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[EDoggN]

Hello all,

Just wanted to share my experience with the SRF demo ride over weekend.  My local dealer was nice enough to let me demo the bike for a couple days, and I am very impressed!  The bike handles fantastic and the power/speed is addicting.  The motor growls a little more than what I thought it would, but I hear it calms down after a few hundred miles.  In general, here are my key take aways:

- The Mobile App is very nice.  I wasn't able to use the cellular connection but I could connect over bluetooth just fine.  I love how you can program the State of Charge target.  This works very much like my Tesla.

- Charging at home with the included charger works great.  If/when I purchase one, I will use a Tesla Wall Charger with an adapter.  Zero's decision to use Level 2 charging was smart.  Future owners of the Livewire will find out that Level 3 charging is great, but they are very scarce.

- Charging on the road was someone stressful.  I took the bike out to a State Park where they have a level 2 charger on site.  The whole ride there (approximately 45 miles) I was stressed that either the charger would be taken or it wouldn't work.  Fortunately, when I pulled into the charging location the charger was available and worked fine.  I don't remember how much power the charger was putting out, but it took about an hour or so to gain 35% charge (I ate breakfast while it charged so that worked out great).  This took longer than I expected but that's not something that you can fault the bike for.  (Note: It took about 50% of the battery to go 45 miles traveling between 45-60 on average. I am 6"3 230 lbs)

- I rode the bike thru the park and it was the most fun I have ever had on a bike!!  The relative silence as I rode thru a dense forest was surreal. 

- When I first got the bike, I was exploring all the menus and tried to change the time/clock.  During this process the computer locked up (froze) and I could not turn the computer off.  With some help from this forum, I disconnected the battery and the bike re-booted.  I assume that the firmware had not been updated since the cellular connection wasn't setup.  I think I started the cellular, but I don't see how to force an update. Im not sure if it ever updated on its own.

- I would have liked to see the computer screen control media (from your phone).  I listen to music thru my helmet and it would have been great to control the music via the screen.  Seems like this would be a no-brainer.  It would also be great to have a built in GPS.

All in all, the bike is fantastic!  The only reservation I have is the charging network.  This will get better over time, but it is definitely a concern in the short term (depending on where you live). 

Thanks for all your help on this forum!  Its been a great place to learn about Zero bikes.

[flattetyre]

Except for a few situations, where you know in advance that you'll be stuck by a charging station for hours, it doesn't really make sense to ride ebikes places you need to charge them. We have gas motorcycles for long rides.

Electric makes sense for rides that take 1 full battery or less.

[Jarrett]

Dang, I agree with flat tire again.

[EDoggN]

I guess your probably right....but I would have regretted not running it thru its paces.

[Bill822]

it doesn't really make sense to ride ebikes places you need to charge them. des.

Disagree. While still a novice on my Zero I find it an adventure to plan out routes to test my limits. I started doing this some time back in my '11 Leaf, back when chargers were more scarce here in Texas. Planning (including backup plan), burning electrons very efficiently, and going places I usually travel past when burning fossils, it all adds to a sense of adventure, making an event out of a ride. No, not talking about cross country touring, but certainly 2 or 3 charging hops will fit into a nice day's ride with the 6kW charger on the premium version.

[Calidave]

I'm with Bill on this one. I'm only getting interested in motorcycles due to Zero's progress with electric bikes (replacing mtn biking). I won't have a second bike. The charging landscape remains a challenge, especially for "get-away" rides (though the Parks are starting to get onboard). But like Bill, I've find the challenge of managing limited range with my I-Pace as an acceptable feature. For bikes, I regard the current range challenge as an equal swap with the component/maintenance/reliability factors ICE bikes might present.

[vinceherman]

I am actively ramping up for a charging journey.
I have no clue how well it will work, but isn't that part of the adventure?

[DonTom]

Dang, I agree with flat tire again.

I don't. I like to take the breaks, get on line for a while and such. E-bikes are not for those in a big rush. E-bike teach us patience, IMO.  Such as when I am in a restaurant and the food comes very late. I think, great, I get a better charge for the rest of my trip.

I have also leaned to drive slow, take the slower shorter routes.  I stay off the freeways as much as possible. In fact, my rule is if you're in a big hurry on an e-bike for a long ride, then  ride very SLOW!   You save more time by riding slow and not needing to recharge as often.

Bottom line is that I have put more miles on my two electric bikes since I have owned them than I have on my seven ICE bikes combined. But they too have a purpose. It's best, for now, to own both. This will change greatly, IMO, if we had more charge stations out in the middle of nowhere. That's more important than range. A small battery gives as many miles per time charge as a larger battery. So with a small battery, wait half as long, but twice as many stops. Comes out near the same.

So IMO, the biggest problem with electric motorcycles is not enough charging stations outside of the larger cities. But that is improving, especially with all the charge stations coming to Wal-Marts.

-Don-  Auburn, CA

[flattetyre]

This is really poor logic, cuz you could do the same thing (long slow rides with lots of stops) on a bike that doesn't need to be constantly recharged. And that bike would obviously be superior.

and lol @ the "unreliable ice bike" thing. Unfortunately our Zeros are not that reliable yet, and gas bikes of comparable performance are basically DEAD reliable (buy Japanese).

It's one thing if a long charge time doesn't get in the way of your unusual lifestyle. But don't confuse that with it being a good thing.

[alko]

I'm seriously contemplating buying the 6kw charge tank for my 2017 dsr, so I can at least make some fun 1-2 day trips. The only reason I haven't bought one yet is the $2300 price tag. But I believe it makes more sense than the $2800 powertank which will only get you another 30 miles if you're lucky. At this point, I have to convince myself it's not about saving money anymore, but about the adventure. As a daily commuter though, you cant beat the Zero.

[DonTom]

This is really poor logic, cuz you could do the same thing (long slow rides with lots of stops) on a bike that doesn't need to be constantly recharged. And that bike would obviously be superior.

and lol @ the "unreliable ice bike" thing. Unfortunately our Zeros are not that reliable yet, and gas bikes of comparable performance are basically DEAD reliable (buy Japanese).

It's one thing if a long charge time doesn't get in the way of your unusual lifestyle. But don't confuse that with it being a good thing.

As you can see, I own plenty of ICE bikes. I enjoy the e-bikes the most of all. Logic has very little  to do with it.   

And even if If it did, you could go fix your flat tire as you're recharging!

-Don-  Auburn, CA

[DonTom]

I'm seriously contemplating buying the 6kw charge tank for my 2017 dsr, so I can at least make some fun 1-2 day trips. The only reason I haven't bought one yet is the $2300 price tag. But I believe it makes more sense than the $2800 powertank which will only get you another 30 miles if you're lucky. At this point, I have to convince myself it's not about saving money anymore, but about the adventure. As a daily commuter though, you cant beat the Zero.

I charge my SR with Powertank at 6.3 KW while on the road. As much as 8 KW when home.

See here.  My reply number 8.

-Don-  Auburn, CA

[Richard230]

Did someone mention reliable ICE motorcycles?  Here is the lineup of motorcycles waiting to be repaired at SF Moto, San Francisco's Zero (and various other brands) dealer.  This number of bikes waiting to be worked on never seems to shrink whenever I visit the shop.   

[NoMoreIdeas]

If there are lots of chargers towards your destination, why not? My ride to down town KC is nearly 50% of my battery capacity, however if I could even charge even at .5c and get 50% in one hour, riding down, having lunch and doing some exploring all of a sudden becomes a possibility. There are a ton of chargers down there.

[Calidave]

Um, a picture full of tailpipes is not good evidence of the unreliability of electric bikes.
That said, these forums are really very helpful, and I definitely appreciate the feedback found here. Fortunately, I haven't found a bunch of Zero owners bemoaning how terrible their bikes are.