同了。

LiveWire沒有哈雷摩托車用戶所熟悉的巨大轟鳴，啟動時相當安靜。它在加速時也沒有公認的哈雷戴維森特質：發(fā)出隆隆作響、震耳欲聾的咆哮，它的聲音更加高亢尖銳。

這可能會導致他們起初流失一些擁躉。對公司和騎手而言，LiveWire都是一次重大的轉變，不過即使它放棄了內燃機，骨子里仍然有許多哈雷的特質。

LiveWire是公司的一次重大轉型。高管們希望這款電動摩托車提振公司低迷的零售額。盡管第三季度哈雷的國際總銷量提高了2.6%，但他們在美國區(qū)的銷量下滑13.3%，只賣出了3.62萬輛摩托車。

在本周拉斯維加斯的消費電子展技術貿(mào)易展上，這家摩托廠商讓《財富》雜志體驗了一下這款即將面世的電動摩托車的模擬版。它放在拉斯維加斯會議中心（Las Vegas Convention Center）的展臺上，本身不能開動，需要我們用增強現(xiàn)實眼鏡來模擬摩托車的速度，所以這和真正意義上的測試還有差別。不過，LiveWire的后輪可以轉動，模擬的速度體驗似乎也很準確。此外，不管它是不是電動的，這看起來是一款很快的摩托車。

哈雷戴維森表示，LiveWire從0加速到60英里/小時只需要3.5秒。（我們沒有計時，不過在模擬測試中它的確很快就達到了那個速度。）與傳統(tǒng)的哈雷摩托車不同，這輛摩托車不需要駕駛者調整離合器或手動變速。它的重心更低，擁有可調懸架。這些特質都會讓它在新騎手那里更受青睞。

公司表示，這樣設計是有意為之的。

哈雷戴維森的首席市場官希瑟·馬倫舍克表示：“這樣設計是為了進入一個擁有新客戶的新領域，尤其是在城市環(huán)境中，這款車就是為此打造的。我們試圖吸引新一代騎手，這輛摩托車非常好騎。”

我騎的這款LiveWire最高時速為69英里/小時，不過量產(chǎn)版將達到110英里/小時。預計每次充電的行駛路程為110英里（比起2014年哈雷戴維森第一次談論LiveWire時估計的50英里，如今有了明顯提高）。

LiveWire將成為哈雷戴維森的第一款電動摩托車，不過它不會是最后一款。在消費電子展上，公司還介紹了兩款新的概念型電動兩輪車。馬倫舍克表示，它們已經(jīng)進入測試階段，之后將投入生產(chǎn)。公司的想法是打造大規(guī)模的電動兩輪車輛產(chǎn)品線，提供從普通摩托車到小輪摩托車到其他類型車輛等各種選擇。

她表示：“你仍然能享受到哈雷戴維森原汁原味的駕駛體驗，不過只是換成了一輛全電動摩托。我們正在推出一系列組合產(chǎn)品，我不認為還有哪家廠商在這么做。我們打算引領這個類別，推動這個類別向前發(fā)展。”

哈雷戴維森在本周早些時候開始接受LiveWire的訂單。美國經(jīng)銷商將在今年8月拿到現(xiàn)車，它的起售價是29,799美元（相比于非電動摩托車7,500至8,000美元的起售價，這要昂貴得多）。這款車型未來也將在其他國家售賣，不過具體日期還未宣布。

公司把LiveWire和電動車輛稱作“哈雷戴維森的未來”。

哈雷戴維森的總裁和首席執(zhí)行官馬特·萊瓦蒂奇表示：“我們正處在交通工具變革的歷史節(jié)點。用創(chuàng)新產(chǎn)品搭載身體和靈魂，這一直是我們品牌的核心，而我們歷史新篇章的主題就是為不同年齡、各行各業(yè)的現(xiàn)有騎手和有志成為騎手的人創(chuàng)造產(chǎn)品和機遇。”

電動化可能是公司的未來，不過別以為這表示公司打算拋棄其標志性的摩托車了。

馬倫舍克表示：“我們完全有繼續(xù)生產(chǎn)內燃機的計劃。我認為兩種發(fā)動機會在相當長一段時間內共存。”（財富中文網(wǎng)）

譯者：嚴匡正

Climbing onto Harley-Davidson’s LiveWire, the company’s first electric motorcycle, feels like you’re getting on any of the company’s other bikes. While it looks different, it feels solid and molds to your body quickly.

But from there, it’s entirely different.

Instead of the loud roar that is so familiar to Harley riders, the LiveWire starts silently. And rather than the rumbling, bone-shaking growl that, for so many people, goes hand in hand with Harley Davidson, the LiveWire has a higher pitched sound as it accelerates.

That’s likely to throw some people off at first. The LiveWire is a very dramatic shift for the company and for riders, but even though it eschews the internal combustion engine, it’s still very much a Harley.

The LiveWire is a big shift for the company. Officials hope the electric bike will boost its flagging retail sales. The company’s U.S. retail sales dropped 13.3% to 36,200 in the third quarter, while its total international sales rose 2.6%.

The motorcycle maker gave Fortune a chance to ride a simulation of its forthcoming electric motorcycle at the CES technology trade show in Las Vegas this week. It was on a stand in the middle of the Las Vegas Convention Center and stationary, and required using augmented reality glasses to demonstrate the bike’s speed, so it was far from a definitive test. But the back wheel of the LiveWire was turning and the speed seemed to be accurately reflected. And, electric or not, this thing seemed like a fast bike.

Harley-Davidson says LiveWire will go from 0 to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. (We didn’t time it, but it hit that mark fast in our simulated test.) And unlike traditional Harleys, this bike doesn’t require riders to use a clutch or manually shift gears. It also has a lower center of gravity and adjustable suspension. Those qualities, when combined, mean it’s more welcoming to new riders.

And that’s a very intentional design decision, says the company.

“This is really designed to enter into a new segment with new customers, particularly in the urban environment, because this is really built for that,” says Heather Malenshek, chief marketing officer for Harley Davidson. “We’re trying to bring in the new generation of riders, because this is a very easy bike to ride.”

The LiveWire I rode topped out at 69 mph, but the production model will reach 110 mph. It’s expected to have a range of 110 miles per charge. (That’s notably higher than the initial estimate of 50 miles when Harley-Davidson first started talking about LiveWire in 2014.)

LiveWire will be Harley Davidson’s first electric bike, but it won’t be its last. At CES, the company also introduced two new concept electric two-wheeled vehicles, which Malkenshek says are already in testing and will put into production at a later date. The idea is to build out a large collection of electric two-wheeled vehicles, from full-on motorcycles to scooters to other types of vehicles.

“You still get the raw motion of riding a Harley Davidson, but in an all electric motor,” she says. “And we’re bringing a broad portfolio and I don’t think anyone else is. It’s our intent to lead the category and push the category.”

Harley-Davidson began taking orders on the LiveWire earlier this week. It will reach U.S. dealerships in August with prices starting at $29,799 (which is notably higher than non-electric models, which start at $7,500 to $8,000). It will be available in other countries at a still unannounced future date.

The company has called LiveWire and electric vehicles “the future of Harley-Davidson”.

“We’re at a historic juncture in the evolution of mobility, and Harley-Davidson is at the forefront,” said Matt Levatich, president and CEO of Harley-Davidson. “Innovation that moves the body and soul has always been at the heart of our brand, and this next chapter in our history is about creating products and opportunities for existing and aspiring riders of all ages and walks of life.”

Electric might be the company’s future, but don’t take that to mean it plans to do away with the bikes that made it iconic.

“We fully intend to keep making the internal combustion engine,” says Malkenshek. “I think they’re going to live together for quite some time.”