#ZeroMotorcycles

All-new Model S headlines Zero’s 2024 model lineup

To offset the lack of federal tax incentives for two-wheeled EVs, Zero is broadening the incentives to Go Electric by introducing new savings and a 0% financing offer

The thing about any of the electric motorcycle companies actually taking product development seriously is that, more often than not, each new model they introduce is markedly better than any model before it. Considering the EV market is still in its early stages, you expect a marked advancement with each new model. 

In Part 1 of our interview with Nick Graveley, we discussed who he is, how he got started in clay modeling, and how he goes about his work. In talking with Graveley, his enthusiasm for the job was infectious, and the conversation naturally flowed, going a lot longer than we initially anticipated.

As electric vehicles (EVs) become more mainstream thanks to the automotive industry, we see more and more information swirling around the internet. Unfortunately, not all of that information is up to date or correct at all. With battery tech improving drastically over the past decade, it can be hard to keep up with the current facts. Additionally, with so much information available, it can be hard to separate the wheat from the chaff to discern what’s true and what isn’t. 

It’s easy to take for granted the dynamics involved in creating a fairing for a motorcycle. Sure, you could easily mold a piece of plastic or resin and create a shape, but what thought process and research goes into such a mold? We take something like fairings for granted because they’re so commonplace. Big OEMs have the resources to hire big-name designers to create something that’s easy on the eyes, then study the fluid dynamics behind the designer’s sketch to see how different lines bend and shape the wind as it flows through it. Then these big players can utilize finite element analysis to dictate the strength of a part or component and adjust as needed for a given application. But nobody talks about these things anymore because this is simply something we expect. We’re numb to it. But when we stop and think about it, the fit and finish of a motorcycle determines its legitimacy.

(7/30: Updated to include gear reduction ratios, final drive ratios, and calculated motor torque at the wheel).

On the last Sunday in June, the famed Pikes Peak International Hill Climb will commence its 97th running. Taking to the mountain for the first time will be an official entry from Zero Motorcycles (not to be confused with my attempt in 2013 with a dealer-run effort with support from the factory) with its much acclaimed SR/F – a bike which, judging by the 424 comments (and counting)  received on Evans’ Exclusive First Ride piece – is of interest to many people. Piloting the SR/F this year is Cory West, a very accomplished racer in his own right, and though he will be a Pikes Peak rookie, he’ll still be someone to look out for.

Harley-Davidson announced Monday it would move some of its production overseas to avoid a dramatic tariff increase imposed by the European Union. The EU tariff comes In response to the United States implementing a tax on aluminum and steel to several countries, including EU nations. The EU has responded in kind, levying a tariff on several American products. The most notable for the Motorcycle.com audience is the tariff on American motorcycles 500cc and larger. This is clearly targeted at Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson, though Indian Motorcycles (and parent company Polaris) will also be impacted. Electric motorcycles are not affected by this tariff, leaving Zero Motorcycles out of the conversation.

Trying to figure out the range of an electric motorcycle is like competing in an eating contest: You think you know the limits, but you’re never quite sure until you’ve gone too far. Nonetheless, we at Motorcycle.com are fortunate enough to have ridden many of the electric motorcycle offerings out there, and at the very least, this gives us a starting point when discussing the range you can expect from an electric.

Riding the Zero DSR quickly turned me into a child. Laughing hysterically as I sneaked through traffic and by unsuspecting pedestrians, getting a kick out of the shocked faces on these innocent bystanders was one of the first reasons I enjoyed the Zero DSR, the second involved the R part of its model designation. I came for the ninja-like stealth, but stayed for the claimed 116 lb-ft of torque. Any time there was dirt in sight, a patch of gravel, an unbordered planter in a parking lot, I would bee-line for it, lighting up that rear tire quicker than the aforementioned innocent bystander could shield themselves from the dust. I’d like to say I’m sorry to the man in that car at the Rose Bowl parking lot who endured a large cloud of dust blowing into his open car windows.

As futuristic as the future may one day be, I’ll be the guy hoarding all the loud, leaky, inefficient, fossil-fueled motors that most of the world will consider to be boat anchors and giant paperweights – call it my Redneck 401k. One day they might be considered old-fashioned, but there’s just something extremely gratifying about an internal combustion engine that an electric motor could never replicate. Mostly it’s the sound and feel, obviously, and it used to be about the performance, but electric motorcycles have evolved and come a long way in recent years.

The new electric-powered Gratis X1 personal watercraft is now available to order through Free Form Factory’s website.

Today at EICMA 2016 Zero Motorcycles unveiled its 2017 lineup of electric motorcycles. Although the company didn’t announce any new models, per se, there are some spinoffs of existing models to better suit price points – a request from customers that Zero paid attention to. We’ll cover the model improvements and spinoffs in a moment, but first we’ll start with big news that affects the entire 2017 line.

Zero Motorcycles turns 10 years old in 2016, and anyone who has followed the company’s progress, even from the periphery, can’t deny the progress Zero has made in advancing electric motorcycles. Giving his take on the electric motorcycle movement, and the role Zero Motorcycles has played in it, is company CTO Abe Askenazi. In his statement below, Abe argues the benefits of electric propulsion (though range and charge times are curiously absent from his statment). Clearly he has a stake in the electric game, but for those unfamiliar with Askenazi you should know that he spent a significant portion of his career in a similar role working alongside Erik Buell at Buell Motorcycles. A company, if you’ll remember, whose name was built on building a sportbike out of the unmistakable, gasoline-burning Harley-Davidson V-Twin. -TS