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[gnelson]

Hi All.  I've just bought a 2019 DSR and started riding it this week.  I assume this is the right thread to post on?  I would be interested in others opinions on this bike and the previous version.  I live in NE England and use my bike almost entirely for commuting everyday, about 28miles each way. My first thoughts are it is pretty good.  Handles well, and responsive motor too.  Only downsides I've found are the rear end makes a right mess, chucking water and salt everywhere.  You can tell they don't have rain and salt in California!  Found that Zero used to do a solid insert for the rear light stalk, but don't seem to sell it anymore.  Anyone come up with alternatives?  Also, tried out the vibration app for checking the belt tension and it seems to report a lot of higher frequency noise rather than the range it is supposed to be.  I bought a tension tester which arrived yesterday, and the belt tension seems fine, so I think it is the app/ my phone.  Anyone else had similar experience?  Last point- I cannot find the SAE connector for attaching peripherals- anyone else managed to find it?  I have the charge tank in the way...

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

Zero still sells the rainguard for the license plate stalk. Just ask your dealer.

I typically use the top case and rack to keep the rear wheel fling from off the bike.

I don’t know what to say offhand about my 2016 DSR I haven’t said before. I put 41000 miles on it in over 3 years in a combination of commuting and touring. The bike was great right up until a freak accident disabled me for a few months and really destroyed the bike.

Your bike should have more range than mine. Zero’s are very sturdy if you drop them, only really capable of superficial damage most times.

Keep it stored indoors dry and not too cold, mostly, just to avoid getting dirt and moisture near electrical connectors over a long period of time.

Definitely take it easy with the throttle in wet and slippery conditions. When the rear wheel loses traction on a slippery stretch, it spins up extremely quickly. It’s easy to deal with if you expect it and train for it, but this sort of thing does sometimes down unsuspecting riders.

I maintain https://www.zeromanual.com which covers the howto’s, aftermarket, and modifications.

I’ll tell you what my dealer recommended in 2013 when I bought the much earlier DS:
Ride the hell out of it.

[Hans2183]

For using the belt tension app make sure you are in a completely silent environment so it can't pick up anything else. Speaking or whatever other sound you might hear will influence the reading.

In my garage I have to turn the air compressor off but then I get several results close to each other with some strange ones in between. Making multiple readings makes it easy to verify which values are probably the right ones.

The bel tension check tool I also have and use. Even then it's up to how you use it to get proper readings. You can easily bump into something or otherwise have a false reading. Also sometimes hard to properly see where the black part intersects with the metal part having the readout.

I can't help but think there must be better tools out there...

[BamBam]

I think this is the rain guard you're looking for.
https://www.af1racing.com/store/Scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=88986&sku=ZM10-08093&description=Zero+MC%27s+Rear+Fender+Extension%2FRainguard+10%2D08093

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

Oh, I forgot to address the salt comment.

Salt, if it gets into the internals of the bike, might cause an electrical problem after a while. Keep an eye on it and maybe check (1) under the seat, (2) behind the battery and above the motor, and (3) the rear end of the belly pan shows the charger plugs.

Most of the bike is aluminum and shouldn't corrode readily, but the fasteners are mostly stainless steel and worth checking. It would be nice if we had a regular maintenance recommendation for weather-proofing or protecting some connectors and areas around the bike. If you read the unofficial manual, ASI compound 70 is recommended for certain areas; it's what Zero uses.

[Richard230]

I bought the Zero rain guard and am happy with it.  It was very easy to install and seems to be effective.

However, I had the same problem with my BMW R1200RS.  You get a license plate holder but it provides no splash protection.  Oddly, BMW does sell an effective mud guard in NZ but it can not be ordered in the U.S. for some mysterious and unknowable reason.  So I made my own rear mud guard using a set of cheap generic automobile rubber mud flaps purchased at my local auto accessory store.  A little cutting, gluing and screwing gave me a splash guard fender that looks almost like a factory part and works well - a lot better than a tire "hugger", I might add.

[gnelson]

Thanks all.  Very useful comments.  Don't know how my googling skills failed to find the rear mudguard in a store, so thanks BamBam.  I had considered building something similar to Richard230's idea- do you have a post with pictures Richard?

Given how mucky the roads are at the moment with all the wash off from the fields, has anyone looked at protecting the belt from wheel flung debris?  I notice the guard doesn't join up with the swingarm.  Possibly me being a bit paranoid- never had a belt drive before.  Talking of which, is it worth keeping a spare just in case?

Oh, and a big thanks to BrianTRice, I've read a good bit of the unofficial zero manual, it is a great resource and I'm very grateful!

[Richard230]

Thanks all.  Very useful comments.  Don't know how my googling skills failed to find the rear mudguard in a store, so thanks BamBam.  I had considered building something similar to Richard230's idea- do you have a post with pictures Richard?

Given how mucky the roads are at the moment with all the wash off from the fields, has anyone looked at protecting the belt from wheel flung debris?  I notice the guard doesn't join up with the swingarm.  Possibly me being a bit paranoid- never had a belt drive before.  Talking of which, is it worth keeping a spare just in case?

Oh, and a big thanks to BrianTRice, I've read a good bit of the unofficial zero manual, it is a great resource and I'm very grateful!

I have pictures of my BMW's fender that I cobbled-up, but the won't help you make one for the Zero. You will have to figure that out yourself.  The BMW rear mounting is very different than Zero's.

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

A spare belt is never a bad idea, just because belts often snap when they fail. Basically, you'll pay for a belt now or later.

Belt changes on a Zero S/X bike require getting the swingarm off a bit to get it around the front sprocket, so it's not really a roadside solution unless you pre-roll the spare belt around the motor, which again requires getting the swingarm off...

But having one in your garage or a storage bin means you can often get tools from home and come back to your bike for a roadside swap. I've done that, at least.

ref https://zeromanual.com/wiki/Belt_Replacement_Procedure

NB the SR/F can take a belt swap roadside with only tools to adjust the rear sprocket offset. So, the engineers are paying attention.

[idle]

'16 DSR, 25k miles

The best experience I've had on this bike was after switching to some 90/10 street tires at 12k miles, seriously an amazing and comfy street bike.

Bike has done fine in three 110F+ summers, I thought my range was decreasing but really I just became more confident and am using more energy in every ride. I can still to this day get a good 140 miles if I ride speed limits and time lights.

Changed drive belt @ 21k miles due to finding a crack on its side, and immediately got a spare afterwards. I've never broken a belt but it really is something you should have as a backup just in case.

Changed front brake pads around 13k, then changed organic front pads around 19k, haven't needed to change rear pads yet.

In summer times, I roll the bike in the house after work, let it sit for a good 4hrs, then charge it, seems to do the battery good.

There was 1 day last winter, that's 1 day out of every single day I've ridden it during ownership, that I experienced a governed top speed of around 55-65 mph, this happened when taking the bike out during a cold morning after it sat outside through the night - probably 31-35F. When I went to the bank an hour after that commute the power delivery and top speed was back to normal and I never experienced that again.

I've read lots about calex charger issues but mine is still kicking - I charge on a 240v every time.

KNOCKING FROM THE MOTOR: Probably a bearing going bad, this is the disaster I have been waiting for, for some time now. The knocking happens every once in a while and then it goes away, for thousands of miles it goes away.. then comes back for a short period of time, and goes away again. Worst case scenario the whole motor gets replaced on some $2k BS. I'm gonna ride it till the motor eats the bearing. I don't get all the details but apparently Zero went through some different designs over the years, there is talk around of splined shafts, key shafts, I think mine is inferior, your bike should be fine? I'll deal with this when time comes for it.

I've dropped the bike a few times, as BrianTRice said - respect the torque delivery on these things, I've had fun slipping out in the dirt and such but it can get dangerous on road especially w/ knobbies in a lean. Only damage was a bent kickstand and a slightly bent handlebar, and a scratch on the back zero top-mounting plate/bar. Replaced kickstand, bent handlebar back with PVC pipe, I haven't had any sliders or protection on the bike and don't plan on getting any - the bike is like a lego brick, though I've heard some ppl break plastic body work so maybe they'd be good at preventing that.

Then someone backed into my bike with a tall truck and somehow crunched the ignition switch but NOT the headlight ? I rigged cheapo on/off switch to ignition cables and it has worked fine.

Then a dust-devil flipped my bike on its side catching my cover lmao, twisted the kickstand, just bent it back.

I'm just a commuter man, but owning this bike can bring the adv out of anyone

[gnelson]

Great post Idle, thanks very much.  Your experiences inspire me to looking forward to warmer weather!

Your riding style and usage sounds pretty similar to me.

Coldest day so far was -9oC (about 16 oF) one morning.  My bike is garaged, so it started off at a decent temp of about +7 (44 F).  I didn't have any problems.  I checked the logs later and the Pack temp never dropped below 13 (55 F).  It can sometimes be colder than that here, but not very often.

Not sure about swapping from the knobblies it has come with- winter is icy and snowy.  I think that might be my only concern- I have a steep bank to go down before I get to the main road in the morning, and I would normally manage speed with engine braking, but the engine braking isn't enough on the DSR- might have to set a custom mode for it (which I currently have as an in between Eco and Sport mode).

I've cobbled a mudguard together on the back with some thin black rubber that is cable-tied under the gap in the tail.  It has helped loads.  I'm going to look at the rainguard though- it would certainly look a lot neater.

[tbombadil]

'19 DSR
-> OEM 6kW Charge Tank
-> Rear and side bars
-> Cryca handguards
-> Drop bars
-> Rain guard
-> 16" Madstad windshield

I'm usually 170 - 190 lbs and 32" inseam.

4,400 miles since August 23rd.

Three crashes; two on the road, and one off-road.
-> Only one of them worth mentioning; one of the on-road crashes was at 10am on a cool day as I was turning off the road from my house onto the main street. I lost traction as my back tire (I assume) went over on the yellow a bit and (I assume) I accidentally gave more throttle. Regardless, all I knew was that I was immediately on the road and rolling down it half way into turning on the road. I had zero time to account for what happened. Things injured: plastic cover road rash on right side Cryca hand-guard, rear brake pedal, under-side of right foot peg, and minor scratches on the lower front right of the chassis closest to the tire (and the laptop in my backpack that decided to break itself under my right shoulder blade which still hurts over a month later . . .)


Coldest day I've been out riding was upper 30's; the bike's guesstimate of range is definitely 10 miles less than it normally is on those days. I've also been riding the bike significantly harder lately, though.

Re: riding the bike significantly harder:
-> always hitting the 106mph limit every ride
--> not uncommon for me to hit thermal throttling when doing 95+ for a little while even in the 30/40's*F
-> cornering at 90mph sometimes (in wide corners)
-> really need to swap in new set of tires (staying with MT-60's) already but haven't (will this week probably)

I always ride Custom with all settings at their maximum. My bike is always out under my car port in the weather and uncovered.

The bike is addicting! The only other upgrades that keep coming to my mind are that I'd probably like to upgrade to Brembo brakes and move the rear brake to a left hand brake instead for more fine control to use in corners. The bike can really lean crazy low in some corners; I'm yet to find (or push it to) its limit and low side in one.

[ESokoloff]

'19 DSR
.....
-> Rear and side bars
.........
.........


-> really need to swap in new set of tires (staying with MT-60's) .........
.......

 The only other upgrades that keep coming to my mind are that I'd probably like to upgrade to Brembo brakes .............

(1) What are the rear & side bars?
(2) I didn't like the square(ish) profile of the stock MT's and attribute them to unintentionally spinning the rear several times before I changed them (admittedly there likely were other factors involved like getting used to the bike & cold tires).
(3) IS THIS POSSIBLE???!!!!
I'm very interested in the possibility of upgrading if true. 

[tbombadil]

I just wasn't calling them the correct thing. Whatever the correct name is for the rails that your storage boxes attach to (top rear and sides).

What did you change to? Do you feel like you have more traction (and do you ride in the rain) in corners?

I think so? I haven't finished researching but there are quite a few search results indicating others wanted to do this as  well; I'd imagine someone has by now.

[ESokoloff]

What did you change to? Do you feel like you have more traction (and do you ride in the rain) in corners?

I purchased my bike used with about 2.8k miles on it. 
The rear stepped out on me 3 times with the stock rear tire & I partially attributed these incidents on their profile.
Tho there were other contributing factors like cold tires & road paint I still felt better switching to a more rounded shape.

First I tried Shinko Trailmaster E-705’s in the rear & Continental TKC70’s in the front.
These are 70/30 and I thought I would be better with a 95/5 arrangement as i mostly use the bike to commute year round Weather or not (road in the rain today here in Sunny SoCal).
I have to cross the Santa Monica mountain range so get to enjoy a section of twisty roads.
I’m on my second set of Perilli Scorpion Trail’s & so far, so good (though the back on this last set seems a bit squirrely/loose at times.
39,xxx miles on it now.