The Zero Electric Scooter range includes some high-quality scooters that meet a variety of needs. The Zero 9 and 9E offers performance, range, speed, and portability making them an excellent all-around e-scooter of the decade. The pneumatic tires and double suspension give the rider a smooth, comfortable ride. The wide footpad gives stability and the bright LED front and rear lights make riding day or night safe. Extra LED lighting strips on the steering column and deck to add more visibility and also make the Zero 9 look ultra-funky in the dark.
Zero 9 is an excellent premium electric scooter. It has a powerful 600W motor and 21.7-miles of real-world range, combined with a portable 40 lb weight, make it a formidable scooter. The Zero 9 has been one of the most popular and best-rated scooters for a while and has reigned as the Best Electric Scooter Under $1200, for more than a year.
Zero 9 Electric Scooter – A Detailed Review
1. Top Speed and Range
The Zero 9 has an ESG certified top speed of 28.4 mph. This is very fast for an electric scooter. Cruising at 15 to 20 mph feels quick and is enough for most.
A typical ride-share scooter is limited to around 16 mph. The Zero 9 has a 624 watt-hour battery pack made of LG-branded lithium-ion cells. The scooter has an excellent 21.7 miles of real-world range, based on our tests.
2. Structure and Build quality
Overall, Zero 9 is a solid, well-built scooter with a clean design. Zero has been around long enough that this scooter has gone through several iterations. This scooter just keeps getting better with time.
One of the most significant recent additions was moving to brand-name LG batteries. The heavy bolts and abundant stamped metal parts ensure durability.
Altogether the excellent build quality ends up making this scooter one of the quietest, no annoying rattling, ultra-loud motor, or loose coupled components.
The thing to note on the model we tested was one of the folding handlebars would loosen up slightly on long rides. We had to periodically re-tighten this, but it wasn’t a safety issue.
3. Portability and Compactness
The Zero 9 features 3 mechanisms to reduce the size of the scooter, to improve portability and compactness for storage.
The handlebars have a solid folding screw-type mechanism. This allows them to fold but feel very solid and strong when unfolded. We note that on our test model, the right side would loosen up slightly after long rides. We’ve seen this before on other scooters with this mechanism.
This whole scooter converts easily via an anodized metallic tab and hinges mounted onto the scooter deck. Finally, the adjustable stem also collapses. This allows the scooter to provide good ergonomics to taller or shorter riders without sacrificing compactness.
Coming in at 40 lbs, the Zero 9 isn’t the lightest scooter for commuting. However, for an average adult, it shouldn’t be a problem to occasionally carry it up a flight of stairs. It is compact enough when folded (43-inches by 7-inches by 14-inches), to fit into the trunk of a small car.
Sometimes convenience weighs more than anything else. If you are a daily commuter who uses an e-scooter halfway and public transportation the rest of the way, the Zero 9 scooter is perfect in terms of performance and portability.
It has an easy folding system that allows you to carry it inside trains or buses. It even has slightly improved specifications than the Zero 8 as you can go for a short distance longer.
4. Design
The cockpit display LED is simple, providing speed, “gear,” odometer, and battery readout. Brakes are operated by hand levers. The LCD speed display (right) has power and mode buttons, as well as an index finger throttle trigger. From this display, different “P-settings” can be adjusted to control regenerative braking strength and acceleration settings.
The hand position on the scooter is ample and excellent for balance. Furthermore, the folding handlebars help keep this design compact for storing and portability.
5. Tires and Mounted Light
The scooter has both front and rear lighting. The Zero also has a ridiculous amount of swag lighting. Running up the stem is a bright LED strip. On either side of the deck are LED strips, so-called “ground effects,” that light up the road Tron-style. The lighting is sufficient for providing visibility to others on the road at night. However, both the headlight and tail lights are mounted low and don’t project very far.
This scooter is equipped for night riding if you forget additional lights or it’s out of charge. We also recommend adding a clip-on rear light to placed high.
The Zero 9 features 8.5-inch pneumatic innertube (air-filled) front and rear tires. In addition to cushioning the ride, these improve safety by making it easier to roll over bumps and potholes.
Some people complain about flat pneumatic tires. The risk of flats is substantially outweighed by the significant benefits to safety and performance.
6. Comfort Level
The scooter has large pneumatic tires that are excellent for overcoming bumps that might down a scooter with smaller tires. They also cushion the ride. Additionally, Zero 9 has front and rear spring suspension. This suspension doesn’t offer a ton of travel but has a balance of stiffness/spring. Suspension is optimal for riding on paved roads, but it is good enough for light off-road use on hard-packed dirt roads. Combined, the pneumatic tires and suspension make for a very comfortable and safe ride.
7. Off-roading
Zero 9 has a solid hill-climbing ability. It scaled our standardized hill climb test (200 ft, 10% grade, 165 lb rider) in 13.6 seconds at an average speed of 10 mph. It will be slower on steeper hills and with heavier riders, but 10% grade is quite steep! typical ride-share scooter would go about half the speed and take 20 to 25 seconds on the same hill.
8. Power, Comfort, and Safety
You’ll have loads of power for accelerating, and zipping up hills with the powerful 600 watt rear motor. Plenty of range for in-town commuting and even weekend fun with the 48v 13 ah lithium-ion battery. With the dual front and rear suspension as well as the 9″ pneumatic tires.
It will be smooth sailing where ever you ride. Plus the peace of mind braking, no matter how fast you’re going. Feel confident that the rear drum brake and front disc brake will bring you safely to a stop.
Why buy it?
Protect yourself from flats with the most extraordinary tire sealant you can buy. This is the product made for those riders who know they’re going to put it to the test, but it’s also ideal for those riders who simply never want to deal with the headache of a flat tire and want the best in reliability and performance.
Developed and tested on the worst streets and the gnarliest trails, you can count on Armor-Dilloz to keep you rolling. Armor-Dillon is dedicated to making sure you never lose another weekend of riding, and won’t be left walking your device home or taking an Uber. These products are specially designed to offer superior protection and performance.
- Red includes extra ballistic fibers, high-tech suspension agents, variable particle size fillers, and corrosion inhibitors to protect your tires and wheels. Suitable for any vehicle which operates under 48 km/h
- The blue level sealant is specifically designed for fast devices traveling up to and over 48 km/h. Perfect protection for electric scooters and electric unicycles (EUCs)
Specifications of Zero 9 Scooter
| Max Speed | 45 km/h |
| Range | 45 km |
| Weight | 18 kg |
| Charge time | 5-6hrs |
| Maximum Rider Weight | 100 kg |
| Lights | Front, Rear |
| Tires | Front and Rear Pneumatic 9 Inch Rubber |
| Suspension | Front and Rear |
| Brakes | Drum Rear Brake, Disc Front Brake |
| Display | LCD (speedometer, odometer, mode, battery meter, Light Status) |
| Modes | 3 Modes |
| Cruise Control | No |
| Battery Material | Lithium-Ion |
| Battery Output | 48V |
| Motor | 600W Rear Mounted Hub Motor |
| Charger Input Voltage | 100-240 VAC |
Pros and Cons of Zero 9 Electric Scooter
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Wrap Up
Zero 9 is one of the best electric scooters you can buy. Its balanced makes this scooter the right one for a lot of people. Its most significant drawback is its 220 lb weight limit, which will exclude some buyers.
With a powerful 600W motor, this scooter out-performs most other scooters of a similar size. All these at a very compelling price. The ZERO 9 is a good choice for long-range commutes or leisure rides.
It is a solid scooter built to be both enjoyable enough and durable enough for daily use. We think Zero 9 is an ideal scooter for a buyer who is looking for something well-balanced, but light enough to carry occasionally. It has robust safety features, excellent brand reputation, and build quality to make it durable for daily use.