I just bought a Zero SR, and the more I ride it the more I like it. It's everything from a smooth, easy cruiser to a brutally quick canyon carver. I don't have the range extender battery pack, but even though it's not light on paper it feels *MUCH* lighter than my Hyosung GT650, and is definitely *MUCH* easier to pick up if you drop it. It also doesn't have any bits sticking out to get damaged. Drop it and all you'll get is a scuffed bar end. This guy has an axe to grind and isn't honest about the riding experience. Case in point: he says how sure he is that he would beat that ICE bike to sixty and even does a burnout, but says nothing whatsoever about the actual ride other than to complain about how hooning reduces the range. Trust me, I these things are a blast to ride and well worth the price of admission, especially since there's no maintenance to speak of. No oil or oil filters, no air filters, no constant checking for bolts being loosened by vibration, no spark plugs, none of that stuff. Just plug it in - at home; you can't refuel your ICE bike there - and clean it now and then. Never have to make a special trip or detour from other trips to get gas. If you're commuting, go directly to work or home, and never stop for fuel. Plug it in at home or work and it's full and ready to go when you are, and it costs a fraction of filling your tank with fuel. In the long run, electric will be much cheaper than any comparable ICE vehicle, and it will last a lot longer and spend a lot less time in the shop. Don't underestimate electric. If you haven't given it an honest go, you really don't have a right to an opinion about it. I will say one thing, though: I wouldn't waste my time with an S or DS. They're about as quick as an SR or DSR at about 60% in custom mode. They're still fun, but it's night and day different.
Mark Haury Reduce the recharge time and I'm game. Spending that amount of money purely to work and back is a bit rich for me. Please let me know that max range you have got
df3yt Most people could ride to work and back all week on a Zero. I usually don't charge every night unless it's already low (you shouldn't leave it less than 30% very long) or am doing a long ride the next day. 160 km is no problem in one go. Australia is seriously lagging the rest of the world in public charging infrastructure, so it will be a while before I try actual travel with it.
Charging on these shouldn't be an issue. The batteries are like 1/4th capacity of car EVs... goes a long way to eliminate the headache of car EV charging. That's why im interested in this. Looks like you can either install the L2 charger that will run it up in ~30min or at home use 1-4 of the 120VAC add-ons which reduce charge time of 8hrs from outlet to ~2hrs. The reviewer is a bit wrong when he says it'll take 8hrs for 100%; Zero gave 30min time to 95% for the L2 charger because you should rarely/never charge to 100%. That goes for every EV. Charge 90-95% and the battery will stay healthy for a long time.
I am a 58 year old motor head (from the rich/broke Country of California) and it took me a bit to adjust to electric as well. Pretty much when the horse power to weight ratio became attractive. That has always been a driving force in my life. Quiet has its advantages as well as buckets of torque from a stand still. Cops don't seem to notice me nearly as much. I have not yet adjusted to watching people drive on the left side of the road yet, you were freaking me out with that. More and more I am appreciating not putting out exhaust fumes, I love the mountains and clean air. Zero seems a bit pricey but they are doing a great job performance wise. I think they justify the price tag, to some extent, by the high price of gas powered bikes. As battery technology continues to advance, we should see the cost drop and/or range increase as batteries are a huge factor. The cost of gas will continue to rise. The range indicators really just show you how much your riding style has changed and are sort of trivial to me. An active volt meter is the real fuel gage. Drive fast and take chances, Barclay.
He didn't mention the fact that there are almost no maintenance costs. All you need is tires, breaks, and a belt once in a while. No oil, few moving parts, and estimated 350,000 miles or so until 80% range.
Si Raff this bike is not in the same class as a 5k ice bike. It is more comparable to a 7-10k ice bike. If you ride as your daily commuter then it will easily pay for itself. Not worth it for weekend warriors though.
In what way is it in the class of 7-10k ice's? It's sub 70hp and heavy. It would be a close thing even with something like a CB500 - pretty much the kind of bike it's going against. Then there's the mythical savings. Motorcycle.com got 90 miles from their 15.3kWh bike (effectively an £18k bike here in the UK). Let's say 100 miles for 15kWh to be nice. UK average is 14p/kWh which means that 100 miles cost £2.10 of electricity. Unleaded is around £1.15/l at the moment, giving £5.20 per gallon. Quite a difference and most bikes of that kind will only do around 50mpg realistically (far more if you're trying but who buys a bike fo that?) That means it's around £10 for the same mileage. £8 per 100 miles is a big difference. Well at least until you realise that there's £8k - £13k difference in cost. That's 100,000 miles to break even with a £10k bike or 162,500 to break even with a £5k bike. Easily pay for itself? Maybe if you were using it as a long distance courier for 5 years but even then it would be range limited and not fit for the job in the first place. Can't justify this thing on costs by any reasonable measure. I might get one anyway though because it's just cool - surely that's more a key point when buying a bike than if it costs more or we would all be on 125's?
Si Raff fuel isn't the savings cost I'm actually talking about. Fuel only would take 100,000+ miles to break even but you also can subtract the price of buying oil, oil filters, chain lube, clutches, and most other regular maintenance. Not even including the fact that your employer is going to pay your electricity bill when you plug in at work. And then factor in that the life expectancy is easily over double of any ice bike. Let's say you do 20k miles a year because it's your daily driver. That's 10 oil changes which is 20 bucks each give or take plus a few minutes of your life. So 200 extra dollars a year in things that are required. If you drop a car and ride this instead of a 5k bike then you can make it up in a few years plus it will last an extra 5-10 years after you've broken even on value. But only if you're putting on like 20k a year. Also, a 500cc bike isn't really capable of sustaining 70-80mph on the highway. This electric motorcycle is for the couple miles the battery will last.
Yeah that couple hundred a year realy adds up when we're talkin about £8k difference. lol After 5 years that would make it £7k difference. Or £12k. I'm also struggling to think of any 500cc+ bike from the last 20 years which would struggle to hold 70-80mph. Honestly at the price you aren't going to break even unless you're one of the very few people who'c commute is just inside it's max range each way an youalways use it for everything else aswell. Kind of hard to imagine someone with £18k to spend would not also have a car or at least other bikes. Have a look at bikes for sale and it's pretty obvious how rare that kind of mileage is.
I have a 2015 ZERO SR and I love it. All the normal questions and answers. 1. I get 130 miles of range going "extra-legal" speeds in the Santa Cruz Mountains. 2. I charge fully in less than a hour with a aftermarket DigiNow fast chargers using a standard j-plug at a public charge station. 3. It goes over 100 MPH and accelerates off the line with no clutch or transition faster than most sport bikes. 4. Being quiet is not dangerous. I ride and commute every day. You will not get as many tickets or dirty looks. 5. The throttle response is better than any gas bike and you can tune it with the app.
Fuel storage is still big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive slabs of battery where most of the weight only inhibits every metric of performance. Also highly risking bursting into flames. Gas bike's fuel storage is about 90%+ energy potential by weight, the rest is a lightweight hollow cavity with a fuel pump in it. Even with less than 50% energy converted to propulsion, it's still more powerful, still fills in 1 minute, and still costs far less to purchase, and still is available in far flung places around the earth. There's also zero potential it will burst into flames unless converted to gaseous vapors first.
# of Gas bikes burining in 2017 100s # of Electric bikes burning in 2017 0 Dont confuse the electric bikes with advanced tech batteries with the cheap lithium ion chinese made ones for scooters, vapes, and phones
I am an oldie. Approaching 60 in a couple of years. I have a 1.5 year old 1,500 watt 84-volt honda zoomer-x like e-MC. Before that I had a 9 month old vespa type e-MC/scooter. Been ebiking for 2.4 years or so. My ebike is simple and not high powered. It's not as fancy or costly as a Zero. Got it for about U$800 used for 3 months only, and got some lithium batts now to total the cost to U$2,000. The batts should last me 5 or more years and not worry like using those lead acid batteries. It expensive on the onset but it will be cheaper in the long run with less headaches and maintenance. The U$2,000 is what I would have paid for a gasoline Honda Zoomer-X plus a little modifications in our country. My maintenance cost per year plus gasoline probably will set me back around U$500-600. With the electric MC, I only pay around U$40 a year. Only mechanical parts usually need servicing or replacing. No change oils, filters, adjustment of timing belts, mo parts to become loose or needs adjustments periodically, no parts to wear off except the tires, brake pads, and maybe the axle bearing. No massive heat build up. U$500-600 may not be much in the USA, but it is a lot in our country. But the biggest shock is the cost of paying the electric company only U$40 or less for powering this for one year (at about 10,000km plus mileage). And yes, we charge at home. With the 25aH and 15ah sets. I can go 110-130km range with these 2. I usually just use around 25-40km per day, sometimes less. And it takes maybe 2 hours to 4 hours to charge with such short usage. I just leave it at night to charge, or just plug it in whenever I want to even for a 1 hour charge. Even if I don't charge it, I can go 3-4 days with this uncharge. But I charge them when the bike is idle just to be able to cover any contingencies. It's not doing anything anyway, so just plug it in! Electric bikes may not be for many oldies. It is for the next generation. They are more in numbers and they know that power/torque and speed can be had in relative silence or low noise/sound. Maintenance is cheaper too. When we are all gone, few of the next generation will know of combustion engine motorcycle. And cars. And trucks, Practically almost any vehicle on the ground (maybe even in water or even in the air). It's hard to teach old dogs new tricks. That is why I went full steam ahead with this. My body may be old, but my heart is young. Even more, it's just plain common sense and practical. IF ones ego or bias can't be swayed, then the pocket (savings) and ease of maintenance (literally 1-5% effort) is the deciding factor for me.
Having ridden this bike at the factory a few years ago, I rode away on my BMW R1200RT more than impressed with the Zero SR. Yes it took a little getting used to, maybe the first few miles with looking for a clutch handle. What is most impressive is the seamless delivery of power when applying 'throttle' via the twist grip. A novice to motorcycles could safely ride this bike which will hopefully provide new riders to the world of motorcycle riding. Once dry cell lithium batteries become viable, legacy electric bikes can then be readily upgraded with a drop-in battery upgrade to solve any range anxiety and early adapters will have enjoyed years of a maintenance free motorcycle by this time. I've replaced my gas powered hedge trimmer, lawn mower, weed whacker, leaf blower, and BMW car with an electric replacement. The motorcycle is next - only a matter of time once the battery density challenges have been solved and that day is fast approaching.
Which is the same reason that drivers will dart in front of nearly-silent bikes. I understand that everything is going EV (I own a LEAF now), but on a bike I'd be far more worried in a lane-splitting state like CA. People hear me coming and they react (moving out of the way). If I could be on an EV I'd be glad to do that....but man I do worry about people darting in to me because people who pass DMV vision tests like to say 'I didn't see him, officer' when they cut us off. But, as EVs get more popular and driver aids make their way into the mainstream, maybe fewer dumbasses will be 'allowed' to kill us as their Teslas, LEAFs, etc. intervene on their behalf (and ours, as riders). Things, they are a-changin'. I welcome that change, but I have a feeling that lane-splitting is gonna be scary AF on a 30 mile commute to Hollywood on a nearly silent E-bike.
Great comments. Really appreciate your video. Pricing is OTT. Hopefully more competitive entrants with higher volumes will bring economies of scale and sense able prices? Zero has to work on their styling. Thank you.
Imagine a hybrid. Gas / battery assisted take offffffff. Battery assisted during the time of low RPM until gas motor achieves optimum RPM to produce max HP. The future is battery assisted motors hybridization with gas . I could see it being dangerously fast and evil as hell.
Thats not bad really 2 and half hours for 95% aint bad when you think that he had 140 miles on full charge i believe he said if anything the 2 and half hours is a get you out the shit type of thing where if your not to far away from where you are going but wont make it with whats left in the battery pull up walk away for an hour and youll be good to go. I guess its more of a round town commuter in the fact that you'd just charge it up over night. For built up cites it would be perfect as you'd probably get most of the power back in regen
@Jesse Mitchell I'm in my 40s too and think electric vehicles are clean and energy efficient, and it's a delightful bonus that they're silent. The physical bike itself is just another consumer product like a TV set or microwave oven. The cool part is the thinking behind it, and electric vehicles certainly have a lot going for them--that's why companies are going through with the effort to develop them, despite current battery tech not being quite energy-dense enough for motorbikes yet.
I owned a 2013 Zero FX for awhile, and sold it to buy a Yamaha Super Tenere 1200 (I wanted to tour Mexico by motorbike). I've been missing the Zero FX ever since, and may buy another. It pulled harder than my 1200 does. And that's just the FX; the SR is much stronger and faster. Electric bikes are super fun!!!
Factor in the the low servicing costs (tyres, brake pads and new belt at 40k km)... I'd say it's close to doable.. Stick some PV on the roof and fuel is almost free... For those people saying the power is generated by coal anyway... ever thought about how much electricity is used to make petrol? Nope didn't think so.
I've got 6000 miles on mine and I've loved every mile of my nasty commute especially blowing past the 100,000$ Porsches stuck in traffic. Live free or die!
Yes!! Unbelievable how many of the EV reviewers get tongue tied (brain-tied?) over this. What's funny in this instance is the reviewer corrected himself as his mouth actually started to say electric! The one time in the video he called it Electric was when he referred to it's intergration with an App. Haha the one time electronic would have been an accurate enough synonym. Please, tho', overall fantastic review.
This reminds me of a time back in the day when my dad said "those Japanese bikes are rubbish, they will never take off" with me on my Suzuki GT250 X7, funny how history repeats itself....nuff said.
I bought a used 2018 Zero SR two months ago. I love it. For the last 30 years, after every ICE car or bike I purchased, I created a maintenance plan. Not with this bike. I am not missing the five whole systems from an ICE: gas, air, spark, exhaust, and coolant. This Zero differs from a electric car in that it can be charged via a 110 volt wall outlet. Therefore, most every house (and your friend's house) already have charging capability for your bike. Same goes with my work - they don't have a 220 Volt car charger, but they do have a 110 volt outlet, and let me charge at work. I was choosing between a electric car or bike, and I'm glad I started with a bike. I plan to get a car in two years. You need to change a little, and think out your charging plan every two to three days, but you soon find yourself getting on the bike and loving the silence. Petrol engines are CO2 pumps. Now that there are 2 billion cars on the road, that is a lot of CO2. Yes, the bike is pricey, but I want this company to succeed, so that's where I'll put my money.
Gasoline powered technology keeps getting better and better. If we only look at electric we'll fail to see the comparative ratio which is roughly the same as it was in the 1930's. Same manufacturing cost ratios, same purchase cost ratios, same time to recharge ratios, same comparative travel range ratios. Just getting better and better? Another 85 years it could be a little better.
Wow you must be in a different world. Gas engines are limited in efficiency due to massive loss via heat and mechanical transfer. Electrics are more than double the efficiency and the technology is progressing in leaps and bounds. Batteries and motors are good for well over 300000 miles, a figure few gas motors could even pray for without massive repair. A one hour charge time compares favorably to a overnight trickle charge in the 30s for and old lead acid battery holding 1/40 the power of these. If gas technology was perfect it would still be 1/2 as efficient as electric.
"Ignore the Power" Power should never be ignored, because the transmission and the wheels and sprockets multiply torque. Power is all about quantity. Torque is about quality.
That being said, EVs are faster with the same amount of power rating because of the minimal amount of rotating mass, clutch, gears and good 'quality' off the line.
You've got tanks. Big, heavy, cumbersome, expensive tanks that fill with tons of electrons which weight virtually nothing. And when those tanks are empty, they are still big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive. But don't worry, over time those tanks lose capacity to fill. So they are still big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive and even less effective the more you use them.
Almost as big ,heavy and cumbersome as a huge inefficient engine. And considering the life of the batteries and motor is well over 300000 miles they will still be going while your big cumbersome motor will be rusting
Even with your efficient motors, you still can't stretch a battery to come anywhere near the power, range, and ease of fillup of a gas engine. Gas engines keep getting better and better. Batteries will need to make a monumental improvement just to keep gas engines in sight on the horizon.
Even when current gas engines convert less than 50% gas energy potential into propulsion, it's still a ridiculously better means of storing fuel energy per weight, than a big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive hunk of battery (no matter what it's made out of) with terrible energy density, regardless of electric motors being 97% efficient or whatever they are. Where on a gas bike, the space inside a thin-wall metal tank is 100% used by liquid fuel with high density energy, the space inside the confines of a battery is mostly wasted by performance-sapping material. Whereas a gas bike can fill and empty that entire space quickly, not so with a battery bike. Open the battery lid, stick the electric nozzle in, and fill it up with electrons in 1 minute? Not really. All this stupid nonsense about reducing carbon footprints? Just about everything in the universe is packed with carbon, even other planets.
@Rebecca Whitson "One might really begin to wonder if perhaps there is a deliberate corporate initiated (and/or government supported) effort to limit such tech from making it to the market...." I've looked into the technological discoveries of former Stanley Meyer, a Christian inventor who developed a hydrogen generator which converted everyday tap water into hydrogen gas at the volumes necessary to feed a standard ICE. Today all hydrogen tech focuses on converting H2O to electrical energy, storing it and using it from batteries in a standard e-power vehicle, which I think is needlessly complicated and bulky. You're right about inventions and discoveries (mostly by brilliant unaccredited garage tinkerers) being forcefully canned and destroyed, prevented from ever being implemented in the mainstream. COULD be that such is going on in the battery/storage realm of research, I'm not sure. I do know that electric vehicles were considered along side Henry Ford's ICE powered vehicle as early as the proposal for the Model T. It's nothing new. I've also researched the role the common energy power plants play in generating global weather. You'll never ever see a common power plant of any remarkable size shut down because of it.
Its gasoline -hybrid electric. The Prius Prime or Plug-in can charge with electricity and drive around (in many cases) without burning gasoline at all. Its not a BEV, but its a PHEV or a HEV.
It's electric motor is electric, the battery management system (BMS) and motor controller is electronic. The ICE's control system is electronic along with many other systems such as brakes and transmission. Lots of electronics in vehicles today, but the primary movers (motors/generators) are electric. Hope this helps.
I've had a go in a Tesla S and Chinese electric scooters. I just like big acceleration or two wheels - the powerplant is secondary. I wouldn't buy one of these in 2017 but the next generation ones could be awesome. Also, it's guys like the old guys in the video that mean we don't yet have hoverbikes, they fear anything new and stifle progress!
Good and honest review. Whether we like it or not, electric bikes are here to stay, . A bit more styling and some time to accept electric vehicles, Ill prolly own one. Also, you got another subscriber. Cheers from Sweden
Just because a STATE GOVERNMENT has a rather hefty debt (and continues to run a deficit), this does NOT necessarily mean that the state is not absolutely flush with cash/tech/investment... think bigger picture. Debt and deficit aside, California is very rich in cash/tech/investment. THAT being said, it's a bloody shame the Liberals are f'ing up the place.
Those libs and all those other coastal lib states are generating the funds to carry all those conservative central states. It's not like California gained it's 6th largest economy in the world status with neoconservative idealism. California has always been the liberal Petrie dish state and it happens here first. How can the libs be ruining it when we've always been the most liberal state in the republic? Check the Whitehouse to see what's really going to ruin things. It sure as shit isn't electric vehicles and protecting the environment.
im getting one of these for my next bike...i use my bike mainly for around town small errands so the thought of never going to a gas station and just leaving my bike plugged in(i do now anyway) so it wouldnt cost me a dime more than it does now. im constantly charging my battery at 2 to 10 amps
when I first found out about these bikes I didn't even know something like this existed this was obviously before the craze for electric vehicles was as big as today. At the time I wasn't in to electric cars at all I thought they we're boring and had no character and I still think that but when I saw these bikes they instantly grabbed my attention they weren't obnoxious like most electric vehicles are they weren't painted in some insane color and above all they didn't bombard you with anything that said "eco friendly" or "zero emissions" closest thing to that was the brand name they had a simple design that looks great although slightly plain is pretty unique. At last I have found a electric vehicle with actual character and even though it is pretty expensive your still not dropping 100,000$ on a tesla p100D for the same or even more fun. So all I have to say now is this is one of the very best bikes I have ever seen and I'm thankful I found out about Zero Motorcycles.
Funny comment but not true. The reviewer doesn't know how range estimation works. They use your current consumption to estimate range. So, my stupidly thirsty V8 can 'regenerate' double the range if I stop getting into it around the city and start cruising on the highways. I'm surprised a journalist has confused regeneration with current-average range estimation software. That's what go me LMAO.
Justin Buckland I noticed that as well. Most people are starting to catch onto EV's 'smart' range calculators. Just a couple years ago established journalists with sections of magazines to themselves were reacting to EV range performance just like this but now many have caught on. Not everyone though, clearly. On the electric motorcycle front I will say that there haven't been too many popular models yet so hopefully with more to come, people will appreciate the range calculators more all encompassing approach to yielding results and have some mechanical sympathy? No..Electrical sympathy after considering all factors in regards to the range they're getting. One must realize that flogging a petrol engine is going to decrease fuel economy yes but it won't have the same detrimental effect as doing just that to an electric motor where cooling advances haven't been made to the level they have with internal combustion thus creating this choice EV motorists have: Go fast? Or Go far?
Dan Murphy You're bang on with the range estimation but they do regenerate off throttle - regen braking. In urban driving my Nissan Leaf will get 25% of its range from the regen braking. I enjoyed the review but not being a biker (have license but never had the pleasure of owning one!) noticed he was coming at it differently than I expected. What I've noticed with the Leaf is that it isn't a car in the petrol/diesel sense. You have to relearn a few habits to get the best out of it, but once you do you're pretty much evangelical. I'd be interested to see the results of a long term test to see if the same is true of bike/biker. The charge time sounded disappointing - worse than a Leaf from a 3 pin socket. Have read somewhere though that the Zero batteries have an amazing lifespan so that could be why!
EV range is simple. City driving is the longest, Cut it in half for highway. Wind resistance is the killer. Zero is actually pretty spot on for their estimates. The trouble with an electric is it is so hard not to crank that torque at every stop lol
Yeah range estimation by a computer is something that most don’t understand whether ICE or electric. Same people think eco mode will magically produce more miles of range vs sport. The battery capacity will give what you ask and nothing more.
Two things, the range increasing from riding is just because the last known riding style calculated that it had 130odd miles left, and you rode in less aggressively than it’s estimations. You cannot gain energy whilst using it like that, unless you started at the top of a rather large hill and finished at the bottom without going back up, and also related to this I’d imagine that the 74 miles was also calculated from your aggressive riding, and I’m sure it would increase if you drove it carefully so you had possibly 80-100 miles lect
Alex Johnson Because these days the trend is everybody *removing* the fairings from their bikes. Not to mention all the other stupid things they are doing to their bikes. Ugly is in, I guess. But you can at least get a decent windshield for a Zero.
For my daily highway commute this thing isn't an option without fairings. Hope they bring out an adventure or Touring model soon! (driving a 1200gs adventure now)
Zero are aiming at the wrong market, sports bike riders like noise and ripping up and down the gears. Commuter riders and touring bike riders don't tend to fit loud exhausts and are used to bikes that weigh more than sports bikes. My Nissan Leaf can charge up on a rapid charger in a fraction of the time this bike takes. Until they bring out a touring version with the ability to use rapid chargers, I won't be visiting a Zero showroom.
Alex Johnson Since every one of your assertions is wrong, I'm not going to bother debunking them point by point. I will, however, point out that you've contradicted yourself and basically said that Zero's target customer is exactly who they are going to get. In other words, they're doing it exactly right. Also, since you obviously aren't on the market for an electric bike of any kind, your opinion is irrelevant. If you haven't personally ridden one - with an open mind - you don't have a right to an opinion. In fact, no one ever has a right to a biased and uninformed opinion.
Lol... we have to be so careful when we speak in public. One little mistake becomes a long run of discredit. But let’s be real. He is not a politician. Just hopefully a good biker.
had my zero s since 2015. love it. just need a level 2 charger with a quick charge pack. not great for apartment living though unless you have easy safe access to a plug. i definitely need a garage after going 6 months without.
Jeff Shoemaker depending on the apartment. Some will let you bring it inside (like a bicycle) because there's no oil or gas. My garden apartment has it's own entrance and I keep it inside.
I fly all electric RC airplanes and helicopters. They are more powerful and faster than gas engine planes. I don't know how I'd feel about an electric motorcycle but I know I prefer electric RC planes by a Hugh margin!!!
I ride a V4 with a loud pipe, it lets others know where I am - I've had a number of road bikes and have to say that the quiet one's placed me at more risk of injury. I believe sound needs to be engineered into these motorcycles, particularly off road as we need to hear what's coming.
how Much!? I'll be interested once they're mainstream enough to have a sensible price tag. However, if the future is electric then I'd rather ride an electric bike than no bike
VeeFour unfortunately the price is pretty high but if you're in to fast bikes the ls218 is the fastest bike in the world and it's electric it's even more expensive than the zero but it cost about the same as top of the line sport bikes and again it's the fastest bike in the world
I see people complaining about the price. The thing is, the amount of money you'll save every year and every year you have your bike is phenominal. Every year, gas fees for a bike may be around... let's say, with regular fillups, around 250$ USD, depending on how often you ride, how agressively you ride, how much you fill up on, gas station prices, etc. Also, ICE bikes need regular checkups, and if some moving mechanical part breaks, a trip to the garage may be another 500/600$ USD. Again, that's an esitmate, depending on your garage of choice, what part needs tuning, etc. All in all, 750-850$USD a year for ICE bikes, not to mention maintennance for bike chains/belts. Add that up however many years you have your bike, plus maybe an extra 100 dollars after every year because, let's face it, every bike ages. In the long run, 15k on an ebike can save you a lot of headaches and pain for a longer time.
A couple of quick points. you normally rapid charge a battery to 80%, that can be very quick, over 80% the charge starts struggling to get into the battery, that is why they slow down and take all night to get to 100%. The second thing I want to mention is something that happened to me last year. I was at a car show in the EV area selling my book when I started chatting to a guy from the Australian Morris Minor club. I asked him what he thought of the idea of converting a Morris Minor to electric. His response really surprised me. he thought it was a brilliant idea, in fact they were already converting one. basically they love the car but hate the engine. It is heavy and under powered. Great review
It's the same story as electric cars - until technology is such that these cars and bikes are about half the price they are now, they are still out of reach for your average Joe
quigonjay9 It's the same or less than a lot of other bikes. This is their top of the range. Top of the range BMW is close to twice this price. Top of the range Ducati is over twice. Top Honda is more than 5 times as much as this bike.
quigonjay9 this company can go two ways in the future they can be the pioneers of affordable electric motorcycles or pull something like Ducati and create a new type of motorcycles and as technology for this particular type of stuff gets better they will dich the affordable thing and have 20k 15k bikes
Brett Vogel I just looked up the price of the most expensive Honda road bike. It's 137000 pounds. About 8 times more than a Zero with every option ticked.
Hi John, another excellent review, I saw one of these at the NEC and balked at the price, as with all this technology its priced beyond the common man, at half the price you'd think twice. Do the maths: spend half as much on a very respectable motorcycle and (for the average rider), how many miles could you travel on £8k's worth of fuel! I respect the technology but...
Mark Lincoln People buy the six cylinder BMW 1600GTL because it's smooth, but they're like a farm implement compared to a Zero, but a Zero is much cheaper.
Mark Lincoln If you actually did the maths, you would find that it won't take long for your "cheaper" ICE bike to get more expensive than the electric, and those costs will only go up as the bike ages and parts wear out. With electric you pay up front, but running and maintenance costs are very low, and can be very close to zero if you have your own solar or wind power. ICE vehicles are like computer printers: it's not the printer that is the major cost, it's consumables (ink or toner and paper). So do yourself a favor and do *realistic* maths, not deliberately unrealistic ones.
Derek Jonez Try riding them both. Really, I'm not kidding, the BMW is a farm implement in comparison. You haven't experienced seamless torque until you've ridden one. Reviewers talk about bikes feeling "electric", but there's nothing in the petrol world that compares.
Its much cooler Yes, but do take the cost of petrol/gas price and the periodic maintenance that a IC engine bike requires into account. Also do a small calculation of price of electricity and look for a term of around 5 Years of your commute you will get your answer.
The total cost of 5 years may differ a lot, but if you divide it into per month, it probably is not a number you would care a lot :). But of course, it is distance dependent. In my case, I drive around 150 miles per month. Moreover, I think people who spend so much money into adult toys would not care about that amount of cost, but care more about how cool the toys are. The performance for this one is enough to have fun, but for the same price, it would be great if they could make this into a much better looking bike. For now it looks like a $5000 bike.
I think new technology always costs more. As the technology standardizes and numbers sold ramps up, I think prices will drop. Remember, Tesla is supposed to come out with a $35K sedan soon.
Dabendra Singh Model s has 100k worth performance, the technology it has worth way more than some super cars. Model 3 also has 35k worth of performance and way more technology than other 35k cars in the market. And they both look amazing. But this bike I just don't feel it worth 15k in anyway.
What a great video - Full of info & very interesting to watch! We have an electric push bike (shown in thumbnail) but only get around 80 miles of range. Thank you very much.
You can't take these bikes on any type of long trips and you can forget about camping. I don't know about other motorcyclists but I love the sound and rumble of my exhaust.
blipco5 takes less then an hour for a 75% charge with the proper charger. Something like 92% of Americans drive less then a 100 miles round trip. It easily work work fine for anything except a crossed country drive. With a wall outlet, 95% in 4 hours. With lithium technology, the last 20% of the charge has to be done slowly to prevent an overvotage situation. The rest comes really quickly. As the power grid become more common, there will be less gas powered cars around.
Great review, although I wonder if the front break lever can be switched over to the left-hand side ,where the clutch usually is? Reason I ask is being a Leftie (Left-Handed predominantly, even though am ambidextrous) it would seem more convenient.
I'm sure any reservoir based clutch lever would work, you'd just have to sort the switch for the light. Personally I think it'd be a terrible idea if you're used to riding a normal bike. Your muscle memory would be trying to brake on the right side in a panic stop and you'll have no lever where it should be. Also the accidental braking when your clutch instinct kicks in.
Nah, it's the same as any new technology. The early adopters pay for the development costs and if the technology works, economies of scale come into play and everyone gets cheaper products as a result. I remember when an entry level desktop computer that sounded like a jet taking off was £2k - and you can now pick up a basic Windows 10 laptop for £200.
You don't understand how the world works do you... The rich subsidize new tech until it can be sold in an affordable form. Mercedes Benz and Audi a great example of the trickle down effect. The top end vehicles will cost you an arm and a leg but over time the tech in those vehicles will make it's way down to the cheapest cars that they sell.
Ali Bashir yep, u c now? always has been, why any different nw? I'm gonna burn gas n my cycle tell I cant, then think about selling something, getting another job and then loan to get an SR, not!!
People said the same thing about the big screen led tv when they first came out and look at the price now. You can get a 55 inch smart 4k these days for $500. They were close to $3000 not long ago. The smart phone I use cost just over $100. 5 years ago a phone with maybe 20% of the features was in the $600 range.
The high purchase price is offset by the lack of expensive maintenance and low costs to fill up. Brakes last ages and it's much smoother than any ice bike. Budah of Birmingham
Living in the Netherlands in a city I absolutely hate loud bikes standing across the street at a stoplight taking of and making a hell of a noise doing it. I always go up with my hand a point my pinky at them stating they are compensating for a small Pe...s Please do other humans a favor and just buy silent bikes wear headphones and blast your old bike sounds in your head without bothering the rest of the world with your sound pollution
Living in a city my ears thank you. I'm not a bike rider but these e-bikes are really appealing to me. They should have a special e-bike license no need to learn all that manual gear shifting I will never drive a regular bike anyway btw 41yr old
TuxKey THE reason for me to not repair my rusted through exhaust is the louder you are the better the chance of getting noticed by the blind drivers all around. Especially since the holes are in the FRONT part of the muffler. I am afraid that with an electric bike that really is a huge problem.
i have to admit after seeing a couple of episodes of moto madness on how stupid car drivers can be i somewhat understand the need to be loud. it's got me scared to even get a bike licence.
Why does everyone instantly think of compensating for something if you just do what you love. couldnt ride or drive an electric vehicle. its boring, nothing to work on, so few moving parts. its like a toy
Yake N Bake They need to do something. People get aftermarket pipes so they can be heard. I'm just worried more riders will be hit by cagers who don't hear them.
Well for you maybe, I love the fact that this thing is quiet. And it does make some noise, it's just not obnoxiously loud. Think about it, you can romp around at night being a hooligan and bother pretty much no one.
Fair point. I sit corrected. But the distinction that I want to make is that when you apply the front brake, the regen is not happening at the front wheel but rather via the motor - it's akin to dragging the rear brake. This is not a big deal in most situations but it does subtly affect weight shift under braking. In sport riding it is good to get the weight shifted smoothly to the front contact patch to increase stopping power. In racing, it's not uncommon to see the rear wheel completely off the ground under hard braking. There's no regen happening then ;)
Agreed on that point, though I actually make use of this feature. I have my front brake lever setup so that it engages regen before the front calipers engage. That way a tiny amount of pressure on my front lever engages the regen on the rear wheel without any braking force on the front wheel, then as I apply more pressure my actual brakes on the front wheel engage. It takes a bit of tinkering to get set up nicely, but it makes for some really smooth progressive dual braking. :)
Pure motorcycle enjoyment is the wind, the freedom, simplicity, the open road. The Zero just doesn't look that nimble and cool as a cafe. Dont mind classic design with silent motor. But congratulations to them for doing this fr! Someone has to be the first.
Petrol will run out when crops will no longer grow. I think we are going to have combustion engines for the foreseeable future. But, I would still like to own this bike.
But what you think and what scientists and oil companies know to be reality are different things. What qualifies you to be a reliable source of information on how long oil will last until it runs out? You think it won't run out until crops stop growing. I want some evidence or research to back that crazy arbitrary claim up!
Brilliant video and very informative. I'm old school with my bikes, but I can see the virtues and future of electric bikes and cars. I would def have the bike .
I have a 2017 ZERO DS. Just recently took a test ride on a 2018 ZERO SR ZF14.4 ... thing is a BEAST in Sport mode. I weigh only 160lbs so add that to the bikes 400lb curb weight and that 116ft/lb of torque really got my attention. Feels much punchier than my year older DS.
They're great bikes! I only a have a cheap Daymak Em1 (pretty much an electric Honda Grom) and its fun as hell! evenyone looks twice haha The thing thats killing Zero and most other makers is their prices 😔 Daymak are affordable, Zero are not.
When the range is better and the prices come down I'd be interested,, I'm in me 50s been riding since I was 12 had a lot from the bottom to the top in power and cc ,,, would like to try one ,, great review Shane uk
I did with my Harley about 120.000 km or about 75000 miles in 5 years. A lot of money for maintenance after all… But a lot of fun. How about this machine?? Before I change into this adventure I want to know it is a good choice. Can it handle this range of running hours? What about the cost of a broken battery ? Is there any driver with this kind of experiences. I want to know !!!
Nobody ever says anything about how to down shift especially entering a turn a little hot. Is the regen from just the breaks or throttle too? It has to be.
The regenerative braking did NOT increase the battery power. It is the electronic distance calculator that changed your range based on the fact you were in ECO mode at the start. So whoever had your bike before you was going full sport/high drain for most of his/her ride and brought the distance down on the calculation. I have this in my I-miev Mitsubishi if I drive for awhile in eco/hyper mileage speed it can show up to 80 mile available (60 miles is official range). Also you might want to point out on the Zero motorcycle that the battery pack is rated for 300,000 miles. You have no oil changes, no gas station cost. It will be full every morning is you remember to plug it in at night. Just get on a go, that is one less worry in the morning unlike regular bikes where there may be battery issues or starter issues...or lots of other potential issues to make you late to work or whatever. So $18k for regular bike is a lot, but I think that you have to look at electric in a different way.
I would like to add this article for your consideration on cost. gas2.org/2015/08/07/electric-motorcycle-costs-performance-vs-gas-motorcycle-costs-performance/ If depreciation is taken out of equation (because of speed of electric evolution electric vehicles depreciate faster) electric bike will save you money, some times a lot, in less then 10yrs because cost of ownership is so low. The article was comparing the Zero, which is expensive. How about the new Tork motorcycle from India? Only 3.4Kw battery, weak motor and just 100km/h cruise speed for 100km, but it costs about $2000 (yes $2k). If you need a commuter bike to work there would be nothing cheaper. It is the equivalent of 400+ miles per gallon U.S. price. Now I have no idea of quality of the Indian bike, all I'm suggesting is electric bikes with smaller motors going like the Zero in eco mode all the time are coming and will be a lot cheaper. Making the electric bike I think the best option for commuters in those locations where weather isn't to cold. As for distance issue, I personally have a electric 2012 vehicle that only goes about 60 miles. For 95% of trips it is perfect, I only use a old gas car maybe once or twice a month. I think people hopping into their super bikes and cars have this feeling of "I can go ANYWHERE and get there faster then anyone!" and proceed to nearest grocery store for milk or the nearest highway and pick their place in the traffic jam. Reality is, if we can change the way we think and how we travel, electric will be better for all of us.
Good review. I have recently become a big fan of EVs, and test-driving the Tesla Model 3 is what did it. That makes me really think about electric motorcycles, but I really am deflated by the pedestrian looks of this large Grom...I mean....Zero SR. I find it very boring. If they made a futuristic-looking SPORTbike, I'd be very interested (and I have to be able to get it in Spacep0d white). I'm also keen to try one of these. I'm installing a Level 2 charger for a 2018 LEAF so if I could use the same charger for a Zero SR, well that's a bonus. I gotta say, I'm not a fan of filling up at gas stations on a bike. I'd much prefer to fill up (with electricity) whilst doing something else, via a Level 2 charger. So, there's time and annoyance saving there too (not to mention cost). It's also interesting to note that there are a lot of fuel trucks transporting our fuel. No need to do that with electricity. More carbon reduction, but less truck traffic on the roads too. Really, I need a sportbike though, even if it's EV. I'm not a fan of pedestrian-looking naked bikes. :D
Very informative, humorous, and helpful review. I'm keenly interested in electric bikes, but just no there yet... Have multiple gas bikes, Honda, KTM, Yamaha, Suzuki, Ducati, and still love riding gas...
Do I have the option of buying only the battery pack ? Sounds mind boggling that Zero has implemented 14-15 kW battery pack with such low space constraints.
I don't ride but UA-cam recommended your vid as I watch a lot of "Fully Charged" and other EV videos. Firstly, the filming, editing and production was 1st class. Your critique screamed experience and it was a thoroughly enjoyable watch. Have to ask though as a non-rider where you mentioned that on your petrol bikes when you were cutting up the lanes, dog walkers, hikers etc jumped into the hedges but didn't on the Zero I assume that was a safety disadvantage? Was the Zero that quiet to other road users? Also if you get a chance to do another review of a different model please go into the phone app in more detail. That looked really cool being able to tailor the tune from an app. Anyway, great watch! Subscribed! Edit: Have been "Google-fu"ing Zero and your channel. Didn't mean to sound condescending above, as judging by your view count you are a tier1 channel. Apparently Zero do an "S" that's CBT compliant (which is restricted by the app for EU regs, due to continuous torque output). If you're friendly with the dealer, I'd love your opinion as an alt to a regular 125 to someone considering a switch to 2 wheels for the commute/starting out.
There's a difference between electronic and electric. I'm concerned about those brakes. How can that puny front brake stop a 200-kilo bike properly? Thanks for the review!
If I could lease one on the cheap and not have to worry about extra battery packs and hacks to give it decent range I'd be tempted, for commuting and local runs, but until its got a solid reliable 150 mile range and a decent quick charge option it's nothing more than an expensive commuter toy for rich IT kids. I wish they'd all hurry up and buy some so the prices can come down.. I'll stick with my brilliant old Fazer600 in the meantime, 230 mile range and enough fizz to stick with modern traffic.
How annoying. Just spent a load sorting my FZS out so its lovely again, and ironically also got a Tracer900 coming in two weeks to work alongside it. Good motors those triples :)
Barry Thompson Mine charges in 80 minutes, and for a few bucks more I could cut that to 60. It doesn't take 8 hours to top up the last bit, that's complete twaddle. The last 5% takes about 15 minutes.
Overnight charging isn't really my concern anyway, I have an integral garage with power/light which I would hook up to, I'm just wondering how long I'd have to sit at a service station charging point before I'd have *enough* juice to get home etc. An hour is bearable but still 4x times longer than a fuel stop/stretch my legs with a ICE bike. The bigger issue is the purchase costs tbh, as much as I'd love an SR for commuting/local trips (so range isn't the issue) I just don't have the £16k to splurge on it. An affordable lease however would be very tempting.. I can get a Nissan Leaf for (low dep) £100/month PCP in the UK for instance, so if Zero could offer me a similar deal I'd have one in a heart beat. How you finding the bike otherwise?
Barry Thompson It's the best bike I've ever ridden. It doesn't excel at everything. I have a semi regular 800 km round trip to have dinner with my daughter. I can and have ridden 400 km to her place, hang out for four hours, and 400 home, but it's not ideal for that run. Then again nether is my KTM200EXC. Every bike is better at some things and worse at others. Some of the things it does far far better than any other bike. I really like that it's full every time I get on. I like the lack of noise, the hop on and ride with no warm up, the near complete lack of regular maintenance. I like that it doesn't burn holes in my saddle bags, or burn holes in me. I wish it had a fairing, and I'd quite like the latest one that has 60% more range. I wouldn't mind traction control. I've turned the power down because it was always breaking traction and unlike a petrol bike that spins up a bit, this just goes ape, like you see in the burn out he does where the revs just skyrocket. There's a lot more to like, but that will probably do.
Very good point that it does not look as good as it could be. They are not trying to be different enough in looks when they could and should. It would be nice to rock up somewhere and be noticed that the bike is very different.
I think they are trying to make a bike that appeals to people who already ride and not make it too weird looking. Trying to just appeal to people who already "get" electric vehicles is just too small a market.
Very well sorted and well spoken review my friend. You offered many angles and outlooks and covered the bases. One of the better bike reviews in general to be honest. Thank you sir I enjoyed that. I myself shuttered at the idea of my beloved internal combustion engines dying out (still do actually) but I am getting more and more excited about trying out an EV bike. Cheers
I like the look of the main bodyfrom the side but from a front view, something about the headlight makes it look like an old bike. I like the fxs more.
virtually maintenance free nirvana electric bikes, a couple questions before pulling the trigger you should ask yourself 1 what is the battery life? 2 what is the battery replacement cost?
Battery good for 300000 miles. By that time you will have saved enough to get a brand spanking new one with 800 miles range and a 30 minute charge time
I just bought a Zero SR, and the more I ride it the more I like it. It's everything from a smooth, easy cruiser to a brutally quick canyon carver. I don't have the range extender battery pack, but even though it's not light on paper it feels *MUCH* lighter than my Hyosung GT650, and is definitely *MUCH* easier to pick up if you drop it. It also doesn't have any bits sticking out to get damaged. Drop it and all you'll get is a scuffed bar end.
This guy has an axe to grind and isn't honest about the riding experience. Case in point: he says how sure he is that he would beat that ICE bike to sixty and even does a burnout, but says nothing whatsoever about the actual ride other than to complain about how hooning reduces the range.
Trust me, I these things are a blast to ride and well worth the price of admission, especially since there's no maintenance to speak of.
No oil or oil filters, no air filters, no constant checking for bolts being loosened by vibration, no spark plugs, none of that stuff. Just plug it in - at home; you can't refuel your ICE bike there - and clean it now and then. Never have to make a special trip or detour from other trips to get gas. If you're commuting, go directly to work or home, and never stop for fuel. Plug it in at home or work and it's full and ready to go when you are, and it costs a fraction of filling your tank with fuel. In the long run, electric will be much cheaper than any comparable ICE vehicle, and it will last a lot longer and spend a lot less time in the shop.
Don't underestimate electric. If you haven't given it an honest go, you really don't have a right to an opinion about it.
I will say one thing, though: I wouldn't waste my time with an S or DS. They're about as quick as an SR or DSR at about 60% in custom mode. They're still fun, but it's night and day different.
Mark Haury Reduce the recharge time and I'm game. Spending that amount of money purely to work and back is a bit rich for me. Please let me know that max range you have got
df3yt Most people could ride to work and back all week on a Zero. I usually don't charge every night unless it's already low (you shouldn't leave it less than 30% very long) or am doing a long ride the next day. 160 km is no problem in one go. Australia is seriously lagging the rest of the world in public charging infrastructure, so it will be a while before I try actual travel with it.
Mark Haury Thanks for the insight. Like I said i love the reliability they offer in aircraft or ground use.
Mark Haury I'll be getting one soon. These are the future petrol is a thing of the past.
Charging on these shouldn't be an issue. The batteries are like 1/4th capacity of car EVs... goes a long way to eliminate the headache of car EV charging. That's why im interested in this.
Looks like you can either install the L2 charger that will run it up in ~30min or at home use 1-4 of the 120VAC add-ons which reduce charge time of 8hrs from outlet to ~2hrs.
The reviewer is a bit wrong when he says it'll take 8hrs for 100%; Zero gave 30min time to 95% for the L2 charger because you should rarely/never charge to 100%. That goes for every EV. Charge 90-95% and the battery will stay healthy for a long time.
I am a 58 year old motor head (from the rich/broke Country of California) and it took me a bit to adjust to electric as well. Pretty much when the horse power to weight ratio became attractive. That has always been a driving force in my life. Quiet has its advantages as well as buckets of torque from a stand still. Cops don't seem to notice me nearly as much. I have not yet adjusted to watching people drive on the left side of the road yet, you were freaking me out with that. More and more I am appreciating not putting out exhaust fumes, I love the mountains and clean air. Zero seems a bit pricey but they are doing a great job performance wise. I think they justify the price tag, to some extent, by the high price of gas powered bikes. As battery technology continues to advance, we should see the cost drop and/or range increase as batteries are a huge factor. The cost of gas will continue to rise. The range indicators really just show you how much your riding style has changed and are sort of trivial to me. An active volt meter is the real fuel gage. Drive fast and take chances, Barclay.
He didn't mention the fact that there are almost no maintenance costs. All you need is tires, breaks, and a belt once in a while. No oil, few moving parts, and estimated 350,000 miles or so until 80% range.
Brilliant. How many people will ride it far enough to make that work compared to the average £5k ice bike?
Si Raff this bike is not in the same class as a 5k ice bike. It is more comparable to a 7-10k ice bike. If you ride as your daily commuter then it will easily pay for itself. Not worth it for weekend warriors though.
In what way is it in the class of 7-10k ice's? It's sub 70hp and heavy. It would be a close thing even with something like a CB500 - pretty much the kind of bike it's going against.
Then there's the mythical savings. Motorcycle.com got 90 miles from their 15.3kWh bike (effectively an £18k bike here in the UK). Let's say 100 miles for 15kWh to be nice. UK average is 14p/kWh which means that 100 miles cost £2.10 of electricity. Unleaded is around £1.15/l at the moment, giving £5.20 per gallon. Quite a difference and most bikes of that kind will only do around 50mpg realistically (far more if you're trying but who buys a bike fo that?) That means it's around £10 for the same mileage. £8 per 100 miles is a big difference.
Well at least until you realise that there's £8k - £13k difference in cost.
That's 100,000 miles to break even with a £10k bike or 162,500 to break even with a £5k bike.
Easily pay for itself? Maybe if you were using it as a long distance courier for 5 years but even then it would be range limited and not fit for the job in the first place.
Can't justify this thing on costs by any reasonable measure. I might get one anyway though because it's just cool - surely that's more a key point when buying a bike than if it costs more or we would all be on 125's?
Si Raff fuel isn't the savings cost I'm actually talking about. Fuel only would take 100,000+ miles to break even but you also can subtract the price of buying oil, oil filters, chain lube, clutches, and most other regular maintenance. Not even including the fact that your employer is going to pay your electricity bill when you plug in at work. And then factor in that the life expectancy is easily over double of any ice bike. Let's say you do 20k miles a year because it's your daily driver. That's 10 oil changes which is 20 bucks each give or take plus a few minutes of your life. So 200 extra dollars a year in things that are required. If you drop a car and ride this instead of a 5k bike then you can make it up in a few years plus it will last an extra 5-10 years after you've broken even on value. But only if you're putting on like 20k a year. Also, a 500cc bike isn't really capable of sustaining 70-80mph on the highway. This electric motorcycle is for the couple miles the battery will last.
Yeah that couple hundred a year realy adds up when we're talkin about £8k difference. lol
After 5 years that would make it £7k difference. Or £12k.
I'm also struggling to think of any 500cc+ bike from the last 20 years which would struggle to hold 70-80mph.
Honestly at the price you aren't going to break even unless you're one of the very few people who'c commute is just inside it's max range each way an youalways use it for everything else aswell.
Kind of hard to imagine someone with £18k to spend would not also have a car or at least other bikes.
Have a look at bikes for sale and it's pretty obvious how rare that kind of mileage is.
I have a 2015 ZERO SR and I love it. All the normal questions and answers.
1. I get 130 miles of range going "extra-legal" speeds in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
2. I charge fully in less than a hour with a aftermarket DigiNow fast chargers using a standard j-plug at a public charge station. 3. It goes over 100 MPH and accelerates off the line with no clutch or transition faster than most sport bikes.
4. Being quiet is not dangerous. I ride and commute every day. You will not get as many tickets or dirty looks.
5. The throttle response is better than any gas bike and you can tune it with the app.
price Man we can buy small car elc
Fuel storage is still big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive slabs of battery where most of the weight only inhibits every metric of performance. Also highly risking bursting into flames.
Gas bike's fuel storage is about 90%+ energy potential by weight, the rest is a lightweight hollow cavity with a fuel pump in it. Even with less than 50% energy converted to propulsion, it's still more powerful, still fills in 1 minute, and still costs far less to purchase, and still is available in far flung places around the earth. There's also zero potential it will burst into flames unless converted to gaseous vapors first.
# of Gas bikes burining in 2017 100s
# of Electric bikes burning in 2017 0
Dont confuse the electric bikes with advanced tech batteries with the cheap lithium ion chinese made ones for scooters, vapes, and phones
# of people inventing statistics in 2017: too many.
lol
I am an oldie. Approaching 60 in a couple of years. I have a 1.5 year old 1,500 watt 84-volt honda zoomer-x like e-MC. Before that I had a 9 month old vespa type e-MC/scooter. Been ebiking for 2.4 years or so. My ebike is simple and not high powered. It's not as fancy or costly as a Zero. Got it for about U$800 used for 3 months only, and got some lithium batts now to total the cost to U$2,000. The batts should last me 5 or more years and not worry like using those lead acid batteries. It expensive on the onset but it will be cheaper in the long run with less headaches and maintenance. The U$2,000 is what I would have paid for a gasoline Honda Zoomer-X plus a little modifications in our country. My maintenance cost per year plus gasoline probably will set me back around U$500-600. With the electric MC, I only pay around U$40 a year. Only mechanical parts usually need servicing or replacing. No change oils, filters, adjustment of timing belts, mo parts to become loose or needs adjustments periodically, no parts to wear off except the tires, brake pads, and maybe the axle bearing. No massive heat build up. U$500-600 may not be much in the USA, but it is a lot in our country. But the biggest shock is the cost of paying the electric company only U$40 or less for powering this for one year (at about 10,000km plus mileage). And yes, we charge at home. With the 25aH and 15ah sets. I can go 110-130km range with these 2. I usually just use around 25-40km per day, sometimes less. And it takes maybe 2 hours to 4 hours to charge with such short usage. I just leave it at night to charge, or just plug it in whenever I want to even for a 1 hour charge. Even if I don't charge it, I can go 3-4 days with this uncharge. But I charge them when the bike is idle just to be able to cover any contingencies. It's not doing anything anyway, so just plug it in!
Electric bikes may not be for many oldies. It is for the next generation. They are more in numbers and they know that power/torque and speed can be had in relative silence or low noise/sound. Maintenance is cheaper too. When we are all gone, few of the next generation will know of combustion engine motorcycle. And cars. And trucks, Practically almost any vehicle on the ground (maybe even in water or even in the air). It's hard to teach old dogs new tricks. That is why I went full steam ahead with this. My body may be old, but my heart is young. Even more, it's just plain common sense and practical. IF ones ego or bias can't be swayed, then the pocket (savings) and ease of maintenance (literally 1-5% effort) is the deciding factor for me.
Thanks for the advice. I'm a newbie to bikes, I hope to get an ebike soon.
I have adilevare in India castam inquled prices
Thank you for your comment. I fully agree with you. All the best!
Zoomer for the boomer
Having ridden this bike at the factory a few years ago, I rode away on my BMW R1200RT more than impressed with the Zero SR. Yes it took a little getting used to, maybe the first few miles with looking for a clutch handle. What is most impressive is the seamless delivery of power when applying 'throttle' via the twist grip. A novice to motorcycles could safely ride this bike which will hopefully provide new riders to the world of motorcycle riding. Once dry cell lithium batteries become viable, legacy electric bikes can then be readily upgraded with a drop-in battery upgrade to solve any range anxiety and early adapters will have enjoyed years of a maintenance free motorcycle by this time. I've replaced my gas powered hedge trimmer, lawn mower, weed whacker, leaf blower, and BMW car with an electric replacement. The motorcycle is next - only a matter of time once the battery density challenges have been solved and that day is fast approaching.
I actually got pulled over by a police officer riding a zero, didn't hear him coming. This got me extremely interested in these bikes.
Which is the same reason that drivers will dart in front of nearly-silent bikes. I understand that everything is going EV (I own a LEAF now), but on a bike I'd be far more worried in a lane-splitting state like CA. People hear me coming and they react (moving out of the way). If I could be on an EV I'd be glad to do that....but man I do worry about people darting in to me because people who pass DMV vision tests like to say 'I didn't see him, officer' when they cut us off. But, as EVs get more popular and driver aids make their way into the mainstream, maybe fewer dumbasses will be 'allowed' to kill us as their Teslas, LEAFs, etc. intervene on their behalf (and ours, as riders).
Things, they are a-changin'. I welcome that change, but I have a feeling that lane-splitting is gonna be scary AF on a 30 mile commute to Hollywood on a nearly silent E-bike.
Electric bikes can't come soon enough for me. Great video.
Great comments. Really appreciate your video. Pricing is OTT. Hopefully more competitive entrants with higher volumes will bring economies of scale and sense able prices? Zero has to work on their styling. Thank you.
Imagine a hybrid. Gas / battery assisted take offffffff. Battery assisted during the time of low RPM until gas motor achieves optimum RPM to produce max HP. The future is battery assisted motors hybridization with gas . I could see it being dangerously fast and evil as hell.
Thats not bad really 2 and half hours for 95% aint bad when you think that he had 140 miles on full charge i believe he said if anything the 2 and half hours is a get you out the shit type of thing where if your not to far away from where you are going but wont make it with whats left in the battery pull up walk away for an hour and youll be good to go. I guess its more of a round town commuter in the fact that you'd just charge it up over night. For built up cites it would be perfect as you'd probably get most of the power back in regen
Hybrids are useless. Worst of both worlds. You cant fit 2 different motors on a bike and expect any performance whatsoever
@Jesse Mitchell I'm in my 40s too and think electric vehicles are clean and energy efficient, and it's a delightful bonus that they're silent. The physical bike itself is just another consumer product like a TV set or microwave oven. The cool part is the thinking behind it, and electric vehicles certainly have a lot going for them--that's why companies are going through with the effort to develop them, despite current battery tech not being quite energy-dense enough for motorbikes yet.
I owned a 2013 Zero FX for awhile, and sold it to buy a Yamaha Super Tenere 1200 (I wanted to tour Mexico by motorbike). I've been missing the Zero FX ever since, and may buy another. It pulled harder than my 1200 does. And that's just the FX; the SR is much stronger and faster. Electric bikes are super fun!!!
Factor in the the low servicing costs (tyres, brake pads and new belt at 40k km)... I'd say it's close to doable.. Stick some PV on the roof and fuel is almost free...
For those people saying the power is generated by coal anyway... ever thought about how much electricity is used to make petrol? Nope didn't think so.
This bike he's reviewing is $16k, you're not going to see a dime in savings before this thing starts to have serious maintenance issues.
I've got 6000 miles on mine and I've loved every mile of my nasty commute especially blowing past the 100,000$ Porsches stuck in traffic. Live free or die!
A Schwinn would do the same.
It is electric, not electronic. Great review btw.
It might be hydromatic!
Hydromatic? It's Greased Lightning! (john travolta reference...)
lol
0:10 Also Most Prius is not an EV. Only a tiny fraction are the Plug In Hybrids. Majority of Prius are entirely dependant on Petrol.
Yes!! Unbelievable how many of the EV reviewers get tongue tied (brain-tied?) over this.
What's funny in this instance is the reviewer corrected himself as his mouth actually started to say electric!
The one time in the video he called it Electric was when he referred to it's intergration with an App. Haha the one time electronic would have been an accurate enough synonym. Please, tho', overall fantastic review.
This reminds me of a time back in the day when my dad said "those Japanese bikes are rubbish, they will never take off" with me on my Suzuki GT250 X7, funny how history repeats itself....nuff said.
I bought a used 2018 Zero SR two months ago. I love it. For the last 30 years, after every ICE car or bike I purchased, I created a maintenance plan. Not with this bike.
I am not missing the five whole systems from an ICE: gas, air, spark, exhaust, and coolant.
This Zero differs from a electric car in that it can be charged via a 110 volt wall outlet. Therefore, most every house (and your friend's house) already have charging capability for your bike.
Same goes with my work - they don't have a 220 Volt car charger, but they do have a 110 volt outlet, and let me charge at work.
I was choosing between a electric car or bike, and I'm glad I started with a bike. I plan to get a car in two years.
You need to change a little, and think out your charging plan every two to three days, but you soon find yourself getting on the bike and loving the silence.
Petrol engines are CO2 pumps. Now that there are 2 billion cars on the road, that is a lot of CO2.
Yes, the bike is pricey, but I want this company to succeed, so that's where I'll put my money.
Dear zero, The specs on the bike are awesome. Now please make them look better. And a full fairing option would be nice too!
great review. these bike are only going to get better and better.
Believe me, in the last five years alone they really have...!
Gasoline powered technology keeps getting better and better. If we only look at electric we'll fail to see the comparative ratio which is roughly the same as it was in the 1930's. Same manufacturing cost ratios, same purchase cost ratios, same time to recharge ratios, same comparative travel range ratios.
Just getting better and better? Another 85 years it could be a little better.
Wow you must be in a different world. Gas engines are limited in efficiency due to massive loss via heat and mechanical transfer.
Electrics are more than double the efficiency and the technology is progressing in leaps and bounds. Batteries and motors are good for well over 300000 miles, a figure few gas motors could even pray for without massive repair. A one hour charge time compares favorably to a overnight trickle charge in the 30s for and old lead acid battery holding 1/40 the power of these.
If gas technology was perfect it would still be 1/2 as efficient as electric.
Your world is a cult-driven world that doesn't care about facts. Batteries are your nemesis and they are garbage compared to liquid fuel.
"Ignore the Power"
Power should never be ignored, because the transmission and the wheels and sprockets multiply torque.
Power is all about quantity.
Torque is about quality.
That being said, EVs are faster with the same amount of power rating because of the minimal amount of rotating mass, clutch, gears and good 'quality' off the line.
An electric motorcycle pulled up to a gas station : Gas attendant " Fill 'er up? Rider: "No, tanks"
Mack Cullete youean No tanks
You've got tanks. Big, heavy, cumbersome, expensive tanks that fill with tons of electrons which weight virtually nothing. And when those tanks are empty, they are still big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive.
But don't worry, over time those tanks lose capacity to fill. So they are still big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive and even less effective the more you use them.
Almost as big ,heavy and cumbersome as a huge inefficient engine. And considering the life of the batteries and motor is well over 300000 miles they will still be going while your big cumbersome motor will be rusting
Even with your efficient motors, you still can't stretch a battery to come anywhere near the power, range, and ease of fillup of a gas engine. Gas engines keep getting better and better. Batteries will need to make a monumental improvement just to keep gas engines in sight on the horizon.
A gas motorcycle pulled up to a charging station. BOOM!
First up, within 5 years we will have Lithium-metal or Lithium-Sulphur batteries with 3x the range, or same range with 1/3 the price
Even when current gas engines convert less than 50% gas energy potential into propulsion, it's still a ridiculously better means of storing fuel energy per weight, than a big, heavy, cumbersome, and expensive hunk of battery (no matter what it's made out of) with terrible energy density, regardless of electric motors being 97% efficient or whatever they are.
Where on a gas bike, the space inside a thin-wall metal tank is 100% used by liquid fuel with high density energy, the space inside the confines of a battery is mostly wasted by performance-sapping material. Whereas a gas bike can fill and empty that entire space quickly, not so with a battery bike.
Open the battery lid, stick the electric nozzle in, and fill it up with electrons in 1 minute? Not really.
All this stupid nonsense about reducing carbon footprints? Just about everything in the universe is packed with carbon, even other planets.
@Rebecca Whitson "One might really begin to wonder if perhaps there is a deliberate corporate initiated (and/or government supported) effort to limit such tech from making it to the market...."
I've looked into the technological discoveries of former Stanley Meyer, a Christian inventor who developed a hydrogen generator which converted everyday tap water into hydrogen gas at the volumes necessary to feed a standard ICE. Today all hydrogen tech focuses on converting H2O to electrical energy, storing it and using it from batteries in a standard e-power vehicle, which I think is needlessly complicated and bulky.
You're right about inventions and discoveries (mostly by brilliant unaccredited garage tinkerers) being forcefully canned and destroyed, prevented from ever being implemented in the mainstream. COULD be that such is going on in the battery/storage realm of research, I'm not sure. I do know that electric vehicles were considered along side Henry Ford's ICE powered vehicle as early as the proposal for the Model T. It's nothing new.
I've also researched the role the common energy power plants play in generating global weather. You'll never ever see a common power plant of any remarkable size shut down because of it.
a Prius isn't really an electronic car..
Its gasoline -hybrid electric. The Prius Prime or Plug-in can charge with electricity and drive around (in many cases) without burning gasoline at all. Its not a BEV, but its a PHEV or a HEV.
It's electric motor is electric, the battery management system (BMS) and motor controller is electronic. The ICE's control system is electronic along with many other systems such as brakes and transmission. Lots of electronics in vehicles today, but the primary movers (motors/generators) are electric. Hope this helps.
I think it looks bloody cool. Styling is amzing, simplistic.
I've had a go in a Tesla S and Chinese electric scooters. I just like big acceleration or two wheels - the powerplant is secondary. I wouldn't buy one of these in 2017 but the next generation ones could be awesome. Also, it's guys like the old guys in the video that mean we don't yet have hoverbikes, they fear anything new and stifle progress!
Good and honest review.
Whether we like it or not, electric bikes are here to stay, .
A bit more styling and some time to accept electric vehicles, Ill prolly own one.
Also, you got another subscriber.
Cheers from Sweden
Christian Andersson agreed. I think these look like cheap shit. I wish they looked better... and were 1/3 the cost
With all due respect California does not have pots and pots of cash that state is almost broke
I think he meant cash in start of companies? I dunno
$21,178,203,000,000 US national debt (at the time of my post) might be a better number to look at.
Just because a STATE GOVERNMENT has a rather hefty debt (and continues to run a deficit), this does NOT necessarily mean that the state is not absolutely flush with cash/tech/investment... think bigger picture. Debt and deficit aside, California is very rich in cash/tech/investment. THAT being said, it's a bloody shame the Liberals are f'ing up the place.
Those libs and all those other coastal lib states are generating the funds to carry all those conservative central states. It's not like California gained it's 6th largest economy in the world status with neoconservative idealism. California has always been the liberal Petrie dish state and it happens here first. How can the libs be ruining it when we've always been the most liberal state in the republic? Check the Whitehouse to see what's really going to ruin things. It sure as shit isn't electric vehicles and protecting the environment.
Clean up all the breathing air, but fill the same air with the latest electric EMF/EMR pollution and get cancer anyway.
im getting one of these for my next bike...i use my bike mainly for around town small errands so the thought of never going to a gas station and just leaving my bike plugged in(i do now anyway) so it wouldnt cost me a dime more than it does now. im constantly charging my battery at 2 to 10 amps
If you get one you will find yourself actually riding for the sheer joy. They are that much fun
For having come from a petrol head this was a very fair review. Thanks for taking the time, and I particularly enjoyed that little witchcraft comment
I've seen a lot of reviews on this bike. This is hands down the best one. Thanks.
Thanks Mike
mike clancy missenden flyer did a better review
when I first found out about these bikes I didn't even know something like this existed this was obviously before the craze for electric vehicles was as big as today. At the time I wasn't in to electric cars at all I thought they we're boring and had no character and I still think that but when I saw these bikes they instantly grabbed my attention they weren't obnoxious like most electric vehicles are they weren't painted in some insane color and above all they didn't bombard you with anything that said "eco friendly" or "zero emissions" closest thing to that was the brand name they had a simple design that looks great although slightly plain is pretty unique. At last I have found a electric vehicle with actual character and even though it is pretty expensive your still not dropping 100,000$ on a tesla p100D for the same or even more fun. So all I have to say now is this is one of the very best bikes I have ever seen and I'm thankful I found out about Zero Motorcycles.
Take a test ride and then you will really understand the appeal! lol
'Which is basically witchcraft' Lmao
Funny comment but not true. The reviewer doesn't know how range estimation works. They use your current consumption to estimate range. So, my stupidly thirsty V8 can 'regenerate' double the range if I stop getting into it around the city and start cruising on the highways.
I'm surprised a journalist has confused regeneration with current-average range estimation software. That's what go me LMAO.
Justin Buckland I noticed that as well. Most people are starting to catch onto EV's 'smart' range calculators. Just a couple years ago established journalists with sections of magazines to themselves were reacting to EV range performance just like this but now many have caught on. Not everyone though, clearly. On the electric motorcycle front I will say that there haven't been too many popular models yet so hopefully with more to come, people will appreciate the range calculators more all encompassing approach to yielding results and have some mechanical sympathy? No..Electrical sympathy after considering all factors in regards to the range they're getting. One must realize that flogging a petrol engine is going to decrease fuel economy yes but it won't have the same detrimental effect as doing just that to an electric motor where cooling advances haven't been made to the level they have with internal combustion thus creating this choice EV motorists have: Go fast? Or Go far?
Dan Murphy You're bang on with the range estimation but they do regenerate off throttle - regen braking.
In urban driving my Nissan Leaf will get 25% of its range from the regen braking.
I enjoyed the review but not being a biker (have license but never had the pleasure of owning one!) noticed he was coming at it differently than I expected.
What I've noticed with the Leaf is that it isn't a car in the petrol/diesel sense. You have to relearn a few habits to get the best out of it, but once you do you're pretty much evangelical. I'd be interested to see the results of a long term test to see if the same is true of bike/biker.
The charge time sounded disappointing - worse than a Leaf from a 3 pin socket. Have read somewhere though that the Zero batteries have an amazing lifespan so that could be why!
EV range is simple. City driving is the longest, Cut it in half for highway. Wind resistance is the killer. Zero is actually pretty spot on for their estimates. The trouble with an electric is it is so hard not to crank that torque at every stop lol
Yeah range estimation by a computer is something that most don’t understand whether ICE or electric. Same people think eco mode will magically produce more miles of range vs sport. The battery capacity will give what you ask and nothing more.
Two things, the range increasing from riding is just because the last known riding style calculated that it had 130odd miles left, and you rode in less aggressively than it’s estimations. You cannot gain energy whilst using it like that, unless you started at the top of a rather large hill and finished at the bottom without going back up, and also related to this I’d imagine that the 74 miles was also calculated from your aggressive riding, and I’m sure it would increase if you drove it carefully so you had possibly 80-100 miles lect
Where are the god damn fairings? Zero themselves said that it would increase range from 20-30%. Why would they not add them?
Alex Johnson Because these days the trend is everybody *removing* the fairings from their bikes. Not to mention all the other stupid things they are doing to their bikes. Ugly is in, I guess. But you can at least get a decent windshield for a Zero.
For my daily highway commute this thing isn't an option without fairings. Hope they bring out an adventure or Touring model soon! (driving a 1200gs adventure now)
They have a moto version and a dual sport version. Check out the UA-cam of the Zero in a dirt bike race.
Zero are aiming at the wrong market, sports bike riders like noise and ripping up and down the gears. Commuter riders and touring bike riders don't tend to fit loud exhausts and are used to bikes that weigh more than sports bikes. My Nissan Leaf can charge up on a rapid charger in a fraction of the time this bike takes. Until they bring out a touring version with the ability to use rapid chargers, I won't be visiting a Zero showroom.
Alex Johnson Since every one of your assertions is wrong, I'm not going to bother debunking them point by point.
I will, however, point out that you've contradicted yourself and basically said that Zero's target customer is exactly who they are going to get. In other words, they're doing it exactly right.
Also, since you obviously aren't on the market for an electric bike of any kind, your opinion is irrelevant.
If you haven't personally ridden one - with an open mind - you don't have a right to an opinion. In fact, no one ever has a right to a biased and uninformed opinion.
Lol... we have to be so careful when we speak in public. One little mistake becomes a long run of discredit. But let’s be real. He is not a politician. Just hopefully a good biker.
Loved the smokey burnout
I like the 'not sold on it but what is good is really good' tone of the review.
You must be insane spending 20.000 GBP for that thing....no f@cking way. Drop it down by 7000 and maybe then will consider it...
You can always purchase one used. 2014 models are going for $6-7000
had my zero s since 2015. love it. just need a level 2 charger with a quick charge pack. not great for apartment living though unless you have easy safe access to a plug. i definitely need a garage after going 6 months without.
Jeff Shoemaker depending on the apartment. Some will let you bring it inside (like a bicycle) because there's no oil or gas. My garden apartment has it's own entrance and I keep it inside.
I fly all electric RC airplanes and helicopters. They are more powerful and faster than gas engine planes. I don't know how I'd feel about an electric motorcycle but I know I prefer electric RC planes by a Hugh margin!!!
Lithium-ion is a fire of 21st century
I ride a V4 with a loud pipe, it lets others know where I am - I've had a number of road bikes and have to say that the quiet one's placed me at more risk of injury. I believe sound needs to be engineered into these motorcycles, particularly off road as we need to hear what's coming.
how Much!?
I'll be interested once they're mainstream enough to have a sensible price tag. However, if the future is electric then I'd rather ride an electric bike than no bike
VeeFour unfortunately the price is pretty high but if you're in to fast bikes the ls218 is the fastest bike in the world and it's electric it's even more expensive than the zero but it cost about the same as top of the line sport bikes and again it's the fastest bike in the world
I see people complaining about the price. The thing is, the amount of money you'll save every year and every year you have your bike is phenominal. Every year, gas fees for a bike may be around... let's say, with regular fillups, around 250$ USD, depending on how often you ride, how agressively you ride, how much you fill up on, gas station prices, etc. Also, ICE bikes need regular checkups, and if some moving mechanical part breaks, a trip to the garage may be another 500/600$ USD. Again, that's an esitmate, depending on your garage of choice, what part needs tuning, etc. All in all, 750-850$USD a year for ICE bikes, not to mention maintennance for bike chains/belts. Add that up however many years you have your bike, plus maybe an extra 100 dollars after every year because, let's face it, every bike ages. In the long run, 15k on an ebike can save you a lot of headaches and pain for a longer time.
At $10 a gallon , I can't see why anyone would not see the point...
Gas is @ $2.45 a gallon. It takes 5 minutes to refuel and be on your way.
What's your point?
It's $1.80 a gallon where I live now
LOL
@@stans5270 Pretty sure he's talking about UK/EU gas prices where it's equal to around $7/gal USD
@@EnforcedCrowd *now ;) CA gas is reasonable now, but I don't think it'll remain reasonable for long. It hit nearly $5 a gallon for a while there.
A couple of quick points. you normally rapid charge a battery to 80%, that can be very quick, over 80% the charge starts struggling to get into the battery, that is why they slow down and take all night to get to 100%. The second thing I want to mention is something that happened to me last year. I was at a car show in the EV area selling my book when I started chatting to a guy from the Australian Morris Minor club. I asked him what he thought of the idea of converting a Morris Minor to electric. His response really surprised me. he thought it was a brilliant idea, in fact they were already converting one. basically they love the car but hate the engine. It is heavy and under powered. Great review
Two things gave me an electric shock ... Torque figure and it's PRICE !
how much was the price
Yes!!! California is the best state in America!!! I represent Los Angeles!!!
I thought it was spelled Kalifornia 😁
It's the same story as electric cars - until technology is such that these cars and bikes are about half the price they are now, they are still out of reach for your average Joe
quigonjay9 It's the same or less than a lot of other bikes. This is their top of the range. Top of the range BMW is close to twice this price. Top of the range Ducati is over twice. Top Honda is more than 5 times as much as this bike.
quigonjay9 really! This bike is about 18k. The most expensive Honda bike fully loaded is about $30k. Not sure where you are getting your numbers from.
quigonjay9 this company can go two ways in the future they can be the pioneers of affordable electric motorcycles or pull something like Ducati and create a new type of motorcycles and as technology for this particular type of stuff gets better they will dich the affordable thing and have 20k 15k bikes
I just realized the base price for that bike is already 15k. sorry about that.
Brett Vogel I just looked up the price of the most expensive Honda road bike. It's 137000 pounds. About 8 times more than a Zero with every option ticked.
Oh the Chinese 125. You will always be with us
Hi John, another excellent review, I saw one of these at the NEC and balked at the price, as with all this technology its priced beyond the common man, at half the price you'd think twice. Do the maths: spend half as much on a very respectable motorcycle and (for the average rider), how many miles could you travel on £8k's worth of fuel! I respect the technology but...
Mark Lincoln People buy the six cylinder BMW 1600GTL because it's smooth, but they're like a farm implement compared to a Zero, but a Zero is much cheaper.
A Zero is not that advanced of a motorcycle especially compared to a K1600.
Mark Lincoln If you actually did the maths, you would find that it won't take long for your "cheaper" ICE bike to get more expensive than the electric, and those costs will only go up as the bike ages and parts wear out. With electric you pay up front, but running and maintenance costs are very low, and can be very close to zero if you have your own solar or wind power. ICE vehicles are like computer printers: it's not the printer that is the major cost, it's consumables (ink or toner and paper). So do yourself a favor and do *realistic* maths, not deliberately unrealistic ones.
Derek Jonez Try riding them both. Really, I'm not kidding, the BMW is a farm implement in comparison. You haven't experienced seamless torque until you've ridden one. Reviewers talk about bikes feeling "electric", but there's nothing in the petrol world that compares.
How many bikes do you need to buy or rebuild to go 300000 miles?
Great video, what electric motorbike would make a good learner bike?
This is a cool bike. The only problem is for that price, I can buy a 1000cc supersport which is much cooler.
Its much cooler Yes, but do take the cost of petrol/gas price and the periodic maintenance that a IC engine bike requires into account. Also do a small calculation of price of electricity and look for a term of around 5 Years of your commute you will get your answer.
The total cost of 5 years may differ a lot, but if you divide it into per month, it probably is not a number you would care a lot :). But of course, it is distance dependent. In my case, I drive around 150 miles per month. Moreover, I think people who spend so much money into adult toys would not care about that amount of cost, but care more about how cool the toys are. The performance for this one is enough to have fun, but for the same price, it would be great if they could make this into a much better looking bike. For now it looks like a $5000 bike.
Yes i agree, this is an overpriced bike, and the design doesn't do justice to the price charged.
I think new technology always costs more. As the technology standardizes and numbers sold ramps up, I think prices will drop. Remember, Tesla is supposed to come out with a $35K sedan soon.
Dabendra Singh Model s has 100k worth performance, the technology it has worth way more than some super cars. Model 3 also has 35k worth of performance and way more technology than other 35k cars in the market. And they both look amazing. But this bike I just don't feel it worth 15k in anyway.
What a great video - Full of info & very interesting to watch!
We have an electric push bike (shown in thumbnail) but only get around 80 miles of range.
Thank you very much.
Petrol bikes and cars are dinosaurs... good riddance...
You can't take these bikes on any type of long trips and you can forget about camping. I don't know about other motorcyclists but I love the sound and rumble of my exhaust.
Talk to me when they have a 400 mile range. Til then it's useless to me.
blipco5 normal bikes don't have 400 miles range. My 750 gets 100-150 miles on a 3 gallon tank depending on how I ride it.
Lilsammy.....That's true but it only takes five minutes to refuel a gas engine MC. It takes hours to charge an electric motorcycle.
blipco5 takes less then an hour for a 75% charge with the proper charger. Something like 92% of Americans drive less then a 100 miles round trip. It easily work work fine for anything except a crossed country drive. With a wall outlet, 95% in 4 hours.
With lithium technology, the last 20% of the charge has to be done slowly to prevent an overvotage situation. The rest comes really quickly. As the power grid become more common, there will be less gas powered cars around.
Why does everyone at the bar at what their current bike does. Never slightly below the bar. Always the exact same. Nobody is willing to compromise.
Will Davis don’t worry, very soon they’ll have no choice.
Great review, although I wonder if the front break lever can be switched over to the left-hand side ,where the clutch usually is?
Reason I ask is being a Leftie (Left-Handed predominantly, even though am ambidextrous) it would seem more convenient.
I'm sure any reservoir based clutch lever would work, you'd just have to sort the switch for the light. Personally I think it'd be a terrible idea if you're used to riding a normal bike. Your muscle memory would be trying to brake on the right side in a panic stop and you'll have no lever where it should be. Also the accidental braking when your clutch instinct kicks in.
Atreyas plenty of people have modified their zeros to have left hand brake.
So the future is for rich people only 😐
Nah, it's the same as any new technology. The early adopters pay for the development costs and if the technology works, economies of scale come into play and everyone gets cheaper products as a result. I remember when an entry level desktop computer that sounded like a jet taking off was £2k - and you can now pick up a basic Windows 10 laptop for £200.
You don't understand how the world works do you... The rich subsidize new tech until it can be sold in an affordable form. Mercedes Benz and Audi a great example of the trickle down effect. The top end vehicles will cost you an arm and a leg but over time the tech in those vehicles will make it's way down to the cheapest cars that they sell.
the price will drop like hell, it is because the battery, germany are doing their gigafactory to, so very soon will be ok.
Ali Bashir yep, u c now? always has been, why any different nw? I'm gonna burn gas n my cycle tell I cant, then think about selling something, getting another job and then loan to get an SR, not!!
People said the same thing about the big screen led tv when they first came out and look at the price now. You can get a 55 inch smart 4k these days for $500. They were close to $3000 not long ago. The smart phone I use cost just over $100. 5 years ago a phone with maybe 20% of the features was in the $600 range.
The high purchase price is offset by the lack of expensive maintenance and low costs to fill up. Brakes last ages and it's much smoother than any ice bike. Budah of Birmingham
Living in the Netherlands in a city I absolutely hate loud bikes standing across the street at a stoplight taking of and making a hell of a noise doing it. I always go up with my hand a point my pinky at them stating they are compensating for a small Pe...s
Please do other humans a favor and just buy silent bikes wear headphones and blast your old bike sounds in your head without bothering the rest of the world with your sound pollution
Living in a city my ears thank you. I'm not a bike rider but these e-bikes are really appealing to me. They should have a special e-bike license no need to learn all that manual gear shifting I will never drive a regular bike anyway btw 41yr old
TuxKey THE reason for me to not repair my rusted through exhaust is the louder you are the better the chance of getting noticed by the blind drivers all around. Especially since the holes are in the FRONT part of the muffler. I am afraid that with an electric bike that really is a huge problem.
i have to admit after seeing a couple of episodes of moto madness on how stupid car drivers can be i somewhat understand the need to be loud. it's got me scared to even get a bike licence.
Why does everyone instantly think of compensating for something if you just do what you love. couldnt ride or drive an electric vehicle. its boring, nothing to work on, so few moving parts. its like a toy
I got to ride one of these and I was deeply impressed. It felt almost as quick as my B-King and the silence was cool.
No shifting, no character, no good sounds and charge times. Electric bikes rub me the wrong way.
Yeah 20 mins of fun and an 8 hour charge time is.
Yake N Bake They need to do something. People get aftermarket pipes so they can be heard. I'm just worried more riders will be hit by cagers who don't hear them.
Yake N Bake so your point is that even the loudest pipes don't make drivers notice you?
Well for you maybe, I love the fact that this thing is quiet. And it does make some noise, it's just not obnoxiously loud. Think about it, you can romp around at night being a hooligan and bother pretty much no one.
"Zero" is an oddly fitting name for it.
Nice to get a British perspective on the Zero. FYI, there is no battery regen from the brakes, just rolling off the throttle.
You can program it to regen off the brake lever as well. That's how my Zero SR is set up. 0% throttle regen, 100% brakes regen.
Fair point. I sit corrected. But the distinction that I want to make is that when you apply the front brake, the regen is not happening at the front wheel but rather via the motor - it's akin to dragging the rear brake. This is not a big deal in most situations but it does subtly affect weight shift under braking. In sport riding it is good to get the weight shifted smoothly to the front contact patch to increase stopping power. In racing, it's not uncommon to see the rear wheel completely off the ground under hard braking. There's no regen happening then ;)
Agreed on that point, though I actually make use of this feature.
I have my front brake lever setup so that it engages regen before the front calipers engage. That way a tiny amount of pressure on my front lever engages the regen on the rear wheel without any braking force on the front wheel, then as I apply more pressure my actual brakes on the front wheel engage.
It takes a bit of tinkering to get set up nicely, but it makes for some really smooth progressive dual braking. :)
The future is amazing! Great video.
Another question I have actually two.First question is are they quiet.Second question is can it gear down.
Yes very quiet. You hear the birdies when you ride. You can adjust the options on your phone app for engine braking
Pure motorcycle enjoyment is the wind, the freedom, simplicity, the open road. The Zero just doesn't look that nimble and cool as a cafe. Dont mind classic design with silent motor. But congratulations to them for doing this fr! Someone has to be the first.
I think they filmed some of this in San Jose and Scott's Valley.
Petrol will run out when crops will no longer grow. I think we are going to have combustion engines for the foreseeable future. But, I would still like to own this bike.
But what you think and what scientists and oil companies know to be reality are different things. What qualifies you to be a reliable source of information on how long oil will last until it runs out? You think it won't run out until crops stop growing. I want some evidence or research to back that crazy arbitrary claim up!
Brilliant video and very informative. I'm old school with my bikes, but I can see the virtues and future of electric bikes and cars. I would def have the bike .
Best review of an EV m/c yet. As per usual John.
I have a 2017 ZERO DS. Just recently took a test ride on a 2018 ZERO SR ZF14.4 ... thing is a BEAST in Sport mode. I weigh only 160lbs so add that to the bikes 400lb curb weight and that 116ft/lb of torque really got my attention. Feels much punchier than my year older DS.
would be nice to have plug and play holes to find peg positions any where u like. ankle below the knee
Coming soon, a solar charger windscreen option?
The standard Zero SR is lighter than some 600 cc sport bikes wet weight. Manufactures often give dry weights. Go ride it. It does not feel heavy.
then the spin of the front leg charges the battery by some margin, but its not there yet
wonder what the fuel\charging cost would come to over a year versus petrol for the same miles?
They're great bikes! I only a have a cheap Daymak Em1 (pretty much an electric Honda Grom) and its fun as hell! evenyone looks twice haha The thing thats killing Zero and most other makers is their prices 😔 Daymak are affordable, Zero are not.
what about people not noticing the bike because the lack of sound. Will accidents increase??
When the range is better and the prices come down I'd be interested,, I'm in me 50s been riding since I was 12 had a lot from the bottom to the top in power and cc ,,, would like to try one ,, great review Shane uk
I did with my Harley about 120.000 km or about 75000 miles in 5 years. A lot of money for maintenance after all… But a lot of fun. How about this machine?? Before I change into this adventure I want to know it is a good choice. Can it handle this range of running hours? What about the cost of a broken battery ? Is there any driver with this kind of experiences. I want to know !!!
I test rode a DS and an SR a few months ago. I quickly decided I will own a DSR by the end of this year.
Nobody ever says anything about how to down shift especially entering a turn a little hot. Is the regen from just the breaks or throttle too? It has to be.
The regenerative braking did NOT increase the battery power. It is the electronic distance calculator that changed your range based on the fact you were in ECO mode at the start. So whoever had your bike before you was going full sport/high drain for most of his/her ride and brought the distance down on the calculation. I have this in my I-miev Mitsubishi if I drive for awhile in eco/hyper mileage speed it can show up to 80 mile available (60 miles is official range).
Also you might want to point out on the Zero motorcycle that the battery pack is rated for 300,000 miles. You have no oil changes, no gas station cost. It will be full every morning is you remember to plug it in at night. Just get on a go, that is one less worry in the morning unlike regular bikes where there may be battery issues or starter issues...or lots of other potential issues to make you late to work or whatever. So $18k for regular bike is a lot, but I think that you have to look at electric in a different way.
I would like to add this article for your consideration on cost.
gas2.org/2015/08/07/electric-motorcycle-costs-performance-vs-gas-motorcycle-costs-performance/
If depreciation is taken out of equation (because of speed of electric evolution electric vehicles depreciate faster) electric bike will save you money, some times a lot, in less then 10yrs because cost of ownership is so low. The article was comparing the Zero, which is expensive.
How about the new Tork motorcycle from India? Only 3.4Kw battery, weak motor and just 100km/h cruise speed for 100km, but it costs about $2000 (yes $2k). If you need a commuter bike to work there would be nothing cheaper. It is the equivalent of 400+ miles per gallon U.S. price.
Now I have no idea of quality of the Indian bike, all I'm suggesting is electric bikes with smaller motors going like the Zero in eco mode all the time are coming and will be a lot cheaper. Making the electric bike I think the best option for commuters in those locations where weather isn't to cold.
As for distance issue, I personally have a electric 2012 vehicle that only goes about 60 miles. For 95% of trips it is perfect, I only use a old gas car maybe once or twice a month. I think people hopping into their super bikes and cars have this feeling of "I can go ANYWHERE and get there faster then anyone!" and proceed to nearest grocery store for milk or the nearest highway and pick their place in the traffic jam. Reality is, if we can change the way we think and how we travel, electric will be better for all of us.
it didn't had chain and sprockets
it does have a camshafts to run to deliver power ? am i right??
Good review. I have recently become a big fan of EVs, and test-driving the Tesla Model 3 is what did it. That makes me really think about electric motorcycles, but I really am deflated by the pedestrian looks of this large Grom...I mean....Zero SR. I find it very boring. If they made a futuristic-looking SPORTbike, I'd be very interested (and I have to be able to get it in Spacep0d white). I'm also keen to try one of these.
I'm installing a Level 2 charger for a 2018 LEAF so if I could use the same charger for a Zero SR, well that's a bonus.
I gotta say, I'm not a fan of filling up at gas stations on a bike. I'd much prefer to fill up (with electricity) whilst doing something else, via a Level 2 charger. So, there's time and annoyance saving there too (not to mention cost). It's also interesting to note that there are a lot of fuel trucks transporting our fuel. No need to do that with electricity. More carbon reduction, but less truck traffic on the roads too.
Really, I need a sportbike though, even if it's EV. I'm not a fan of pedestrian-looking naked bikes. :D
what happens when its raining and is it suitable for muddy roads
Very informative, humorous, and helpful review. I'm keenly interested in electric bikes, but just no there yet... Have multiple gas bikes, Honda, KTM, Yamaha, Suzuki, Ducati, and still love riding gas...
I'd love to have your take on the SR/F. Seems much more refined from a distance.
Do I have the option of buying only the battery pack ?
Sounds mind boggling that Zero has implemented 14-15 kW battery pack with such low space constraints.
I don't ride but UA-cam recommended your vid as I watch a lot of "Fully Charged" and other EV videos. Firstly, the filming, editing and production was 1st class. Your critique screamed experience and it was a thoroughly enjoyable watch. Have to ask though as a non-rider where you mentioned that on your petrol bikes when you were cutting up the lanes, dog walkers, hikers etc jumped into the hedges but didn't on the Zero I assume that was a safety disadvantage? Was the Zero that quiet to other road users? Also if you get a chance to do another review of a different model please go into the phone app in more detail. That looked really cool being able to tailor the tune from an app. Anyway, great watch! Subscribed!
Edit: Have been "Google-fu"ing Zero and your channel. Didn't mean to sound condescending above, as judging by your view count you are a tier1 channel. Apparently Zero do an "S" that's CBT compliant (which is restricted by the app for EU regs, due to continuous torque output). If you're friendly with the dealer, I'd love your opinion as an alt to a regular 125 to someone considering a switch to 2 wheels for the commute/starting out.
Where does the battery go when it is has exceeded its life cycle?
There's a difference between electronic and electric. I'm concerned about those brakes. How can that puny front brake stop a 200-kilo bike properly? Thanks for the review!
If I could lease one on the cheap and not have to worry about extra battery packs and hacks to give it decent range I'd be tempted, for commuting and local runs, but until its got a solid reliable 150 mile range and a decent quick charge option it's nothing more than an expensive commuter toy for rich IT kids. I wish they'd all hurry up and buy some so the prices can come down.. I'll stick with my brilliant old Fazer600 in the meantime, 230 mile range and enough fizz to stick with modern traffic.
How annoying. Just spent a load sorting my FZS out so its lovely again, and ironically also got a Tracer900 coming in two weeks to work alongside it. Good motors those triples :)
Barry Thompson Mine charges in 80 minutes, and for a few bucks more I could cut that to 60. It doesn't take 8 hours to top up the last bit, that's complete twaddle. The last 5% takes about 15 minutes.
Overnight charging isn't really my concern anyway, I have an integral garage with power/light which I would hook up to, I'm just wondering how long I'd have to sit at a service station charging point before I'd have *enough* juice to get home etc. An hour is bearable but still 4x times longer than a fuel stop/stretch my legs with a ICE bike. The bigger issue is the purchase costs tbh, as much as I'd love an SR for commuting/local trips (so range isn't the issue) I just don't have the £16k to splurge on it. An affordable lease however would be very tempting.. I can get a Nissan Leaf for (low dep) £100/month PCP in the UK for instance, so if Zero could offer me a similar deal I'd have one in a heart beat.
How you finding the bike otherwise?
Barry Thompson It's the best bike I've ever ridden. It doesn't excel at everything. I have a semi regular 800 km round trip to have dinner with my daughter. I can and have ridden 400 km to her place, hang out for four hours, and 400 home, but it's not ideal for that run. Then again nether is my KTM200EXC. Every bike is better at some things and worse at others.
Some of the things it does far far better than any other bike. I really like that it's full every time I get on. I like the lack of noise, the hop on and ride with no warm up, the near complete lack of regular maintenance. I like that it doesn't burn holes in my saddle bags, or burn holes in me.
I wish it had a fairing, and I'd quite like the latest one that has 60% more range. I wouldn't mind traction control. I've turned the power down because it was always breaking traction and unlike a petrol bike that spins up a bit, this just goes ape, like you see in the burn out he does where the revs just skyrocket.
There's a lot more to like, but that will probably do.
The future is here and it's looking amazing!
I'll never stop loving internal combustion engines but electric is also pretty exciting.
Excellent attitude! They dont ask you to give up your ICE bike, but rather experience this
How can you compare a production ~$12k electronic motorcycle to a custom hand build carbon fiber electric motorbike?
Very good point that it does not look as good as it could be. They are not trying to be different enough in looks when they could and should. It would be nice to rock up somewhere and be noticed that the bike is very different.
I think they are trying to make a bike that appeals to people who already ride and not make it too weird looking. Trying to just appeal to people who already "get" electric vehicles is just too small a market.
Very well sorted and well spoken review my friend. You offered many angles and outlooks and covered the bases. One of the better bike reviews in general to be honest. Thank you sir I enjoyed that. I myself shuttered at the idea of my beloved internal combustion engines dying out (still do actually) but I am getting more and more excited about trying out an EV bike. Cheers
Cheers Kevin
I like the look of the main bodyfrom the side but from a front view, something about the headlight makes it look like an old bike. I like the fxs more.
Can the bike be moved when turned off? Does it have neutral?
How much cost this things
Love to see this in India ,it s gona be great success.
virtually maintenance free nirvana electric bikes, a couple questions before pulling the trigger you should ask yourself
1 what is the battery life?
2 what is the battery replacement cost?
Battery good for 300000 miles. By that time you will have saved enough to get a brand spanking new one with 800 miles range and a 30 minute charge time