Motors Motorcycle Mayhem

Got myself a fancy gsxr 600 (first bike). What do you guys think of the white and matte black. Previous owner dropped it and cracked the fairing. Paint job was done myself and I am in no sense a professional. Also just put the wheel stripes on this morning.

 

Very nice. Big toy for a first bike though, be careful!

 

It won't be difficult

 

Agreed, I'd give it a go if I were you. SVs are quite easy to work on IIRC.

 

Thanks. I have done a couple things to prepare myself:

Motorcycle safety course
A lot of reading and watching videos
Proper full protective gear no matter the weather
Waited until I was/am 23 (to better fight those "dumb" urges to go fast)
Got a used, newer 2008, so it has the nice safety features but I don't feel bad for scratches and such.

I also started off in "Mode C" which only puts out 60% of the power or something like that (supposed to be for rain riding to avoid too much throttle I believe). So I started off slow but I feel comfortable up to 40, 45mph turning and all. Still nervous turning/leaning it over too much though at higher speeds.

 

Good call on waiting until you were 23. I did exactly the same and am SERIOUSLY glad I did.

 

LOL, I'm 40 this year, them there urges don;t go away

 

Yep! Gave the Haynes (got to love them!) a read and it seems fairly easy to do. When I've more time I'll take out the pump and see how it looks, give it a clean and check over etc. The manual does say to replace any o-rings you remove, as there's one which seals the pump to the tank, and I think others too.. Is it a case of taking it out, measuring and buying the right replacement, or do I not need to if it's in good condition? Just grease it and pop it back in? Will save me a few bob I'm sure!

 

If the o-rings are in good condition, then yeah just re-use them. You may find you get new ones with a new pump anyway

 

Ah well decided to book my bike in for a 41k Service :/ gonna be nice and expensive if valves or clutch need replacing

Just bought some new summer gloves as well, will just need a new jacket soon :/

 

Very nice - looks like a US / Canadian import - there are reflectors on the forks and tail - shouldn't be an issue unless it comes from California where I think they're limited to 100 bhp ... I think ...

 

Lol, yup they never go away I'm 42 and ride an RSV Factory, at weekends I race pitbikes it's so difficult to separate road/race mode

 

The paint job is sweet and done tastefully

 

I'm not sure about the UK pricing, but for Germany that would be quite expensive. (Even though it is a scarce bike as it was never officially imported in Germany)
Looks very nice though.

 

Yes. I looked it up, and there are 9 in the country! Parts availability and the fact it's not really all that cheap have put me off, as well as a non-communicating dealer (I'm not even sure if they've sold it or not!)

Anyway, I'm now pretty damn certain which bike I'm going to get. Early 2000's FZS 600. SV650 is just a tad too expensive to insure for me, quotes for bikes in reasonable condition are around £1800 TPFT, whereas an FZS is coming in closer to £1300. seemingly, however, my quotes start to jump up in price as I look at bikes younger than 2002.

Other bikes I was considering: ZXR 400, although I'm pretty sure that'll be terrible for any sort of distance, but it does look nice, good models are around £2000, and insurance is around £1500 for me too.

Half of me is considering defaulting back to a CB500 twin. £1000 ish to buy, and then £800 insurance, total cost of around £1800, whereas a FZS is looking closer to £2800 including insurance. So CB500=More money for PC upgrades!

It's hard deciding- As always, I'm open to suggestions, but I do think a SV 650 is off the cards.

I'm not trying to get others to do my leg work, but, some guidance could be of use, I've got around £3000 saved, and I've got a stable income at around £110 a week. (Part-time, of course) and no real other commitments. I'm very hesitant to buy new on finance, though.

 

How much to insure the SV?! How old are you? I was 23 when insuring an 04 plate for the 1st time and I got TPFT for £700! Now I'm fully comp with 1 year no claims for £500.

I can't advise on the other bikes, though I've heard CB500's are bombproof like SV's (apparently... ) As a first bike though, I can and always will recommend the SV, despite the problems I've had with mine. As evidenced by previous posts, they're also easy to work on and maintain yourself. Most of the basic and more advanced stuff you can do yourself with a Haynes and the right tools. They're tractors for reliability but they're no slouch! Under 4 seconds to 60 if you're quick enough.

 

Indeed, that is pretty extortionate insurance....are you parking it on the road or something?

I did a 02 VFR800 as a 24 year old 1 year NCB for about £450 TPFT.

 

Well, I’m 18, so that’s probably part of the expense- First bike as well. As for the bike, I was looking at an 04 model, worth around £1500, with a datatool system 3 and datatag too, SD&P including commuting for 10,000 miles a year. Still around £1800 for the SV. I’m not sure if it’s the value of the bike, or how new it is, or whatever.

Even a CG125 would be around £600 TPFT.

Most of my quotes (Apart from the ZXR) were from WickedQuotes, through the Autotrader insurance comparison. Every other insurance seemed to double what WickedQuotes were quoting.

 

Hurry up and get old £90 fully comp on 1050 striple

 

Defo the age....