(DRI) ZERO DRS/X

Article by Nigel Morris - The Driven

The DSR/X is the latest generation in a long line of dual sport bikes from Californian electric motorcycle stalwart Zero Motorcycles who have a growing presence in Australia. I’ve owned two previous models, a 2010 DS and a 2014 DS, so it was a great chance to see how they’ve evolved over a decade.

I’ll say from the outset that there are plenty of reviews of Zero’s latest range of bikes targeted at ICE bike owners, so my review has a slightly different focus. Primarily, I’m going to focus on what it’s like as an EV, but let’s get a few things out of the way first.

Australian motorcyclists love dual sport bikes because we have lots of crappy roads, plenty of dirt and a sense of adventure. Although long distance and round the world trips been proven to be possible on an electric motorcycle, if you want to regularly tour remote backroads or do huge rides of 500-1000km it remains a big challenge for most people.

However, if you are like the majority of dual sport owners and mostly do commuting with the occasional adventury weekend ride or, you live in a regional area the DSR/X is definitely worth a serious look and has a big bunch of ownership benefits.

You will pay a premium for being an early electric motorcycle adopter and the DSR/X will set you back $47k plus. However, you’ll save thousands each year in maintenance and fuel costs (I save around $3k per year). In any case, motorcycles are rarely purchased on economic, or any other type of rationale logic, so stop thinking so hard and just test ride one if you think making the switch is on your radar.

It’s worth talking briefly about Zero Motorcycles and the market given the challenges that premium electric motorcycle manufacturers have faced recently.

Livewire are struggling to sell bikes, and Energica are in liquidation ,despite both being fantastic machines. In short, it’s a very tough market because the premium segment is very low volume and that has implications if you are considering purchasing a bike like the DSR/X because it’s clearly in this segment.

Zero were founded in 2006, making them one of the oldest and most successful electric motorcycle companies. Their investors continue to show huge enthusiasm, injecting more capital on a regular basis and they are without question selling more electric motorcycles in this premium segment than pretty much anyone else.

They’ve had some ups and downs but recently announced a new foray into the much smaller and lower power segment with their new XB & XE models (think Surron and Talaria).

For premium electric purists, this might seem disappointing but from a business longevity perspective I think it’s smart – because around 10 million light weight two wheelers are sold each year (and almost 2 million outside China).

If Zero can grab just 1% of that market it would roughly quadruple their sales based on publicly available numbers. So, I think it helps position them well for survival. More of this article (The Driven) - link - more like this (electric motorcycles) - link- more like this (Australia) - link