The LiveWire S2 Alpinista is Harley-Davidson's electric sport bike, and Andrew reported it to be one of the most fun motorcycles he has ever ridden after a full day in the Colorado mountains. The 84 horsepower, 194 lb-ft motor launches the bike to 60 mph in 3 seconds, the Brembo M4.32 front brakes are exceptional, and the traction control system will catch an accidental wheelie before the rider even has to react. At $12,999 with over the air software updates that added reverse mode and roll forward regen braking post purchase, the value case is strong. The hard limits are range — 50 to 60 miles when riding hard — and Level 2 only charging that takes up to 142 minutes for a full top up, which makes this a compelling city bike rather than a long distance tourer.
Video Review
Written Review
LiveWire is Harley-Davidson's electric motorcycle sub brand, and the S2 Alpinista is their sport oriented model with lower seat height, sharper geometry, and an attitude to match. At $12,999 (as of 5/2026), it now sits in a competitive range against Zero Motorcycles and Energica. Andrew from the Freshly Charged team spent a full day on it in the Colorado mountains — canyon roads, charging stops, a trail near Red Rocks — and came back calling it the most fun motorcycle he has ever ridden. That is not a claim the team makes lightly, given a test history that includes Ducatis, Aprilias, Harley-Davidsons, and Hondas.
- Current price of the LiveWire S2 Alpinista: https://bit.ly/41oMjQP
What You Are Getting
The S2 Alpinista is built around a center mounted motor producing 63 kW, 84 horsepower, and 194 lb-ft of torque. Zero to 60 mph takes an impressive 3 seconds, but top speed is electronically limited to 99mph (something Andrew pushes back on, but we will get to that later).
The suspension is fully adjustable Showa at both ends: inverted forks up front and a monoshock in the rear with progressive linkage, adjustable preload, and rebound damping, and 7.72 inches of travel on both ends. The bike arrives set up stiff from the factory, which the team endorses for high speed riding given the torque output, though the dealership can soften it on request.
Braking is a Brembo M4.32 Monobloc four piston caliper up front with a floating disc — visually massive and proportional to the performance — and a Brembo PF34 single piston floating caliper at the rear controlled by a foot pedal. Both ends run Dunlop Roadsmart IV tires: 120/70 ZR17 front, 180/55 R17 rear. Across a full day of mountain riding, grip through tight corners was not a concern at all.
At 434 pounds, the Alpinista is hefty but still significantly lighter than most gasoline sport bikes in this class. The seat height is one of its more practical distinguishing features: 31.18 inches unladen, dropping to approximately 29.5 inches under rider weight. For shorter riders and women who often find sport bikes inaccessible at stops, this matters. The reviewer notes that most people under 5'6" will be able to put both feet flat on the ground at a standstill, a rare quality on a motorcycle with this kind of performance envelope.
The drivetrain is belt driven, which contributes to the near silent operation. The cockpit centers on a TFT display that is crisp and readable in direct sunlight, with turn by turn navigation, music control, Bluetooth connectivity, and over the air software update capability built in. Mode options are Rain, Eco, Touring, and Sport, plus two custom slots the rider can configure through the app. Every factory mode includes regenerative braking, and though custom modes can disable it, doing so eats range faster. The mirrors tuck under the bars rather than extending upward, eliminating vibration entirely since there is no engine to shake them.
On the Road
Andrew spent the day alternating between canyon roads and charging stops, and the riding impressions are consistent across all of it. Acceleration out of corners in Sport mode is described as the best Andrew has experienced on any motorcycle. The linear power delivery from a standstill through triple digits is a direct consequence of the sine wave controller and the absence of a gearbox: no shift, no power interruption, no moment where the bike loses composure during a transition. The regen braking in city settings is strong enough that the physical brakes are rarely needed for routine stops, meaning the Brembos are being saved for situations where they actually matter.
Traction control on the Alpinista does something our lead reviewer had not encountered on any other motorcycle: it detects front wheel lift and actively brings the front end back down. In Rain mode this happens quickly, in Sport mode the front end is allowed to come up further before the system intervenes, but in both cases the bike handles an accidental wheelie without requiring the rider to react. At a machine that launches to 60 mph in 3 seconds and produces this much torque off stoplights, that safety system is thoughtful and encourages a wider range of riders.
The reviewer also triggered limp mode after approximately 40 minutes of hard riding, which is a thermal protection state that shows a turtle icon on the display and caps acceleration to prevent motor overheating. Speed was limited to approximately 65 mph for about a mile before the bike cycled out on its own. This is not a defect, it is a protection mechanism, but it is worth understanding: push the Alpinista hard continuously and it will protect itself. Riders planning extended aggressive sessions in hot conditions should factor this in.
Software Updates Worth Knowing
After the initial filming, LiveWire pushed two software updates that materially change the ownership experience. The first is reverse mode: rolling the throttle forward now backs the bike up, which is a quality of life improvement for a 434-pound machine in tight parking situations. The second is roll forward regen braking, which allows the rider to modulate regen through the throttle and come to a complete stop using only the electric braking system. Both of these were community requested features, and LiveWire delivered them over the air. The willingness to update the product post purchase is a genuine differentiator in this category and speaks highly of the brand.
What Needs to Improve
Range is the primary limitation, and the reviewer states it plainly. Riding hard, expect 50 to 60 miles. Riding more conservatively, 70 to 80 miles becomes realistic. For city use this is certainly livable. For a day in the mountains it means planning charging stops, and the charging infrastructure outside major Colorado cities is thin. The bike accepts J1772 Level 2 charging only — no DC fast charging support — with a maximum intake of 4.4 kW. From 20 to 80% takes 78 minutes on Level 2, and 0 to 100% takes 142 minutes. On a standard household outlet those figures stretch to 5.9 hours and 8.4 hours respectively. Andrew's position: if Level 2 charge time could be cut to 30 minutes, the range limitation would be tolerable. As is, a long day of hard riding requires planning that a gasoline motorcycle does not.
The 99 mph top speed cap is a real criticism from anyone coming out of a sport bike background. The engineers reportedly limited it there because throttle response becomes nonlinear above that point. While we can accept the technical reasoning, we're pushing back on the outcome: there are real world situations where the ability to accelerate hard above highway speeds is a safety margin, not just a performance want, and 99 mph does not provide as much buffer as a sport bike rider would expect.
The display, while crisp, is a 4-inch TFT unit and is relatively small by modern standards. Turn by turn navigation is functional but the map is hard to read at speed due to the screen size. The turn by turn system also has a known bug where it occasionally stops updating position mid ride, requiring a full restart of both the app and the bike. At the time of filming the review (fall 2025), Andrew was in contact with LiveWire's service team about a fix at time of filming. The mirrors are excellent — vibration free in a way no gasoline motorcycle can match — but slightly small. The rib design on the frame, while visually striking, collects dust aggressively and is difficult to clean. These are all minor complaints in the context of the overall package, but they are real.
The Freshly Charged Verdict
For city riders who want the fastest, most exciting thing available at a stoplight and are not planning long distance touring runs will find this bike exceptional. The low seat height makes it accessible to a wider range of riders than most sport bikes. The performance is genuinely startling — Andrew rated the adrenaline factor at 12 out of 10, having ridden everything from Ducatis to Harleys — and the riding experience is clean, quiet, and immediate in a way that gasoline motorcycles cannot replicate.
For riders who want to tour, cover long distances, or ride hard all day without planning around charging infrastructure, this is not the right machine...yet. The range and charging speed create real constraints that are frustrating, and not for everyone. At $12,999, buyers should go in clear eyed about both sides of that equation.
- Current price of the LiveWire S2 Alpinista: https://bit.ly/41oMjQP
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