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[crankypants]

Let me just start by saying that everyone at my local dealer is SUPER NICE and good people. And I feel lucky to have a dealer that's about 30 min from where I live. However, after just acquiring a used 2015 Zero SR, I've had some unfortunate strokes of bad luck there.

I took my SR in for state inspection and new tires (in order for it to pass) and while it was in the shop, the bike somehow fell off the lift. They said they were able to catch it in time before anything else happened to it, but the front fender took the brunt of the fall and cracked off. They are replacing it free of charge and will color match it since my red is now a faded looking orange. I've had this bike for about 3 weeks now so I am a bit sad it's already been damaged (and I didn't even cause said damage ).

A week before that, I had them perform a firmware upgrade which required taking the seat off (I'm pretty sure you have to do that). I noticed a couple days later at my house that the seat bolts looked super stripped. I got a 5mm allen/hex wrench and found that it was slipping right through it. I can't say 100% sure that they stripped it while putting the seat bolts back in but all I know is that from the time they did the firmware upgrade and 48 hours later when I was looking over the bike at my house.. I'm not sure where else it could have happened. I did bring the bike back and they were able to successfully take the stripped screws out (It did take some time).

Now fast-forward to my next encounter, I have been talking to Zero Support about a 'resetting issue' while riding. I sent them my logs and they were not able to pinpoint the issue and said it should get a motor commissioning at the dealer. The service guy at the dealer I talk to everytime does not work on the Zero bikes himself but he did not know what a motor commision is or how much it would cost. I told him a little bit about it and also gave him the case number the Zero engineer gave me. I'm waiting to hear back from the dealer after they do a bit of research about it.

I guess I just need to vent some concerns I have. I know this is a fairly new zero dealer and they have been very transparent with me and I respect that. However, there's just a feeling I have where I wonder if my Zero is in good hands, will they know the right thing to do, is something else going to go wrong there? I'm not sure how I should feel.

[GrantMeStrength]

If there was another dealer, I would definitely try them. Dropping your bike off a ramp? Stripping your bolts? That's insane. They don't sound as if they are even remotely competent.

[NEW2elec]

Yeah they love using those power drivers but it will strip them all up.  Soft bolts from China.

What do you mean by "reset"?  The dash turning off and then coming back on?

The motor commissioning should take about 30min worth of shop time.
They hook it up to a computer and the program checks the motor timing.

Who ever their Zero guy is will be the only one who knows anything about the bike.  Most of those old grease monkeys hate electrics and want you to feel you made a bad choice.

[crankypants]

If there was another dealer, I would definitely try them.

Yes, I agree. And usually when you take your car somewhere for repair and you don't have a good experience there, you can try elsewhere. But in this situation, there are very limited options so it does feel very strange to keep going back to the same place you're not exactly comfortable with.

What do you mean by "reset"?  The dash turning off and then coming back on?

At the beginning of every ride, after I accelerate for the first time and let off the throttle, the bike will 'click' and sort of 'restart' itself. The red hazard flashes and the bike is not 'ready.' I can't use the throttle until 5-10 seconds after it's done. It will throw a bunch of error codes (28, 49, 57) and then go back to 00 and the bike is ready again. It only does it once per ride at the beginning. Sometimes at the end of my ride when I'm walking the bike into the garage, it will do the click and 'reset' thing but it's mainly at the start. Zero support checked the logs and acknowledged seeing the error but they couldn't pinpoint it just from the logs.

[mdjak1]

My 2018 SR has the OEM rear rack on it but the seat bolts are actually T-45 Torx, not allen head.   Not sure if Zero changed that between 2015 and 2018 or if it is because of the rack.   You're sure they are allen head?

[crankypants]

My 2018 SR has the OEM rear rack on it but the seat bolts are actually T-45 Torx, not allen head.   Not sure if Zero changed that between 2015 and 2018 or if it is because of the rack.   You're sure they are allen head?

This page said that early versions of the seat bolts were 5mm allen key. My 2015 SR seems to fit that.

https://www.af1racing.com/OEM-Zero-Seat-Bolt-M8X55-ZM90-08005

[NEW2elec]

The T-45 volts are for the rack.  They are longer of course.  The guy I got my 17 from sent the stock allen bolts with the rack having the T45s.  Took a little while to find that T-45 driver too.


Ok Crankypants, yeah that could be a few things.  If the dash was coming on and off that would be the DC-DC converter, but that's not your issue.
Good luck.

[mdjak1]

This page said that early versions of the seat bolts were 5mm allen key. My 2015 SR seems to fit that.

https://www.af1racing.com/OEM-Zero-Seat-Bolt-M8X55-ZM90-08005

I would be surprised since that page says Zero switched in 2013 to Torx, I would be surprised that you have allen.   But I suppose it could happen.   

Torx seems like such a better head design, as long as the person working on it recognizes it is Torx and has the right size Torx bit.  I suspect that a T-40 would work in a loose T-45 bolt but it would bugger it if it were tight.   Allen has a similar issue when you use SAE in metric or metric in SAE.  Or even if you use the correct size allen but don't seat it all the way. 

[Shadow]

Q. How much patience should I have with my local dealer?
A. Zero

Document everything, file small claims case, move on with life and enjoy your bike to the extent that it does not absolutely require an authorized dealer for repairs now or in the future. The 2015's can be particularly reliable once set in good working order.

I do feel ill saying this but the situation hasn't really changed in 10 years for Zero Motorcycles owners. The dealership model remains a dumpster fire. Anyone with enough competence to work on your Zero Motorcycles bike at that shop will get hired away to some other shop within a few years time. Zero Motorcycles has held steadfast as being against right-to-repair and if we're being honest just plain anti-customer once out of warranty.

You've got an awesome rad motorbike and some punk moto mechanics stripped your seat bolts and again dropped it off the motorcycle stand?

Been there; loose axle nuts, missing seat bolts, loose handlebars, a different customer's wheel installed on my bike "It's not like we ever thought there would be two Zero bikes in the shop on the same day?"... The only honest and decent moto mechanic I've ever known to work on my bike was Steve. Zero told Steve he's not allowed to repair/replace the encoder on my bike's motor for a quick turnaround. "Why?" We never found out why. The bike was in shop for a month waiting for a whole replacement motor. Zero refused to say what was wrong with the bike that time. Steve told me it was completely obnoxious the way that Zero treats trained service professionals and treats every interaction as need-to-know and they won't tell you even when you need to know!

Out of warranty I had to take to bringing my own tools and hand over the bike (2016 DSR) ready for the service tech to plug their world of warcraft or whatever-the-shit Zero has their remote diagnostics and commissioning software running on, and then re-assemble my bike after.

I raised this point with people at Zero HQ before when they had a little pow-wow asking what we wanted. I said, tools and access to parts (this was before the glorious and wonderful AF1Racing offered their catalog of Zero parts online to the world) to maintain the bike would be nice at any price, or working some kind of legal structure out for a local motorclub to obtain tools and certification to use them correctly for the community. "There's hardly any maintenance, so you have that already." No no I am talking about the dealer cables and access to parts. "Yes, those are for dealers only and you are not a dealer."    And then what happens when my dealer is dishonest and awful, or just does not exist? "We have a training program in place for certified dealers and are adding new dealers all the time." This goes on and then I keep thinking what a wasted opportunity!

[fredx]

I'm now in the midst of a similar situation.  I brought my 2020 SR/F in for a ChargeTank installation on Thursday.  The service guy said they've done lots of these, and that my bike would be ready for pickup Friday afternoon.  I mentioned that it sounded strange, as their parts person told me this would be they'd installed an SR/F or SR/S rapid charger.  The service guy assured me they knew what they're doing, and that it'd be no problem.

Then yesterday (Friday) afternoon, it came out that yes, this is the first time they'd done an SR/F or SR/S rapid charger.  And sure enough, it wasn't finished by closing time.  He told me they'd wrap it up this morning.

So fine, I simply went there this morning, and waited.  And waited.  Eventually, he told me they're confused about the cabling, and tried phoning Zero (on a Saturday).  They were hoping for a call back.  I suggested phoning Hollywood Electrics, as they really know their stuff.  But they said they're uncomfortable with calling another dealer, and wanted the info direct from Zero.  Eventually, they humbly gave me a ride home, promising Tuesday now.

I live an hour away from my nearest dealer.

These dealers are largely unfamiliar with electric motorcycles, yet sell them and claim to service them.

If I could've done the work myself without losing my battery warranty, I would've.

I love the bike.  But I don't necessarily love Zero.

 - Fred

[Monterey10]

Just took a delivery of a 21 SR/F.    Flying down the freeway, bending around high speed turns.    Felt a bit odd.   Checked the tire pressure.    12 lbs front, 14 back.   I sent them a blistering email.       I guess I'm old school where Mr. Honda required a 7 point inspection before allowing a bike to be sold.

[crankypants]

Just took a delivery of a 21 SR/F.    Flying down the freeway, bending around high speed turns.    Felt a bit odd.   Checked the tire pressure.    12 lbs front, 14 back.   I sent them a blistering email.       I guess I'm old school where Mr. Honda required a 7 point inspection before allowing a bike to be sold.

Ugh, frustrating. You'd think they would be on top of simple things like that. I'm pretty paranoid with my dealer already.

[opengl]

Just took a delivery of a 21 SR/F.    Flying down the freeway, bending around high speed turns.    Felt a bit odd.   Checked the tire pressure.    12 lbs front, 14 back.   I sent them a blistering email.       I guess I'm old school where Mr. Honda required a 7 point inspection before allowing a bike to be sold.

I can't imagine how weird that felt. I bought mine used and noticed it handled really weird at low speeds, checked the air when I got home and the tires were both around 20psi.

[sharagan]

I had a similar experience. When I bought my FXS new last year, it had deflated tires. It had to be sitting for a while like that as both tires were already deformed, causing severe vibrations when riding. I had to replace both tires due to this and buy them myself as the dealer and Zero rejected my warranty claim. Apart from that the bike had a misaligned back wheel and too high belt tension. The headlight was aiming too high, blinding oncoming traffic. The front suspension was not dialed in correctly, left fork had two clicks more as the right one for the rebound setting.