Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Semper Why]

Hey guys, my paranoia is acting up.

I love my Zero S but it sounds... off. Perhaps I was just too distracted by the new bike experience, but I don't remember the demo I rode having this pulsing nature to the sound of the motor. My bike sounds like something is out of true, rubbing one section of the wheel or... something. This pulsing nature to the sound of the bike is making me nervous. I don't know enough to be able to identify it.

I've uploaded a brief clip of my commute from a camera mounted above the rear wheel. Does this sound like your bikes? Or is mine sporting a rhythm section?

[stevenh]

My new DSR sounds similar.  I get that same rhythmic whine.  I thought it was a bit loud as well, but it sounds like it may be normal.  I've got about 350 miles on mine so far.

Steve

[Semper Why]

Well, that's a relief. Between your experience and pinaero's videos where the pulsing sound of his bike comes through... I feel much better about it.

Heh. This thing is closer to the Jetsons cartoon than I originally thought.

[grmarks]

My 2015 SR does not make that pulsating sound. It just makes a constant wine. My be your back sprocket/pully is a little off centre or the belt is not a uniform thickness?

[GrantMeStrength]

I just rode my SR back from the dealer (yay!) and it does make a variety of sounds depending on how much I'm testing the torque. At some point it sounds like a tube being swung around my head: a sort of Dopler shifting whoop / robotic howl sound. I'm enjoying them all immensely.

[Kocho]

It does not sound normal to me. I test-rode a DS and an FXS earlier this week and I don't remember them making such sounds. The brakes on the FXS were also smoother than on the DS, but that might have been more a function of the tires.

Can you put it on a stand, run it at low speed in place carefully, and try to see if something is out of alignment? Or if the belt is touching differently or shifting side to side along the circumference of the sprockets as the bike runs?

The noises should be different depending on how hard one accelerates, but it should not be "vibrating" like this, I think.

That said, the CVT transmission on my Honda Insight has been doing something similar when I go in reverse as I back-out of my garage since day one. Still works just like the day I got it, after 60K miles and 6 years...

[Casper]

@Semper Why,

Funny story, I think I was working in my yard when you rode by the other day taking this video, it looks like your route takes you right past my house. It was very cool to hear the electric whir instead of rattling bumpers from cars sporting more stereo than they can handle.

The point I was going to make was, the pulsing noise that is very clear in the video was totally unnoticeable from 20', it sounded smooth.

Cheers.

[Semper Why]

So, update time. I sent the link to the video to my dealer. He's forwarding it on to the shop supervisor and their in-house Zero Technician. We'll see what they say.

I turned off the tunes in my helmet today and just listened to the bike. It's very definitely speed related, as it makes the pulsing noise accelerating, decelerating or coasting at 15% regen. Speeds up as the bike speeds up, slows down as the bike slows down.

Also, I can feel the vibration through the foot pegs. So there's a physical component to it that I hadn't really noticed. I need to ride without music more often.

Casper! No kidding? That's my go-to commute on the bike, as I'm sure you can understand. Beats the hell out of straight freeway for 30 minutes. One of these weekends I'll have to swing by that coffee shop by the train tracks and see how many people I can sucker strike up in conversation.

[Doug S]

It's very definitely speed related, as it makes the pulsing noise accelerating, decelerating or coasting at 15% regen.

That's the thing I noticed from the clip, too. My belt has a pulsation when the belt is too tight, both a vibration and a noise, that's not really what I'm hearing from your clip, but it seems similar. Mine only happens when I slightly overtighten the belt, until it's stretched a little bit looser, and it only happens at fairly low speed, and it's clearly only happening on one part of the belt. In other words, I get a rapid "brr-brr-brr", followed by a pause, then another "brr-brr-brr" when it comes around again.

Like someone else said, check the alignment of the belt, as well as the tension. Amazon has the same tension checker Zero sells, for literally half the price.

[firepower]

have you inspected the belt for damage or dirt ?

[Semper Why]

I looked at the belt for damage and didn't see anything. It sounds like a tension tool is in my future. Well, it was going to be a purchase at some point. It may as well be now.

[Kocho]

One more data point: my new to me (and almost new anyway, just 600 miles) '15 SR does not make this type of "wobbly" noise.

[gasdive]

Sounds exactly like my 2014 DSP. I've seen a couple of road tests that have the same sound, but I've also seen road tests that don't make the sound.

I'm interested to hear what the result of your investigation is. Did you get any feedback from the dealer?
=:)

[BertTrack]

I have a bit of the wobbly sound in my FX and i've noticed the rear "sprocket" has intermittent wear on the belt guard ring. So it's picking the belt a bit every 90 degrees

[Killroy]

+1 for belt tension. I would check that. I wish they would give out the tension measuring tool if you don't have one.

My belt was much tighter than spec when I bought it with 800 miles. 

Rock in the tire?  A dual sport tire is going to be noisier and vibrate more and maybe the different frequencies of the belt and the tire are causing a "beat" frequency. (search that if you dont know what it is.