2015 Zero Electric Motorcycles Get More Range, ABS, Tire & Suspension Upgrades

The 2015 Zero Motorcycles lineup was revealed this morning, and all of its electric motorcycles get some important upgrades: greater range, antilock brakes (ABS), Showa suspension, and Pirelli tires.

For the past three years, Zero Motorcycles been adding greater range and more power to its motorcycles. This year it decided to upgrade other important parts of the bikes, while continuing to extend range as well.

Racing a looming deadline that all motorcycles sold in Europe must have ABS by 2016, Zero met the standard one year early.

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Its previous suspension system, meanwhile, was the main area that many reviewers agreed was underwhelming. Early reviews of the new Showa suspension fitted to 2015 models gives it high marks.

Some of the most important changes came behind the scenes and under the fairings.

With no major overhaul to the motor, Zero worked on perfecting its production processes and simplified some of the installation procedures to save time at dealers.

While that kind of change isn't as sexy as squeezing out a few more horsepower, it is a crucial step to improved quality.

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Zero also has more than doubled its revenues since last year, demonstrating that offering a varied range of motorcycles for different riders is paying dividends.

And staying with the same frame allows many of the upgrades fitted to last year's models to be swapped into the new bikes. For example, if you have a 2014 Zero S or SR with a power tank and want to use that power tank on a 2015 Zero SR, you can easily have it swapped out.

On the software side, the Zero Motorcycles app allows the rider to customize the power and regenerative braking settings, as well as providing information state of charge, speed and energy use.

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The standard charging system is a 1.3kW Delta-Q Quik charger that will completely recharge the bike in 6 to 8 hours, depending on battery size. Many users will never need a full charge, unless they have a particularly long riding day.

Zero plans to ship the first 2015 bikes to U.S. dealerships in December; they will be available in Europe in the early spring of 2015.

Highlights

More range - Zero improved the energy density of their battery packs, which means a 10% increase in range for the Zero SR, S, and DS. This adds approximately 10 miles of range to each model.

New suspension - Zero worked with Showa Corporation to design a high quality suspension that is fully adjustable, including fully adjustable spring preload, compression, and rebound for both front and rear suspension. Showa is known for being the OEM suspension supplier for Honda motorcycles.

Anti-Lock Brakes - Advanced Bosch ABS is now standard on every model. Any company that wants to sell motorcycles in Europe in 2016 must have Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS) installed on their bikes. Zero wisely got a year's head start on this by putting ABS on all of their motorcycles in 2015.

Tires - The SR gets track ready Pirelli Diablo Rossa II tires for extra grip in fast corners. The S gets upgraded significantly with Pirelli Sport Demon tires. The DS is fitted with Pirelli MT-60 endure tires for both street and off-road riding.

Price - With this many upgrades we would expect the price to take a significant jump, but the cost of the motorcycles has barely moved. Thanks to some behind-the-scenes work to improve their manufacturing processes, the prices have only increased by $300-$350 for each model.

2015 Models

2015 Zero SR - After receiving a variety of accolades last year, the SR continues to lead the pack. The SR was designed to be a true race bike and this year it gets the suspension and tires to match its raw power. The Showa suspension gives this ride the feeling it deserves and the rider can adjust it for the track or street riding.

The SR is now equipped with Pirelli Diablo Rossa II tires, the same tires as a Ducati Monster. With a pair of these treads riders are now ready to rip through corners at the track.

The additional battery density lifts the battery pack of the SR from 11.4kWh to 12.5kWh, and with the power tank it goes from 14.2kWh to 15.3kWh. This gives the SR a range of 151 miles or 185 miles with the power tank.