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Maintenance

Zero's service schedule, for every model

An electric motorcycle has no oil, no coolant, no clutch and no valves — but it still has a schedule, and Zero prints it as a list that makes it hard to see what falls due together. This is the same schedule for all 13 models, drawn on a distance axis: 72 intervals and 101 torque figures, each plan citing the manual page it came from.

Last updated: September 17, 2026
~8 min read13 models · 72 intervals · 13/13 page-verified

In short

  • Zero's schedule is short. For most models the recurring work is one line: every 8,000 mi (13,000 km) or 12 months, on 10 of the 13 plans.
  • The drive belt is replaced every 24,000 mi (37,000 km). Nothing else on a belt-driven Zero is a wear item on that scale.
  • The break-in services are the ones people miss, because they arrive within weeks of buying the bike and are separated from everything else by two orders of magnitude.
  • 11 of 13 models have a belt and 2 have a chain (XB and XE) — which is the difference between a drivetrain you never lubricate and one you lubricate every 500 km.
  • Where a row lists both a distance and a period, Zero's rule is to follow whichever comes first.

How to read the timeline

Each model's schedule is drawn as two tracks, because one axis cannot hold it. The first service is at a few hundred kilometres and the belt is replaced tens of thousands later, so on a single linear scale the break-in services land in the same pixel and the part of the schedule a new owner is actually in disappears.

The recurring track draws every occurrence, not just the first. That is the point: an interval is not an event, and what a rider plans around is where several fall on the same day. Drawn this way you can see it — at some readings two services coincide, further out three do.

  • Break-in — the one-off services in the first few hundred kilometres. Own scale.
  • Recurring — every repeat of every periodic interval, to the end of the axis.
  • Every ride — pre-ride checks, which have no position on a distance axis at all.
  • As needed — items Zero lists without an interval.

What is not on the list

The striking thing about a Zero's schedule is how much of a petrol motorcycle's is simply absent. There is no oil and no oil filter, no coolant, no spark plugs, no air filter, no valve clearances, no clutch. The powertrain is a sealed motor, a controller and a pack, and none of the three has a scheduled service item.

What remains is the part of a motorcycle that was never electric: brakes, tyres, bearings, suspension and the final drive. Brake fluid is the one fluid, and on most models it is replaced on the same visit as everything else.

Time counts even when distance does not

Several intervals carry "or 12 months", and Zero also recommends a dealer inspection annually regardless of distance. Brake fluid absorbs water whether the bike is ridden or not, which is why the calendar half of that rule exists.

Belt or chain — the one fact that changes everything

11 of Zero's 13 models drive the rear wheel through a Gates carbon belt. 2 — the XB and XE — use a chain. A belt is never lubricated with oil or grease, needs its tension checked rather than adjusted constantly, and is replaced whole on a long interval. A chain is lubricated every 300 mi (500 km) and after any wet or dirty ride.

That difference is why generic motorcycle maintenance advice goes wrong on a Zero more often than it goes right, and it is worth checking which one you have before following anything written for "a motorcycle".

Drive belt: tension, alignment and what changedWhat each noise means — including belt noise

Where these numbers come from

Every plan below names the manual and the PDF page its schedule is printed on, and that page reference is resolved against the PDF itself when this site is built — not read off a text index, which is where citations go wrong. 13 of the 13 are confirmed.

6 of the 13 schedules are cited to an OWNER manual rather than a service manual, and that is not an oversight. Two of Zero's service manuals carry no maintenance schedule at all — the LS1's has only tyre pressures and lubrication points, and the XMX's, covering the FX family, has none either. Citing the service manual because it is the more official document would put those citations on a page that does not contain what they claim.

Zero already expects you to keep a record

All 13 owner manuals end with a blank Maintenance Record — a form with "Odometer reading:", "Date:" and "Notes:" for each service. If you have an account here you can keep the same record against your own bike, with costs, and see it drawn against this schedule.

Every model

Pick a model to see its schedule drawn out, its torque figures, and the manual page the plan is taken from.

Zero S

Full specs for the S

Break-in

Own scale — these all happen in the first 1k km
160
Dealer service
1k
Dealer service

Recurring

Every mark is one occurrence, to 40k km
Every 13k kmor 12 months — whichever first

replace brake fluid, wheels run-out, wheel bearings, drive belt tension, steering bearings, chassis fasteners

Every 25k km

repack steering bearings with grease

Every 37k km

replace drive belt, swingarm pivot bearings

08k16k24k32k40k

Final drive

Type
belt
Tension
MY2014–2023 (SDS platform): 42.5–73.6 Hz — Gates Carbon Drive, 11 mm pitch, Tension Tester 25–76.5 kg. MY2024 onwards (FST platform): 62–82 Hz.
Inspect
Every 8,000 mi (13,000 km) or 12 months
Replace
Every 24,000 mi (37,000 km)
Brake fluid
DOT 4

A belt is never lubricated with oil or grease. What to do when it makes noise.

Key torque figures

Rear axle nut
75 lb·ft (102 Nm)
Belt tension adjustment bolts
4 lb-ft (5 Nm)
Power pack to frame bolts (left/right side)
26 lb-ft (35 Nm)
Brake hose banjo bolt
20 lb-ft (27 Nm)
Power pack ground strap bolt
5 lb-ft (7 Nm)
Every torque Zero publishes, by model year →

Source: S_SR-SRF_Service_Manual_8811935-AJ.pdf, page 13 — confirmed against the PDF at build time. Zero's own blank service-history form is on page 151 of 21MY_SDS_OM_-_English-04.pdf.

Frequently asked

How often does a Zero need servicing?

For most models the main recurring service is every 8,000 mi (13,000 km) or 12 months, which covers brake fluid replacement, wheels and wheel bearings, drive belt tension, steering bearings and chassis fasteners. Before that there are two break-in services in the first few hundred kilometres, and Zero recommends a dealer inspection every 12 months regardless of distance.

When does a Zero drive belt need replacing?

Every 24,000 mi (37,000 km) on the street and adventure models. It is inspected and its tension checked far more often than that — on the same visit as the main service — but replacement is a long-interval item.

Does a Zero need an oil change?

No. There is no engine oil, no oil filter, no coolant, no spark plugs, no air filter and no valve clearances on any Zero. The only fluid in the schedule is brake fluid.

What is the first service on a Zero?

Most models have two early services: one at 100 mi (160 km) and a second at 600 mi (1,000 km), covering drive belt tension, wheel and steering bearings, the brake lever pivot, the kickstand, the throttle and motor commissioning. The smaller models use 60 mi (100 km) for the first one. Zero describes the initial service as vitally important and not to be neglected.

Do I have to use a Zero dealer?

The schedule is the schedule wherever the work is done, but some items are dealer procedures — motor commissioning and timing is one, and the high-voltage system requires specific training, tools and qualifications. Warranty terms are a separate question from the schedule itself and are set out in your own warranty document.

Sources

  • Zero Motorcycles — owner manuals (official downloads)
  • Zero Motorcycles — support and service

Extracted from the official manuals into a machine-readable schedule, with each plan's citation resolved against the PDF at build time. Torque figures are reproduced as printed, in both units.

This is a third-party reference compiled from Zero Motorcycles documentation. It is not a workshop manual, it is not affiliated with Zero Motorcycles, and it does not replace the manual for your own model year. Work on the high-voltage system requires specific training, qualifications and tools.