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[LeftieBiker]

   I can't personally travel, no. I can tow, given a vehicle with a hitch, but it might make more sense for me to rent a small van, given the lack of a tow vehicle. Or hire a local motorcycle transport service, and see if I can get at least half the fee back from Zero or the dealer.

   I have been wondering about how fast that error popped up, but if it occurred in the past, how would they (the dealership) clear it without fixing the defect, except by the BMS reset? As for transport, I'm also less than trusting, but the odometer reading given by the dealer is the one it arrived showing. The bike was quite dirty for being in an enclosed trailer, but the hauler struck me as someone who runs perpetually late, with no time for joyrides...

[MostlyBonkers]

Has the dealer told you they won't pick the bike up leftie? I know I keep saying this, but Streetbike are 120 miles from my house and they picked my bike up and delivered a courtesy bike too. When they dotted the bike back they thanked me for my patience.

Arguably, the costs of transport are cheaper in the states; cheaper vehicles, cheaper fuel. We're also led to believe that Americans have a culture of great customer service.

I think you've got a perfect case for getting your local dealership to take care of you. No quibbles, no hassle. All it should take is a phone call to the dealer's service department.

Alternatively, just ring the original dealer, tell them they delivered a bike that was dead on arrival and ask for your money back.

I hate the fact that this has happened to you Leftie. You seem like a nice guy who could do with a break.

[LeftieBiker]

   The problem is that the bike wasn't actually DOA. It booted up with no errors, and was ok until about 45 minutes into my first ride. I haven't asked anyone to pick the bike up, yet. Remember, I only found out today (Sunday) that the errors won't clear with a BMS reset. I'll be in contact with the dealership this week, for sure. I think, though, that the sales rep's response to my first email about the faults is telling. He told me he was glad that the bike had performed perfectly on my first ride.  ;-(

[MostlyBonkers]

Sales people are often not too bright and they're programmed to look on the bright side of everything. He probably just read that you had ridden the bike and judged that to be a success. He probably didn't even read the email properly.

So not DOA, strictly speaking, but it failed on the first ride. It's more or less the same thing.

I sense a reluctance to make the call asking for the bike to be picked up and a proper level of customer service to be given. Take no prisoners! ;-)

[LeftieBiker]

"I sense a reluctance to make the call asking for the bike to be picked up and a proper level of customer service to be given. Take no prisoners! ;-)"

   I'm not the Meek & Mild guy you think. It's just that I've got far too much experience with this kind of situation, and I'm going to be as reasonable as I can, at least in the beginning. That doesn't mean rolling over for the dealer or for Zero, though - it means not alienating anyone on the first call. If necessary, at some point I'll let them know that I have a significant Web presence, and that I can write well and convincingly. If they monitor these forums, they will already know that. No one wants an articulate writer to be arguing the case *against* their product.

[LeftieBiker]

   Here is the reply from the Tech at the Zero dealer in California. I asked if the bike was thoroughly checked before shipment, as I had requested.

"Hi-
I would take the vehicle to the nearest Zero dealer. The vehicles are assembled by Zero , we do small things to them such as install T signals, mirrors, plate frames, air in tires check belt tension , we don't remove or install the batteries. We do check for active faults and safety items. I know it can be disappointing to have problems with a new vehicle, I would definitely get the vehicle to a dealer. I don't believe there is much we can do remotely at this point. "

[LeftieBiker]

   So, does anyone here understand the "BMS Isolation" fault codes enough to render an opinion on taking another ride or two before finding a way to get the bike back to a Zero dealer - possibly forever, if I can actually arrange a buy-back by Zero? The reference on YouTube suggests it's actually a short circuit involving the motor, in which case I wouldn't want to risk it...

[Kocho]

Get Zero to tell you if it is dangerous to ride or charge. I don't think it is an actual "short circuit" with the motor - you won't be riding anywhere if it was (or if some of the windings were shorted, you'd be seeing reduced power).

I searched several other threads for Zeros with BMS isolation faults. Lots of them! Most got the warning after washing or wet days. General advice given there - ride them in dry weather till the fault codes clears. If it was mine, and if it was charging OK, I'd ride it about in good weather for a couple of hundred miles, possibly store it in an air-conditioned dry room (with a dehumidifier and a fan blasting at it) between rides, and see if the error clears. Is it safe to do so? Is your problem the same as those others are reporting with the same trouble codes? No idea. Trouble codes can be misleading of the actual cause...

When it comes to computers and electronics, most car and motorcycle dealers are notoriously bad in dealing with such issues, unfortunately.

[LeftieBiker]

   Thanks for the reply. I was actually thinking of trying to make sure the monolith was dry inside, using a hair dryer, fan, dry weather, etc. Is there an easy easy to remove the front covers for a quick dry with a hairdryer?

   I swear, though, I used very little water, and the "pressure" my hand-pumped sprayer provides is pathetically low. A light rain would dump much more water on the bike...

EDIT: What about riding it on a nice dry day like today, with the front BMS access plugs left off?

[Electric Terry]

If there is a real problem where your bike isn't working, I want to help, but I can't believe I just scanned 6 pages and can't figure out what actual problem we are trying to solve.  This thread starts about complaining about charging before you even got your bike Leftie, now it has taken all sorts of tangents to where I can't figure out what the problem is besides the error codes which I have seen myself after a hard rain sometimes and usually go away rather soon.  I never made a big deal about it because the bike worked fine.  Your bms isolation might clear over time when the bike drys.  Don't spray it with any more water!  I think I warned you about this in another thread when you were taking about cleaning it before you ever rode it.

Just please don't create problems or drama where none exist, ok?  The Zero is a great bike and it looks like you've been riding motorcycles for many years and will appreciate the Zero as much as anyone.   I recommend this sometimes to those types of people that remind me of George from Seinfeld that would complain about the sky being too blue and it ruining their day, and that's to take a break from posting for a while until you can sort of take a few deep breaths and get a few hundred miles of riding under your belt.  A better way of looking at it is instead of typing next time you feel like the world is against you, just go for a motorcycle ride instead, ok?  Call it throttle therapy if you want.  It works.

I see also you've been using electric vehicles for 13 years, that's 6 years more than me, and I am very impressed by this!  Although if this is your first issue with an electric vehicle ever, I would be very surprised.  But if so you have been very lucky!

[LeftieBiker]

   Terry, you may want to reread the thread. I didn't "complain about charging" for starters. I asked if it was ok to use a GFCI and surge protector for charging, for which I was ridiculed by several people. Next, I had no plans to wash the bike in February, but it arrived very dirty, especially the seat, bars and grips. I washed it using a very low-pressure hand-pumped garden sprayer, avoiding the motor and other major electrical components. Note that Zero suggests, in the manual, washing the bikes with a "garden hose."

   As for the codes being no big deal, well I'm glad to hear that! I'd be even more glad if you weren't the only one calling me a drama queen for worrying about them. We'll see if they clear.

[Doug S]

It seems to me that there are two basic ways of looking at this forum. For myself as well as some others (apparently Terry is included), we see it as a place for people to share their discoveries, difficulties and answer each others' technical questions, which is sometimes very helpful, since electric motorcycles are still a fairly new phenomenon.

It sometimes does seem to me (without pointing any fingers) that some people see it more as a social medium like any of the dozens around. I don't have any problem with that, but I check this list several times a day, and I have to admit that many of the posts can be pretty....shall we just say....chatty instead of informative. Perhaps a MyFaceSpace page would be more appropriate for that sort of thing?

I don't want to stifle anybody's enthusiasm, or silence anybody if they've got something to add to the conversation. I'd just prefer that this forum stay more technical and less social.

YMMV.

[benswing]

For anyone who interested there is a Facebook page for Zero Motorcycles owners.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[LeftieBiker]

   I'm not sure if I fall into the "technical help issues" or "chatty" category, but I'm trying for the former.

   I took the bike out for a ride, with fingers crossed. By about 9 miles out the 028 code was gone from the dash, leaving the 020 and 051 codes. The 020 became occasional instead of constant, so I stopped, let the bike sit a few minutes, and reset the BMS again. No flashing red BMS light, and after a minute of riding the dash also stopped showing errors. Greatly relieved, I rode another 25 miles or so. When I got home I let the bike sit for 15 minutes, plugged it in to charge...and got the 020 and 028 errs, now joined by 029, which is "BMS Isolation Danger". I unplugged the bike and left it in the garage.

[MostlyBonkers]

To be fair to Leftie, he was asking for help right from the start. It's a topic that has evolved, just like the Diginow one.

Sometimes people need a bit more than just technical details. A bit of moral support or advice about how to work with dealers can also help resolve issues.

Please don't get too grumpy with leftie, Terry. I'm sure he appreciates your help.