Zero Motorcycles offers to pay for first 25,000 miles

[haven]

http://www.zeromotorcycles.com/promo/25k-miles.php

Electric motorcycle maker Zero has made an interesting offer: Buy one of their e-bikes by the end of May, and Zero will pay for the first 25,000 miles of operation.

Sounds intriguing, until you read the fine print. Zero figures 25,000 miles of riding can be accomplished on $200 worth of electricity (that's at 10 cents per kilowatt-hour).

Let's figure out the gas you'd use in 25,000 miles of riding a conventional motorcycle. If we assume your bike gets 75 mpg and you pay $3.50 for a gallon of unleaded, the cost to ride 25,000 miles is (25000/75*3.5) = $1,167, or about 6 times more than running on electricity. Maybe electric bikes deserve a look.

 

[sandalscout]

Add in oil changes and it's even more. I suspect that most people don't change their oil quite as frequent, but it's not uncommon for an offroad dualsport rider to change oil every 1000 miles. If you spend $20 on oil ($8 a pop for 2.5 quarts) and $4 (the low side of filters) on a filter each time, that's another $600 in oil and filters for the first 25,000 miles. Obviously 2k and 3k oil intervals would be less ($300 and $200 total, respectively).

Interesting idea on Zero's part. WHEN they get the range up to about 200 miles, if they keep the weight the same or slightly lower, the Zero DS would fulfill 95% of my, and I suspect most people's, needs.

 

[robert]

Wow- that's a heavy pig (looking at the dual sport) and I wonder what the real world mileage is. I suspect off-roading will get you a lot less as will running any accessories including the lights. Very cool idea and it looks likes it's well executed, just that the technology hasn't come up to where it needs to be and the price hasn't come down to where it needs to be. I would like to ride one though and see what it's like- the torque ought to be outstanding as should the acceleration.

 

[sandalscout]

It's not THAT heavy... the ZF6 weighs about 8 pounds more than Suzukis DRY weight for the DRZ400s. I would guess that realistically the ZF6 is about 15 pounds lighter than the DRZ wet. The ZF9 is then probably about 30 pounds more than the DRZ. 30 pounds IS 30 pounds, but I would suspect that the additional weight on the ZF9 is down fairly low.

Overland Journal rode a Zero in a recent issue. I don't have it in with me currently, so I'm not sure which model it was, but they were getting an honest 40-45 miles off pavement with it.

I agree, it's very hard to justify buying an $11k + bike that only get 35-45 miles per charge.

 

[Schattenjager]

Electricity is a misnomer. It is most likely powered by coal. Perhaps nuclear. Very slight chance of hydroelectric.

 

[Clutch]

http://www.zeromotorcycles.com/promo/25k-miles.php

Electric motorcycle maker Zero has made an interesting offer: Buy one of their e-bikes by the end of May, and Zero will pay for the first 25,000 miles of operation.

Sounds intriguing, until you read the fine print. Zero figures 25,000 miles of riding can be accomplished on $200 worth of electricity (that's 10 cents per kilowatt-hour).

Let's figure out the gas you'd use in 25,000 miles of riding a conventional motorcycle. If we assume your bike gets 75 mpg and you pay $3.50 for a gallon of unleaded, the cost to ride 25,000 miles is (25000/75*3.5) = $1,167, or about 6 times more than running on electricity. Maybe electric bikes deserve a look.

Hell, they can't even give those things away, now they can't even pay people to take them off their hands.

The range is about 40-45 miles....so if I head 40-45 miles straight out my back door into the desert....battery dies...now what do I do? 20-30 miles is actually more like it, since I have a whiskey throttle for a right hand. I guess 20 miles isn't too far to push it back home.:ylsmoke:

Lets see, save money on "fuel" or be stuck close to home...running in circles for 25,000 miles.

Electric bikes might deserve a "look" and that is about all...just down right silly otherwise.

Interesting idea on Zero's part. WHEN they get the range up to about 200 miles, if they keep the weight the same or slightly lower, the Zero DS would fulfill 95% of my, and I suspect most people's, needs.

...and get that pesky 90 minute recharged time to the same as filling a petrol tank.

 

[Frank]

Add in oil changes and it's even more. I suspect that most people don't change their oil quite as frequent, but it's not uncommon for an offroad dualsport rider to change oil every 1000 miles. If you spend $20 on oil ($8 a pop for 2.5 quarts) and $4 (the low side of filters) on a filter each time, that's another $600 in oil and filters for the first 25,000 miles. Obviously 2k and 3k oil intervals would be less ($300 and $200 total, respectively).

Interesting idea on Zero's part. WHEN they get the range up to about 200 miles, if they keep the weight the same or slightly lower, the Zero DS would fulfill 95% of my, and I suspect most people's, needs.

Also add in $12,000 financed for 60 months is $200/month plus interest.

 

[Clutch]

Also add in $12,000 financed for 60 months is $200/month plus interest.

The price for the Zero is just plain laughable, when I can barely get out of city limits with it...

They want $14K for their top model...http://www.zeromotorcycles.com/zero-ds/specs.php

$12-14K buys an awfully nice KTM 690...with money to spare.

 

[Frank]

I 100% agree.

 

[AFSOC]

Completely agree with everyone's comments above. The Zero is a novelty concept at best and doesn't provide the practicality I look for in a bike. All that said, this technology cannot advance to the point where practicality is reached unless someone takes the first bold leap and builds it. I'm sure some of us would accept SOME compromise in key specifications if the electric moto were close, but this just isn't within range of that yet.

Terribly noble cause. I hope the company can find a market for these so that they can remain solvent long enough for technology and configuration tweaks to maybe make electric motos a viable option. Any guesses how many years that might take?

 

[Clutch]

Completely agree with everyone's comments above. The Zero is a novelty concept at best and doesn't provide the practicality I look for in a bike. All that said, this technology cannot advance to the point where practicality is reached unless someone takes the first bold leap and builds it. I'm sure some of us would accept SOME compromise in key specifications if the electric moto were close, but this just isn't within range of that yet.

Terribly noble cause. I hope the company can find a market for these so that they can remain solvent long enough for technology and configuration tweaks to maybe make electric motos a viable option. Any guesses how many years that might take?

I don't see it as a noble cause...it is just swapping one non-renewable resource for another....lithium has to mined, so does copper, so does the material to produce the magnets, the aluminum...and on down the line.

Just because there aren't any emissions coming out of the final product directly....the whole process produces emissions. Waiting for someone to pipe in and mention solar...the process to produce those grossly inefficient photovoltaic cells is quite toxic. Seems like the green energy crowd like the "out of sight out of mind" type thinking...70% of the electric produced to recharge the batteries comes from coal, then nuclear...wind frams aren't exactly enviro-friendly either...whole tracts of habitat must be destroyed...the same with solar...mass installations of solar arrays could quite possibly increase the heat island effect. Funny thing about solar, what was once off limits to off road recreation...is now all hunky dory to lay out massive solar installations. http://e360.yale.edu/feature/its_green_against_green_in_mojave_desert_solar_battle/2236/

A noble cause you say? Hardly...

For electric vehicles to be viable, they need to produce their own power...I don't see micro fusion/nuclear power plants anytime real soon.




KTM saw the light with battery operated motorcycles, and tossed in petrol motor
in their chassis that was intended for an electric motor...

 

[AFSOC]

A noble cause you say? Hardly...

I guess we disagree. That's not to say that I am a fan of Zeros. I just feel that if performance numbers improve, I see some benefit to ultra low or no emmissions motos. To me electric bike viability doesn't hinge on having a self generating power source on board. I also distinguish getting 25mpg from a 4x4 as being superior to getting 15mpg.

 

[Schattenjager]

I don't see it as a noble cause...it is just swapping one non-renewable resource for another....lithium has to mined, so does copper, so does the material to produce the magnets, the aluminum...and on down the line.

Just because there aren't any emissions coming out of the final product directly....the whole process produces emissions. Waiting for someone to pipe in and mention solar...the process to produce those grossly inefficient photovoltaic cells is quite toxic. Seems like the green energy crowd like the "out of sight out of mind" type thinking...70% of the electric produced to recharge the batteries comes from coal, then nuclear...wind frams aren't exactly enviro-friendly either...whole tracts of habitat must be destroyed...the same with solar...mass installations of solar arrays could quite possibly increase the heat island effect. Funny thing about solar, what was once off limits to off road recreation...is now all hunky dory to lay out massive solar installations. http://e360.yale.edu/feature/its_green_against_green_in_mojave_desert_solar_battle/2236/

A noble cause you say? Hardly...

Schattenjager Likes this

 

[Frank]

Honda continues to use that horrible liquid stuff called gas, producing a bike that claims to get 170mpg and costs less than a grand.

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2012/05/hondas-810-motorcycle-goes-on-sale-in-india/

 

[1911]

... I see some benefit to ultra low or no emmissions motos. To me electric bike viability doesn't hinge on having a self generating power source on board.

Therein lies the problem. If it doesn't have a self-generating power source on board, it isn't an ultra-low or no emissions moto - as has been stated, it is just a coal or natural gas-powered vehicle, and all you're doing is moving the emissions from a tail pipe on the bike to a coal-burning power plant in someone else's back yard.