Today we continue with our important Wildfire update. Here is a brief summary of what happened in September and what the next steps are:
All tests passed
All the tests required for homologation have been passed. My current task is to prepare the documents. This process should be completed by the end of October. You can see what happens next:
date for the inspection
Since we are now registering with the KBA in Belgium, we have to undergo another inspection. During the inspection, the TÜV comes to our premises and checks the quality management. This was already done in spring 2021, but when the Federal Motor Transport Authority changes, this inspection must be carried out again.
We have not yet received an appointment from the TÜV, but we are ready and have been since spring 2021, of course. Therefore, nothing stands in the way of the inspection except the speed with which the authorities can issue an appointment.
When will the Wildfire be built?
We will start building the first Wildfires in November. The final frame and swing arm are currently still missing. In September we tested the last version and received valuable feedback from our customers.
The feedback is currently being incorporated and the components will be ordered from our German supplier next week. Delivery time is 4 weeks, which means we can build complete Wildfires from the beginning of November.
When will deliveries start?
Before we can officially deliver, 3 points are still missing:
1. In order to build Wildfires, we still need the final frames and wings. The pre-assembly has already started and from the beginning of November we will have all the components in our office and can therefore build complete Wildfires.
2. The homologation documents have yet to be submitted. I am currently preparing this and will complete it by the end of October. The review of the documents can take a month or three months. With the Bonfire S & E we were lucky that the homologation was approved after four weeks. With the Bonfire X we waited three months. I cannot say how long it takes with the Belgian KBA.
Unfortunately, we have to wait here because we have no chance of increasing the speed at which the authorities work. As always, this is in stark contrast to our small team, which simply works quickly and efficiently.
3. Then we still need the inspection. I wanted to set the date as early as possible in July and at the time it was October. We will see in the next few weeks whether this date will be kept or whether it will be postponed like many other dates for our tests.
As always, I will keep you updated on the 3 points above. The next update will probably come in mid-November with the news about the start of production.
If it were up to me, I would deliver the Wildfire as soon as production starts in November, but unfortunately, as a fast-paced little start-up, we always have to work with the same bottleneck: the speed of the authorities. Unfortunately, that was always the same with the Bonfire models.
If there is a possibility to deliver the Wildfire to you in November before the official approval, we will of course try to do that. We are currently looking at a few options, including individual approvals. Of course, in the end you decide when and how you want to receive your Wildfire. We are just doing our best to deliver your Wildfire as quickly as possible under the difficult circumstances (slow authorities with a lot of bureaucracy).
And as hinted in September, there are two more little surprises for the Wildfire:
Free BMS App
Each Wildfire battery has a Bluetooth-enabled battery management system (BMS), which allows you to connect to your smartphone and read the following information:
- Accurate percentage battery charge level (SoC)
- battery temperature
- battery voltage and battery current
- battery health (SoH)
- Overview of all 28 cells in the series connection
- voltage difference between the cells
- battery performance (charge & discharge)
- number of charging cycles
You can find the app in both the App Store and the Google Play Store under the name "Smart BMS".
I think the coolest features here include the percentage display of the battery charge level, so you always know exactly how much energy is left in the battery and then you don't have to worry about running your battery dry.
Controller App
There is also a free controller app for your controller (Wildfire & Bonfire) in the App Store and as APK software for Android smartphones. To connect to the controller, you need a Bluetooth dongle, which you can order here .
With this Bluetooth dongle you can log into the controller and make the following changes to the drive train:
- adjustment of recuperation (energy recovery)
- adjustment of peak power
- adjustment of the continuous power
- torque adjustment
- Adjusting the maximum speed
- Adjusting the throttle sensitivity
- Adjustment of driving modes (Eco, Normal & Sport)
- Overview of power, controller temperature and motor temperature
I think the controller app makes the Bonfire & Wildfire even more attractive, as you can now configure your own bike exactly for your intended use. Here are a few examples:
- If you have a lot of hills, it makes sense to set the recuperation so that you can drive down the hill at a constant speed in order to recover the maximum energy
- If you want to drive routes at different speeds permanently, then it makes sense to equip your three driving modes with different maximum speeds so that you have cruise control
- If you like to collect data, you can use the app to measure and track everything precisely, and possibly increase your reach with clever adjustments
We will upload videos about both apps to our website shortly.
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