I was wondering if we could take an informal survey of Vectrix owners here as to whether or not you have ever been left stranded by your machine. Meaning that it either broke down, or ran out of juice to the point where you had to get either get a private tow or have another vehicle come to rescue you. Based on reading this forum, and the recent get together in Spain where one broke down, my guess is a good majority have, so I want to answer the question, as a Vectrix owner do you have to have a lined up rescue plan in place to ride it? When you post please if you could state how long you have owned the machine, and how many miles you have put on it, and the number of stranding if any? Thanks.
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Had mine for 3 months. 1100 miles. Not stranded yet :)
Adam - Denver, CO
2007 Vectrix VX-1 charged with the power of the sun = zero carbon footprint
I've had my Vectrix for a year now and 6,000 miles. While I've run out of juice a few times to the point where I was basically pushing the bike to the nearest outlet, I've always found someone nearby who'd take pity on me and allow me to plug in. I've only had one mechanical breakdown (blown motor controller fuse) where I had to leave the bike on the side of the road and hitchhike home.
The HandiHauler is one of the best purchases I've made, one that's been a lifesaver in these scenarios as well as for hauling the Vectrix back and forth for service.
Chad
I've owned my Vectrix for 11 months now and have done over 4,500 miles. I've only been left stranded once (a few miles from home) due to a blown fuse. From what I gather, the new fuse is a different design, so hopefully the problem won't happen again.
2 years, 6,500 miles. I too have run out of juice (twice) and been forced to push it a mile to the nearest charge point. Actually, that's not fair - it will quite happily go under it's own steam at 4mph for ages!
I've had one blown controller. I have an early V and the controller was incompatible with a software upgrade. So, I plugged it in to charge after the upgrade and BOOM (along with a lovely cloud of magic smoke!). Fortunately, Vectrix UK were on the scene in two hours and my day was not disrupted at all. I would argue that this doesn't constitute mechanical failure.
All in all, my V has been completely reliable, apart from the juice issues. Not bad really!
Brian
I've owned two Vectrix bikes, and amassed a bit over 3000 miles combined on the two. Never had to leave either bike or call for a rescue. Come close to running out of steam a few times on deep discharge runs, but I got the routine and route down pretty good now.
I have a hitch hauler at my home, setup for the V, and several friends and relatives with trucks, so if I ever have need of a rescue, it's close by and easy to get to.
http://www.moccsplace.com/vectrix/carrier.htm
Chad,
Does the Handi-Hauler work ok with the vectrix front wheel? Did you have to make any mods to it? That is a great idea and I already have 2 vehicles with hitches. I have been very concerned with having a break down and this would add a great piece of mind. I was considering carrying the spare fuse I purchased and enough tools to change it. The handi-hauler would be a much better alternative. I am sure a come-along would be needed to winch the bike up into the handi-hauler. Have you tried with 2 people to push the vectrix up into the handi-hauler with no power assist from the vectrix?
Thanks for posting this,
Louie
There is some good information on towing a V in this thread from a few months back. Perhaps it should be added to the collaborative handbook!
Regarding the question at hand - I have not been stranded by my V in 1 year / 3000 miles, but have been in limp mode on busy roads several times. Not fun! I agree that one of these hitch solutions is a great idea for rescue situations and am also looking to get one.
Happened to me once in the beginning when I didn’t know her and started to climb a long speedway hill to do a deep discharge more quickly since I had many bars left. Half way I was forced to stop and no way of turning back. So I was forced to call voyage assistance and they picked up me and the bike and delivered us home. This is a free insurance service and I guess that will be used very often in a near future with the arrival of many EVs.
Today I can feel her before the last 10km and it will be very difficult to be surprised. Based on my experience, I have no need of consulting the display bars for small rides...
Ive had my Vx1 for 6 months now and clocked 4,300 km and have never been stranded, about running out of juice, only once while completing a deep discharge and 1km from home, it was all calculated so the answer is NO, i have never run out of juice. I have got very used to it and know the limits.
The only "glitch" that i can say is an uneven gearbox whine noise, which has been fixed and for the moment everything seems to be fine.
Im a very happy owner.
As to the Vectrix that didnt make it in the get together in Spain, it didnt brake down! Simply its new owner (less than a month) had bought it, recharged it and went on vacation. Then he showed up with his first charge!! He had never chrged and dischrged for exercising the Battery so he ended up doing hardly 40Kms.
It was a novice mistake.
That encouraging to hear on both points!
They'll size it for the smaller front wheel for no extra charge, so no mods are necessary.
Yes, when I blew my motor controller fuse I got it up the 2x6" ramp by hand. It took a little bit of a running start, which was tricky, but I did it all by myself on the first try.
Three blown main fuses, two smoldering motor controller connections.
It seems people are not inclined to repeat themselves endlessly.
Therefore, if you want a more true picture to emerge in this thread, it would be better to search VisforVoltage rather than ask again.
This information may be used entirely at your own risk.
There is always a way if there is no other way!
I was looking for answers like the first post, with qualifications if necessary, as evidently this is not such a simple question to answer.
I was also hoping that we might get people posting that haven't had any trouble with their bike, and may not have posted before.
Thought it might be fun to see what the overall percentage might be.
So I count 4 strandings, out of 9, that have posted here so far.
Just looking for a fair survey, so if you own a Vectrix please contribute.
BTW, I posted this question partially to determine whether I need to figure out a prearranged rescue method or not. Today I found out my Allstate motor club will not cover me, so I called AAA. They would require me to purchase their RV plan which would be $133/yr I believe.
I was looking for answers like the first post, with qualifications if necessary, as evidently this is not such a simple question to answer.
I was also hoping that we might get people posting that haven't had any trouble with their bike, and may not have posted before.
Thought it might be fun to see what the overall percentage might be.
So I count 4 strandings, out of 9, that have posted here so far.
Just looking for a fair survey, so if you own a Vectrix please contribute.
BTW, I posted this question partially to determine whether I need to figure out a prearranged rescue method or not. Today I found out my Allstate motor club will not cover me, so I called AAA. They would require me to purchase their RV plan which would be $133/yr I believe.
Chad,
Thank You very much for your response, I ordered one of these today (sized for the Vectrix).
Louie
NJSteve, Rider Insurance includes towing in their policy. NJNick
I got Rider and tried to get their full package, but they wouldn't sell it to me because they said Vectrix wasn't listed in the price book so I had to settle for just liability. But when they sent the policy it had an insert about towing, which I thought that was included by mistake, and meant to ask, but haven't yet.
One year, almost to the day, 1500 miles and NOPE never stranded,
knock on wood!
I have had my Vectrix since October 2008, have done 3300 km and been stranded quite a few times. Not so much through running out of juice, although that has happened a couple of times, I am very proactive about charging at every available opportunity. My bike frequently suffers from various errors and failures and Vectrix Australia will no longer respond to my calls/emails regarding warranty service. I bought a demo bike with 500 km on it and now wonder what on earth it was subjected to during those early kms.
about 4 months, 1800 km, never stranded, never had to push 1 meter.
knock on wood!
"doing nothin = doing nothing wrong" is invalid when the subject is environment
6500 miles, the Trix has its little ways but has not let me down yet. I top-up charge to keep it between 20 & 80%, do a full charge overnight in cool conditions every 200 - 300 miles, and I drive it gently.
The way to go!
This information may be used entirely at your own risk.
There is always a way if there is no other way!
And the equalization only occurs every 200-300 miles? Isn't dangerous?