ElectricMotorcycleForum.com
Makes And Models => Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2013+ => Topic started by: droidish on April 11, 2019, 07:58:59 AM
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I just completed an email survey from Zero. It was pretty brief, and multiple choice, so not particularly precise, but it’s a start!
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Can you tell us more?
I ask in the context of just made my sixth or seventh visit to my local dealer with an ongoing warranty issue on a 15 month old S, and Zero takes weeks to respond after each visit. I like this moto a lot, and my local dealer is pretty cool, but Zero gets a zero.
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Roughly, it started with a request to rate ( very dissatisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, somewhat satisfied, satisfied, very satisfied) such things as performance, range, charge time, ergonomics, reliability etc. It asked how often I ride motorcycles, how I use my Zero, where I charge my Zero, where my Zero is kept overnight etc.
There was one about how I feel about the importance of EVs, possible responses ranged from massive environmental goodness down to I don't care.
As you probably know, a lot of these surveys are semi-interactive. Your responses to the questions on page one determine which page two opens when you click on the "next" button. My experience with my SR has been very positive, so in the first set almost everything got high marks. The only question about my dealer was its distance from my home.
Since you have had warranty repair issues heroto, it's possible this survey would be different for you. You might give reliability a low mark on page one, and then get questions about your satisfaction with your dealer's service department for example.
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Thanks for posting this. I had to search my inbox or I never would have noticed it. Gmail created categories for me and put it in "promotions."
I had issues with a couple of questions.
What is the primary use of your Zero?
Commuting to work (weather dependent)
Running errands (most days)
Recreational (mostly over weekends)
Touring
Racing
Don't use it as much as I would like to
They force weather dependent on the commuting to work option. I'm probably reading too much into it, but I take a bit of pride in being an all-weather commuter.
Also, the distance to dealer question had 5 multiple choice options, but the highest was 30+. I think there's a good chunk of people who live more than 30 miles away from a dealer and there's a huge difference IMHO between being 35 miles away and 200 miles away from a dealer.
The survey doesn't appear to be interactive.
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Yep, I filled mine out last night. I gave Zero pretty high marks since the only issue I've had with my 2017 DSR is a broken belt at 3,800 miles. This was probably my fault because of the silicone spray I was using on it, but Zero covered the cost of the new belt and I installed it myself.
My dealer, Piston Society (AKA Electronic Art) in Cincinnati has been great to work with and is not that far away from me.
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They could have had a lot more questions such as dealer support, but I was glad to see the survey. I gave mostly positive remarks, but when it asked if I plan on buying another Zero in the future, i said NO and tried to give them a reason even though they didn't ask for one, but mainly lack of fairing and level 3 charging. I also chose Lightning and Kymco as other brands I'm considering.
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I did the same yesterday. It certainly was a simple survey. Unfortunately there was no opportunity to leave any comments. Just a simple multiple-choice survey. It probably was developed by a consultant working on a low budget and the results will be dropped on someone's desk with % responses for each category. Sort of like the surveys that can be created on this forum. It would be interesting to know what Zero will do with the responses in the way of making future plans. ???
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I see where they were trying to go with most of it but the big picture isn't as black and white as that survey makes some of the answers.
Would I consider another company: yes or no. How about maybe. If one comes out that is better and cheaper then yes but if not then no.
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Would I consider another company: yes or no. How about maybe. If one comes out that is better and cheaper then yes but if not then no.
That sounds like a "yes" to me. The question isn't would you buy from another company, it's whether you'd CONSIDER another company. Sounds like you would. Honestly, it seems hard to imagine why someone wouldn't CONSIDER any company, if their product is right and the price is right.
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Would I consider another company: yes or no. How about maybe. If one comes out that is better and cheaper then yes but if not then no.
That sounds like a "yes" to me. The question isn't would you buy from another company, it's whether you'd CONSIDER another company. Sounds like you would. Honestly, it seems hard to imagine why someone wouldn't CONSIDER any company, if their product is right and the price is right.
The exact question is "Are you considering purchasing another motorcycle brand?"
My answer is "no". I also answered no to "Do you plan to purchase another Zero?"
I have a 2018 and I plan to hold on to it for several years, so I am not considering or planning any purchase. It doesn't mean I don't like my Zero or that I won't consider other brands when I'm ready to make my next purchase.
I'm very literal in reading the questions. Not sure how valuble the survey results are going to be if we don't even agree what the meaning of our answers are.
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Quote:
"Do you plan to purchase another Zero?"
Quote:
I also answered no to that question, because unless they come out with a sport touring model with a decent plastics with taller windscreen and of course level 3 charging, i wont be buying another Zero. I love my current 2017 dsr, but imo, it's not great on the highway at 80mph. It's great for running errands and short commutes. Ill easily put 6-7 thousand miles a year just doing that because its so much fun.
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Would I consider another company: yes or no. How about maybe. If one comes out that is better and cheaper then yes but if not then no.
That sounds like a "yes" to me. The question isn't would you buy from another company, it's whether you'd CONSIDER another company. Sounds like you would. Honestly, it seems hard to imagine why someone wouldn't CONSIDER any company, if their product is right and the price is right.
The exact question is "Are you considering purchasing another motorcycle brand?"
My answer is "no". I also answered no to "Do you plan to purchase another Zero?"
I have a 2018 and I plan to hold on to it for several years, so I am not considering or planning any purchase. It doesn't mean I don't like my Zero or that I won't consider other brands when I'm ready to make my next purchase.
I'm very literal in reading the questions. Not sure how valuble the survey results are going to be if we don't even agree what the meaning of our answers are.
I answered the same way and for the same reasons.
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Would I consider another company: yes or no. How about maybe. If one comes out that is better and cheaper then yes but if not then no.
That sounds like a "yes" to me. The question isn't would you buy from another company, it's whether you'd CONSIDER another company. Sounds like you would. Honestly, it seems hard to imagine why someone wouldn't CONSIDER any company, if their product is right and the price is right.
Well at this time I'm not. Harley is way too much money for what you get, I don't like the Lipo batteries in Energica, and getting info on Lightning is like catching lightning in a bottle.
So right now I want Zero to know they are on the right track but also don't rest on their laurels.
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Thinking about the Zero survey today, it occurred to me that Zero really should be sending a survey to motorcycle riders who do not own an electric motorcycle to see what new customers who currently ride ICE might want in an electric motorcycle. Asking current Zero owners is not going to help them design a new vehicle that would grow the EV market.
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Asking current Zero owners is not going to help them design a new vehicle that would grow the EV market.
Existing customer satisfaction reflects on the company's ability to grow customer base. If the existing customers are extremely happy with the products they own, then Zero may choose to invest into marketing instead of building a new generation platform. And vice versa.
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Asking current Zero owners is not going to help them design a new vehicle that would grow the EV market.
Existing customer satisfaction reflects on the company's ability to grow customer base. If the existing customers are extremely happy with the products they own, then Zero may choose to invest into marketing instead of building a new generation platform. And vice versa.
Too bad they didn't ask anything about customer service. I like Zero's bikes and I tell people that, but I also feel obligated to tell them about how bad things can go when there's an issue.
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I felt like the survey was slanted towards questions that would be answered positively and shied away from potential negatives making the outcome of the survey to appear more positive than it might have otherwise. I imagine the results will be used in some board meeting to pat everyone on the back.
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I felt like the survey was slanted towards questions that would be answered positively and shied away from potential negatives making the outcome of the survey to appear more positive than it might have otherwise. I imagine the results will be used in some board meeting to pat everyone on the back.
Sounds about right to me. A feel-good survey. ;)
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Asking current Zero owners is not going to help them design a new vehicle that would grow the EV market.
Existing customer satisfaction reflects on the company's ability to grow customer base. If the existing customers are extremely happy with the products they own, then Zero may choose to invest into marketing instead of building a new generation platform. And vice versa.
I am not convinced of that. Having talked with current ICE owners who have never owned an electric motorcycle, their desires are different than current electric motorcycle owners. Mostly I hear about wanting more highway speed range. I have a friend who tells me that he would be interested in buying an electric motorcycle if it could travel for over 200 miles at 75 mph - and cost less than a BMW. :o Plus, there still are a lot of "haters" out there that could use a little more education. ;)
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I am not convinced of that. Having talked with current ICE owners who have never owned an electric motorcycle, their desires are different than current electric motorcycle owners. Mostly I hear about wanting more highway speed range. I have a friend who tells me that he would be interested in buying an electric motorcycle if it could travel for over 200 miles at 75 mph - and cost less than a BMW. :o Plus, there still are a lot of "haters" out there that could use a little more education. ;)
Haters gonna hate :D I would also like to have a 200 mile range at such speed, but as an engineer I understand that isn't really possible with the cells we currently have. Having a range of 100miles at 75MPH is achievable though, along with fast DC charging. So targeting the dreamers right now isn't an option, especially since Zero isn't the one driving the cell technology forward.
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I am not convinced of that. Having talked with current ICE owners who have never owned an electric motorcycle, their desires are different than current electric motorcycle owners. Mostly I hear about wanting more highway speed range. I have a friend who tells me that he would be interested in buying an electric motorcycle if it could travel for over 200 miles at 75 mph - and cost less than a BMW. :o Plus, there still are a lot of "haters" out there that could use a little more education. ;)
Haters gonna hate :D I would also like to have a 200 mile range at such speed, but as an engineer I understand that isn't really possible with the cells we currently have. Having a range of 100miles at 75MPH is achievable though, along with fast DC charging. So targeting the dreamers right now isn't an option, especially since Zero isn't the one driving the cell technology forward.
And from what I have read lately, Tesla is having their problems with the Gigafactory's output, too. I think we may be in a little bit of an EV market dip right now. ???
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And from what I have read lately, Tesla is having their problems with the Gigafactory's output, too. I think we may be in a little bit of an EV market dip right now. ???
What I was talking about isn't quantity, but density. Tesla's primary objectives are cost reduction and volume of production, not density of the cells. Tesla has already achieved quite practical application of the existing cells so to them increase in density would be nice, but not a necessity. For a motorcycle though, density increase is what is needed to achieve 200 mile range since size and weight matter quite a bit more than in case of an electric car.
Otherwise I wouldn't worry about Tesla. There is a lot of controversial coverage about their operation, but they have a solid market and superior products.
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domingo3 is spot on. Zero has good to great product, but crap customer support and crap dealer support. I don't know if they made a calculated business decision to give a big FU to their customers with issues and to our local dealers, or if the status quo is due to tone deaf ineptness on their part. I'll bet the S in my garage it's the former: they will accept the collateral damage caused by crap customer and dealer support in order to maximize their role as leaders in e-motos, with future buyers propping them up, even if that angers current and short term prospective buyers, forever. A risky move. This owner does not regard that as a smart long term strategy.
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I answered. More range! Also considering a Harley and T-Cruse.