Patent ID: 8776936

Claim:
An electric vehicle comprising: a swing arm ( 12 ) which is swingably journaled to a vehicle body frame and rotatably journals a rear wheel (WR); an electric motor ( 50 ) which is disposed inside said swing arm ( 12 ) to overlap said rear wheel (WR) in a side view of the vehicle body and supplies a rotational driving force to the rear wheel (WR); a disconnection/connection mechanism ( 40 ) which is provided on a transmission mechanism transmitting the rotational driving force from said electric motor ( 50 ) to said rear wheel (WR) to disable transmission of the rotational driving force until said electric motor ( 50 ) rotates at a predetermined revolution or more when the vehicle starts to move; wherein said disconnection/connection mechanism ( 40 ) is provided outside of said rear wheel (WR) in the width direction of the vehicle and outside of said electric motor ( 50 ) in the width direction of the vehicle; wherein the rotational driving force of said electric motor ( 50 ) is transmitted to a speed reducing mechanism ( 70 ) through said disconnection/connection mechanism ( 40 ), and is transmitted from said speed reducing mechanism ( 70 ) to said rear wheel (WR); wherein a wheel ( 56 ) of said rear wheel (WR) has a recess-like space inside in the radial direction of a rim of said wheel; wherein said speed reducing mechanism ( 70 ) is provided to be configured to be put within the recess-like space of said wheel ( 56 ); and wherein said electric motor ( 50 ) is provided to be configured to overlap the rim of said wheel ( 56 ) of said rear wheel (WR) in a side view of the vehicle body.