Once again, MUGEN (M-TEC Co., Ltd., Tomoyuki Hashimoto, President) will, as “TEAM MUGEN”, participate in the TT Zero Challenge class *1 at the 2017 Isle of Man TT races, to be held from May, 27th (Sat.) through to June, 9th (Fri.), 2017 on the Isle of Man.

The challenge of participating in the Isle of Man TT electric motorcycle races started in 2012 as our unique project to foster young engineers and conduct developments in a new area. We won the race in 2014 just after three years trial and have continued to win until now.

New machine this year is a developed model of the previous year's one “SHINDEN GO”. Name of the new machine is “SHINDEN ROKU”.

“SHINDEN ROKU” will be exhibited*2 at the 2017 Tokyo Motorcycle Show, which will be held at Tokyo Big Sight in March, 2017.

*1 The Isle of Man TT Race (The Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Race) TT Zero Challenge 

The Isle of Man TT race, which started in 1907, is the oldest high-speed motorcycle race that is still currently held. The isle, which is located in between the United Kingdom and Ireland, is about the same size as the Awaji-shima island of Japan.

The races are held in a time trial format on a 60 km public street course that includes urban zones, residential areas, and a mountain section. The event was resumed in 1947, after the end of World War II, as part of the Motorcycle Grand Prix World Championship, and was soon an irresistible competitive challenge for the Japanese motorcycle manufacturers to demonstrate their technical abilities, and the riders with their courage. As a result of their successes in the Isle of Man TT it has served as a foundation for the Japanese motorcycle industry, from which it has made the leap to the pinnacle of world class motorcycle manufacture and competition.

The TT Zero Challenge class is a new category that was started in 2009 in anticipation of the future of the age of clean energy. In this category, machines are required to be equipped with a power plant emitting zero carbon dioxide. Though races for conventional internal-combustion engine classes can range from three to six laps, the race distance for the TT Zero Challenge class is currently one lap (approximately 60 km) in deference to current technology battery performance and capacity.

*2 Release of “SHINDEN ROKU” 

Venue: Tokyo Big Sight (Tokyo International Exhibition Complex) West Exhibition Hall, Special stage in atrium

Date and time: March 24, 2017 14:00