2020 ZERO SRF test ride and review

[@vCloudInfo]

Great Video! Great edits, insights and pace..

[@johnDukemaster]

I tried one yesterday and I must say, one have to try to know. I thought I would miss sound...no. I thought I would miss shifting...no. This is a ride that makes one smile. I laughed out loud! It's at the top of my wishlist. But not untill charging points are easier to find and use.

[@DougZ73]

yeah, the bike was an absolute blast to ride.

[@hermanstokbrood]

I rode a BMW C evolution some time ago. I hardly can remember I had this much fun riding a bike.

[@DougZ73]

@@hermanstokbrood thanks for watching. That BMW scooter is an expensive one. Couple thousand dollars more and you could get a Zero. I'd get the Zero.

[@TransformersHoarder]

Cool, I actually rode that bike your reviewing. Mine came in and if all goes to plan, I’ll be picking it up tomorrow.

[@DougZ73]

Very cool. It was great to ride and review. I only wish I had more time to ride and learn it. Thanks for watching. Ride safe and good luck with new bike.

[@DandaFundas]

Transformers Hoarder what is the life of the battery?

[@TransformersHoarder]

R Danda I’m a very aggressive rider, love the bike. I plan rides that don’t total more than a 100-110 miles to play it safe. I mostly charge at home and have yet to use a public charger.

[@TransformersHoarder]

LUDO I love how I can ride as hard as the bike is capable without getting any unwanted attention because of how quiet it is.

[@dragonblazzer9698]

Did you guys get this new red colour? I'm on their website and it only shows the green and the black ones as options.

[@Kevin-bb7wk]

You saying you were really comfortable, being 5'8" and a 30" inseam, on this bike just made my day. That's me, man.Also, to those who keep saying that they aren't happy with the price being so high, honestly, over the long term, an EV is theoretically less expensive than a gas bike. Fuel is less expensive and you have significantly less maintenance--basically just brakes and tires every now and again. You pay a premium up front, sure, but that premium gets amortized fairly quickly over the life of the bike. Just my take, but whatever. Cheers!

[@DougZ73]

That's great. Glad you liked the review. Not sure where you are located, but give the guys and gals @Mt. Holly Motorsports ( www.mthollymotorsports.com/ ) a shout. They are a really great team there and I was lucky to work and be associated with them. Cheers

[@MrMonterey10]

Thank you Doug for your good insight into the zero. Not a better video to be found. Craig

[@DougZ73]

Thank you so much.

[@niceguy2171]

I liked this review, as you actually showed you riding it. Watched a British guy earlier, and all he did was stop and talk, didn't show hardly any riding. As a person who has ridden since little Trail 50's and 70's, all the way through Trials, and then to large street cruisers, would be hard not to grab for a clutch, and try to shift too..although a friend who got one down south said it surprisingly doesn't take long to get used too, and when I was down there I did take it for a short ride, as we were pressed for time. When they go to the Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries that are out now, they are going to be a serious contender for motorcycle riders.

[@DougZ73]

Thanks for watching. I can't wait to ride and review another one of the Zero's, which should be in the near future. I try to balance talking while riding, which is what a lot of people like to see, as well as stopping and going over the features of the bike.

[@johnf517]

Just bought one... can’t wait to run it during the summer...

[@DougZ73]

You will love it. Super fun bike to ride. Enjoy it and good luck. Thanks for watching.

[@uwematschulat4181]

I am glad that there is an alternative to Zero: Charge the Energica quickly with a 21.5 kW battery and 25 kW.

[@boommoto4175]

We here at boom mobile are super excited to see electric motorcycles take of here in the US.

[@DougZ73]

Thanks for watching.

[@ravenm.]

Very cool! I guess my only concern especially blasting down rural roads is the lack of noise to warn people, animals etc.

[@DougZ73]

Thanks for watching. Beeping certainly helps people become aware of your presence. LoL

[@bobsthea]

man, i like the sound of that electric motor

[@DougZ73]

yeah, it was wicked. Thanks for watching.

[@petebike]

still looking for a review of this thing, where the reviewer isn't talking over the ride sound of the bike.

[@DougZ73]

Thanks for watching. Most youtubers, talk while reviewing the motorcycle they are riding. Most of us also have a microphone attached inside of the helmet, to combat wind noise. If that was not done,, the audio quality of the videos would be crap. With that said, the motorcycle is really really quiet, and unless you are full on the "gas", it does not make much of a sound at all. If you skip ahead to the 23 minute mark of my video, you can hear the engine whine, being hard on the throttle. That is about as loud as it gets. The next best way for you to hear one, is going check one out at your local Zero Motorcycles dealer.

[@raulchris2903]

That price for now id hve to wait till they drop!

[@felixlechat1780]

or get a better job!

[@sleekitwan]

Thanks for this review, I am just seeing it now in May 2020, it’s a good bike, and you helped put it in perspective with the torque references etc. I think that I can offer some nuanced thoughts about the regenerative braking. You are the only reviewer I have seen, where they actually got the battery to recharge during riding, to any extent. I conclude that the riders pounding the machine, use the front brake a lot. There is no regen on the front wheel, because it has no electric machine ie no hub motor. Any use of the front brake, is outwith the regen control of the bike, and so is just as much wasted energy as an internal combustion engined machine. The lesson from the car world, is that in the last ten years, battery energy density has doubled. In other words, for the same SIZE (volume) there’s about double the energy compared to 2010 batteries in EV cars. It’s not quite as true, in terms of weight it seems - ie the EV cars with improved batteries, the batteries weigh a bit more despite being the same size. However, they think the next ‘doubling’ of battery energy density might be a lot sooner maybe next 5 or so years? Anyway I subscribed, thanks again. PS my sole interest in vehicles is now electric, almost entirely. You make great points on charging vs gas-refuelling of ICE bikes, good logical granular obs there! We all know though, refuelling an ICE gas bike, is a bit of a pest really. You kinda got the removal of helmet rule sometimes, sometimes not. You gotta remove your gloves unless you have some clever pocket in them holding your card and just can swipe or hold in proximity to the card machine etc. I can make a contribution though, from what a major new Chinese EV maker about to export, has said - the ‘sweet spot’ is 30% to 80% for charging EV batteries. This means, with the HD livewire for example, there’s only the sort of ‘middle’ 35 miles of range you can recharge FAST on the battery? The lower 30% will be slowed by software, as is the top 20%, so you are left with rapid charge only for the bit in the middle. That’s the bit they tend to quote for. In other words, if you have a massive battery, you can get a useful amount of range fast (say a 30kWh for a bike, so you get 15kWh worth of it possible to fast charge - the 30% to 80% bit). If you got a diddy 10kWh battery, you only get 5kWh that you can rapidly charge up. Although of course, it’s tiny so all things being equal, ie same fast charge rate, you can be gone in no time. But only for about 20 miles...! I found myself watching a vid on a new Mercedes muscle car recently, by a reviewer I really like and respect hugely - ‘Engineering Explained’ - and after a minute or two, was struggling to either remain interested, or to see the point. Umpteen valves, transmission modes or whatever, I just realised, I cannot see much future for the ICE in large vehicles, it’s outclassed by EV tech in almost every respect, and the price differential is largely due to the novel tech, and is soaring downward rapidly. Tesla down to half what a price was, in maybe 5 years, for a similar spec but reduced size of vehicle? I think bikes have a bit more latitude, because the manufacturers have been introducing the likes of traction control, almost it seems in preparation for electric power, as it seems to need this! My best, take care, enjoyed the exploration.

[@DougZ73]

Thanks for watching and the nice long reply. I am honored people get something out of videos like this, I make. Thanks again and I appreciate the subscribing. I'm also currently making a video for the ZERO DSR. I love these electric motorcycles and mountain bikes as well. Good fun.

[@malcolmgough9971]

@DougZ73 SV1000 DougZ?

[@DougZ73]

Yes, that is me as well. Do we know each other?

[@malcolmgough9971]

@@DougZ73 We sure do! Are you still active on SVRider.com? Some other way to get in touch maybe?

[@DougZ73]

@@malcolmgough9971 not at all on SVrider anymore....not for years. LoL Feel free to email: [e-mail]

[@barriewilliams4526]

Good review, good bike but sorry, not for me as the range is too little & the price too big :)

[@DougZ73]

All good, I appreciate you watching the video.

[@Darkvisor]

Nice video friend. I Liked your video and hit that subscribe button! Looking forward to watching more of your videos! //Dark Visor 🇸🇪

[@frankstocker5475]

Is the object of the 20 grand bike to out-accelerate other bikes? I just made a 300km day trip in the mountains, pulled in for gas, took 5min to fill up for another 300Km, passed a couple of Zero bikes that had run out of neutrons. Zero are missing the boat they should make an electric scooter. Something like a T Max.

[@DougZ73]

Pretty much exactly what I said in the video, where I am talking about the lack of infrastructure for electric vehicles.

[@derekhague4699]

They say charging stations for EV's will double the number of gas stations by 2025. By then, battery-charging technology will be fully charging batteries within 20 minutes. I'd say that's just enough time to give your ass a rest after 150-200 miles of road tripping..

[@fallenwout]

The problem is not the charging time, the problem is 24.000€ for a naked bike.

[@thorstambaugh1520]

It lasts forever and the thrill never gets old

[@jameschristensen1658]

i mean if it’s your only vehicle theres practically no maintenance and over time it’s cheaper than a petrol bike

[@fallenwout]

@@jameschristensen1658 my previous pertol bike was 7500€ new WITH fairing and has 65.000km on it (my brother is riding it now). You really believe i'm spending 15.000€ on engine maintenance? Because electric bikes still have tyres, brake pads and fluid and a chain/belt. And after a while you need to change the battery pack which cost as much as my bike.

[@MadsWorld34]

what I want to see is 3 bikes zero's or lightings don't matter all the same and charge them all up and take off with maybe 5 miles city and then hit highway speeds not speeding or acting stupid and drive them until they have to charge and get the range in each mode. but noone ever does that. but still if I wasn't trying to build a house I would have one right now. but a place to live is a little more important at this time.

[@DougZ73]

I hear ya. Had I had more time and was staying in NJ, I would have kept working with that dealer and test rode the other Zero models and compared. Sadly, we moved to Florida.

[@MadsWorld34]

@@DougZ73 I would never live in NJ to much of that white stuff during the winter. LOL

[@DougZ73]

@@MadsWorld34 lol. Yup...part of the reason we moved to Florida. I can ride all my bikes, all year long

[@gwarlow]

glen johnson A place to live is more important at ANY time. These bikes will get better and less expensive over time, and there will be more "used" electric bikes coming on the market. Best wishes on building your house.

[@sonnybelson1398]

@@gwarlow $

[@martysk8r]

Too bad you can't go down to Hertz and rent 1 for a day.

[@DougZ73]

Maybe some day. Thanks for watching.

[@frankstocker5475]

Whatever the infrastructure you will never get 300km charge in 5min.

[@DougZ73]

That is very true. Thanks for watching.

[@frankstocker5475]

No clutch, no gears, It's a scooter disguised as a motorbike.

[@DougZ73]

LoL. But it will still out accelerate most gas motorcycles out there. 140 ft/lbs torque is no joke.

[@thorstambaugh1520]

Anyone who calls it a scooter is as stupid as calling a motorcycle a moped without pedals.

[@felixlechat1780]

you can walk its free

[@FKJBSDK]

A scooter is also a motorbike so what are you complaining? Did you see how this thing accelerate?😂

[@frankstocker5475]

@@FKJBSDK If you are into straight-line super-fast acceleration then this is the bike for you. I made a test ride & was impressed with the acceleration but it doesn't have a heartbeat. I get it but compared to a motorbike this machine has nothing to do with the motorbike concept. It's a scooter concept. The Zero is missing the rear brake on the handlebar to be a real scooter.