NEW: Veteran Oryx, 4,700Wh Battery, 4,200W Motor, Suspension

The Oryx is built around a similar magnesium alloy frame to the Lynx & Sherman-L. The most significant benefits of this design include:

• Weight savings to improve efficiency without sacrificing strength or rigidity. As these Wheels continue to grow heavier in order to provide a longer range and more power, saving weight wherever possible becomes increasingly important to maintain good handling.
• Corrosion resistance in the event of harsh weather exposure. It's not uncommon for a Wheel to be dropped at least once over the course of its life, which can remove the paint from the frame. Steel frames are susceptible to rust and corrosion when this happens, while this magnesium alloy frame is not.
• Heat dissipation, since the frame can act as one large heat sink. Keeping the controller cool is crucial for extending its lifespan, and using the frame to absorb and release heat from the controller is an excellent way to achieve this.

Since the release of the Sherman-S, Leaperkim's suspension partnership with FastAce has kept their Wheels at the front of the pack when it comes to suspension quality and ride feel. Leaperkim has worked with FastAce once again to develop a new hydraulic suspension system for the Oryx. With 90mm of travel to provide a smooth ride on all terrain, the suspension setup retains the rebound, compression, and preload adjustments from previous models, for fine-tuning the response to your riding style. New to the Oryx's suspension setup is a floating piston design, which keeps the hydraulic oil and air separate to maintain a consistent and predictable damping response. Similar to previous offerings, the Oryx will come with a choice between three spring weight options:

• 62lb, for riders up to 190lb
• 66lb, between 190-220lb
• 70lb, >220lb

The Oryx features Leaperkim's most powerful motor yet, rated for 4,200W of nominal power, with a peak power draw of over 10kW! The weight savings also continue when it comes to the motor's construction, which uses the same magnesium alloy frame material for the rim and motor covers. Less spinning mass results in improved acceleration and braking performance, as well as a reduced gyro effect to improve handling at higher speeds, which the Oryx was designed for.

The motor also uses a larger stator core diameter compared to competing Wheels, which has the effect of moving the interaction point between the magnetic field produced by the motor windings and the permanent magnets attached to the rim closer to the tire. This gives the motor more "leverage", improving responsiveness and efficiency. Imagine this as the difference between closing a door by pushing on it near the hinges, which is more difficult, versus closing it by pushing on it near the handle, which is easier, requiring less energy and effort to achieve the same result.

Powering this new motor is a 176.4V 4,700Wh battery, the largest and highest voltage battery from Leaperkim so far, built using the industry standard high-performance, high-capacity Samsung 50S cells. Such a large and performant pack will have no trouble powering the Oryx's improved controller and motor.

Offering a whopping maximum instantaneous current output of 1,120A, or nearly 200kW, the controller on the Oryx has been upgraded from 36 to 48 MOSFETs, a jump from 12 to 16 FETs per motor phase. In addition to providing more power to the new 4,200W motor, this approach also improves reliability since the load is spread across more individual chips, reducing their operating temperatures. The controller also retains the dual-layer design with copper bus bars on the lower power layer to further reduce temperatures and improve reliability, and a separate upper layer to minimize interference between the power and logic sections of the controller.

Taking inspiration from aftermarket offerings on previous models as well as competing designs, the Oryx uses an all-new headlight with an improved beam pattern and secondary daytime running lights. It's capable of putting out 3,000 lumens while drawing 25W, compared to the previous 2,500 lumen, 20W design. Since the Oryx was designed for high-speed cruising, an improved headlight for better visibility at night while maintaining those higher speeds is a welcome addition.

The most common modification for the Lynx and Sherman-L was a set of pedal lowering brackets, since lowering the pedals has the effect of improving stability at higher speeds in exchange for a bit of maneuverability. The Oryx addresses this with two factory mounting positions for the pedal brackets, letting you choose between less pedal clearance for a more stable ride at high speeds, or more pedal clearance for off-roading and improved handling. Switching between the two is also easier compared to previous models, since the pedals don't have to be removed from the brackets in order to change the height.