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[ChainGun]

I purchased my Zero S exactly one year ago and have rode about 18K kilometers on it. I love every aspect of it except the situations when it tries to kill me. Over the time I noticed several occasions when I was opening the throttle in Sport mode and started losing grip on the rear wheel. One time when the road was wet I actually lost control and crashed but in other situations the road was dry and I managed to re-gain control. I've been riding for 26 years, this is hardly my first bike but all of my former bikes were heavy V-twins (Suzuki VX-800, Suzuki V-Strom, etc) and this is probably the first time I'm riding such a light and fast motorcycle.

What do you think: Is this a "Zero problem" or a "light and fast motorcycle problem"? Do others here encounter this problem as well? Am I doing something wrong (i.e. opening the throttle in Sport mode isn't a good idea) or is there a problem with the bike?

[guppie70]

I have taken the Zero SR on a test drive, and was actually stunned that you do not get any "modern" driving aids besides ABS for the price you have to pay for the bike. You would expect that at least traction control would be relatively easy to add since the whole bike is electrical to begin with.
I feel that they have smoothened out the throttle response, in order to keep things easy to control and avoid a lot of accidents. This is probably one of the reasons why the bike won't wheelie (or at least not using the throttle alone).
The absence of modern driving aids was one of the reasons why I did not purchase the bike. Another was the limited range (at least once a week I need about 120 miles of highway range for commuting) and proper brakes with real stopping power.

[grmarks]

ChainGun the zero S doesn't have enough power to spin the back wheel in the dry (nor does the SR), are you sure you don't have an SR, and were you on dirt when it was dry and you lost control?

[ChainGun]

ChainGun the zero S doesn't have enough power to spin the back wheel in the dry (nor does the SR), are you sure you don't have an SR, and were you on dirt when it was dry and you lost control?

I'm pretty sure I know the model of the bike I'm riding for the last 12 months, yes and no, I wasn't on dirt in any of the time I felt like I was going to lose control of the rear wheel, it was always asphalt.

[DPsSRnSD]

When are you losing traction? In turns? Off the line? The only time I've felt my rear wheel step out was in a very tight left turn when I opened the throttle too much with my SR in sport mode the first week I had the bike. I now have no problem controlling the bike.

When the roads are wet I use ECO mode and keep the bike more upright. It sucks, but that's what I do. Luckily it doesn't rain around here much.

[ChainGun]

When are you losing traction? In turns? Off the line?

When the traffic lights change from red to green and I open the throttle all the way in Sports mode.

[NEW2elec]

Could be a few things most of which you know.  Tire getting old flat section and starting off in a slight lean from the stop, giving less tire road contact area.  Maybe a slight front brake grab.  Not enough weight over your rear wheel.
I've never had any spin out on my DS which is a bit different tires and spring but just a little more progression on the throttle and not a full pin and your golden.
Eco mode in the rain or crappy roads basically is your traction control.
One of the bike review videos on You Tube had both of the test riders slipping off turns on DSR's when they gave it too much too early out of a turn.
You get a lot of torque much sooner than most ICE bikes but you'll get used to it.

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

I have lost traction and fishtailed multiple times on my 2013 DS in Seattle. My DSR is just as capable of losing traction but I'm also more experienced with it now and I fitted a throttle rocker to smooth out throttle operation.

Traction control would be desirable but difficult to integrate because it works differently from ABS since it requires high speed intervention into the motor controller. ABS only handles brake pressure and is easier to adapt.

My solution is to use Eco mode in wet conditions so that torque onset is smoother with throttle roll on. This also makes recovery safer as you let off the throttle smoothly. I've never gone over on a Zero from this condition; always recovering by holding the bars loosely, easing off the throttle, and shifting weight down through the foot pegs.

[Richard230]

I spun the rear wheel of my 2014 S once while coming up a freeway on-ramp in the rain.  I agree it is pretty scary.  The entire rear of the bike shook violently, but I just backed off of the throttle and it hooked up again.  However, I still have the hard-compound original IRC Road Winner tires on my bike, the rear is well worn, the on-ramp was oily and I was in sport mode.  So it was pretty much my fault.  Now I am a little more careful when riding on wet streets and placing the bike in "eco" mode is not a bad idea - especially if you do not have complete control over your right wrist.   

[guppie70]

But would you all agree that it's a shame that the power of the engine is managed in such a way so that it's not using all of it's potential performance?
I mean: if they would not limit the power so much, the bike would even be more fun in sport mode. Traction control would kick in when you need it, but if you don't you could have an amazing acceleration from stand still!

[DPsSRnSD]

When are you losing traction? In turns? Off the line?

When the traffic lights change from red to green and I open the throttle all the way in Sports mode.

I launch at full throttle several times a day on dry asphalt because my commute is short, includes many large intersections, and I can legally filter to the front. This separates me from the cars I was with and gives me time to deal with people turning right on red. I have full control of the bike, able to move side to side at will as I continue to accelerate until I reach the speed limit just before I'm through the intersection and I come out of my crouch. I'm in custom mode, but my torque is set to 100%. I have off-throttle regen set to 45% because I travel in heavy traffic. I've also ridden a few times in sport mode. I don't know if the S is mapped more aggressively than the SR, but I wouldn't expect your bike to react the way it does if everything is okay.

I'd have the bike checked out. Rear wheel alignment, tire wear, caliper alignment front and back, belt tension, etc. If that all checks out, have the shop evaluate the throttle response for a bad throttle or a software re-flash. Maybe you got hit by a cosmic ray 

[Manzanita]

Painted areas at intersection stops can be very slippery. Also, hitting small bumps pulling out under full throttle could get the wheel to spin. Debris or slightly oily surface? I can't imagine breaking traction on good dry pavement on my S. I had a 919cc Honda I-4 with no traction controls and relatively speaking that bike was much, much scarier even though it had 'only' 100HP. There is no replacement for rider skill.

[tamjam]

I've only had my DSR for a couple of weeks now but have "lost control" once upon launch at a stop sign. I saw a little patch of sand/gravel that a construction truck must have left behind, and having just spent the previous weekend learning to push a 140cc dirt bike as hard as I could through tight loose corners, I thought it would be fun to blip the throttle and spin the rear tire in the sand, which turned out to not be fun at all since it caused a violent fish-tail that luckily quickly corrected itself instead of dropping me on the pavement.

I spend most of my urban riding time in Custom mode which I have set to about 80% torque. Sport probably would have dropped me. So yes, I have lost control once when carelessly opening the throttle under less than ideal road surface conditions.

[acacia1731]

The only time I've felt my rear wheel step out was in a very tight left turn when I opened the throttle too much with my SR in sport mode the first week I had the bike. I now have no problem controlling the bike.

I have only been surprised on my FX 5.7 one time, and it was exactly the same as described above (left turn, sport mode, first week on the bike, too much throttle).

[Richard230]

If I am the first one away from a stop light, I don't jump into the intersection.  I always take it easy and look both ways before entering the intersection.  Around here, it is quite common for car drivers to blow through stop lights as they are checking their smart phone text messages and don't notice the light turning red.  It is better to go slowly when first away from a light and look both ways before taking off.  You will live longer that way.