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[MVetter]

That's definitely a good, throaty roar going on but no, I don't miss it. For the smoothness of ride and many other reasons... nope. No interest in going back to gas.

[Jarrett]

I thought I was progressive enough to not miss it, but I was wrong.   

Maybe Zero can devise a way to pump this sound into my bluetooth speakers in my helmet when I ride one of their bikes

[Richard230]

Regarding 0-60 mph acceleration, not only is the SR/F about 50 pounds heavier than the SR, but I believe that the MCN road test riders both weigh over 200 pounds and are over 6 feet tall. So that additional weight is going to cut down on the bike's acceleration.  On the other hand, did you notice the speed at the end of the quarter mile? 119 mph!  You won't find too many ICE motorcycles of any displacement that reach that speed in the quarter mile. 

[stevenh]

I was also a little surprised by the 3.6 0-60 time. That’s not much better, if any better at all, than my SR. I’m not sure I completely buy it because when I test-rode the SR/F a week and a half ago I did a few 0-60 runs it was definitely quicker than my SR. I had it at 3 seconds flat. I am 155 lbs in gear so that helps. The quarter mile time of 11.72 is not bad but it is nowhere near a fast liter bike which can run low 10’s or even high 9’s with a good  launch. I think the reason Zeros impress people so much with their acceleration is that ithey are sneaky. We are used to a roar along with the rush of acceleration. I have ridden a couple of 180+ hp bikes and it is a total visceral experience. When you pin it the engine howls and you expect to be thrown back. It’s thrilling, but it’s not really a surprise. When you pin a Zero the lack of much sound and the suddenness of the response is a different experience. The silent rush doesn’t fit the normal paradigm. It’s shocking (no pun intended). I’d take a liter bike in a quarter mile race but a Zero (no downshift, no nothing, just go) on the road. Since I don’t do quarter mile races the choice is easy.

I should have never ridden the SR/F. Does anyone want to buy a ‘15 SR?

That's why one of the Zero reps at a local event kept saying "Just Ride It".  I did, and now I have an SR/F (and no longer have the DSR).  I really had no plans to upgrade, but damn!

Steve

[NetPro]

That's why one of the Zero reps at a local event kept saying "Just Ride It".  I did, and now I have an SR/F (and no longer have the DSR).  I really had no plans to upgrade, but damn!

Steve

Yeah, they know it is an impressive experience and whether the 0-60 time is 2, 3 or 4 seconds, you are going to come out with a smile on your face and they can work on you to make a sale.
A nice looking bike with the latest technology and plenty of power, they have many selling points to "convince" you.

[Jarrett]

On the other hand, did you notice the speed at the end of the quarter mile? 119 mph!  You won't find too many ICE motorcycles of any displacement that reach that speed in the quarter mile. 

That's really not all that fast.  A middle of the pack 2016 Speed Triple claiming 122hp (26hp less than my 2019 version) will do the quarter mile in 10.83 sec. @ 128.36 mph.  And that's a detuned naked bike.  A 2013 Suzuki GSX-R 750cc will run the quarter in 10.41 @ 135.89 mph.  The big sport bikes, much quicker.

I think we're still seeing evidence that the SR/F is in the ~750cc naked bike performance class.

[Richard230]

On the other hand, did you notice the speed at the end of the quarter mile? 119 mph!  You won't find too many ICE motorcycles of any displacement that reach that speed in the quarter mile. 

That's really not all that fast.  A middle of the pack 2016 Speed Triple claiming 122hp (26hp less than my 2019 version) will do the quarter mile in 10.83 sec. @ 128.36 mph.  And that's a detuned naked bike.  A 2013 Suzuki GSX-R 750cc will run the quarter in 10.41 @ 135.89 mph.  The big sport bikes, much quicker.

I think we're still seeing evidence that the SR/F is in the ~750cc naked bike performance class.

Well, it is a lot faster than the 2018 Zero DSR that the magazine tested last November. It covered the quarter mile in 13.15 seconds at 101 mph. BTW, the SR/F's acceleration is almost identical to the new BMW R1250GS and R1250RT models.

But its big advantage is that just about anyone can achieve that quarter mile performance, whereas you have to be pretty skilled to accelerate that hard on an ICE motorcycle where you need to slip the clutch just right to prevent bogging or performing a wheelie to get off the line and then run through each gear to get maximum performance. Not an easy thing to do. I would think that an SR/F rider would be able to get to the end of a quarter mile faster than your average Joe riding a hot sport bike. 

[Jarrett]

As long as its fully charged, not overheated, in Sport mode, etc.

I'll drag race a SR/F for 47 miles on my NC700X

[Richard230]

As long as its fully charged, not overheated, in Sport mode, etc.

I'll drag race a SR/F for 47 miles on my NC700X

Well, there is that.   

[flattetyre]

A lot of people here obviously aren't into motorcycles and don't know the first thing about them. There are an ABUNDANCE of ludicrously fast bikes that will completely shit on a 119mph trap speed in the 1/4.

True, for that 500 RPM range that you must keep on shifting  to get to.

Uh yeah, if you have a race tuned 2 stroke and can't use the clutch maybe. Wow.

[Redblade]

So many people brag about Zero speed...yet it isn't better than bikes that cost less than half of what an SR/F does. And then when that fact is pointed out, most people seem to resort to "but it isn't about 0-60 or quarter mile...those aren't even realistic!"

Sometimes I think EV riders are flat earthers as well..

[dfautheree]

And there are many others like me who use their Zero for everyday commuting and don't care about 0-60 or quarter mile.  On weekends, I take back roads and just enjoy the quiet ride.

Nothing flat earth about using a Zero where it is ideally suited!

[Jarrett]

Zero bikes are fantastic commuters, especially in areas with good charging station coverage. 

There is also something to be said about the effortless availability of performance with the Zero's as well.  As long as it is above 50% charge, not already in Thermal Protection mode and currently in Sport mode, a Zero bike is constantly ready to instantly provide 100% of its performance to even the most novice rider.  Pin the throttle and off it goes.

That's not the case with most ICE bikes.  The rider will have to have practiced quickly shifting into the right gear, knowing how to launch a bike well, not stalling, know when to best shift to the next gear, not miss a shift under stress, etc.  Without those abilities, the ICE rider will never tap into the full performance potential of the bike.  A novice ICE rider could easily get outperformed by a slower Zero without all of those skills.

We saw it recently where a new rider on an SR/F beat a Ducati in a drag race.  With the right rider, that Ducati would have likely killed the SR/F, but due to a stumble with the Ducati rider at the start, the new rider on the SR/F won the race.

[Richard230]

I have owned 40 ICE motorcycles and 5 electric motorcycles and I have only operated a few at their maximum speed and performance. And those were all ICE motorcycles of 250cc displacement or less and that was just to keep up with traffic. I have always used my motorcycles just for transportation, so I will admit to not knowing much about maximum performance.  Still hitting 119 mph with a quarter mile seems quite fast to me as I have never exceeded a speed of 90 mph anywhere in my life.  I just never needed to go any faster than that.

[vinceherman]

+1 for daily commute and weekend pleasure riding.

Oh, and cats disprove the flat earth theory.  If the earth were flat, cats would have pushed everything off it by now…