Considering getting a Different bike | Page 4 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Considering getting a Different bike

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MacDoc said:
and ride it where??? Stop light to stoplight?? To the bank to pay for the insurance, to the gas station every 250 km ....??
Sure my liter bikes were fun for a bit ...but then the expense of afternoon jaunts added up ....and when you hit the valve adjustment time.....that twin is a lot less costly to do....and sitting in traffic leaned over a liter bike on a 35c day sucks...
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Many people actually ride a lot and just not sitting in the traffic as you. Gas station for every 250km is not bad.

Btw, it's litre not liter.
 
If you are sitting in stopped traffic just shut it down and chill.
 
BMW-K100-Motorcycle-Advertisement.jpg
 
Trials said:
The only problem I see with either the CB500X or the KLR650 for off-road is the curb weight :/ either one of them weighs more then my 3 cylinder sport bike so that can't be great. Low curb weight is what makes for a motorcycle that can go off-road. Anything can ride on a dirt road and if not that would make it pretty useless because it won't make it out of my driveway.

btw: Light weight motorcycles are expensive.
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The KLR is a heavy dirtbike BUT a light streetbike. I've taken my KLR places your sportbike wouldn't have gone and that's what makes it so much fun.
 
Built for fahrvergnügen

... that plastic covered bike has a 0.38 drag coefficient You know what it's like to ride a bike that feels slower the faster you go!
 
Baggsy said:
Like everyone else, they began cladding their bikes in tupperware.
800px-BMW_K1_blue_1993_r_TCE.jpg
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One of the ugliest bikes ever. And if you're going to spread graphics over more than one piece of bodywork they should at least align when the bikes at rest.
 
timtune said:
The KLR is a heavy dirtbike BUT a light streetbike. I've taken my KLR places your sportbike wouldn't have gone and that's what makes it so much fun.
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No doubt! but that is why I have a trials bike.
 
timtune said:
One of the ugliest bikes ever. And if you're going to spread graphics over more than one piece of bodywork they should at least align when the bikes at rest.
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Then you should be able to find one real cheap! Give it a shot ;)
BMW K1 - 08.jpg
 
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xrljoel said:
Not trying to hijack the thread but I've recently been eyeing the FJR and the ST1300. For whatever reason, since I sold my KTM 990SMT I've become smitten with the idea of a sport touring bike with the emphasis on mile-eating comfort.

You mention the heat issue with the FJR - what year do you own? What can you tell me about it vs. the ST1300? In short, convince me that my life will be incomplete until I have one (or the other).
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Personally I prefer the FJR but they are both excellent bikes, both will go 200,000K with regular maintenance.
  • There's a pretty big performance difference when you add up the impact of the following 3 things, it's quite noticeable if you ride both bikes. 0-60 is about 3 seconds on an FJR, about 3.5 on a ST1300.
    • The FJR has about 15% more torque and HP.​
    • The ST is also 80lbs heavier at a beastly 730lbs. It's also​
    • The ST1300 has much better element protection - bigger windscreen and wider fairing.​
  • They are both HOT in city traffic -- you can't help that from a 140HP engines and exhaust headers sitting inside a full fairing. The FJR is has better ventilation and is less hot if it's moving.
  • The ST1300 has much better element protection - bigger windscreen and wider fairing is nice in the wet.
  • There's a bit of danger at felonious speeds on the ST, above 180kmh 'Pan Weave' becomes a dangerous possibility. FJRs will go happily to 250kmh.
  • ridden side bu side they get approx the same mileage. Crank up the spirit on the FJR and it will use more fuel.
Probably the biggest difference is the ST1300 stopped evolving in 2004, FJRs have continued to evolve, current bikes are kept current with technology.
 
Trials said:
Fuel injected engines make for very high fuel temperatures in the tank because the fuel circulates from the tank, through an electric fuel pump that uses the fuel for coolant, then through the hot fuel rail and any gas that does not go through the hot fuel injectors to get burned goes past them and right back into the fuel tank to get heated again. It helps to keep lots of fuel in the tank, helps even more if you can maintain some forward motion and air cooling. The bigger the fuel pump and the bigger the motor, the worse the fuel heat problem becomes, in a worst case scenario you can literally boil your fuel. It's never a problem under normal operating conditions.
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In the case of the FJR and ST1300 the engine, radiator and exhaust headers are completely enclosed in the fairing. The FJRs exhausts cooling air lower and further forward so they are OK as long as you are moving, ST's exhaust up and on your legs -- they need 40KMH to be comfortable when it's hot outside. Another thing is most ST's are black, FJRs silver -- that too makes a huge difference.
 
Trials said:
If you are sitting in stopped traffic just shut it down and chill.
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I find by the time I actually get stopped in city traffic
the engine is hot and the fan is running
not a good idea to turn it off under that condition

but if you get stopped before it gets hot
then yes, shut it off
 
JavaFan said:
I find by the time I actually get stopped in city traffic
the engine is hot and the fan is running
not a good idea to turn it off under that condition

but if you get stopped before it gets hot
then yes, shut it off
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Leave your ST running... starting a vapor-locked fuel system is a bugger.
 
There's a bit of danger at felonious speeds on the ST, above 180kmh 'Pan Weave'
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That only applied to the ST1100 ( Pan European ) AFAIK. I've not heard of that on the 1300 which is quite a different bike.
That said, the cops in Australia preferred the ST1100.
Also part of the instability on the ST1100 was due to the cop gear loading

The fairing on the STs is incredible ...dead quiet at 150k +
 
MacDoc said:
That only applied to the ST1100 ( Pan European ) AFAIK. I've not heard of that on the 1300 which is quite a different bike.
That said, the cops in Australia preferred the ST1100.
Also part of the instability on the ST1100 was due to the cop gear loading

The fairing on the STs is incredible ...dead quiet at 150k +
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Not sure what pan weave is but pushing all that fairing through the wind at speed is tough. I had my GL1200 up to an indicated 160 once and it was weaving so bad I didn't think I'd get it stopped in one piece.
 
Mad Mike said:
Personally I prefer the FJR but they are both excellent bikes, both will go 200,000K with regular maintenance.
  • There's a pretty big performance difference when you add up the impact of the following 3 things, it's quite noticeable if you ride both bikes. 0-60 is about 3 seconds on an FJR, about 3.5 on a ST1300.
    • The FJR has about 15% more torque and HP.​
    • The ST is also 80lbs heavier at a beastly 730lbs. It's also​
    • The ST1300 has much better element protection - bigger windscreen and wider fairing.​
  • They are both HOT in city traffic -- you can't help that from a 140HP engines and exhaust headers sitting inside a full fairing. The FJR is has better ventilation and is less hot if it's moving.
  • The ST1300 has much better element protection - bigger windscreen and wider fairing is nice in the wet.
  • There's a bit of danger at felonious speeds on the ST, above 180kmh 'Pan Weave' becomes a dangerous possibility. FJRs will go happily to 250kmh.
  • ridden side bu side they get approx the same mileage. Crank up the spirit on the FJR and it will use more fuel.
Probably the biggest difference is the ST1300 stopped evolving in 2004, FJRs have continued to evolve, current bikes are kept current with technology.
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Great, thanks for the input. It's really valuable. The extra 80 lbs on it's own is a deciding point, but combined with the rest the choice (for me) is obvious.

I'm getting that, "I-want-it, I-want-it, I-want-it" tingle.
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