ElectricMotorcycleForum.com
Makes And Models => Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ => Topic started by: WagonWillie on October 18, 2018, 07:17:33 AM
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Since I've driven ICE rigs for over 60 years now I have been taught very early on to warm up the machine before working it hard. Now that I have a SR I can't find any reason to do so, other than warming up the tires like on any bike. Am I missing something? Can I pin the rheostat on a "cold" (65 to 70 F) bike without damage? Why not, if that's not the case? "Enquiring minds want to know" as the Enquirer used to say.
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Start out slow so the tires AND the suspension fluid in the forks and shock come up to operating temperature. That's about it. But you'd have to do the same thing with a modern, fuel-injected ICE vehicle too. No need to bring the engine up to temperature anymore; the computer knows exactly how much fuel to meter through the injectors no matter the engine temperature so you'll always have the right fuel/air mixture. The reason you had to warm up a carbureted vehicle was that the carb metered the gas/air ratio at a fixed amount. You had to warm the engine to get it to the right operating temperature for the best performance. OH, and you had to heat that really thick motor oil they used to use back in the day, too.
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Yeah, well that, and to get all of the clearances within spec since they are engineered for normal operating temps. Thanks.
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Assuming you're a better rider than low-siding on cold tires, the real concern is battery temperature. No battery likes low temps, and asking for high discharge currents (pegging the throttle) when the battery is cold can at least in theory be damaging to it.
But the BMS has your back. It simply won't allow higher current discharge than is safe given the temperature of the battery.
And anyhow, if you really consider 65-70 "cold" conditions, you're good. Feel free to lay a scratch from the first launch of the morning.
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The lack of warm up is one of the unexpected benefits of an electric bike. I sometimes do short journeys and being able to have fun from the off is great. Obviously I take the tyre temperature into account.