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Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ / Another white SR

« on: September 27, 2014, 05:10:22 AM »

Hi,
I thought I should share my experiences from replacing the Zero SR fairings and wrapping them in Vinyl.

Let me start out by answering two common questions:

1. Why wrap them? Couldn't you just order white panels from Zero?
Yes and no. I considered getting a set of White OEM panels but two things made me go a different route.
Firstly, Zero's panels are made from a VERY soft material and has no additional layer of protection. They are therefore very prone to scratching.
Secondly, the white panels from Zero has a "DS" stamped into them. Not a big deal to most people but it bothered me.

2. Why change color at all?
Because I could and also because I like the combination of white and black better than red and black.

So, once I made up my mind I got a set of new (black) Zero S panels.
The Zero S and Zero SR are very similar but one important difference is the size of the motor controller. The Zero S panels (and DS I assume) will not fit without some modifications.
As I took the original SR panels off I discovered that Zero had discovered the same thing themselves

There are in fact no SR panels. Only S panels cut to fit the bigger controller. The SR has an additional soft plastic piece that hides the roughly cut (Dremmel to the rescue) modification!

I was told that wrapping the panels (especially the tank) is a tricky job so I outsourced that part of the project.
Once the panels came back I started taking the old panels off. The screws are a mix of metric and imperial, mostly imperial. Some were really tight so I accidentally messed up a pair of them by using cheap tools.
Another mistake I made was cutting a couple of the power connections to the rear lights. Only to later discover they all had nice little connectors that fit snuggly through the holes in the parts.

When I had got all the panels in place I realized I had two big bolts left.
Turns out there's another difference between the S and SR fairings. The SR has two additional bolt holes to secure the passenger seat section to the frame.
I needed to drill two 10mm (big) holes through the aluminum sides of the rear S section to make it identical to the existing SR part.

Anyway, once that was done it was just a matter of re-attaching the cables to the rear lights, re-attach the seat and put the Zero SR stickers on.

I've now had the wrap on for a couple of weeks and I'm still very happy with the result. The off white surface requires more cleaning but I've yet to see a single scratch.

Buy Sell Trade / ã€ŠSoldã€‹For sale Zero DS wind shield (Dual Sport Screen)

« on: May 05, 2014, 02:22:41 AM »

Hi,
I bought the DS sports screen for my SR but decided I liked the naked look better.
I believe it fits all 2013-2014 Zero models since it's using the handlebar bolts for attachment.

I paid $189+tax+shipping+whateverfakefeethedealeradded for it.

It's yours for $120 (including shipping to Contiguous United States)

//Arvid

Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ / Fender eliminator

« on: March 17, 2014, 08:49:45 AM »

Hi,
Has anyone tried any of the fender eliminators out there?
I'd love to see pictures of the result!

Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ / Review: Brammo Empulse R versus Zero SR

« on: February 03, 2014, 06:41:07 AM »

A friend of mine has a Brammo Empulse R motorcycle that we have been talking about comparing to the Zero SR.
Today was a sunny day and we both had some time over before the Super bowl game started so we decided that we would go for a ride.

We started off looking at the general design and comfort of each bike. The Brammo has a really nice seat that is more narrow at the front, compared to the seat on the Zero. The benefit of that is that it's easier to reach the ground firmly for short riders. But the downside is that it can be somewhat uncomfortable for male riders on long trips. Worth noticing is also that there's less margin for the rider to slide back and forth on the Brammo versus the Zero.

Since we were both relatively familiar with our own bikes we started out switching bikes.
We're both experienced riders and decided that we'd both start with the bikes in sport mode since that's how we would normally ride them.

My initial impression of rolling away on the Brammo on a parking lot is that it's a lot more masculine. I know, it's a weird way to describe it

The chain and the transmission slack in first gear made the start a bit less smooth than I was used to from the Zero, with its direct belt drive. Once I remembered that the Brammo has a clutch it made things much smoother. I also realized that starting in first gear, as I'm used to from gas bikes wasn't necessary with the Empulse R. In fact, for normal street use it's much more comfortable to start from 2nd gear.
I know from reading about the Brammo bikes that they have a unique gear position that I was somewhat worried about. The layout is as follows 1st, 2nd, neutral, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th gear. I think my worries were around finding neutral when stopping at a read light and accidentally putting the bike in neutral when up shifting.
It turns out that none of the above actually happens in real life. Finding neutral at a red light isn't needed since the electric motor comes to a stand still when stopped and accidentally getting into neutral just never happened.

Once we were riding down surface city streets I realized that the Brammo is lowder than the Zero. I think some of it is due to the chain drive. But even the sound of the engine was louder I think. Some of it could have been due to the speaker system that Brammo has installed inside the "tank". It makes a very futuristic sound when you turn the bike on and I think it's actively generatic sounds while riding.

While navigating city traffic, turning at intersections and breaking behind cars I realized that the Brammo handles really well. It starts to turn without having to be wrestled down and the suspension and braking were both top notch. Driving over pot holes and crossing railway tracks was a joy (well maybe not "joy" but I'm sure you get what I mean) and the stopping power was always there and felt well dimensioned for a day a the track. It almost felt like an overkill after riding the Zero SR* for a while. Especially when comparing the rear brakes.
*Foot note: Don't get me wrong. The brakes on the Zero SR are fine for daily driving but I'd keep an eye on them after an hour on a track.

We were now getting pretty comfortable with the bikes and decided that it was time for a drag race. We switched back to our own bikes and found a good long straight away with no traffic, no intersections and a good safe view to both sides.
We did several tries. From a rolling start, from a stand still and in different modes.
The most interesting result was from a stand still. With both bikes in sport mode. Turns out that even though the Zero SR should have a lot more torque, the Brammo still has gearing on its side when starting from a stand still. Another factor is that Brammo is far less limiting in the software when in sport mode.
Anyway, what happened was this:
Starting from 0mph, we counted down from 3 we leaned forward and hit the throttles hard. Both bikes accelerated hard but were still in parallel up to around 20-30mph (about a second or so into the race). After that the Zero SR came alive and just flew away from the Brammo Empulse R.
The results when accelerating from a rolling start (about 5-10mph) were very similar. They were neck to neck until about 20-30mph and then the Zero picked up speed much faster than the Brammo, even when it was left in first gear.

After an hour or so of playing with the bikes we both had places to go and bikes to charge. Speaking of which. The Zero SR started out with 100% charge and at this time it had 90% left. The Brammo, having been parked without behing plugged in, started at 36% and had at this time only 20% left. It's not really a fair comparison but I found it interesting.

Conclusions:
I've tried to compare gas bikes before and have never come to a point where I'd say this bike is better than that, because it's never a comparison of apples and apples. The same is true this time. The Zero SR and The Brammo Empulse R are both awesome bikes! They both have a very unique feel, sound, handling and everything else that makes a bike so much fun to ride. I only wish that more dealerships would take the risk and could afford to carry demo versions of both these bikes. They would undoubtedly sell a lot more of them if they did. I know I didn't make the decision to buy one until I've had a go on one.

One thing that my friend and I realized both Brammo and Zero has in common is that it's really hard to get any kind of support from local dealerships. I expressed how unhappy I was with the experience I've had with my dealership and he told me that I was lucky to even have someone in the state who wanted to touch it. He has to ship/ride his out of state to get to the closest (but still incompetent) licensed dealership.

Specs:
2014 Zero SR
http://www.zeromotorcycles.com/zero-s/specs.php

2013 Brammo Empulse R
http://www.brammo.com/empulse_specifications/

Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ / 12V connector

« on: January 31, 2014, 09:40:22 AM »

Hi,
Does anyone know what type of connector the 12V connector behind the triple tree is?

I see that it's the same connector on the 2013 and 2014 but I have no idea what standard they used. It's not the common SAE connectors I've seen used on heated gear and trickle chargers.

Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ / The accessory Zero never told you about

« on: January 25, 2014, 09:01:51 AM »

Do you listen to music while riding?
Have you wished you knew who's calling while riding?
Have you ever wondered what that space next to the throttle is for?

Pebble is a smart watch that lets you control the music that's playing on your smartphone, shows Facebook messages, text messages and other types of notifications.
Mounted on a late model Zero it blends in perfectly and lets you pause, resume and fast forward the music you're listening to. All through a wireless bluetooth connection.

Check out how well the red Pebble matches the red Zero SR!
With it mounted I've got full control over the smartphone in my pocket using only my thumb. And I can glance down to see text messages (while pulled at a red light or otherwise standing still).

Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ / First impressions of the 2014 Zero SR

« on: January 22, 2014, 01:22:33 PM »

I received my Zero SR today!

It got delivered to the dealership this morning and after some begging the dealership agreed that I'd be allowed to pick it up later the same day. Initially they wanted to keep it for 5 days.
Due to miscommunication between the dealership and Zero the bike will have to come back to have the heated seat and the 12V outlet installed.

But back to the bike. In anticipation I already installed the Zero app on my iPhone. Pairing it with the bike was a bit tricky since the instructions in the app referred to how to get it set up on the 2013 model. (Getting Bluetooth activated using the mode switch is no longer an option). After realizing that you have to time turning the bike on and searching for new BT devices it was pretty straight forward.
The phone insisted a couple of times that I should download the app even though it was already installed and active. Once I told it to get stuffed a couple of times it seem to stabilize itself somewhat. I've got a lot more to say about the app but will save that for a later time.

The bike was almost fully charged when I got on it and I followed the recommendation to start out in Eco mode. Especially since the tires are brand new and may be extra slippery.
I stayed in Eco mode for almost 1 mile. During that time I enjoyed how smooth the power output was and how easy the bike was to maneuver in tight spaces.

I've ridden the 2012 S, the 2013 DS and the 2013 FX so the electric torque experience wasn't completely new to me. That said I still smiled every time I accelerated.
After feeling comfortable with the way the bike handled I switched it over to "Sport" mode... OMFGBBQ***!!!!!!!! This was what everything I had hoped it would be!!! The bike instantly turned super responsive to my throttle input and the acceleration was breathtaking!
My last bike was a 2007 Yamaha R1 with 189bhp. The best way I can compare the feeling of how they accelerate is to say that the R1 has lots of power at a very limited RPM. Meaning you have to slip the clutch just right for the maximum acceleration when you take of from a red light. With the Zero SR you just lean forward, open the throttle and let the adrenaline flow through your body as you are thrusted forward like a rocket! It's an amazing feeling!

The torque is not as raw as I'm used to from ICEs (Internal Combustion Engines) but even and well controlled. The result is that you can open the throttle wide open at a stand still and not get into too much trouble (assuming you're leaning forward and have good, dry pavement under your tires). This gives the bike a very mature feeling and the only downside is that it won't wheelie easily. In fact it won't really push you back on the seat until you reach 30-40mph.

I did some very unscientific tests of acceleration at different speeds and found that in sport mode (what's the name of those other modes again??) this bike accelerates just as hard from 30 to 40mph as it does from 60 to 95 (I didn't get a chance to try the top speed yet

)

The build quality of the 2014 Zero SR is good. In fact it's a lot better than some other bikes I've ridden.
My fear was that it would feel like a limited production run of a refined prototype. Sure, there are seams that don't 100% line up and the boxy hollow plastic "tank" rattles in the same hollow way that it did on the 2012 S model whenever you run over a speed bump or a pot hole.
That said, the impression I walk away after my first 40miles of highway, surface street and city riding on my 2014 Zero SR is that it feels like a professionally and solidly built factory assembled product of a 3rd generation of electric vehicles.

Would I recommend this bike to friends? Heck yeah! If you have the money and you enjoy technologically advanced things. This is THE bike for you. If you're looking for a good economic investment and/or enjoy loud exhausts then I think you're in wrong forum

Speaking of noise level. The sound that this thing makes at WOT (wide open throttle) is AWESOME!!!! It wines like a futuristic turbine supercharger thingy. It makes people on sidewalks jump to the side and turn around whenever you accelerate hard after a red light

I'll post a videos shortly. Now I have to get some sleep so I can get up and ride this awesome machine again early tomorrow morning!

//Arvid

Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ / My SR is almost here!

« on: January 20, 2014, 08:04:19 AM »

I've just learned that my bike left the factory last week and is estimated to be at the dealership on Tuesday or Wednesday.
I'm going to take Wednesday off from work to pick it up

Anything you guys want me to test when I get it?
I've got a gyro stabilized camera that I plan to use to capture some videos as soon as it's here.

General Discussion / Custom battery pack for a 2014 Zero SR

« on: November 27, 2013, 01:48:12 AM »

Hi,
Has anyone successfully modified an existing Zero battery or found a way to extend range by hooking up a custom battery to their bike?

I've got a bunch of 5.8Ah 35C cells around from an electric ultralight aircraft (paramotor) project I worked on 2 years ago. I used some of them to build an electric bicycle and I'm now considering building a custom back that I can hook up to the bike for longer trips.

What kind of interfaces are available on the 2013-2014 bikes?

Worst case I guess one could hook up an inverter and let it charge as I drive (and loose about 25% efficiency or more). Assuming the bike accepts a charge while driving.

//Arvid