Zero Rides Into the Adventure Sport Category with the New DSR/X

• Electric motorcycle maker Zero rides into the Adventure Bike segment with the all-electric DSR/X, the top of its line of bikes.

• The Zero DSR/X will go up to 180 miles in city riding, which is where this dual sport scooter is at home.

• Drawbacks are a more realistic range of around 100 miles and a $24,495 price.

Everybody wants adventure, or at least they want to look like they’re going on an adventure. Witness the takeover of what used to be called the “car” market: It is now the SUV and crossover market. Two-box designs of striking similarity parade through strip mall parking lots with roof racks, snow shovels, and gas cans bolted all over the outside. It makes no sense but then, we’re all poseurs in one way or another—why not be ready to dig yourself out of a sand trap if necessary? The same thing, to a lesser extent, is happening in the motorcycle world.

The sales data shows that we Americans still prefer our motorcycles big and heavy—we like cruisers of the Harley-Davidson/Indian variety. Those are still way out in front in terms of what people are actually buying in the US motorcycle market. Sport bikes are next after that, then something called Standard bikes—your generic, two-wheeled, powered conveyance, like my Suzuki SV650.

Within that Standard class is where statisticians have put Adventure Bikes. It’s a small piece of the pie, but it’s growing all the time, with fun, comfortable, capable entries like the new Harley Panamerica, the mighty Ducati Multistrada, Honda Africa Twin, Suzuki V-Strom, and the class-leading BMW R 1250 GS Adventure.

Into this expanding universe of ADVs rides Zero, the most successful electric motorcycle maker. Zero was founded in 2006 by a NASA scientist in Santa Cruz, California. Remarkably, it’s still there. Zero makes its motos not only right here in the USA but in regulation- and tax-happy California.

In 2010 Zero sold the DS—for Dual Sport, street and dirt—as one of its first motorcycles. The DS was based on the S, or street, model. Thirteen years later it’s still offering bikes for the road and the street.

The DSR/X shares some componentry with the SR/S and SR/F road bikes. The DSR/X has a slightly revised frame, with a higher ride height to accommodate an extra 2.5 inches of suspension travel, for a total of 7.5 inches. In front is a Showa inverted fork and in the back is a single Showa shock mounted to a single-sided swing arm.

Both suspensions are fully adjustable. The front wheel is 19 inches, the rear 17—a size pairing that seems to work well with dual sport/adventure bikes that spend most of their time on the pavement. Tires are street-leaning Pirelli Scorpion Trail IIs but you can get more dirt-competent rubber if you like.

The question everyone wants to know is range. How far can it go on a charge? Well, the stock battery is 17.3 kWh (bigger than in a Mitsubishi iMiEV!). That’ll get you 180 miles in stop-and-go city driving, according to Zero. That’s the battery I had in my test bike. The highest range I saw was 116 miles, the lowest 71 miles. Zero lists 107 miles of range at a steady 55 mph, 85 miles at 70 mph. Your mileage will vary—wildly.