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[Electric Cowboy]

So we made the SR/F review public. It was a real challenge to do, and then again to edit. We put thousands of miles on the bike to give it a proper test. Also, just when you think my final trip can't get any worse... the world decides to surprise you.

[princec]

Brilliant vid. And... errrgh.

Cas

[Crissa]

The question begs...

...Why did you bother?  You did something with a bike that it's not designed to do.

This video is just bunk, then.  Might as well watch Long Way Up for accuracy.

-Crissa

[NEW2elec]

Well I wouldn't say bunk, but touring wouldn't have been what I would have tried to focus on.
The facts and demonstration of multiple charging sessions is absolutely worth showing but for that bike that is about a maybe 10% use case, with the SRS being the clear choice for longer rides from Zero.

I do agree it's very disappointing that these major firmware bug issues continue to show up from Zero.  It does seem to show a lack of thorough testing before releasing to the public.  They really must do better.

Overall a good video and I'm still impressed with Morgan "Shadoe Stevens" Vetter's voice overs.

It was nice to show the other guy the Tesla adapter to get his full charging speed.  Good tip for US SRF/S owners who are thinking about the premium bikes and charge tanks.  I think they get that much power out of EU J1772 stations already.

Also you missed an opportunity to say "I'll be back" at the end.

[JaimeC]

Indeed. IF Zero's programmers ever get their act together, an SR/S Premium with 12kWh charging (and a Tesla Tap) is definitely in my future.  In the US, the J1772 stations may only put out 7kW max but there are quite a few Tesla destination chargers around here to make it worthwhile.

In the meantime, I'm perfectly happy with my "mature technology" 2018 S.  The 13kWh battery is "big enough" and charges in slightly less time than a 14.4kWh battery with the 6kW Charge Tank; enough for all day rides where I live.  I still have my ICE bikes for cross country trips.

[Richard230]

Indeed. IF Zero's programmers ever get their act together, an SR/S Premium with 12kWh charging (and a Tesla Tap) is definitely in my future.  In the US, the J1772 stations may only put out 7kW max but there are quite a few Tesla destination chargers around here to make it worthwhile.

In the meantime, I'm perfectly happy with my "mature technology" 2018 S.  The 13kWh battery is "big enough" and charges in slightly less time than a 14.4kWh battery with the 6kW Charge Tank; enough for all day rides where I live.  I still have my ICE bikes for cross country trips.

+1  Same here.   

[MVetter]

The question begs...

...Why did you bother?  You did something with a bike that it's not designed to do.

This video is just bunk, then.  Might as well watch Long Way Up for accuracy.

-Crissa

I’m not supposed to drive 9.5 miles to try and get home?

[Electric Cowboy]

Overall it was a great bike for less than 200 miles a day, as mentioned before the firmware update. Would have recommended it to anyone. And hardcore riders like Morgan and I could have struggled through the touring issues, as I did on the way up from LA and he did on his trip to San Simeon.

After the update though... I couldn't recommend it to anyone for rides over 5 miles. That's why we decided to make this a part 1. Hopefully, they get test automation and quality for their software releases fixed. It's not hard. I know because I was lead dev on a team that built a bionic eye. We integrated full hardware testing including button presses with robotics and software integration. from robots all the way through the code. It is doable and not hard if you know what you are doing. It would dramatically improve their customer experience and help their reliability issues. I would help them if they wanted. I have offered a number of times, but always been told that its not a real issue, and they have it under control. I first reported the first iteration of this bug in Europe when stranded charging at 2kw on an island north of Germany, south of Denmark in gale-force winds and rain. I was tied into the bike and saw it miscalculate the amp hours and it has been happening ever since. That was 2016 or 2017...

This is different though, now it has become a legitimate safety issue. That's why we showed it. Zero would do well to budget time and money to fix this problem as it is real, and dangerous. It makes an otherwise fun bike, unusable in many scenarios, Like Morgan getting stuck after riding 9.5 miles of a 27 mile ride. It was never dangerous before. This is new, and should never be allowed to happen again.

Just to be clear, if it gets fixed, it'll be a fun bike again. It's definitely king of the hill for wheelies!

[MVetter]

Dear users who have been doing this for over 5 years: how dare you use this new platform for extended rides? Because I can only literally process going between two points 20 miles apart anything beyond that upsets and offends me and I will take it as a personal assault. How fucking DARE YOU ride further than I have officiated? You will answer to my milquetoast wrath.

[Crissa]

I’m not supposed to drive 9.5 miles to try and get home?

There are dealers quite a bit closer than that.

The manufacturer is closer than that.

Doing the one thing that it does badly and then calling it 'unreviewable' just seem unwatchable.

-Crissa

[NEW2elec]

Exposing the bad firmware issue was hopefully a good thing and Zero gets it fixed.  The bad SOC calculation would be annoying in itself but when it triggers a power cut back because it thinks there is say 10% SOC left when there is really 50% is a major safety issue. 

I thought it had been shown that a voltage reading was the best measurement of power left but I guess they still try to measure amp hours.

[JaimeC]

I’m not supposed to drive 9.5 miles to try and get home?

There are dealers quite a bit closer than that.

The manufacturer is closer than that.

Doing the one thing that it does badly and then calling it 'unreviewable' just seem unwatchable.

And what is he to do if those locations are closed?  Sit around overnight (or longer) to wait for them to reopen?

[MVetter]

There is no repair currently. This is how the bikes are. Full stop. End of story.

Either you missed the part where the bike dropped 49% in 9.5 miles or you think that's acceptable.

[BigPoppa]

Where did you guys get the Tesla Destination charger to J1772 adapter? I would love to have that on my bikes. Much smaller and easier to carry than the cabled units I find on Amazon.

[MVetter]

Where did you guys get the Tesla Destination charger to J1772 adapter? I would love to have that on my bikes. Much smaller and easier to carry than the cabled units I find on Amazon.

That one is custom made by a friend of ours. We're trying to convince him to make more of them. Until he does, I recommend the unit made by Lectron even though it is over 3x the size.