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[steven_first]

So I got to do my test drive on the bikes my "local" dealer had (1.5hrs away).  They only had an FX 5.7 and a S (not sure on battery).  I tried the FX first and was very pleased with the responsiveness of the bike and the torque...my god the torque!  It was very cold so I didn't take it out for long but it was obvious that it was the bike I wanted.  I then tried the S and liked how it felt.  I was not "blown away" by the power of this bike as it is the same system as the FX except more weight and geared higher.  Both bikes were amazing.

So the fun with the dealer....  "can't let you remove the battery from the FX" "connect to the bike with your phone...please don't" etc...etc...  Don't get me wrong; good guys and great dealer but no clue about the bikes.  To be fair they were only selling them for 2 weeks now.  They could not offer me free pickup service if it broke under warranty, they have not fixed any yet.  No one is "trained" on them yet.  They really just decided to sell them and that was that.

I am going to buy a bike but I may wait to hear what my local dealer here says.  I asked them to be a zero dealer and they were very receptive to the idea and will look into it.

I need some things cleared up before I drop the money though.  If you guys could answer some questions for me that would be great!

1  FX 5.7 range....for real.  I have a 17 mile commute each way to work and will not likely be able to charge my bike at work.  Only 5 miles is 65mph highway and can be avoided and the rest is 45-55 mph on mostly flat roads.  Will it make it without issue given common sense driving?  Will the battery at 85% life still make it?

2  I was quoted about $14,000 out the door cost.....  I guess that is a question....

3  Insurance has been LOL how many "CC's?".  From $1,000 per term to $300 per term (for good insurance)  Good?  Bad?

4  CanBus interface; password protected?  ....leave it alone till after warranty or crank up regen to 101% (yes that is a joke)

5  Must do mods?  Adding alarm and dash cam?

[pinkyracer]

I love my 2013 FX, I ride it every day. There is always a 110v outlet everywhere in America. Look around at work, see if there's someplace to plug in. I've even ridden inside and plugged in at some clients.

I get 30 miles highway at "as fast as possible in light LA traffic" That includes dropping it to 70mph when it starts to get hot, and trying to draft vehicles when I can. I get about 70 miles of mostly surface streets at 30-50 mph. I haven't done any engine or controller mods, and am fine with the available settings. I've also ridden S's and SR's and would take the lesser range of the FX over those bikes any day. As you discovered, it's the most fun you can have on two wheels!

Most important mod for daily riding- S wheels and Pirelli tires. Dirt tires have no place on pavement. I also have a Givi topcase on mine and the Zero handlebar mount for my phone. I have USAA insurance, which I love, but it's only for military & their families. If they ask cc's, say it's equivalent to a 250cc.

[xmjsilverx]

I can't comment on most of your questions because I have not ridden the FX.  The only thing I would say is maybe test ride the SR.  It's the only bike faster than the FX 0-60 and it is a blast.  I can comment on the price.  I see Zero has an MSRP of $12340 for the 5.7 FX.  I would not pay anymore than that.  I know it doesn't include shipping and PDI.  My dealer sold me my SR under MSRP.  Especially if they aren't flying off their shelves and your dealer is brand new, I'm not sure why they wouldn't shave off a little.

[Cortezdtv]

technically they have no cc's and should be insured as such

I put 1-49 cc's on the bike lowest Possible






Should be able to get it for less than msrp but you never know

Your commute should be butter for the bikes


I would also recommend getting s wheels and the tires to go with it, the bigger rotor makes the bike handle a million times better on the pavement.

Mods huh?

How much quicker do you really want to go?   Try and order the fx with the s motor swell this will give you more power throughout the range, once you decide you still need quicker; then message me, or buy a size 6 and I'll show you how to put it on the fx LOL

[trikester]

I often do a 43 mile pavement recreational round trip on my 2013 FX with knobby dirt tires. I hold the speed to 40 - 45 mph. Looking at data I wrote down in a log book: One time I had 23% remaining and another time I had 32%. The first one was 76 deg air temp and the second was at 106 deg air temp. The big difference was due to my having the tires @ low pressure for soft dirt riding on the 23% trip. I forgot to raise the pressure before doing the pavement ride. The 32% trip was at normal highway tire pressures.

I would consider 34 miles round trip to be a piece of cake especially if you held back a little on the high speed portion. However, you will be probably running more pavement worthy tire treads and at higher pressures so you should be even better off than I was.

Trikester

[DynoMutt]

I love my 2013 FX, I ride it every day. There is always a 110v outlet everywhere in America. Look around at work, see if there's someplace to plug in. I've even ridden inside and plugged in at some clients.

The part about there always being a 110V outlet everywhere in America?  In urban areas, it may be difficult to impossible to find a spot to legitimately park and plug in at the same time.  It is always a good idea to do a bit of reconnaissance and find several alternative scenarios that work for you before taking the plunge.

[steven_first]

Thanks everyone for the responses.  I do want to clarify that the "mods" are not necessarily needing to be with speed or power; I just mean in general.  The bike has enough power to keep me happy for a few months at least!  I plan to grease and wrap every connector before I get too involved with water or mud.  I also want to add connectors to the turn signal wires with mud covers so I can remove the lights for more "extreme" off road riding.  I assume there are connectors somewhere in the wiring already but when I looked at the bike I didn't see any near the mounts for the lights. 

My daily commute starts at 5:20AM so I am going to also add extra LED lights.  I saw a few clean installs and I will probably follow those guides.  I am glad to hear that the 2013's can do those kind of miles at those speeds.  It helps me feel more at ease with the bike getting some age on the battery packs and still being able to make it to work.

What has peoples experience been with MSRP on these bikes?  Has anyone gotten them down below the MSRP by much?  I know that everyone is different and that it comes down to the dealer but I want to have a good idea of what I can get the bike for before I overpay. 

Does anyone have any videos of the FX that they can share or stories to keep me going till I can get my bike?!

[trikester]

Yeah, check out my Vimeo site. Here is a video of riding my FX on my own "cactus trail" on my desert vacation cabin property.



BTW - The clicking sounds were caused by a GoPro chest mount design problem that I alerted GoPro to. I modified mine to eliminate the clicking after this very first experience with GoPro filming.

Also, my FX is converted to chain drive for dirt riding, so the bike makes a little more noise.

Trikester

[steven_first]

Man I would be parked right up into one of those cactus's in no time flat!  I like that the video shows how well the bike handles low speed "trail" riding while keeping access to all that torque.  I think that to me is one of the big things about the bike.  You can't stall it, you don't need to worry about power bands, and it is quiet.  I am glad that you have a chain drive on yours because I think that is what I am going to do with mine soon after I get it.  I like the belt drive and think it is fantastic for on road and light off road but once you get some mud in there you are walking home. 

Man I can't wait to get mine!

[Cortezdtv]

I was thinking the same thing about the belt but it is quite ruggid, unless you are getting the rear tire off the ground I would just leave the belt
I've done creek crossings on the fx with a belt and muddy trails

Nothing insane, I'll see if I have any videos

[trikester]

Yeah, one rock under a belt and riding becomes hiking.

For the low speed technical riding I've been considering adding a switched voltage divider across the throttle pot that would limit top speed to something like 20 mph. By spreading 0 mph to 20 mph over the full twist of the throttle I could get more precise low speed control. This would take some experimenting. When not needed it would be switched out. When switched in, a non-linear curve with less change at the bottom and more at the top would probably work well so that when the big jump in torque is needed it could be there. With electric dirt riding that old saying that "the throttle is your friend" has never been more applicable.

The FX is the third Zero I've owned (2010 DS, 2012 DS, 2013 FX). Each newer bike has had better handling than the one before. The FX handles very well whether on low speed dirt, high speed dirt, or highway speed pavement. For riding the trail shown in the video I run the front tire at 10 lbs usually. The tires are Kenda K270 dual sport with a greater percentage dirt vs pavement riding.

Trikester