[Kuro]

After going through an ordeal purchasing a "new" 2020 ELW, having the OBC fail on the first day of ownership, having the screen with the bubble mentioned above etc... I purchased a 2022 LW1 and I am very happy, no regrets. I can say I notice an improvement to the response of the display on the 2022 LW1, but I can't prove it. But my initial reaction to interacting with the ELW touch screen was underwhelming and my LW1 feels like what I would expect of a touchscreen display.

P.S. Maybe a SW update would have solved my screen response on the ELW had a kept it, I don't know.

I think the thing I am MOST happy about is that with the ELW, HD Connect was no longer supported. So no app support for new buyers. I was not in any way able to connect or activate my 2020 ELW with the HD Connect app. However my ownership of the 2020 ELW was limited to one day, so I may be wrong here, but the app said the feature was no longer supported, something like that. Just to be clear, the app said this feature was no longer supported (or some kind of similar verbiage), not a failure to connect etc. But I could be mistaken etc.

I like the LW1 Livewire Connect support, and can't imagine not having access to it if I still owned the ELW. Also my 2022 LW1 has three custom ride modes available to configure, so I am not sure why that is mentioned as a difference.

If you go either way I am certain you won't be disappointed, but I suggest comparing the two first, and looking into the HD Connect. I assume that it is working fine for previous owners, but will not work for new owners past a certain date. Otherwise they are pretty much similar. Color should be easy to change, considering the small amount of material to paint or wrap, or as mentioned, purchase HD tanks etc... But I think that is probably more expensive than a custom paint.

Good luck with your decision and enjoy the process!

P.P.S. I did a comment listing the parts difference between the 2020, 2021 and 2022. The biggest changes from the 2020 to the 21 and 22 is a different battery and OBC (on board charging system). What those differences mean, I don't know, but they are completely different part numbers.

 

[Kuro]

More than the electronics sitting in a dry environment I’d be worried about the rubber of the shocks getting brittle.
Honestly I guess there is no way to tell how better or worse the LW1. Yes electronics and SW might be sizably updated, but also materials could be sizably cheaper.
It’s easy to assume that the ELW was being sold at a loss, even at 30 grand. A good reason to spin off the LW company to keep HD’s books healthy, in much the same way Mercedes Benz did with MCA when making the smart ForTwo (always sold at a loss).
On the other hand I can imagine engineers looking at every corner for opportunities to bring the cost down on the Livewire One.

What materials are cheaper? You can see the list of changes I posted in this thread:

What changes from HD ELW Livewire to Livewire One?

I am trying to understand the differences between the original 2020 HD ELW Livewire and the 2022 Livewire One? I've read a few sites that allude to some changes but don't clearly enumerate them. I am on the fence about which version to buy. You would hope that they learned some things while in...

www.hdlivewireforum.com

I compared all three parts manuals to compile that list, they have a section in each one that lists all the new part numbers, so there was no guessing, just some comparing to make sure.

The biggest questions I don't have an answer for and details are few:

1. Where is the extra 40 lbs (ish) on the LW1 vs the ELW? I am going to assume all this extra weight is either in the new battery the LW1 has, or the weights of the two bikes are off for clerical reasons. (The two models were weighed differently?)

2. What is different about the battery in the ELW versus the LW1? They are both rated at 15.5 kWh (woops, looks like the Livewire website just changed the stats to 15.4 kWh... Not sure what to think?). I would love to know what cells are used other than Samsung SDI. Considering both the ELW and LW1 are advertised (I believe) as using Samsung SDI cells, could there be much savings here if a cheaper battery was built for the LW1? Could it be higher rated cells were used for the LW1 increasing the weight of the LW1 and giving it a larger buffer?

Who knows but HD currently...

 

[Kuro]

Nice job investigating the part number changes!
From my experience a part number with an added letter is simply a new part number, to be considered as a different part.
On the other hand I have seen parts be updated without changing a part number (not a disturbance if the part works like the previous design, especially for fitting and connection standards). Haven’t seen that happen often though.

when checking the parts lists, hopefully through diagrams as well, did you notice parts MISSING in the new design? Sometimes cost engineers find their way towards the removal of things altogether haha

Unfortunately I did not dig that deep. But I have officially owned both, arguably the ELW for less than 24 hours, but I don't see anything missing from the LW1.

Wait... the fancy "Livewire" script on the right side of the metal trim just above the motor, is missing from the LW1. Which is just stuck on with tape, I think, I know the left side is...

My perspective? The LW1 is slightly updated, with the negative being more weight and less power. But ask yourself, is the more weight due to a denser battery (where else really could all this extra weight be looking at those part changes? Perhaps the LW1 battery weighs more for safety reasons?), and the 500 less RPM (hense the less power) for better longevity and minimal overall impact to performance? 0 to 60 is still rated the same right?

Wait, I thought the bike was heavier? Could they have more battery to pull from? Are the weight differences accurate if the acceleration is the same? Are they both actually the same three second zero to 60?

Sadly, HD and Livewire are not sharing too many deep technical details.

 

[Kuro]

Consider all the major items between the ELW and LW1 (my list is small for thinking)

Tires: same
Frame: same (other than the seat structure)
Rims: same
Brakes: same (I just mean the Brembo brakes)
Suspension: same

Running out of items to cut cost on... must be some of the electronics and battery that are cheaper.

Wait, how many OBC failures have you read about with the LW1? How many LW1 displays are delaminating and bubbles etc? I don't know, I have not counted but I am curious.

I don't think really anything other than possibly a less expensive battery is in the LW1 compared to the ELW. But I don't think that is the case either. I think LW just lowered their margin to get the LW1 into more people's hands with a lower price tag, hoping a larger production will make the difference.

But a less expensive battery would help too. Less expensive but the same warranty. Less expensive but the same (almost the same?) performance and stats. I am beginning to think if it is a less expensive battery, it is not important, other than weighing more, the end result on paper is the same? Or is it weighing more because it is updated denser cells or safety I mentioned? I just don't know. Wish I did.

Fun conversation.