On June 8, 2022, Zero Motorcycles issued a safety recall on certain 2022 SR and SR/F motorcycles due to the possibility of an incorrect front brake caliper bolt having been installed. Affected bikes may have had front brake caliper bolts installed with an incorrect thread pitch, which could cause damage to the mounting threads on the fork. If this happens, the calipers could reduce the clamping load, causing the caliper to loosen, reducing available braking force. As a result, riders could potentially crash.
Approximately 23 motorcycles, or an estimated 10 percent of the population, are believed to be affected. All the 2022 SR and SR/F units with this issue passed through the same production station between April 22, 2022 and April 27, 2022. The last five digits of the VINs on affected bikes are between 21423 and 21486.
According to Zero’s investigation chronology regarding this issue, incorrect M10 bolts with a length of 60mm and a coarse thread pitch of 1.5mm were placed at one production station, mixed in with the correct bolts. The correct M10 bolts for the caliper are 55mm long and have a finer thread pitch of 1.25mm. The visual similarity between the correct and incorrect bolts didn’t immediately alert the production line that something was amiss.
As a result of their coarser thread pitch, the incorrect bolts could cause damage to the threads inside the mounting points on the fork. It was later found that both the correct and incorrect bolts (which have different part numbers) were housed in boxes next to each other in the warehouse. The incorrect bolts have since been relocated elsewhere in the warehouse to avoid future mix-ups.
On affected bikes, Zero Motorcycles dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace both the front brake caliper bolts and the forks. Since all affected bikes are currently covered under warranty, Zero has not created a separate reimbursement plan for owners, as any service related to this issue should have been performed under warranty.
Zero is notifying its dealer network between June 20, 2022 and June 30, 2022. It will also notify owners between June 27, 2022 and July 5, 2022. It has also created a detailed technical service bulletin for dealers, which involves both photography and written instructions on how to inspect the bolts. If the bolts are found to be the incorrect ones, both the bolts and the fork on that bike will be replaced.
Owners may contact Zero Motorcycles customer service at 1-888-841-8085. Zero’s number for this recall is SV-RCL-022-004. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153) or go to www.nhtsa.gov. The NHTSA campaign number for this recall is 22V-403.
