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[Rule10b5]

Hi, I'm sorry if this is a dumb question, but even though I've been riding motorcycles for going on 30 years (and doing most of my own mechanical work) I'm really new to electric vehicles.  So please forgive me.

Anyway, I bought my first, a 2017 Zero FXS 6.5 Modular on August 10, 2018.  It is the most amazing riding experience I've ever had.  But anyway, when I got home I installed the Zero application on my phone, and saw that the bike needed an update, and it had to be done by a dealer. 

So I called the dealer, took it in on August 18, 2018 (I was at around 600 miles on the bike) and they did the update and commissioning.  They said everything looked great.  I got the bike home, charged, etc. did a little housecleaning, an then went out for errands.  Parked it for a couple hours (plugged in), came out, fired it up and rode home with no problems.  I realized, on the way, that I needed to make an additional stop at a drug store.  So I stopped, bought what I needed, came back out.  Kickstand up, kill switch in run position, turned ignition on.  Little green "on lamp" showing.   Turned the throttle (or is it called a rheostat in this context?) and nothing happened.  No flashing lights or anything.  The bike just didn't "go."  I turn it off and on a few times, baffled that nothing is happening.  So I change the display to show error codes.  0000 displays.  So I do another full restart. 

This time the display shows codes 25 (contactor open warning), 48 (SEVCON startup disable), and 49 (contactor open disable).  Then the codes disappeared, and 0000 (no error) is displayed.  The bike still won't go, but everything else shows normal.

I mutter, curse, invoke the name of Nikola Tesla, hum a few bars of the other Tesla's "Little Suzi" and do a few more restart attempts.  And it works, the bike goes.  I get home, breathe a sigh of relief, and decide to see if it happens again.  I shut everything off and try a restart to see if the gremlins are truly gone.  Error codes 25, 48, 49, then shows 0000, green light, I twist the throttle...and nothing happens.  I say screw it, turn it off, go inside to get a drink, and come back 15 minutes later.  This time it works.  I charge it, unplug when it's at 100% and leave it be.  I sent an error log to Zero, but haven't heard anything back other than an auto email.

This morning, August 20, 2018, I go to start it: Error codes 25, 48, 49, then shows 0000, green light, I twist the throttle...and nothing happens.  I twist the throttle again and the bike launches.  I close the throttle, shut the bike off, check my underwear, and then start the bike again.  Same codes, but this time the bike performs normally, but I'm not going to ride it to work if I can't be sure it's not going to work.  So I parked it and took my other (gasoline) bike to work. 

So here's my dumb question(s):anyone have any idea what's up?  The bike was awesome until the update, and now it's a mess.  Should I be talking to the dealer (almost two hours away from me) or Zero about this?  Is this an issue with the code that runs the bike (like whatever bike BIOS is called?) or a physical issue? 

Thanks, and sorry to unload a wall of text.  I really love the way the bike rides, and I'm more than a bit of a nerd, but if the bike isn't going to work well enough to commute I don't think it's a good fit for me until the tech matures a bit. 

[Richard230]

The first thing I would check is the side stand interlock switch. Maybe it needs cleaning? But if that doesn't work, I would call the dealer and see if they have any ideas or have heard of this problem before.  Good luck with Zero. Someone said recently that they are all on vacation.     I have a problem with my charger contactor not clicking off after the pack reaches 100% and the charger plug is pulled. I sent my logs to Zero about 6 months ago and I never heard anything back.  I think they prefer to only respond to a franchised dealer when a problem occurs. 

[domingo3]

I feel your pain.  I wish I could help with the troubleshooting, and maybe someone else will, but I can give you some quick answers/advice from experience.

1.  Don't expect any response from Zero after sending the logs. 

2.  Zero will want you to contact the dealer for a solution as opposed to communicating directly with you.

3.  Whatever the issue is, expect to have to bring it back to the dealer.  If you're lucky, it's a firmware update issue that they can do while you wait.  Most likely, you'll need to leave the bike.  I used to live 2+ hours from the closest dealer, and I know that's pretty inconvenient.

4.  Don't update firmware unless you have a problem.  Whether this is the genesis of your current problem or not, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" is the consensus.  Lots of people have had problems increase after firmware updates.

5.  It's not that hard to look at the logs by Emailing them to yourself and using the community generated tool at http://home.hasslers.net/zerologparser/log_parser.php .  If you can't interpret the logs, someone here may be able to help if you post them.

In general, the trend seems to be positive in terms of reliability with newer models.  I haven't ready of too many problems with 2017s.  Hopefully yours is an easy fix and you can get back to trusting the bike for commuting.  Most are trouble-free, but the ones with issues can take a long time to resolve.  Good luck!

[BamBam]

You could also try resetting the BMS.  Here is a link to some information, but I'm not certain it applies to the FXS model.

http://electricmotorcycleforum.com/boards/index.php?topic=5936.0

Also refer to the unofficial manual.

https://zeromanual.com/wiki/BMS_Reset_Procedure

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

I'll chime in that this is likely a problem with how the firmware updates were applied, and that your dealer should take care of this.

Here are some unofficial references that may help in addition to the above:
- https://zeromanual.com/wiki/Error_Codes

I do not recall whether those error codes are considered acceptable during startup.

I don't see any evidence of mis-operation (green lamp should indicate that kickstand is up and the cutout switch is in the ON position), so if it's not a firmware condition, it may be that the throttle wiring is just loose, although that's supposed to have its own error code.

Yeah, the only hypothesis that makes sense is a mis-applied firmware update. Not that we have any real insight into that, since it's closed off to anyone but dealers and the manufacturer, but the above recommendations are wise in that firmware updates are a known opportunity for problems to arise.

[Rule10b5]

Wow!  You guys are freakin' awesome, thank you!

I got in touch with Zero, and they had a tech email me.  He said he'd reviewed the logs and seen nothing out of sorts.  He told me (like you guys said) to try resetting the batteries.  I did it, did a few tests on and off and it seems fine now.  Going to commute with it tomorrow to see if that did the trick.  If it did, I'm gonna skip any future updates...really not an error I want to repeat.

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

The idea that BMS software state impacted the ability of the bike to drive without some sort of signal or explanation is the thing that still bothers me.

I don’t like this state of affairs.

[Rule10b5]

It really does seem strange.  I've been riding it a lot over the last two days -- put a couple hundred miles in.  And I haven't had a single issue since resetting each battery.