|
|
| Motorcycle Message Board - Motorcycle USA > MotorcycleUSA.com! > Bike Reviews > 2007 Streetfighter Comparo II | Forum Quick Jump
|
 | 
flickmeister
Registered Member
      
Date Joined May 2004
Total Posts : 1021
| Posted 10/15/2007 12:40 PM (GMT -8) |   | Bart,
Congrats. That may be one of the best comparo tests I've ever read. You covered all of the bases as to bike performance, you had a great variety of riders, and it was beautifully written. The only problem you now have is that we'll expect this of you for every test.
The only one I've ridden is the Tuono Factory, and it is one beautiful ride. My question is (since I haven't ridden the non-Factory model), from a handling point of view, how much better is the Factory model? Is it worth any where near the price difference? If the Factory model is 100%, what % would you put on the regular 'R' model's handling? Thanks in advance. Cheers, Jack | | Back to Top | | |
|
Cutter
Registered Member
Date Joined Oct 2007
Total Posts : 3
| Posted 10/15/2007 1:50 PM (GMT -8) | | | what about the Honda 919?? I know that it is not the latest and greatest but it is very good value and provides pretty much all the performance a person really needs on the street. | | Back to Top | | |
|
Cutter
Registered Member
Date Joined Oct 2007
Total Posts : 3
| Posted 10/15/2007 4:09 PM (GMT -8) | | | I have a 919 and have never felt the "headshake". The 919 is discontinued for 2008 but there was a 2007 that they could have compared against the other 2007 bikes. I guess I ride a bike that is not good enough to make the comparison but that is okay because it is good enough for me and the riding I do. More than enough power that I cannot use it all most of the time. Looks cool, to me. Great value for the price I paid, when you are not the most popular bike you sell for a bit less. Best of all it is a Honda so it runs and runs and runs. | | Back to Top | | |
|
eparks11
Registered Member
Date Joined Sep 2004
Total Posts : 117
| Posted 10/15/2007 6:21 PM (GMT -8) | | Maybe I should give the 919 another chance. I've always liked the looks of it, but I've ridden my buddies twice, and both times it felt unstable to me. Of course each time I had just gotten off my bike and traded with him; the first time was my S4R Monster and the second time was my GSXR 600; so maybe the contrast in the bikes is what caused the sensation. Or it could have just been the standard upright seating position on the 919 on a motor that feels like a sport bike. Which to me is an odd combo. Either way, there is something about that bike that makes me very uneasy on it.
I hear Honda has a new version in the works. Hopefully it will be a bit more sporty this time around. I'd love for them to scrap the Superhawk and the 919 in favor a a V-twin naked that could do the jobs of both. | | Back to Top | | |
|
Cutter
Registered Member
Date Joined Oct 2007
Total Posts : 3
| Posted 10/15/2007 6:49 PM (GMT -8) | | eparks
I find the 919 very quick to turn given all of the leverage of the wide handlebars. maybe it just seems to be headshake or instability.
The 919 does have limitations given its budget suspension but riding on the street I have found it to be pretty good especially given how much I paid for it these other bikes tested would all be at least twice the amount and I am not sure that they would be twice the fun on the road | | Back to Top | | |
|
John Pierce
Registered Member
Date Joined Oct 2007
Total Posts : 1
| Posted 10/15/2007 9:20 PM (GMT -8) | | Apparently the testers didn't read their own notes. They admit the Kawasaki has the lowest horsepower and even last year's Triple without the pipe beats the Kaw in both horsepower and torque, yet you guys give the Kaw better marks for both Engine Friendliness and Engine Open road. You even go on about how "bland" the Kaw is and how the torquey engine of the Triple is it's finest attribute, but then they Kaw gets more points for engine.
Plus, you guys give the Kawasaki almost a full point more on Ergonomics even though you griped about the crummy seat on the Kaw and said the Triumph was very comfortable.
Oh, yeah -- and on page three you prove you can't do simple math, when it's claimed the FZ1 tied the Triumph for 3rd. The Trip's final score was 75.10, the FZ1's was 68.50. Then, incredibly, it also says on page four that the DUCATI TIED for 3rd TOO!!!! with a 68.3 final score! If you guys were building houses, I'm afraid the walls ain't gonna be square.
The Kaw is not a bad bike for the money, but the Triumph will smoke it in acceleration, top speed, handling and comfort -- even the regular $10,000 version without the pipe. If the engine points totals were not inflated for the Kaw, the Triumph would have been 2nd place in this test and anyone who has ever ridden the Triple knows it has one of the best engines on the market. I will agree the Tuono is the best bike in this test, but the Triumph still has the best engine -- that Rotax in the Tuono has to be revved pretty hard to enjoy it. My preferences based on riding all these bikes is Tuono, Triumph, Ducati, Kawasaki and Yamaha. You shoulda got a Brutale, the Suzuki SV1000, the Honda 919 and the new BMW R1200S in on this test too.
BTW, just harshing on you in good fun guys, feel free to flame me back..
JPPost Edited (John Pierce) : 10/16/2007 1:36:06 PM GMT | | Back to Top | | |
|
louemc
Registered Member
Date Joined Mar 2003
Total Posts : 15451
| Posted 10/16/2007 9:36 AM (GMT -8) | |
John Pierce said...
Apparently the testers didn't read their own notes. They admit the Kawasaki has the lowest horsepower and even last year's Triple without the pipe beats the Kaw in both horsepower and torque, yet you guys give the Kaw better marks for both Engine Friendliness and Engine Open road. You even go on about how "bland" the Kaw is and how the torquey engine of the Triple is it's finest attribute, but then they Kaw gets more points for engine.
Plus, you guys give the Kawasaki almost a full point more on Ergonomics even though you griped about the crummy seat on the Kaw and said the Triumph was very comfortable.
Oh, yeah -- and on page three you prove you can't do simple math, when it's claimed the FZ1 tied the Triumph for 3rd. The Trip's final score was 75.10, the FZ1's was 68.50. Then, incredibly, it also says on page four that the DUCATI TIED for 3rd TOO!!!! with a 68.3 final score! If you guys were building houses, I'm afraid the walls ain't gonna be square.
The Kaw is not a bad bike for the money, but the Triumph will smoke it in acceleration, top speed, handling and comfort -- even the regular $10,000 version without the pipe. If the engine points totals were not inflated for the Kaw, the Triumph would have been 2nd place in this test and anyone who has ever ridden the Triple knows it has one of the best engines on the market. I will agree the Tuono is the best bike in this test, but the Triumph still has the best engine -- that Rotax in the Tuono has to be revved pretty hard to enjoy it. My preferences based on riding all these bikes is Tuono, Triumph, Ducati, Kawasaki and Yamaha. You shoulda got a Brutale, the Suzuki SV1000, the Honda 919 and the new BMW R1200S in on this test too.
BTW, just harshing on you in good fun guys, feel free to flame me back..
JP
That's pretty much the core of the smoke and mirrors trick.
First a Street fighter is a owner creation. Two words , street and fighter.
The starting point was a liter race replica, and GIXXR was the Bad boy of choice to get a set of brass knuckles fitted. But R1 wouldn't get kicked out of bed and ZX10 came into even Steven ranking with GIXXR.
This catagory became a rage in Europe, and the manufactures entered the market to get sales for the can't build it but want it, if it can be bought, crowd. And that crowd also is easier to please (performance can be scary  ). Now the Moto journalists come along, and need to paint a picture with words, entertain and motivate to purchase. So things get all virtual, the engine in the R1 and the FZ1 are suddenly the same. The Engine in the ZX10 and Z1000 are suddenly the same. Frame and suspension the same. Everything the same, just a change in handle bars and lost plastic, apparently, and the other things really don't matter. What's next? Might as well call the Bandit a street fighter as well. Does it even have to be a current design? How about a 1984 Honda 900F? Little thing like Bias ply tires shouldn't keep that cool bike out of the comparison. And performance isn't an issue with scared of it types.
So....As long as the Journo's can't be trusted to tell the truth, it is still left to the biker to do their own detective work to figure out what is on the market and if it is of interest. The good news is seriously great stuff is crossing the show room floors, now.
Focus the forces, Be The Force | | Back to Top | | |
|
ghostrider5
Registered Member
Date Joined Jun 2007
Total Posts : 4
| Posted 10/16/2007 9:45 AM (GMT -8) | | Why not throw in a Buell XB9sx or XB12ss???...I've been pretty impressed with those two and think they MORE than qualify for the street fighter segment. 
 | | Back to Top | | |
|
bmadson
MCUSA Scribbler
Date Joined Jul 2005
Total Posts : 1038
| Posted 10/16/2007 12:47 PM (GMT -8) | | | John, sorry about the confusion regarding the rankings. I was re-reading through the test to see where it says the Triumph tied the FZ1 for third, but I missed it - not trying to be snitty because if I do say that I'd like to correct it. The scoring was a bit confusing because the Triumph would have finished third, all by itself just behind the Z1000, but we disqualified it because of all the aftermarket stuff. The Yamaha and the Ducati would have finished tied for fourth, but with the Triumph DQ we pushed them up to third. Here's a list of the overall scores:
Aprilia - 79.5%
Kawasaki - 77.7%
Triumph - 75.1% (DQ'd)
Ducati - 68.3%
Yamaha - 68.3%
Our decision to DQ the Triumph wasn't because we didnt like it, we loved it. We just thought we had to do it to be fair to the other entries. It's not really a fair fight if you send off your stock test unit for a comparison test against your competitors and it loses to a bike that's not even street legal. Plus as the biased mouthpieces for the manufacturers we need to "paint a picture with words, entertain and motivate to purchase..." Just kidding Lou.
Also when it comes to the rankings, we had six separate testers. They filled out their scorecards based on what they felt during the riding experience. I was the only guy who knew the dyno results during the test rides, so I think the scores are an honest reflection of what our test riders experienced, not what they thought they should experience. Both the Kawasaki and Triumph had fantastic engines, neck and neck. Adding up the scores from the two engine categories the Kawasaki came out on top 16.8 to 16.2, so they're both very, very good motors no doubt. | | Back to Top | | |
|
John Pierce
Registered Member
Date Joined Oct 2007
Total Posts : 1
| Posted 10/16/2007 12:52 PM (GMT -8) | | bmadson said...
John, sorry about the confusion regarding the rankings. I was re-reading through the test to see where it says the Triumph tied the FZ1 for third, but I missed it - not trying to be snitty because if I do say that I'd like to correct it. The scoring was a bit confusing because the Triumph would have finished third, all by itself just behind the Z1000, but we disqualified it because of all the aftermarket stuff. The Yamaha and the Ducati would have finished tied for fourth, but with the Triumph DQ we pushed them up to third. Here's a list of the overall scores:
Aprilia - 79.5%
Kawasaki - 77.7%
Triumph - 75.1% (DQ'd)
Ducati - 68.3%
Yamaha - 68.3%
Our decision to DQ the Triumph wasn't because we didnt like it, we loved it. We just thought we had to do it to be fair to the other entries. It's not really a fair fight if you send off your stock test unit for a comparison test against your competitors and it loses to a bike that's not even street legal. Plus as the biased mouthpieces for the manufacturers we need to "paint a picture with words, entertain and motivate to purchase..." Just kidding Lou.
Also when it comes to the rankings, we had six separate testers. They filled out their scorecards based on what they felt during the riding experience. I was the only guy who knew the dyno results during the test rides, so I think the scores are an honest reflection of what our test riders experienced, not what they thought they should experience. Both the Kawasaki and Triumph had fantastic engines, neck and neck. Adding up the scores from the two engine categories the Kawasaki came out on top 16.8 to 16.2, so they're both very, very good motors no doubt.
Thanks for your response. but be aware, the manufacturers have paid good money for that bias and they might be hanging out here reading this stuff... 
It's a shame Triumph didn't send you a regular S3 -- I feel sure it would have done just as well. I'm biased (I'm sure you didn't notice) towards the Euro streetfighters, so their "quirks" don't bother me as much - I just savor their differences. I agree the Tuono is the best streetfighter available. All the manufacturers need to step it up a notch and try to beat Aprilia next year.
thanks,
John | | Back to Top | | |
|
bmadson
MCUSA Scribbler
Date Joined Jul 2005
Total Posts : 1038
| Posted 10/16/2007 1:05 PM (GMT -8) | | | Jimmy seemed to getting along just fine when he came down to test with us. He rides a Ninja 650 now in the MOTO-ST series. At 45 he still knows how to get around the track in a hurry. We hope he had a good time, one thing's certain Mr. Filice is always sporting a big grin and is a great guy to have around. | | Back to Top | | |
| 103 posts in this thread.
Viewing Page : 1 2 3 4 5 |
| Forum Information | Currently it is Sunday, November 22, 2009 12:53 AM (GMT -8)
There are a total of 447,406 posts in 35,241 threads.
In the last 3 days there were 13 new threads and 230 reply posts. View Active Threads
| | Who's Online | This forum has 17572 registered members. Please welcome our newest member, hotlunch.
1 Guest(s), 0 Registered Member(s) are currently online. Details
|
Forum powered by dotNetBB v2.42EC SP2
dotNetBB © 2000-2009
All content found on motorcycle-usa.com is copyrighted by MotorcycleUSA.com, INC. |
|
|
