BIG TORQUE!

The UltraViolette F77 declares that it's time to socket up

- Kartik Ware

I'd been looking forward to this one. Well, not this particular machine, but I was extremely curious as to what a proper electric motorcycle might feel like. My last memory of one was riding the Tork T001X, an e-racer that won the final open-class podium spot at the very first TTX GP at the Isle of Man in 2009. After riding that bike, I remember thinking that electric motorcycles could actually be fun, and wondered if and when we'd get one on sale in India. As it turned out, it took another 14 years for the UltraViolette F77 to silently glide into my garage last month. A performance e-motorcycle aimed squarely at enthusiasts - talk about aiming high. Then again, Ultraviolette does say that the bike is inspired by fighter jets.

It looked like that, too, with its flanks more like an aircraft's all-encompassing fuselage with 'airstrike' decals and with tiny wings that called to mind a T-Rex's arms. The front-fork shrouds, the raked headlight and the pointy tail all added to the F77's aviation ambitions as well. Nonetheless, the more I looked at it, the more I thought a fully-faired approach would've worked even better with all that fibreglass on the sides. But my opinion didn't stop small crowds from forming around the bike wherever it was parked, so there you go. Also, the F77's overall fit and finish was well beyond what I've come to expect from startup-made machines, which certainly added to the bike's visual appeal.