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[Neuer_User]

Zero's recommended tension range is 25 kg to 76.5 kg

Are you sure? I think it is 20-30kg. 70kg is far too much.

Here is what the 2018 Zero manual says:

1. Remove the key from the ignition switch.
2. Press the Tension Tester steadily to the non-cogged
side of the belt, half of the distance between the
motor-driven sprocket and rear wheel drive sprocket.
The “lip” of the tester will lead the tester on to the belt.
3. Slowly increase the pressure on the tester, until you
hear a clicking sound. Do not increase the pressure
after the tester has clicked.
4. Remove the tester carefully from the belt. Avoid rough
movements of the tester, as this would change the
results of the measurement.
5. Adjust drive belt tension if the measurement is outside
the recommended range.
Belt Pitch Recommended Tension Range
11 mm 25 kg to 76.5 kg

Wow, that's a huge difference to the 2016 model:

 Remove the key from the ignition switch.
2.  Press the Tension Tester steadily to the non-cogged
side of the belt, half of the distance between the
motor-driven sprocket and rear wheel drive sprocket.
The “lip” of the tester will lead the tester on to the belt.
3.  Slowly increase the pressure on the tester, until you
hear a clicking sound. Do not increase the pressure
after the tester has clicked.
4.  Remove the tester carefully from the belt. Avoid rough
movements of the tester, as this would change the
results of the measurement. The measurement should
be in the range of 20-30 kg.

Probably the newer, wider belt on the 2017+ models...

[MrDude_1]

Zero's recommended tension range is 25 kg to 76.5 kg

Are you sure? I think it is 20-30kg. 70kg is far too much.

Here is what the 2018 Zero manual says:

1. Remove the key from the ignition switch.
2. Press the Tension Tester steadily to the non-cogged
side of the belt, half of the distance between the
motor-driven sprocket and rear wheel drive sprocket.
The “lip” of the tester will lead the tester on to the belt.
3. Slowly increase the pressure on the tester, until you
hear a clicking sound. Do not increase the pressure
after the tester has clicked.
4. Remove the tester carefully from the belt. Avoid rough
movements of the tester, as this would change the
results of the measurement.
5. Adjust drive belt tension if the measurement is outside
the recommended range.
Belt Pitch Recommended Tension Range
11 mm 25 kg to 76.5 kg

link to 2018 manual:  http://media.zeromotorcycles.com/resources/owners-manuals/2018/2018-Zero-Owners-Manual-S-SR-DS-DSR.pdf

6.18  or page 92 of the PDF

[Richard230]

I went for a ride today and didn't see any difference in range over the 10-mile ride that I take every week.  The 10 miles of suburban and expressway streets took 6% of the battery capacity - according to the display.  That is the same as my 2014 Zero S when it was new.  After almost 4 years and 350 charges, the 2014 Zero was doing the same trip using 10%, but that is starting out at a 98% charge - as far as it would charge, so probably an 8% pack usage.

I learned today from a freeway ride that the Zero "Touring Windshield" has a moveable deflector mounted to the top of the shield.  It works great at smoothing the air flow over my helmet when in its lowest position, but raising it to its highest position resulted in much more noise and buffeting.  I might add that I posted photos of my new bike on a BMW forum and that windshield's looks really got dumped on - especially by Italians. 

When I returned home I was thinking that my belt might be too tight. So I checked it while it was still warm and discovered that I had misread the tension tester scale yesterday.  I was reading the pound scale and not the kilogram scale.  The tension was set at the factory at 40 kg, which is in the middle of their tension recommendation. Giving it the finger test as I used to do with my 2014 S it certainly feels tight.  I sure hope that the belt, as tensioned, isn't putting too much stress on the drive-line bearings.

The groaning sound when starting from a stop sure sounds like the motor is straining, even when in "sport" mode.  My 2014 S didn't make that noise. 

[Doctorbass]

I went for a ride today and didn't see any difference in range over the 10-mile ride that I take every week.  The 10 miles of suburban and expressway streets took 6% of the battery capacity - according to the display.  That is the same as my 2014 Zero S when it was new.  After almost 4 years and 350 charges, the 2014 Zero was doing the same trip using 10%, but that is starting out at a 98% charge - as far as it would charge, so probably an 8% pack usage.

I learned today from a freeway ride that the Zero "Touring Windshield" has a moveable deflector mounted to the top of the shield.  It works great at smoothing the air flow over my helmet when in its lowest position, but raising it to its highest position resulted in much more noise and buffeting.  I might add that I posted photos of my new bike on a BMW forum and that windshield's looks really got dumped on - especially by Italians. 



When I returned home I was thinking that my belt might be too tight. So I checked it while it was still warm and discovered that I had misread the tension tester scale yesterday.  I was reading the pound scale and not the kilogram scale.  The tension was set at the factory at 40 kg, which is in the middle of their tension recommendation. Giving it the finger test as I used to do with my 2014 S it certainly feels tight.  I sure hope that the belt, as tensioned, isn't putting too much stress on the drive-line bearings.

The groaning sound when starting from a stop sure sounds like the motor is straining, even when in "sport" mode.  My 2014 S didn't make that noise. 

On my 2017 SR that is using the same belt as your Zero the pitch is lower note and i like that. It make the frame to resonate from different locations  than the 2016- witch had higher pitch, making a more agressive sound than the HF chime of the 2016-  132-30T..

Doc

[Richard230]

I hadn't thought about that.  You may be right.  The wider belt and greater tension than used on my 2014 S might be the reason for the "groaning" noise that I am noticing.  Makes sense. 

[Richard230]

The biggest difference between my 2014 S and my 2018 S is (by far) the Showa suspension.  While performance feels about the same, the much better Showa suspension, compared with the previous Fast Ace components, really makes an improvement in the riding experience. As set up by the factory, the suspension is firm but compliant. Better than most motorcycles that I have owned - including my 2016 BMW R1200RS, with its "semi-active" electronic-adjusted (Sachs) suspension. But, with all of the various adjustment dials to play with I just had to spin a few last night. 

Adjusting the Showa suspension damping dials is really easy.  Much easier than it was on the Fast Ace components, primarily because they are easier to access.  And I bet that they actually perform some useful function.    However, the only tricky adjustment issue is changing the preload on the rear shock.  While the ramp preload adjustment system is much easier to use than the screw system used on the Fast Ace shock, it would have been really nice if Zero provided an adjusting wrench with the bike - or at least sold one as an accessory.  Fortunately, I have about 10 shock adjusting wrenches in my tool kit and, after trying several, discovered that an Ohlins shock preload adjustment spanner worked perfectly to also adjust the preload on the Showa shock's spring.  The only problem that I had was that I needed the shock handle to be longer to provide enough leverage to get past the bumps in the adjustment ramps.  So I found a hollow metal tube to place over the handle to extend its leverage and was able to easily reduce the preload slightly to accommodate my lighter weight. 

Here is another tip:  If you want to check the movement of your front suspension, you can place a plastic zip-tie around one of the fork tubes, next to the fork seal, go for a ride and you will be able to see how far down the suspension compresses, to make sure that the movement stays within an acceptable range.  What I do for the rear shock is to spray the shock shaft with silicone lubricant.  After riding around a while you can look at the shock shaft and there will be a ring around it (like in your bathtub after taking a bath) and that will give you an idea how much movement the rear suspension is experiencing.  I like to keep the movement just above the nylon bumper, which will provide some additional cushioning should you hit a big pothole, or the equivalent.

[Richard230]

Here is a comment about the brakes:  The front brake on the 2018 is about 25% stronger than the Nissan brake on the 2014.  However, the rear brake on the 2018 is about three times stronger than the very weak rear brake of the 2014.   

[Richard230]

Here is another difference between the 2014 and 2018 models:  I live at the top of a hill and on the 2014 S the bike's regen would turn on and off on the way down the hill when the battery pack was at 100%.  This no longer happens with the 2018 S.  I can ride the brakes lightly all the way down the hill with the battery pack topped off and regen maxes out on the display without any regen cutout.  That is a nice improvement. 

[JaimeC]

My S will be fully paid off in April 2019.  That's when I'll consider trading it in (it'll already be a year out of warranty) and I can't wait to see what improvements will be available by then.  Unlike some of the comments I've seen in here, I have been very impressed with the annual progress I've seen in these bikes, yet the prices pretty much remain unchanged year to year (the exception being the new 14.4 kWh batteries in the "R" models bumping their prices slightly).

I'm just keeping my fingers crossed they have some "exciting" colors for 2019, not the flat out BORING palette they adopted for 2018.

[Richard230]

One odd thing that happened last night was when I pulled the charger plug, the green charging light stayed on, as did the dash display.  I didn't notice this until this afternoon.  When I turned the ignition on and then off, everything went blank, as it is supposed to be when unplugged.    I checked the condition of the batteries using the Zero app and they showed 15.138 kWh and a 100% charge.  Cell balance ranged from 1mv to 3mv.  So I don't know what was going on but apparently the dash staying on all night while the bike was not plugged in, didn't seem to hurt anything.

[Richard230]

Today I took my first long ride.  I rode for 90 miles, about 1/3 of which was at 65 mph in 40 degree temperatures. It hit the high 30's once I got off the freeway, but then later warmed up to 50 degrees F, after climbing about 2000 feet in elevation. The Zero ran flawlessly the entire way and got me home showing a 23% charge left in the battery pack. When I plugged in the charger, my Kill A Watt showed the draw at the wall as 1250 watts.  The pack is now at 50% and is pulling 1300 watts.  Right before the charger shuts off I expect to see 1450 watts, based upon previous experience.

I checked the cell balance when stopped for breakfast at Alice's Restaurant and the pack was at 50%.  Balance ranged from 8 to 10 mV. Unlike my 2014 , when the ignition is turned back on there was no drop in the displayed battery charge.

Riding the Zero on deserted mountain back roads is really a lot of fun.  I like the silence and that I don't need to pick the right gear when going around a tight uphill bend. My only complaint is that nothing on the bike gets hot enough to warm my hands when I get off. 

It could be my imagination, but it sounds like the "goaning" noise that I hear upon starting from a stop is decreasing a bit.  Maybe, as Dr. Bass suggested, the noise is caused by the wider drive belt and it will quiet down once the belt breaks-in a bit. 

[Richard230]

Last night my bike finished charging from a 120V, 20 amp, household circuit in 10 hours after that 90-mile ride described above.  During this 10 hours of charging, 13.2 kWh of electricity (at 15 cents per kWh) were consumed.  Fully charged, the battery pack is showing 15.18 kWh available. If the battery had been fully discharged (something that I prefer to avoid, of course), the power consumed from my home electrical outlet would have been, according to my calculations, about 17.2 kWh, costing $2.58 USD.

With gas prices increasing by leaps and bounds, especially in California, I am not complaining about the $2 electricity cost to travel 90 miles.    If I had been riding one of my other gas-powered motorcycles, the cost would have been around $6.75, based upon current gas prices - which will surely increase next year, with no end in sight.   

[Richard230]

My bike developed the dreaded front brake squeal today.  When braking to a complete stop, during the last few feet, I get a loud squeal and shutter.  It has helped to reduce the squeal by using brake parts cleaner to clean the brake disc, but I haven't managed to completely eliminate the problem yet.  I have no idea why this has just started after 200 miles of riding.  That distance of riding should have fully bedded-in the brake pads.  I never had this issue with the Nissan front brake on my 2014.

[JaimeC]

Not uncommon with a semi-metallic pad on a stainless rotor.  Very common on my late 80s BMW K bike.  It happened most often when you use the brakes gently to slow, rather than full on hard to stop.  Apparently the gentle application allows the pads to glaze over and thats what causes the squealing.  If that is what is happening here, a couple of HARD applications of the brakes should break the "glaze" and silence them for awhile.

Since I use regen to slow this hasn't (yet) happened to me.

[Richard230]

Not uncommon with a semi-metallic pad on a stainless rotor.  Very common on my late 80s BMW K bike.  It happened most often when you use the brakes gently to slow, rather than full on hard to stop.  Apparently the gentle application allows the pads to glaze over and thats what causes the squealing.  If that is what is happening here, a couple of HARD applications of the brakes should break the "glaze" and silence them for awhile.

Since I use regen to slow this hasn't (yet) happened to me.

Having owned several BMW's including an R80, I know what you are talking about.  I also know how to bed-in brake pads, having done this to close to 100 pads over the years. Neither my 2012 nor my 2014 Zero made any noise when braking, ever. Interestingly, I only hear the noise and feel the vibration when braking hard to a complete stop.  If I brake easily, or back off on the brake lever right before I come to a complete stop, I don't have an issue.  Only when I squeeze hard on the front brake lever and come to a complete stop to the issue rear its head.

As soon as I started having this problem today, I immediately began braking hard at each stop in the hope of cleaning off any glaze that might have built up on the brake pads. But I get the feeling that the problem is vibration from the brake pads, not glaze.  Perhaps they are a little loose in the calipers, or the anti-rattle spring on the top of the pads is getting weak or is defective.  Anyway, I'll keep trying different things to stop the squeal and maybe I will also keep an eye out for after-market brake pads.  I just bought a set of EBC front brake pads for the 2014 S that I gave my daughter and their price was half the cost of the stock Zero replacement pads.