Tork Motorcycles was founded in 2009
by a group of young graduates from Pune’s DY Patil College of Engineering. They
dreamed of designing and creating zero-emissions vehicles that could perform on
par with petrol-powered machines. Kapil Shelke, the founder and CEO of Tork
Motorcycles, helmed a team of like-minded engineers and Isle of Man veterans.
He also brought racing enthusiasts to the team who successfully crafted their
first electric motorcycle - the T1X. They raced it against the best in the
world, at the prestigious Isle of Man TTXGP in 2009. It was the Electric TT
race at the Isle of Man.
The T1X was ridden by the legendary
John Crellin and finished third on the podium. It was an unprecedented feat for
the first-ever participating team from India. This success made the world stand
up and take notice of the company’s abilities. Tork Bike has indigenously
developed multiple electric motorcycle prototypes in the past decade. They have
powered racers to podium finishes at the Isle of Man TT and the TTXGP in the
United Kingdom.
Driven by such strong credentials and
proven expertise, Tork was now ready to break into the Indian urban commuter
segment. Their offering was unmatched - both in performance and economy. Owing
to their international racing success, in April 2016, Tork received funding
from the Co-founders of Ola and CoCubes. This enabled them to take their first
electric bike for the public from the prototype stage to production. The
company had set up its manufacturing facility in Chakan, Pune.
In
October 2016, the manufacturer launched the T6X at a price of ₹1.25 lakh. The
bike had created a sensation among the Indian biking community. It had received
more than 1,000 pre-bookings within 24 hours of its release. Along with
numerous features, the T6X came with many firsts to its credit in the
two-wheeler segment. The motorcycle had features like cloud connectivity,
integrated GPS, and in-built navigation capabilities, becoming the first smart
motorcycle. Connected with a mobile app, the platform would map driving cycles
and provide real-time location of the bike.