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soofsayer

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Got one of these for 2 days courtesy of AJ.

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First service done ;).
 
Yeah get the reviews up, I'm taking a Tuono Factory out in a couple of weeks so it'll be interesting to see what we all make of the latest nakeds
 
Yeah get the reviews up, I'm taking a Tuono Factory out in a couple of weeks so it'll be interesting to see what we all make of the latest nakeds

Look forward to hearing about the Tuono too, especially in comparison to the SuperDuke!
 
Was hoping to take it out on Sunday but its at the MCN festival in Pboro, so I'll be forced to take the Sthou out for a blast around Lincolnshire instead :cool:
 
It's been so long since I rode a bike like this.... first impressions are oh my god the torque! But then the comfort, the seat, the riding position, all very nice, although I have to say it takes some getting used to. But then, just as I had a big grin on my face... where the **** is the top end???? I don't have long to play unfortunately as work calls, but more later!
 
Bit more... screw work this morning, I just had to take it out for a play. Just got back with a huge grin on my face, and thats what counts right?? It is far from what I am used to, its certainly no sports bike, but I did hussle it hard, using that wonderful grunt. Im just so used to riding an inline four I was initially getting frustrated at the lack of top end... it quickly gets breathless. Change up regularly though and keep surfing that wave of torque and Ive had loads of fun. If I could only buy one bike, it wouldn't be this one, but if I was lucky enough to be able to justify more than one I would certainly consider it. I can see why it would make a fantastic touring bike. Maneuverability was excellent at slower speeds. Suspension was plush, and slowing down for villages and cameras I had to check that I really was doing 30/40 because i hardly seemed to be moving it was that smooth and serene. Holds a decent line once settled over at speed too, although I haven't quite got full confidence in the front yet to be honest. Maybe thats again me used to a sports bike. It is obviously never going to be as nimble. Definitely some niggles though, I don't like the way the handling gets affected by the way the engine "sways the bike" when you blip a little too aggressively on down shifts, although I guess most people would tell me to use the quickshifter. Overall I like it so far, but it serves a different purpose to the S1000RR clearly. A few hours work now and then more to come later.
 
The 1200 LC is a really nice smooth engine, I really like the same engine on my GSA. Nice and torquey, is that a word?

Anyho, I am going to take the s1r out for a long ride tomorrow if its not pissing it down (might still go, its not my bike lol). I have then got to swap it for a 17 rr for the weekend on Saturday as they found more warranty work on the GSA that needs sorting out for Monday. Its a hard life.
 
Having now spent around 6 hours on the r I have a clear opinion on the bike.

Lets start with the blatantly obvious stuff. Loads of power, no fairing to speak of, upright wide bar position, chain drive, auto blipper and a rather enormous Akra end can. The looks are marmite, but I kinda like it. Get rid of the cat and the end can with an expensive full system, tail tidy, maybe lose the side fairings completely (they are just for show, might as well get proper naked), and there sits a 170ish bhp naked monster.

Handling?

I noticed the demo bike rear tyre was low on tread in the middle when I gave it a once over before setting off from the dealer. And it makes complete sense. This bike goes like a rocket, it is just brilliant at eating traffic. A row of vehicles up ahead doing around 50 can be dispatched in a few seconds, flick the bike out, squirt on the power, flick it back in, engine braking, job done. Twisty roads, great, humps, great, sweeping bends great, traffic great. Blipper superb, brakes excellent, acceleration mind blowing. This bike works so well if ridden like a twat, banging up and down the box, weaving in and out, diving about, which is, let's be honest, really good fun, if not upsetting to all other road users over the age of 60. Sorry, not. Nothing new here then, powerful naked BMW bike, job done.

Brilliant? except this bike really is completely naked bar a comedy screen in front of the clocks, so anything above legal limits and I start thinking I need some more gym time just to hang on to the bars.

And it gets a bit worse because of that. Having to hang on for dear life makes feel through the bars a bit of a guess. There is no finesse at speed, the front can't settle itself naturally because I'm gripping the bars hard to save claiming on my life insurance, I am constantly wrestling it to go where it needs to go, which it happily does, but if it did decide to let go I don't think I'd know about until I was face first into the tarmac. And that plays on my mind because with no fairings, this is the kind of exposure only Jordan's tits would be comfortable with.

And then we have the DDC. The r is, well, a 3 settings bike, rain, road, and dynamic. There is a dynamic + mode too but screw that, the manual talks about dynamic mode as a way to 'test your riding skills' which wasn't the reassuring phrase I would expect to see in a politically correct, sanitised manual from ze Germans but hey ho. I first set off in dynamic but soon found the suspension damping was so hard it was unbearable, and we are not talking bad roads. Flicked it to road mode and it got a whole lot better, but still bone jarring in places. This is not the plush ddc on the HP4 or the 3rd gen rr.

Having said all that I can't fault it as a stand alone proposition. It's not perfect but it's a very very good bike.

The problem isn't so much with the r itself, the problem is that the rr exists and I'd have one of those every time instead. The rr is better everywhere.
 
Sounds like its got some real cheap parts in the suspension. A trip to MCT required from the factory!

Thanks for the review! Now the RR is more keen to turn I think you're only benefitting if you really need to sit up, which is easier for commuting


- Sent from Mobile
 
Well it was a glorious day so no chance to experience the wet, but I will say that actually the screen was no where near tall enough for me even on the highest setting. I'm 6'2" so maybe it's ok for a shorter guy but my head was fully out in the airflow, which combined with the more upright seating position made my x-spirit 3 very bloody noisy and gave me quite a buffeting. Tucking down behind the screen made a massive difference but that wasn't practical for a guy my size, especially over longer distances.
 
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