Alternatives to the fzs1000?

[bludclot]

If the original poster is considering a gen 1 thou then it seems a bit pointless talking about £6-12 bikes - no gen 1 is worth that right now. Also the luggage issue was brought up so  to my mind there's some obvious alternatives that haven't been mentioned:


Bandit 1200 / 1250: cheap,  large engined half faired bike that can be found with rack / top box / panniers already fitted at previous owners expense if patient or lucky.


CB1300 SA: half faired again, top box is easy, I don't recall seeing panniers on one but it will obviously take soft luggage and will probably outlast the human race and still start on the button and purr nicely.


ZRX1100 / 1200 - quite cool, very meaty but (dare I say it?) even less build quality than the Suzuki. I've ridden and worked on one that's toured and, well, it needs a good deal of maintenance to keep it tip top.


R1150R - a more left field choice but big, torquey, comfortable and will most likely come with luggage fitted, just add a screen. I've owned one and it's surprisingly good - but not as reliable as the roundel would suggest.


All viable alternatives and available for around £3k.

[JoeRock]

Would second the Z1000SX. Can pick up tidy gen 2 models (with abs and traction control) for £6k+ (add another £500 or so for panniers).
First gen models are circa 4k and up, ish!

[duxsy]

thanks everyone for the input, a lot of food for thought.

Cbf1000, more like a grown up  Fzs600 than any other bike I've ridden, (I owned a Fzs 1000 at the same time as my 600 so have done direct comparison). Kawasaki Z1000SX about the closet I've ridden to the 1000, very nearly bought one(that good) but bought a new model crossrunner instead (flawed and no longer in the garage).

very interesting, can you tell me a little more about this? is the cbf1000 easy to manoeuvre at low speeds, would you be able to do a u-turn easily on a normal street?
how does the cbf and fzs 1000 compare?

If the original poster is considering a gen 1 thou then it seems a bit pointless talking about £6-12 bikes - no gen 1 is worth that right now. Also the luggage issue was brought up so  to my mind there's some obvious alternatives that haven't been mentioned:Bandit 1200 / 1250: cheap,  large engined half faired bike that can be found with rack / top box / panniers already fitted at previous owners expense if patient or lucky.CB1300 SA: half faired again, top box is easy, I don't recall seeing panniers on one but it will obviously take soft luggage and will probably outlast the human race and still start on the button and purr nicely.ZRX1100 / 1200 - quite cool, very meaty but (dare I say it?) even less build quality than the Suzuki. I've ridden and worked on one that's toured and, well, it needs a good deal of maintenance to keep it tip top.R1150R - a more left field choice but big, torquey, comfortable and will most likely come with luggage fitted, just add a screen. I've owned one and it's surprisingly good - but not as reliable as the roundel would suggest.All viable alternatives and available for around £3k.

spot on, I'm after a cheaper option which will take luggage. thanks for the recommendations, off I go to research them all!

[Hugh Mungus]

Hello thou riders,

I love my fzs600 but it's time for something bigger. Are there any viable alternatives to the thou? I hope I don't set off a lynch mob 
Need Not necessarily be as powerful as the thou but still more powerful than the 600 and with a similar riding position and easy to add luggage to? Am I blind or is there actually nothing?

Any thoughts welcome,
D.

Going back to your original question (after reading all our other ideas) I honestly think that a Gen 1 Fazer Thou is the best all round bike.


I'm not being biased because I have one - It is the reason I bought one.


I miss my FJR1300 but would I trade my Fazer for one? No.
My previous bike was a V-Strom 1000 - It doesn't even compare to a Fazer which is why I got rid of it.


I can ride my Fazer into town or go on a mad ride round the country lanes just enjoying myself. Even all day rides to the other side of the country and back within a day are possible - and I have all the luggage space I need (as long as my wife leaves me some room...)

[duxsy]

yeah I was looking at the v-strom but didn't seem all that exciting. I guess it's between the thou and the CBF1000 but on paper the fazer seems like it's more worth it. I guess the only advantage of the honda over the fzs600 i have now is luggage, so doesn't seem worth paying a grand just for that.


what do you make of this one?
https://www.gumtree.com/p/yamaha-motorbikes/yamaha-fzs-1000-fazer/1301228949

[Hugh Mungus]

It's not cheap. It does look great but I'd still be looking to get that price down.

[duxsy]

It's not cheap. It does look great but I'd still be looking to get that price down.

yeah, found another one though that's more what I'm looking for (full panniers) but 67k miles. can't wait to see it tomorrow

https://www.gumtree.com/p/yamaha-motorbikes/yamaha-fzs-1000-fazer-03-over-£1k-spent-/1300052044

[Hugh Mungus]

That looks to be a good buy and it's not a bad price.
The panniers look to be the slim-line one's. You can still get a fair bit of kit inside them.
Money has been spent in the correct areas - just make sure the exup valve works if it hasn't been removed. If the bike struggles to rev beyond 6,000 rpm the exup valve is stuck.

[King Orry]

Just ridden r-kids CBF1000, extremely bland motorcycle.
The most interesting feature is it’s low seat height.!
Seriously, it looks like it should be great, but that Fireblade engine is too emasculated, it’s too civilised, too ‘Honda’.
You must try one before committing.
I like the look of the R1200RS, the 1250 Bandit can be found fully loaded for a decent price, a TDM900 might be interesting, the ZXR1200 and GSX1400 very ‘macho’, and if you fancy ballistic speed, the Blackbird and ZZR1400’s are totally mad, but eminently useable.
I do like the Multistrada and XR1000, but sheet, as Cilla might say, they’re a lorra-lorra cash.

[Ricky]

Had a TDM 900 for 12 years before I had the FZS 1000 a very underestimated bike , not in the same league as the Fazer in power, but a characteristic bike, I wish I kept it, but a choice if I had to pick , it would be the Fazer.

[Mustang]

I could be tempted by a Multistrada, might have a test ride.

[duxsy]

That looks to be a good buy and it's not a bad price.
The panniers look to be the slim-line one's. You can still get a fair bit of kit inside them.
Money has been spent in the correct areas - just make sure the exup valve works if it hasn't been removed. If the bike struggles to rev beyond 6,000 rpm the exup valve is stuck.

I went to see it, somehow it didn't feel quite right. It's a german import with the speedo in kms only, but apparently it's been recalibrated to show miles? so when it says 60 kmph it's actually 60 mph. Heard of that before? the rear shock was showing quite a bit of corrosion as were the exhaust header bolts, and the screen just looked weird. the guy also did all mods himself and said he wasn't a mechanic so I guess there's trust issues there as no service book although he had all receipts


I found another one but without the luggage, and one with the luggage but  a hundred bloody miles away.

https://www.gumtree.com/p/yamaha-motorbikes/yamaha-fzr1000-fazer-2003/1299647960   this one has axel covers or something on the front, haven't seen those before, what are they for? and the shock is yellow so could be the r6 mod? it's quite corroded on th ebottom so worried about the exup valve, although can't see from the pics.


and then this one looks mint https://www.gumtree.com/p/yamaha-motorbikes/yamaha-fzs1000/1300408180 but i don't get why he says he has a beowulf can but it's the standard on the pic


maybe i'll be cheeky and check if the first guy will sell me his luggage set only...

[Dea-ville]

The "axle covers" are fork sliders/crash bungs to protect the forks in the event of an off.

[Trebus]

Changing the clock face is fairly easy and quite common. My bike is an import and has the same set up, at least it did until I picked up some cheap MPH clocks and changed them over. Old ones worked just fine.

[Hugh Mungus]

Expect exhaust header bolts to be rusty. They end up like that on all bikes after a while and it's something you don't touch unless you really need to.
Unless the rear shock was really bad I wouldn't worry too much as long as the unit wasn't leaking oil but you could use that as a bargaining point to get some money off and then buy the R6 conversion for £275
Most of us on here aren't mechanics either. I do all the work on my own bikes as I don't trust mechanics to do the job properly - ok I do know 2 mechanics that I trust - and I don't put too much faith in service book records either.


Those side boxes for the bike in Norwich are huge (I've got the same ones) and it makes getting on/off very tricky for the pillion as they are very close to the footpeg.