Two test rides

[Doorag]

As I have mentioned before, I'm considering moving up to a bigger bike so I took the day off and went on two test rides today - a 2007 Triumph Daytona 955i and a 2007 Triumph Sprint ST.

Here's what the Daytona looks like.

Here's what the Sprint ST looks like.

The Daytona has a 955cc triple and the Sprint ST has a 1050cc triple. Essentially the same engine.

Here are my thoughts.

1. There really wasn't too much difference between them and the Fazer, to be honest. Maybe I was expecting a litre bike to be a lot more powerful than either of these bikes but I was surprised at how 'normal' they both felt. Is this normal? I understand that neither of them are 180bph superbikes, but I did expect a bit more from them.

2. I'm too fat and old to deal with a 'sporty' riding position. The Daytona looks great but even after 15 minutes of riding my right wrist (old basketball injury) and lower back were killing me. I reckon that if I stuck with it for a few months I'd get used to it, but I'm not at a point in my life where I'm willing to suffer that much.

3. The Sprint ST has a 'heat problem'. The barsteward nearly roasted my right calf! It has an under-seat exhaust like the Fazer, but the pipe runs on the right side close to the rider's leg and MAN it gets HOT. I searched the Triumph forum about it and found out that it's a common complaint - so much so that people are REALLY tired of people asking about it. (Sort of like "the oil question" on here.) SO my question to those of you who have had fared, litre bikes before - is high heat normal on bikes like that? Is the Fazer unusually cool?

Those are the major thoughts. I didn't buy either one of them and probably wouldn't in the future either. The Sprint ST is a lovely bike set up much more for touring of the sport/touring type but it does have an excellent engine sound - especially on the overrun. I wonder if they designed it that way? The heat issue is just too much for me to get over at the moment. If everyone comes back and says, "Yep, that's how all big-engined, faired bikes are." then I might give it another thought but I'd rather try a few other things first.

The Daytona was the first 'sport' bike I have been on and after getting used to the very forward feeling riding position I started to like it - until my srist and back started up. It also didn't seem nearly as quick as it should have. Maybe some dyno time and some TLC would sort it out a bit, but I thought it was a bit flat for what it is/was supposed to be.

Anyway, that's all for now. Any thoughts??

 

[Doorag]

I probably shouldn't even mention this on here, but as we were looking at the bikes a guy rode up on a fairly new Suzuki GSXR1000 with aftermarket cans on it and my wife turned to me and said, "Why don't you get one of those instead?"

 

[Mattberkshire]

Hiya. I wouldn't buy either of those. I think they're a bit too 'old man' for me, and judging by your picture for you too Doorag!!! Mind you, I'd have a Speed Triple! This months Bike mag raves about the KTM super duke. Have you thought about that? Big engine, high bars. Good round central London too

 

[Doorag]

Hiya. I wouldn't buy either of those. I think they're a bit too 'old man' for me, and judging by your picture for you too Doorag!!! Mind you, I'd have a Speed Triple! This months Bike mag raves about the KTM super duke. Have you thought about that? Big engine, high bars. Good round central London too

Yeah, the Super Duke is supposed to be good but I have a personal fatwah on KTM so I could never buy one. The older Dukes look better IMO anyway.

I'm not too old a dude (40) but I feel like one due to various sports injuries that kick my ass sometimes. Both wrists are buggered from playing basketball for as long as I can remember, I have a shoulder injury from playing football (American football for all you Europeans) and my lower back is a bit buggered as well.

I'm sure I'll end up with a FZ1 but I'm going to try out a few other bikes just to make sure.

 

[blchandl2]

Maybe you should try the Tiger 1050. No heat problem as with the Sprint, same motor (slightly de-tuned). Ergos should be compatible with your issues. They make a great stable mate for the FZ6. (Ask me how I know).

 

[Doorag]

Maybe you should try the Tiger 1050. No heat problem as with the Sprint, same motor (slightly de-tuned). Ergos should be compatible with your issues. They make a great stable mate for the FZ6. (Ask me how I know).

Yeah, the sales guy was trying to get me to try it too but it just doesn't 'do it' for me. I fully appreciate that other people love them and that they may ride great, but personally I can't get past the looks. Sorry! (I'm sure yours is beautiful though )

 

[Botch]

If your wrist and lower back were killing you after only 15 minutes, I'd doubt that you'd ever get used to it, but you are younger than I am...

 

[bigdog9191999]

Yeah, the sales guy was trying to get me to try it too but it just doesn't 'do it' for me. I fully appreciate that other people love them and that they may ride great, but personally I can't get past the looks. Sorry! (I'm sure yours is beautiful though )

thats a shame that you dont like it more .. they are a great bike as for me i like it over the fz for more comfort, and the torque.. although both the tiger and the fz are very close matched (ask the wife about that) the tiger has lots of room and is comfy, and looks more like the fz than what you would think.. see... the triple is addicting tho, the sound and the low end are addicting

 

[Erci]

Hmm.. interesting about the heat issue on ST.
I'm with you on the riding position thing. Too many sport injuries over the years to be able to enjoy super-sport setup and I'm only 35.

Have you tried Honda VFR? Seating position is more sporty than that of FZ6, but much more comfortable than any given super-sport bike. It's no faster than FZ6, but it has quite a bit more low end torque, so it feels like it starts pulling hard sooner than FZ6.
If I was going to go with a bigger heavier bike, I would go with Suzuki Bandit 1250. It's not particularly good looking, but it is just as comfortable as FZ6, if not more so. Low end torque is phenomenal! Pretty much no vibration at the bar / foot pegs and it's still capable of getting over 40mpg on regular petrol. FI is much smoother on that bike too. Oh and it's cheap!

 

[Chris]

Have you tried the FZ1? People seem to be satisfied with the amount of power it provides..

 

[Philippe1985]

Just wait for the new honda V4.
If you have the feeling that an inline 3 cilinder feels a bit flat, you should certainly try an inline 4 cilinder 1000cc. The 4 cilinder has a less lineair power deliverance, so you should feel the power more kick in.