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[GaryArt1]

So one of my fellow bikers asked me this question and I began answering it with what I thought was correct information but started second guessing myself. 
They asked how many years of good service can you get out of the Zero battery.  So I know battery degradation is a curve rather than an straight line with a deinfitive end point.   So I guess one has to first establish at what percentage would you consider serious degradation.  Let’s say 70-75% of original capacity.  Baring any problems or abuse of the battery, what are we looking at?  I heard numbers such as 10 Years.  Also is there a point in battery age that the degradation curve gets dramatically steeper, say 15 years?.  I’ve heard the battery should last as long as the bike’s lifetime.  I am not sure if they mean a battery with enough charge to get you around the block.  The thing is my ICE bike is still running good 15 years later.  Yeah it is not worth anything but rides great.  How will my new Zero hold up?

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

Zero’s battery warranty covers 80% capacity at 5 years.

I won’t rehash the details but the unofficial manual covers this pretty well. Also no bikes are 10 years old yet on the current cell platform.

Basically you either invoke the warranty because of a defect, or your battery has a broad flat degradation curve.

[gstrub]

Anyone smarter than me know the relationship between time and usage vis a vis battery condition? In other words, at 10 years of age, is a battery on a bike with X miles any different than a battery with 3X miles?

[GaryArt1]

Zero’s battery warranty covers 80% capacity at 5 years.

I won’t rehash the details but the unofficial manual covers this pretty well. Also no bikes are 10 years old yet on the current cell platform.

Basically you either invoke the warranty because of a defect, or your battery has a broad flat degradation curve.

Brian, thanks for the info and thanks for all the work you do on the Unofficial  Manual. It is a great resource and I just read the section on batteries.  Interesting thing you said in manual is by the time the batteries degrade enough for replacement, the new batteries will be cheaper and have more range.  It will be very interesting to see if in 10 years the newer batteries are even compatable with our current bikes.  I would hate to purchase a $20K bike that becomes obsolete and unusable in 10 years

[flattetyre]

0) The batteries are very durable and long-lived for practical purposes

1) Of course Zero will make you buy a new bike when they have a big feature release. Business as usual.

2) Depending on how many Zeros there are running around in 5-10 years there will be aftermarket drop-in batteries if you want to keep your old ride fresh.

[harleyfltri]

I just read on another thread that the Chevy Volt uses the same cells. My wife's 2012 Chevy volt is still getting @ 42 miles to a charge in the summer and @ 36 miles per charge in the winter so I am pretty confident they will keep their power for quite some time.