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I am within my bike's range of a Zero dealer.

6 (40%)

I am outside my bike's range of a Zero dealer.

9 (60%)

Total Members Voted: 15

[domingo3]

With the federal tax incentive back, I almost had myself convinced to buy a Zero SR.  Now, we're moving to Augusta GA this summer.  Nearest dealer is 150 miles away.  That means the purchase, any warranty work, any anything dealer related would involve renting a trailer.  I feel like that pushed me back across the fence towards not buying one.  On one hand, life is short and I love riding the bike.  On the other hand, while I hope that the bike requires no maintenance, I don't want to be incredibly inconvenienced and pissed off if I do have some kind of issue that needs to be addressed.  From what I gather, bike failures of one sort or another are not that uncommon.

[nigezero]

Flip a coin and go with your heart I say!

Ive owned two and had minor issues with both, the new one less so. Ive managed to solve pretty much all problems remotely through the app and telephone support and this forum (!!!). No doubt popping into a dealer is better but if you are reasonably practical you can probably sort most things. Of course, some people have had very serious proibs and bad luck, but most haven't.

[MostlyBonkers]

Coincidentally, I'm doing exactly that, this very day! There's only one dealer in the UK at the moment, Streetbike, and they're based in Birmingham. I live just north of London and that's about 120 miles away.  They've got a van and they're going to give me a lift about two thirds of the way home. I'd like to ride the last fifty miles myself even though it's freezing today.

It will depend on the dealer, but in my case I think Streetbike will be willing to pick the bike up for warranty work. I don't know if they'll be able to claim expenses as part of the warranty claim. If I find out, I'll let you know.

It is a risk, but it's certainly worth asking your dealer about their policy. I'm also pretty sure that Streetbike would drop a courtesy bike off for me too. I should check on that too really.

As Zero builds it's dealership network, I think they are going to be willing to support people who live a distance from their nearest dealer, within reason.

I'm planning to keep the forum updated on my new 2014 DS. Watch this space!

It's worth a call to your dealership to ask them how they would handle warranty work, courtesy bikes, pickups and so on. If nothing else, it will give you a feeling for how they like to run their business. It should be an indicator of how they will treat you further down the line and inform your decision.

I think my decision to take the plunge has been influenced by the way Streetbike conduct themselves as much as anything really. I've had a few concerns about buying a Zero which I've voiced. I've even caused a little storm in a teacup or two. Ultimately, I've decided to purchase after hanging out here for about two and a half years.  Some would say I'm a worrier.

The product, my not-so-local dealer and the good people on this forum have swayed me. Oh, and the fact that a model came available that I can afford.

[MostlyBonkers]

+1 for what nigezero just said too. [emoji4]

[LeftieBiker]

   I'm in the process of acquiring an SR from three thousand miles away, in Ca. I'm terrified at the prospect, but the "local" dealers are still outside the range of the bike, and wanted more for an S 12.5 or S 9.8 with Charge Tank than I'm paying for the SR. Which is all the money I have, more or less...

[Erasmo]

Coincidentally, I'm doing exactly that, this very day! There's only one dealer in the UK at the moment, Streetbike, and they're based in Birmingham. I live just north of London and that's about 120 miles away.  They've got a van and they're going to give me a lift about two thirds of the way home. I'd like to ride the last fifty miles myself even though it's freezing today.

It will depend on the dealer, but in my case I think Streetbike will be willing to pick the bike up for warranty work. I don't know if they'll be able to claim expenses as part of the warranty claim. If I find out, I'll let you know.

It is a risk, but it's certainly worth asking your dealer about their policy. I'm also pretty sure that Streetbike would drop a courtesy bike off for me too. I should check on that too really.

As Zero builds it's dealership network, I think they are going to be willing to support people who live a distance from their nearest dealer, within reason.

I'm planning to keep the forum updated on my new 2014 DS. Watch this space!

It's worth a call to your dealership to ask them how they would handle warranty work, courtesy bikes, pickups and so on. If nothing else, it will give you a feeling for how they like to run their business. It should be an indicator of how they will treat you further down the line and inform your decision.

I think my decision to take the plunge has been influenced by the way Streetbike conduct themselves as much as anything really. I've had a few concerns about buying a Zero which I've voiced. I've even caused a little storm in a teacup or two. Ultimately, I've decided to purchase after hanging out here for about two and a half years.  Some would say I'm a worrier.

The product, my not-so-local dealer and the good people on this forum have swayed me. Oh, and the fact that a model came available that I can afford.

I'm pretty sure a DS would fit in a train won't it?

[ctrlburn]

I am within the "one way" range of a trio of dealers. 60-80 miles.
I am not within the reasonable "round trip" range of a dealer.

Schlossman's does free pick and delivery.  And delivered my bike no charge (and charged).
Pro Motorsports didn't charge after service. At dealer I had 87% battery projected 12 miles short... so I mostly 'eco-miled' at bicycle speeds on country roads. That gets into electric's sense of entitlement, i wouldn't expect them to fill the gas tank, but i was disappointed on the less than full charge, though i'm not sure I would ask.

I am within range of my tire dealer.

[benswing]

That gets into electric's sense of entitlement, i wouldn't expect them to fill the gas tank, but i was disappointed on the less than full charge, though i'm not sure I would ask.

I don't think of this as an entitlement issue, but of a dealer education issue.  Any dealer working on electric motorcycles should figure out that they should return the bike fully charged.  This is different from filling up with gasoline since they don't have gasoline onsite.  Electricity costs almost nothing and makes a happy customer.


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[NEW2elec]

Hi Domingo since your coming to my neck of the woods, well 200 miles east of me, here is what I can tell you about our Ga dealer and a few other topics.  First I've worked with WOW a few times and they have a few guys who really know the bikes and they sell quite a few of them so they have a pretty good relationship with Zero.  They do offer pick up "service" but not in your range or mine for that matter.  For what it is worth if you have a truck or van with a class III hitch you can go this route instead of buying or renting a trailer.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Motorcycle-Carrier-Hitch-Mount-Hauler-Rack-Steel-Dirt-Bike-MX-Scooter-/291355273063?hash=item43d620a767:g:riYAAOSwYGFUyA7z&vxp=mtr

Just strap the hell out of it, feel free to find different ones but the one I use is basically that very one.
I test rode their SR last week and they told me if I wanted one they would order it from Zero as the two bikes they have are demos and can't be sold for a while.
Now don't get me wrong taking the bike that far is no fun but if you had a bad issue (safety issue) with the bike you wouldn't want to ride it even one mile so a method of transport is really a must with any bike. I think the newer bikes have a lot of the bugs worked out but they aren't perfect so go into it accepting a few trips to WOW at some point.
Good Luck.

[Ndm]

I had similar worries when deciding whether to buy or not, the previous owner and forum member had taken the bike to a local dealer and after a test ride they decided to carry zero, so I now have a local dealer, I suggest that you show it around if you get one and maybe, just maybe........ !!

[acacia1731]

I purchased my FX from a dealer 300 miles away (+$250 for shipping), and my nearest dealer is now 60 miles away.  Fortunately, I have not yet experienced any major issues that required dealer servicing.  I have had several questions though, and have been able to answer all of them either through this site or by phone from Zero directly or one of the two above mentioned dealers.  When parts are needed, I've pretty much accepted that I'll have to order by phone from one of the dealers and suck up the shipping fees.  Most of the standard parts outlets (RockyMountain, local shops, etc) don't have any Zero bikes listed in their catalogs, which makes them pretty helpless for finding parts that will fit...

Overall, the inconvenience hasn't been that bad.  There's always the possibility that a big issue will arise, but I can't imagine that it will need dealer servicing on a regular basis.

[domingo3]

Wow, thanks for the post!  I was starting to write off getting a Zero for the time being, but your endorsement of WOW is encouraging.  I can accept a trip or two here and there, but I'm worried about the stories where bikes sit at the dealer for weeks and the ones where the bike gets "repaired" and has the same or related failure soon after.  A few trips in a row would really turn me off.  As we get closer to summer, I'll call to ask, but a dealer that would give a loaner bike would sweeten the deal a lot since I depend on a bike for transportation.

Hi Domingo since your coming to my neck of the woods, well 200 miles east of me, here is what I can tell you about our Ga dealer and a few other topics.  First I've worked with WOW a few times and they have a few guys who really know the bikes and they sell quite a few of them so they have a pretty good relationship with Zero.  They do offer pick up "service" but not in your range or mine for that matter.  For what it is worth if you have a truck or van with a class III hitch you can go this route instead of buying or renting a trailer.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Motorcycle-Carrier-Hitch-Mount-Hauler-Rack-Steel-Dirt-Bike-MX-Scooter-/291355273063?hash=item43d620a767:g:riYAAOSwYGFUyA7z&vxp=mtr

Just strap the hell out of it, feel free to find different ones but the one I use is basically that very one.
I test rode their SR last week and they told me if I wanted one they would order it from Zero as the two bikes they have are demos and can't be sold for a while.
Now don't get me wrong taking the bike that far is no fun but if you had a bad issue (safety issue) with the bike you wouldn't want to ride it even one mile so a method of transport is really a must with any bike. I think the newer bikes have a lot of the bugs worked out but they aren't perfect so go into it accepting a few trips to WOW at some point.
Good Luck.

[NEW2elec]

Ok let me add this, I love my 2013 DS but it was a very early 2013 and has had some issues.  All of which Zero has taken care of and I believe they have improved the bike's tech with each model year.  Wow does offer rental ICE bikes and for sure you can ask but I don't think they would do a loaner Zero, I could be wrong.  Just in the interest of full disclosure mine is a toy for me I don't commute on it so if it's down it is just no fun but no big deal for my work life.  It is possible for it to have to go back to CA if there were any big issues (not that I think there will be) but as much as I'd love others to get these bikes I want everyone to go into it with as much knowledge as possible. I don't want a guy to be stuck in a bad situation with his only mode of transportation.  Hope this doesn't scare you off of them, as that is not my intention, but I would say to anybody have more than just a motorcycle for transportation.  If you have that covered then let those electrons flow.