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[Aikirob]

I've had my Zero DSR 2016 for 4 years, instead of using my car I've been using my bike, rain or cold weather never stopped me, I've only had to replace my tyres twice and replace the belt once, if I was still using my old V8 Toyota soarer, I'd be using $100 in fuel a week, 52X$100 =$5200 a year X4 years is $20,800.

I took out a personal loan to get the bike at $26,000 which to a poor ass like me was more money then I ever saw in my life, I am extremely happy that over the last 4 years I've saved so much in fuel and maintenance costs that my bike has almost paid for itself in the money that it has saved me in fuel alone.

That being said a regular 250cc bike only uses $9 in fuel each week, will save you a tonne of money and can run you $2000 to buy one, but maintenance costs will run much higher.

all in all an electric motorcycle basically has the lowest footprint of any conventional modern vehicle, only costs me $4 to refuel it from the power point and nothing if I charge it at my workplace or from a solar array.

every year that passes makes me that little bit happier with my purchase and even though the buy-in cost is high, it's always going to be worth it if you are in it for the long haul like I am.

I'd love to hear other peoples thoughts and how much they have saved by going electric.

[TireFryer426]

I'm no where near that!  My daily is diesel truck, F-450.  Part of why I got the bike was not just fuel savings, but saving wear and tear on the truck.  Short trips just add unnecessary heat cycles and they are just harder on the truck.
So I figure the bike has saved me about $600 in fuel so far.  I have the SR/F and I'm just about to hit 3k miles.
Worked out it cost 2 cents a mile to operate the SR/F in electricity cost.  But then we have a 'special fuel' tax which pulls that out to 5 cents a mile.  (The tax was more than I spent on electricity, which I think is just madness).
Its not such a good deal when you add in tires.  I'll be on my third rear tire.  Last tire made it about 200 miles before it got a nail in it.

I have been thinking about piecing together a DIY solar system to charge the bike.  I think I know what I need, but does anyone have any good write ups or recommendations thats done it?

[Fran K]

Where am I going wrong?
$100 gets you 28 gallons at $3.50
at 15mpg gets you 428 miles
times 52 then times 4
89,000 miles
Motorcycle tires are of round profile and scuff due to differing circumference center to rim, 10,000 miles is kind of pushing a set isn't it?  If you actually do go that far it will sure handle different with the new set.

[TheRan]

Were they really that expensive just 4 years ago? On the Zero site they're about $10k less than that now. 80 odd miles per day every single day (assuming Fran's calculations are correct) is very impressive.

My previous gas bike cost me about £3k and my DS was £8.5k. The old bike got 80mpg at least and at about £5.00 per gallon (£1.10 per litre, it's a bit cheaper right now but more expensive in the past and could very well rise again) it would take me around 88,000 miles to break even (ignoring the cost of electricity but not factoring in the reduced maintenance costs of the DS). I think I did something like 2-2.5k miles per year on the gas bike and I'll probably put even less on the Zero, but if I did do the same it would only take me about 35-45 years to break even. Needless to say, I didn't get an electric bike to save money.

[Crissa]

Maintenance is a big killer.  Even on my Mazda, I spend a little more than a thousand a year, on average, once you throw in things which have gone wrong.

All the parts that broke on my bike from my spouse dropping it in the highway didn't cost that much.

350¢ a gal, 31 miles to the gallon is still 12¢ a mile.  That is compared to the 1.95¢ a mile the bike costs to refuel.  If my one car was a truck like those guys, that would double the per-mile costs!  Over a long period, that can add up.

Over 5 years that will be about 30k miles for my driving mix that my short-range bike can replace.  In gas alone that's about $2400.  About $1800 in maintenance on the car. Someone who drives daily would have far more a difference!

The average commute is 16 miles each way.  That's 260 commutes in a year, or 41600.  Even at my modest 8¢ a mile difference that's another $3328 in fuel alone, another $2496 in maintenance... A longer commute makes those differences even more stark.

And I'm using my Mazda as a comparison.   It's more fuel-efficient than average and has low maintenance for cars in the US.  In the end, per-mile my bike might cost me about what my car does in maintenance per mile (because seasonal) but it'll be doing that annually instead of two or three times annually and tires cost yay much.  But that difference in powering is nothing to sneeze at.

-Crissa

[TheRan]

I should probably add that one of the reasons I got a motorcycle instead of a car is the much reduced costs (along with being able to filter, being faster, more fun, and easier to park). For the price of my gas bike it would be a struggle to find a half decent car (plus there's the higher cost of insurance, getting a licence, and maintenance) and even for the price of the DS I wouldn't be getting anything particularly nice unless it was a decade old with 100k miles on it. And then on top of that it would be getting like a quarter of the fuel efficiency of my gas bike.

So, while the Zero isn't the cheapest motorcycle (for my use) it still a hell of a lot cheaper than a decent car.

[princec]

I've owned many many bikes and rather a lot of cars and I'd have to say that most of my bikes have cost more than my cars, in total cost of ownership terms (when divided by the miles). I wouldn't be buying an electric bike to save money at all.

Cas

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

People buy vehicles for whatever reasons they have. You can focus on the budgetary aspects or reduced regular upkeep or ignore that altogether.

I know my V-Strom is way cheaper to operate and service than my girlfriend's Honda Fit, which is a very economical and reliable car, and that's why I've stuck with that bike.

My Zeros have generally been even better than the V-Strom after the initial price, and keep my maintenance cycles very low and free up money for projects around the Zero like fairings and chargers.

[Richard230]

I recently replaced my Triumph Bonneville with a lightweight KTM Duke 390. I just took it in for its first $600-mile servicing. I was told that the valves would need to be checked/adjusted during this first service. I will take 3.5 hours and the cost is $700. That was a real shock!  So far my Zero has only cost around $150 for its servicing, including having its motor "commissioned".

[princec]

Always factor in the (colossal) depreciation. And anyone getting more than 6000 miles from a tyre might as well be walking!

Cas

[Crissa]

Depreciation isn't part of the cost as it's unrealized.  It's really just a scary way to say 'you're using up the purchase price'.  But if you don't sell it, can't sell it, it gets destroyed - it's all the same number anyhow.

I have never parted with a car for more than two grand, and that was on I bought new, for 27 including financing.

Depreciation doesn't really matter unless if you actually plan to use it.  (And don't get me started on tax shelters...)

-Crissa

[cloroxbb]

@Crissa

So what about those tax shelters?