Print

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

[bergercurtis]

The Premium 6kWh plus the additional 6kWh chargers should make it a reasonable 'break to charge and continue riding' for a day's worth of riding. I rode a Premium with the 6 kWh charger this weekend. I had enough charge gained from a single L2 charger in Denver for an hour to take me from Colorado Springs to Denver and back- just parking the bike in a garage.
Level 2 seems to be enough and I agree with your Livewire L3 availability, but for people to widely use E bikes past early adopters, we need more faster charging solutions.

[Jarrett]

I find it an adventure to plan out routes to test my limits.

I did at first on my Zero's as well, but eventually I found myself frustrated by doing this.  For me, bikes are a hobby, something to do during periods of free time.  So if I get a window of opportunity to ride, I don't always want those kinds of limits imposed on it.  I want to be able to ride as fast as I want, for as much time as I have.  I don't have to have to go home early or stop for hours of charging in the middle of it.

I believe it makes more sense than the $2800 powertank which will only get you another 30 miles if you're lucky.

I really regret doing the Power Tank.  It changes the dynamics of the DSR enough that I no longer enjoyed it.  Not worth the extra miles, imo. 

[NetPro]

I really regret doing the Power Tank.  It changes the dynamics of the DSR enough that I no longer enjoyed it.  Not worth the extra miles, imo.

I wonder if the Power Tank for the SR/F, when it comes out, will affect it as much.
Is there something the engineers/designers can do to eliminate or reduce the degradation?
What was it? The extra weight higher up on the machine?

[DonTom]

really regret doing the Power Tank.  It changes the dynamics of the DSR enough that I no longer enjoyed it.  Not worth the extra miles, imo.

It's worth the extra 20 miles if it saves you from walking it!

But I understand what you mean.

I really enjoy the lightness of my DS ZF  6.5.  I don't want it to have more battery than that.  No tank of any type. But for my street electric  bike, the SR, I like having the power tank, I find the 25% extra range often to be handy.

-Don-  Auburn, CA

[Jarrett]

What was it? The extra weight higher up on the machine?

Part of what I like about the Zero's is how light, balanced and nimble they feel compared to an equivalent powered ICE bike.  Adding the Power Tank reduced that.  Getting my DSR+PT off its side stand took as much effort as with my 650 lb touring bike.  Negotiating at parking lots speeds required some really heavy-footed dabbing if it started tipping over.

Once at speed, it wasn't as noticeable.  You could feel it in fast corners kind of wanting to fall in on you, but was controllable.  The other big issue was degraded performance.  It slowed the acceleration of the bike down enough to notice it.  Based on what others have said, the placement of the PT might have contributed some of my overheating issues, not sure on that.

The SR/F is already around 500 lbs. if I remember correctly.  Adding a 45 lb PT to it would push it up in 545 lb range.   That's pretty heavy for a street fighter type bike.  My Speed Triple is about 100 lbs. lighter than that and its not one of the lighter ones in the class. 

[Bill822]

Adding 10% to the bike's weight is bad enough but the power tank sits in the worst possible place. Adding that much mass as that high above the road will make the bike feel heavy and noticeably slow the SR/F's nimble handling.

[Richard230]

I still prefer the power tank option over the fast charge option just because I use my bike for local travel, visiting relatives, shopping, and other utility purposes. I ride during the day within the limits of my bike's range and recharge at night.  If Zero ever comes up with a 20kWh battery pack I would likely replace my 2018 S with the new version.  Until then I will stick with my S.

[DonTom]

I still prefer the power tank option over the fast charge option just because I use my bike for local travel, visiting relatives, shopping, and other utility purposes. I ride during the day within the limits of my bike's range and recharge at night.  If Zero ever comes up with a 20kWh battery pack I would likely replace my 2018 S with the new version.  Until then I will stick with my S.

What I do works out well for me also. Have both, when needed. I charged up my SR with Pwr tank at 8KW last night. On most rides, like today, I carry no charge stuff at all. But I can  carry 6 KW of charging  as needed, but charge at  8KW at home.  Tomorrow I will carry the 6KW worth, if I decide to go back to Reno.  If I had the ten % extra range of your bike, I probably would not even stop to charge on the way back.  I usually have 50% of my charge left at the half way point which is very near the summit. It's mostly all down hill from there. But I get range anxiety, so I recharge once each way. Either at Truckee or Cisco Grove.  But another ten percent and I wouldn't even get range anxiety. It's exactly 99 miles door to door, but a lot of it is uphill on I-80.

-Don-  Auburn, CA

[siai47]

I too am concerned about the weight/location of the "power tank" on the SR/F.  I really would like the extra range as it would put me in a sweet spot for my normal riding needs.  However, I don't want to put one in if it destroys the balance and handling of the bike.  I recently test rode an Energica Ego which weighs in at 621 pounds with a very high CG.  I have ridden heavier motorcycles but none with the high CG and low clip-on bars that gave you no leverage when trying to get the bike upright from the kickstand.  It was almost impossible to get it upright and get in the saddle without dropping it. Other than the fact that it was pretty much undriveable (for me) at  low speeds and tight corners, it wasn't a bad bike once it got rolling down the highway.

On the other hand I enjoyed the handling of the SR/F even though it weighs in at 500 pounds (premier).  I am a little nervous about adding 45 pounds at the level of the "tank" as it could start  to make the SR/F feel like the Energica.  I am going to try and demo the SR/F again with 45 pounds of weight added to the cubby in the tank to simulate the power tank installation.  Then I can decide if an additional $2900 is worth it or spending some additional time to make up the extra mileage on a trip would make better sense.

I currently own and drive a 460 pound Victory Empulse TT.  It's a smaller bike and comfortable for me to operate.  I am looking for a replacement for the Empulse so when it breaks down and can't be repaired, I can have an electric motorcycle to drive.  I have got a Boardwalk red premier on order so I still have time to decide if the power tank is in the cards.  The power tank isn't even available yet but inquiring minds want to know. 

[MVetter]

The Premium 6kWh plus the additional 6kWh chargers should make it a reasonable 'break to charge and continue riding' for a day's worth of riding.

You have 12kW J stations in your area?

[Bill822]

The Premium 6kWh plus the additional 6kWh chargers should make it a reasonable 'break to charge and continue riding' for a day's worth of riding.

You have 12kW J stations in your area?

I wondered if the charge tank would be of any use in the US. I guess 14-50 plugs at RV campgrounds would work but I've never come across a Level 2 charge station rated above 7.2kW. You'd still have to find and carry a 12kW capable ESVE.

[bergercurtis]

The Premium 6kWh plus the additional 6kWh chargers should make it a reasonable 'break to charge and continue riding' for a day's worth of riding.

You have 12kW J stations in your area?

Not many but there are a couple in Denver and Boulder.

https://imgur.com/a/fpt18oO

[DonTom]

You have 12kW J stations in your area?

Even if not, You know you will always be charging at the very max the charge station can handle, yet will not overload. I hear the SR/F did this the correct way and it communicates with the charge station to set the max current it's capable of.

-Don-  Reno, NV

[MVetter]

Not many but there are a couple in Denver and Boulder.

https://imgur.com/a/fpt18oO

I poked around on ChargeHub since that's where it appears that picture originated. I have searched Colorado for a J1772 station capable of delivering over 10.5kW and found 3 entries. 1 is under construction. 1 claims 606kW which I presume to be a typo and is the standard 6.6. One claims 17kW which is a bizarre number that I, frankly, don't believe.


edit- Sun Country Highway, in the picture you linked, is an EV route in Canada. They don't have stations in Colorado.

[caza]

For me it doesn't matter if the PT is a lot of weight in the worst spot -it's necessary.

Without the PT I can't make my round-trip commute to work reliably.  With the PT I can. The SR/F can't handle my commute.

When it comes to the SR/F though, with the bike already being much heavier I think an upgraded main battery is more important at this point. We need to move past 14.4kwh for the main battery. Lightning is supposedly squeezing 20kwh into their bike, Zero should be doing the same for 2020. If there was a 20kwh SR/F I'd most likely be riding one home.