Motorcycle change discussion

[Snjur]

I'm close in parting my ways with Ducati's after 13 years of "partnership" which started with 848 model and continued throughout 1098 base model which with time was heavily modified with Ohlins suspension, ECU exhaust etc....

 

Although it was a joyful ride with a lot of thrill's mostly positive ones Im looking to switch to Japanese "boring" inline 4 motorcycles. Todays bikes have evolved drastically with a tons of riders aid throughout traction controls, cornering abs, quick shifter etc. Price tag on Italian bikes have always been way higher than rest and again after 13 years of v2 i would like to try inline 4 instead of upgrading to Panigale 1299S which I test drove last night and it's a real stunner with looks and performance. Financially I cant afford leaving my present Ducati 1098 and I have a really good deal set on it

 

 

Bike which caught my mind is Kawasaki Gen 5 Zx10RR Ninja which is homologation bike for next year superstock competitions. It's coming with forged aluminium Marchesini wheels, auto blipper, single seater, Brembo M50 calipers, improved cylinder heads to accomodate higher lift cams, reinforced crankcase cover and carisma of 1000 units being produced worldwide and is in black liveries

 

Although on various test which are available Ninja isn't on top of the sheets I reckon with last 3 world superbikes titles by Jonathan Rea that bike must have something in it

 

I never had a soft spot for Yamaha, present Gixxer is ugly as hell and surprisingly Honda CBR SP2 had a lot if issues which are well know. Bmw S1000Rr and Aprila are already 10 years on market so new models are expected in following years which rule's them out too

With all of the above that leaves me with Ninja.

 

Looking for owners around here of Gen 5 Zx10 or anyone who has rode one and can share some feedbacks bearing in mind heritage of motorcycles sports in UK. Even more better would be if someone has drove or experienced more than one of these 1 liter bikes of recent generation and can share theirs viewa.

I couldn't find a single owner of Gen 5 zx10r in Croatia to arrange test drive or ask any questions.

 

 

 

Edited July 9, 2018 by Snjur

[StevoD]

I think coming from ducati to kawa you will be disappointed in the feel of everything. 

 

 

[Snjur]

Good point but after 1198 Ducati has ditched they trade mark of tubular steel frame and went a new way where engine is main component of chassis 

 

Last year I rode first Panigale 1199S Tricolore and I was surprised they way it handled. Nothing like Ducati's with tubular steel frame. 

 

Last night I was planning to test drive Panigale 1299S but rain has spoiled all, manage do do just a small mainly straight runs

 

Thing which I noticed in these YT test is that Kawa has a really excellent front end and is very friendly to use 

[StevoD]

Granted I've not ridden them but i have always been told the proper zx bikes are animals that want to throw you off. 

 

Have you ridden the s1000rr?

 

Love the blue they came in 

Edited July 9, 2018 by StevoD

[Snjur]

I did awesome bike, has been a benchmark for years now but it has been already 10 years on market now and new bike is expected next year. Since i plan to buy bike September i can rule out bimmer and rsv4. 

Although bimmers have issues of their own too which I've seen on my own eyes.

 

Brother of mine has bought brand new s1000r less than 1.5k mile one of valves went into cylinder. He did get a new engine on warranty but still...

[StevoD]

10 minutes ago, Snjur said:

I did awesome bike, has been a benchmark for years now but it has been already 10 years on market now and new bike is expected next year. Since i plan to buy bike September i can rule out bimmer and rsv4. 

Although bimmers have issues of their own too which I've seen on my own eyes.

 

Brother of mine has bought brand new s1000r less than 1.5k mile one of valves went into cylinder. He did get a new engine on warranty but still...

Oh wow wasn't aware of that, seems most company's are killing off or not refreshing super sports as much now a days money is going into adventure and naked/retro stuff. Which I'll be honest is more my thing , 

 

I'm looking for something to get on but my budge of around 4k is putting me with er6n and sv650s haha 

 

 

[Snjur]

Majority of bikes from first series of s1000rr have second engine in it. I think with facelift model they have sorted out problem.They have tendency not to ask much questions they simply give you new engine which keeps owners happy and there is not much talk afterwards of it plus options of renewing extended warranties etc.

 

As you say retro and sport/adventure bikes are now taking fair share of market. Would be ideal to have a 2 bikes on the lawn but financial I can't afford it so I will go with sportbike instead of something like Ducati Multistrada

 

 

[Jetpilot]

1 hour ago, StevoD said:

I think coming from ducati to kawa you will be disappointed in the feel of everything. 

I went from Japanese to Italian and back to Japanese, i wasnt disappointed with any change, its just a different ride, much like a a say vtech with all the power high up to a vq with grunt from low down.

47 minutes ago, StevoD said:

Granted I've not ridden them but i have always been told the proper zx bikes are animals that want to throw you off. 

 

Mmmm, yes, my Zx9R spat my off which resulted in a shattered talus, double compound fracture and a foot 130 degrees out of position 

 

I am afraid i couldnt look much past a blade, maybe not the fastest or if you wanted something a little off beat a Mv off sorts

[rabbitstew]

1 hour ago, Snjur said:

Brother of mine has bought brand new s1000r less than 1.5k mile one of valves went into cylinder. He did get a new engine on warranty but still...

I had the same thing happen with a brand new Ducati 748S back in 2000. Only 600 miles on the clock too!

 

If you have been riding Ducati`s for the last 13 years, getting on a screaming 4 pot will be interesting! I actually have an R1 and a Ducati 996 in my collection and have to say I love riding them both, but completely different characters. The R1 just screams and screams when you rev it. You can wring its neck and its so quick. It just accelerates and accelerates until you think "woah, id better stop". Whilst the 996 is a heavy old Ducati, the R1 feels just so much more nimble. The Ducati however has the sheer character, noise (open clutch & race termi`s), more extreme to ride and makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up everytime you open the throttle.

 

In general with the Ducati I find myself being lazy and keeping it in higher gears rather than change down, whereas the R1 im working the box a bit more.

 

Ive had a couple of kawasaki`s, nothing new though, but they used to be great bikes. I did 40,000 miles on my ZXR750L2 which ive still got, and had a ZX6R for a while. Build quality was good and I never had any issues.

[StevoD]

42 minutes ago, Jetpilot said:

I went from Japanese to Italian and back to Japanese, i wasnt disappointed with any change, its just a different ride, much like a a say vtech with all the power high up to a vq with grunt from low down.

Mmmm, yes, my Zx9R spat my off which resulted in a shattered talus, double compound fracture and a foot 130 degrees out of position 

 

I am afraid i couldnt look much past a blade, maybe not the fastest or if you wanted something a little off beat a Mv off sorts

Didn't mean ride meant more quality on switch gear etc.

[Snjur]

On 09/07/2018 at 16:49, rabbitstew said:

I had the same thing happen with a brand new Ducati 748S back in 2000. Only 600 miles on the clock too!

 

If you have been riding Ducati`s for the last 13 years, getting on a screaming 4 pot will be interesting! I actually have an R1 and a Ducati 996 in my collection and have to say I love riding them both, but completely different characters. The R1 just screams and screams when you rev it. You can wring its neck and its so quick. It just accelerates and accelerates until you think "woah, id better stop". Whilst the 996 is a heavy old Ducati, the R1 feels just so much more nimble. The Ducati however has the sheer character, noise (open clutch & race termi`s), more extreme to ride and makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up everytime you open the throttle.

 

In general with the Ducati I find myself being lazy and keeping it in higher gears rather than change down, whereas the R1 im working the box a bit more.

 

Ive had a couple of kawasaki`s, nothing new though, but they used to be great bikes. I did 40,000 miles on my ZXR750L2 which ive still got, and had a ZX6R for a while. Build quality was good and I never had any issues.

Spot on. I doubt any bike can come close to the carisma which Ducati brings, from looks, sound etc. 

 

Full Termi's, dry clutch and so. Hard to beat that.

 

I don't know maybe i reached period of my life where i need a "boring" bike although I really doubt in that by spec's of Ninja on paper. It is the only bike with Euro 4 norm compliant by now. On paper with stock exhaust it is producing 215 bhp with Ram Air. Once exhaust is down and upgraded with Akrapovic and remap those will be pretty scary numbers

[Ekona]

This thread is making me want a Ducati. 

[ilogikal1]

14 hours ago, Ekona said:

This thread is making me want a Ducati. 

 

They mike bikes, not handbags... you know that right? Just checking. 

[Ekona]

6 hours ago, ilogikal1 said:

 

They mike bikes, not handbags... you know that right? Just checking. 

Would it not be better for Ducati to manufacture them, rather than wire them up for sound? Just checking.

 

Edited July 11, 2018 by Ekona

[ilogikal1]

2 hours ago, Ekona said:

Would it not be better for Ducati to manufacture them, rather than wire them up for sound? Just checking.

 

That’ll teach me to try to be funny before coffee! 

[Cimanu]

I worked for Honda up until 2014 so rode everything I worked on and trade ins we had - so any litre to 14' I can help you on! (yes, even the awful RC8)

 

I'm no racer so I can't tell you what they're like on the limit or anything like that..

 

The Honda/Gsxr of that age are much of a muchness, nothing wrong with either. ZX10 is noticably faster, S1000RR feels faster still over the others (nasty clicky BMW switches though..!). RSV is a nice thing to listen to but under the fairings it's a real mess. I'm not even going to mention the crossplane R1... get one before that engine if you want a Yam.

 

Of that age I would have gone ZX10 as it's a real lary bugger (and green..) - I imagine the current one is much the same! Don't look so much at the 'race' tech on them, i.e HP4 bmw, you're not going to notice any of that on road.

 

I rode the first SP blades with the ohlins and brembos, felt the same as a standard one to me.. little smoother engine.

 

Depends what you're after bike wise, whether just for fun or longer distance? I like anything 10k rpm+, one of my favs was always a street triple R.. crazy little thing to ride but prob an effort on a long run.

 

Ask me stuff, there's a good chance I've ridden one and worked on them..

[Snjur]

4 hours ago, Cimanu said:

I worked for Honda up until 2014 so rode everything I worked on and trade ins we had - so any litre to 14' I can help you on! (yes, even the awful RC8)

 

I'm no racer so I can't tell you what they're like on the limit or anything like that..

 

The Honda/Gsxr of that age are much of a muchness, nothing wrong with either. ZX10 is noticably faster, S1000RR feels faster still over the others (nasty clicky BMW switches though..!). RSV is a nice thing to listen to but under the fairings it's a real mess. I'm not even going to mention the crossplane R1... get one before that engine if you want a Yam.

 

Of that age I would have gone ZX10 as it's a real lary bugger (and green..) - I imagine the current one is much the same! Don't look so much at the 'race' tech on them, i.e HP4 bmw, you're not going to notice any of that on road.

 

I rode the first SP blades with the ohlins and brembos, felt the same as a standard one to me.. little smoother engine.

 

Depends what you're after bike wise, whether just for fun or longer distance? I like anything 10k rpm+, one of my favs was always a street triple R.. crazy little thing to ride but prob an effort on a long run.

 

Ask me stuff, there's a good chance I've ridden one and worked on them..

Cool thanks on a reply. After a buch of YT test I've ruled out Blade SP' it seams their electronics are very intrusive and they thend to have issues with QS. 

Although everybody's have praised her lightweight and the way it drives as per test it feels like 600.

 

From what I've managed to pick up Gixxer 1000R would be the best buy, but it's hugly ugly bike.

 

Reason why I narrowed my search to Kawa RR is mainly exclusivity 1000 pcs made, already comes with fancy goodies like Marchesini wheels and is race spec bike. 

 

And yes it's the biggest from all liter bikes. I like to have "piece" of bike underneath 

 

Edited July 16, 2018 by Snjur

[Cimanu]

58 minutes ago, Snjur said:

Cool thanks on a reply. After a buch of YT test I've ruled out Blade SP' it seams their electronics are very intrusive and they thend to have issues with QS. 

Although everybody's have praised her lightweight and the way it drives as per test it feels like 600.

 

From what I've managed to pick up Gixxer 1000R would be the best buy, but it's hugly ugly bike.

 

Reason why I narrowed my search to Kawa RR is mainly exclusivity 1000 pcs made, already comes with fancy goodies like Marchesini wheels and is race spec bike. 

 

And yes it's the biggest from all liter bikes. I like to have "piece" of bike underneath 

 

Ah I rode an earlier SP blade, not the current model. I left Honda in 2014. From the sounds of it yes they're having a ton of trouble with them.. we had some rather concerning issues with the brakes on the ABS blades 09-12...

 

If you're after exclusivity and a bit of size how about an H2 ;)?

[Snjur]

1 hour ago, Cimanu said:

Ah I rode an earlier SP blade, not the current model. I left Honda in 2014. From the sounds of it yes they're having a ton of trouble with them.. we had some rather concerning issues with the brakes on the ABS blades 09-12...

 

If you're after exclusivity and a bit of size how about an H2 ;)?

 

I see ABS is stepping stone on all moder liter superbikes. Same models without ABS seem to have a better feeling on lever across different manufacturers.

 

H2 is a wicked bike. Supercharged 2 wheels is insane but not my cup of tea. I like to do few track days a year and H2 is not something build for track

[Jetpilot]

Ive not been to many tracks where you can use the extra capacity of a 1000cc +, certainly in the uk, barring maybe Silverstone, in most cases you would be faster on a 600cc, having said that, i can totally relate to wanting big cc. I know they are a thing of the past but imho its a shame they dropped 750's, my Zx7R was such a good bike to ride, i much preferred that to the Zx9RC1 i ended up with.

[Snjur]

44 minutes ago, Jetpilot said:

Ive not been to many tracks where you can use the extra capacity of a 1000cc +, certainly in the uk, barring maybe Silverstone, in most cases you would be faster on a 600cc, having said that, i can totally relate to wanting big cc. I know they are a thing of the past but imho its a shame they dropped 750's, my Zx7R was such a good bike to ride, i much preferred that to the Zx9RC1 i ended up with.

Good think about liter bikes is they have grunt everywhere. Even if you make any mistake you can make it up with throttle wile on 600 bikes you have a very narrow powerband range

[Snjur]

I simply can't stop thinking about Panigale v4S lately

 

It is ridiculously expensive bike. Looks are by far the most sexiest out there

 

Whole electronics package is insane, in power terms as well 214 bhp on crank, crank is counter rotating. Slide control, engine brake control, Ohlins electronical suspension settings, cornering abs etc quite of big list of goodies.

With race kit and Akrapovic it outputs 226bhp

 

I'm really stuck in between rock and a hard place. Im trying to find reasons to justify myself throwing such amount of money for motorcycle

 

I've watched basically every review YT from MCN, 44 teeth and this bikes is really a game changer

[Jetpilot]

Looks infinitely better than their MotoGp effort, i do hope they dont put aero on road bikes 

[Snjur]

1 hour ago, Jetpilot said:

Looks infinitely better than their MotoGp effort, i do hope they dont put aero on road bikes 

Aprilia started with their Rsv RF, aero parts can be added

[Snjur]

And than 180° degree turn

 

Ktm SXF 250 2008

 

I've been hearing a lot lately on enduro hive and last couple of years i wanted to get motocross bike specially after I moved to mainland with a lot of forests and plains surroundings.

 

Novice in this type of bikes but they are tons of fun and adrenaline. I regret now for not doing this before. 

Really loads of fun for affordable price 

Unbelievable what kind of terrain this bikes can tackle.