The windings often don't go bad unless you have something wrong with the voltage regulator and in this case it's a computer, so more than likely you'll only have to replace the brushes. Replacing the brushes will be like doing a topend on a gasser and my bet is that it will last longer and be cheaper to maintain.
10 bucks says you can get the motor rewound for more power kinda like when you rewind an alternator for more amps. Then there will be the aftermarket performance items like a louder speaker for the engine noise lol
Hey, its a cool idea. If they went brushless, you could squeeze a few more ponys out of it (prob up to 10 or 15) and with a large li-poly battery you could get maybe 2-3 hours run time. If the price went down and they added in some of the options mentioned, it could be a fun little back yard bike for people that live in the city. And, yes, the fork is a MTB fork, its a Marzucchi(sp?) Super Monster (1-2 grand just for that).
Picture it!! It's 2015 thanks giving day at the glamis dunes thousands of people ripping bowls racing up and down comp hill. And all you hear is the wind blowing. With the way polution is in california and the government cracking down on the 2 strokes these bikes are the future.
For me the sound is alot of the experience. Only good thing i see about it is the possibility to ride where you otherwise disturb people. It will probably take a while before it will be cheaper to maintain with about the same performace as gasbikes. Its like electric cars, very cheap to use but they cost pretty much to buy and when its time for new battery its very expensive.