Just bought this, should be collecting it on Tuesday, looks like good weather ahead to Christen a new bike.
Probably the motorcycle equivalent of a washing machine, but I wanted a centre & ABS for the winter commute, together with better distance covering ability than the current fleet.
I test rode plenty of new bikes (Tracer, Versys 1000, Tiger 800, 1190 Adventure & S1000XR) & really wanted the XR, but couldn't live with the vibrations above 6k, not for the price anyway, so I thought I'd save a load of money & look for one of these as it seemed to be the only bike to tick all boxes - relatively light, decent bit of power if lacking a bit low down (might change the sprockets to help here, but need to consider cruising RPM), should be reliable, fairly new, etc, etc.
She looks good 8) ....very reliable bikes, good quality and well put together......cant say ive heard if many problems with them...being picky then perhaps a few dashboard problems with the electronics but no more than any other modern bike with fancy dash.
Doesnt sound like doing the mods is high on the agenda but there are a few easy fixes that arent too expensive......well actually you then need a power commander and they aint cheap but the mods themselves are cheap with good results.
Enjoy the forum, great place.
Easiest way to go fast........don't buy a blue bike
A friend recommend the forum, not sure if he posts much or what his name on here is, but I like what I've seen so far.
As for mods, all I'm going to do for now is fit some crash bungs (R&G saved my old Thundercat), a fender extender of some sort, belly pan, if I can find one the right colour, and a top box. Gearing (or possibly a PC etc) will have to wait until I'm more familiar with the bike, and I fancy changing the indicators at some point.
Tracer just had awkward ergonomics - sat right over tank, heels kept tapping pillion pegs and shin on engine/alt cover whenever I used the rear brake (I'm 6'2"), fueling wasn't smooth, but would have been bearable. Handling was fun, but would have been tiresome over any distance.
Versys was comfy, but had an awful weave/wobble at speed - potentially fixable with a change to the screen, but maybe not. Felt a little lardy, but again I could have put up with that.
XR was superb apart from the vibration - fine for a £6k bike, but I would've been spending best part of £17k.
The XR and KTM were the only bikes that seemed to have adequate ground clearance so I wasn't scraping the pegs.
Also all of them have properly wide bars - not a major issue, but would be a bit of a nuisance in Central London.
Yep, rode an 800 XRT, loved it, could have even coped with only 96hp, but I kept scraping the pegs, whilst riding conservatively. It was really smooth and comfy and felt quite agile, but pretty stable.
So I tried an XC (larger wheels = more ground clearance), yet still managed to catch the pegs.
I do like the Triumph whine, too.
The FZ1 isnt perfect in respect of ground clearance and vibes, but I didn't pay a new bike price for it so am happy to compromise a little.
Started the bike today, but the dash did not light up, nor did the headlights - side/parking lights only - no fucking good for an 0615 commute in the dark and pissing rain.
(24-09-15, 10:37 AM)Tribal Chestnut link Wrote:Disaster!!
Started the bike today, but the dash did not light up, nor did the headlights - side/parking lights only - no fucking good for an 0615 commute in the dark and pissing rain.
Took the R1 and have contacted the dealer.
Disappointing load of bollocks.
A couple of days after getting my 2003 (back in July, my bike admittedly quite a bit older than yours with 13,000 miles at the time), during an evening ride, I stalled the engine at a traffic light. The bike would not restart (starter would not crank). I was with friends, I pushed the bike to the sidewalk and my friends went with me. Nothing would do, dash was on but no starter. We restarted the bike the old fashion way (by pushing). My friends followed me home, the trip was uneventful. Once home, I checked the starter and the engine started right up. It has never done it again, that was almost 3,000 miles ago.
I surmised the bike had not been used for a while when I bought it and it probably was a bad electrical connection in the starter circuit that fixed itself. I should probably replace the relay, or at least buy a spare...
If it had not been for your post, I would have forgotten about it. The bike has been superb ever since in all respects.
(25-09-15, 07:57 PM)Tribal Chestnut link Wrote:Thanks Didier.
Was just a damp electrical connection. Though I'd bought another Yam, not a Ducati.
Oh well, sorted now and the dealer was good as gold (P&H) in Crawley.
Sodding awful journey home.
I fucking hate the M25. An hour+ of solid filtering.
They should ditch HS2 and the north/south London Crossrail and put a railway around that miserable road.
Funny, my problem occurred two days after I brought the bike from where I bought it, including about 15 miles under the kind of summer thunderstorms I had never seen until I came to Florida (for the record, I was wearing an open face helmet, my vision glasses, a shirt and jeans) So yes, moisture may well have been involved in my problem as well
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