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[RickSteeb]

Nice : )

Yes!  Customer Service unexcelled!!   Brock from Zero just dropped off a ZF9 "S" loaner and drove away with my bike.  Have a nice route home Google-mapped out!

 =D

[Richard230]

Nice : )

Yes!  Customer Service unexcelled!!   Brock from Zero just dropped off a ZF9 "S" loaner and drove away with my bike.  Have a nice route home Google-mapped out!

 =D

I'll be seeing him tomorrow morning.   

[RickSteeb]

As I was unable to get to Scotts Valley before closing today, I'm still on the ZF-9 "S" #'003.  They tell me my bike had logged some failure codes; [?] and that the controller has been replaced and latest firmware is installed; testing has all been passed & battery recharged.  I get to ride down to the factory after work Monday & ride home on my DS, about 60miles total-- there's an E-enduro run!

A mileage data point-- today's ride home on the "S" in slow traffic achieved a new economy record of under 2kWh to recharge after the 13.7mile[22km] journey.  Splitting lanes most of the way... occasional bursts of 60mph...  My DS normally takes around 2.25kWh each way, although there were a couple runs that took over 3kWh, after sustained top speed stretches in light traffic; the controller may have had issues, as those were among the last couple trips before the service!

[Richard230]

I just heard back from Zero. They have finished working on my Zero S. They tell me that the controller was reprogrammed and the throttle assembly was replaced. The word is that should fix any power loss gremlins and improve the bike's throttle response.  I am now waiting for a call to schedule the delivery of my bike.   

[manlytom]

A mileage data point-- today's ride home on the "S" in slow traffic achieved a new economy record of under 2kWh to recharge after the 13.7mile[22km] journey.  Splitting lanes most of the way... occasional bursts of 60mph...  My DS normally takes around 2.25kWh each way, although there were a couple runs that took over 3kWh, after sustained top speed stretches in light traffic; the controller may have had issues, as those were among the last couple trips before the service!

do you think that due to tyres and being slightly lower the S models might have better top end speed a slightly better economy ?

[RickSteeb]

I just heard back from Zero. They have finished working on my Zero S. They tell me that the controller was reprogrammed and the throttle assembly was replaced. The word is that should fix any power loss gremlins and improve the bike's throttle response.  I am now waiting for a call to schedule the delivery of my bike.   

Same here.  I logged about 125 miles on Zero bikes today, a record that's likely to stand!  My DS-ZF6 was refurbished and tested Friday, but I couldn't get there before closing.  It's likely that my "loaner", S-ZF9 #003, spent its first weekend in a garage, as I was too busy to ride!  Made up for it today, logging 54 miles on the way from Sunnyvale to Scotts Valley via Lawrence, Quito, Hwy 9, Skyline, Bear Creek, Hwy 9, to Felton.  The bottom two bars were flashing as I approached Scotts Valley...  Took a [42 mile] more direct route back to Sunnyvale on the DS-ZF6 [Eco mode felt like the S-ZF9's Sport mode!]-- hwy  17 to Los Gatos, then back up to Quito and Lawrence to the Work-20, arriving with two blinking bars at 1:30 .  Was still on full charge mode when I left work after 5:00, completing the 29 mile round-trip to work. 

Glad to have my bike back.  While I enjoyed the S-ZF9's higher top speed on the commute route, I missed my lighter quicker taller DS-ZF6...  950 miles so far, and SO glad I made the selection-- after essentially paying for the 2011 version on Halloween day!

[manlytom]

hmm

we are comparing apples with oranges. 6 DS vs 9 S. right ? still would be interested in like/like comparision. say a 6S and DS. keen to upgrade omce we can in Oz !! as i have lots of traffic and up/down hill and certainly the regen breakin will be great to have....

[Richard230]

hmm

we are comparing apples with oranges. 6 DS vs 9 S. right ? still would be interested in like/like comparision. say a 6S and DS. keen to upgrade omce we can in Oz !! as i have lots of traffic and up/down hill and certainly the regen breakin will be great to have....

I agree this thread can get a little confusing. Perhaps there should be separate threads for ZF9, ZF6 and other Zero model comments, along with the model years. They are all different, but similar, and it is easy to get confused who has which model and which model is being discussed under a particular thread.

[trikester]

Getting back to the subject, remember - glitch. This is getting serious now. Yesterday I went for a short ride on my 2010 DS, about 15 minutes, and it shut down completely twice during that ride. Turning off the key and back on had no effect, everything appeared to be dead. After coasting to a complete stop, and the passage of a minute or so, it all started working normally again.

I had previously had this problem only three times in a year and a half and now it was twice within a few minutes.

[skadamo]

I agree this thread can get a little confusing. Perhaps there should be separate threads for ZF9, ZF6 and other Zero model comments, along with the model years. They are all different, but similar, and it is easy to get confused who has which model and which model is being discussed under a particular thread.

Can I recommend that each owner go to thier profile and list all relevant info on thier Zero?

E.g.
2012 DS ZF6
Mods as of 2/23/2012:
Updated throttle tube: 2/23/2012
OS upgrade 1.1334.3 (made that # up ): 2/23/2012
Bridgestone trail wings: 2/10/2012

This may help people follow along and know what mods may be affecting range

[manlytom]

Getting back to the subject, remember - glitch. This is getting serious now. Yesterday I went for a short ride on my 2010 DS, about 15 minutes, and it shut down completely twice during that ride. Turning off the key and back on had no effect, everything appeared to be dead. After coasting to a complete stop, and the passage of a minute or so, it all started working normally again.

I had previously had this problem only three times in a year and a half and now it was twice within a few minutes.

hi
had similar issues with the 2010. initially it felt like brushes gone and motor the problem. swapped motor. work for a while then again. finally we tried this current limiting dongle to be inserted. helped when fully charged. did not work when half charge or less... finally concluded the BMS to be likely the case. As I am very remote to Zero service we swapped bikes and mine went back to base. no idea what happened to it or the root cause.

Has anyone provided the fix with that dongle to you ? -- sorry do not know more details as the local dealer talks only spark plugs and oil.... as obviously the Zero is the new, weird thing in their range.
T

[trikester]

I had not heard of the "current limiting dongle" before. What is it, and where do I find out more about it? 

I have been wondering if it may be poor contact in the main disconnect switch (my new 2012 doesn't have one of those) but it doesn't seem to make it come back any sooner if I pull up hard on the switch and wiggle it around. The switch quit "clicking" into place very early on. There is no positive detent to the mechanical action of the switch anymore.

[Richard230]

I have no idea what causes your stalling problems, but I will hazard a guess. If your bikes were running fine for the past couple of years and then this shut-down problem just started, I would guess that the issue is not software, but hardware that is getting worn due to environmental conditions or road vibration. So I would start looking for worn or corroded contacts that might result in an intermittent issue.  I think the first thing I would do is to remove the throttle assembly and check its contacts and connections. That seems like the most likely suspect to me.

Over the years I have had a number of electrical problems on my IC motorcycles (such as one bike catching fire while I was riding it) due to corroded contacts causing heavy resistance (think toaster oven).  Corroded contacts have also resulted in crazy instrument displays and stalling due to ignition  interlock switches failing.

I might add that on my 2012 Zero S, Zero replaced my throttle assembly (as well as updating the software to their latest program) when I complained about two intermittent stalling events. So far I have had no more stalling or running issues, but I plan to give the bike a good run this weekend just to make sure.

[trikester]

It is a year and a half old but only has less than 700 miles and has always been stored indoors. Plus the SoCal weather is not very hard on electrical parts. I do ride off-road so there has been bumby rides. I have been told that there were some problems with the brand of high current contactor they used on the early 2010's and my bike is one of the earliest to be shipped. It was a contact problem with those contactors so you may be right about contact resistance. Unfortunately I have also been told that it is a major job to get to the contactor so it looks like a job for the factory to address  (I normally repair my own electrical problems).

[dkw12002]

Just wondering Trikester what the symptoms of worn brushes would be? Someone said rough riding. Have you ever replaced brushes? Someone on another forum said it is easy and takes 5 min. if you have the brushes, but they weren't talking about an Agni motor specifically. How easy would it be to get to the motor and replace the brushes is my question and secondly, is this something that will need to be done every 10,000 miles, 20,000 miles or maybe never? dkw