Sensible next move?

[Participant]

Hi all

I did my CBT in June 2014 and then rode a Yamaha YBR125 for 6 months:

Then I bought my beloved SV650S, which I'm riding now and it's probably the perfect commuter bike for me (30 mins through country A roads, most weathers):

Perfect but for the fact that I'm hankering after more power and a large sports bike, partly for a bit more poke and fun, but to be frank it's mainly because I'm buying into the image of them as I love the look of supersports.

I've done a fair bit of research, looking into the GSXR1000 (don't like the looks), BMW S1000RR (headlights look silly and too expensive), Ducati 1xxx (incredible looks, but too expensive and not practical for commuting given maintenance and cotton wool wrapping), Aprilia RSV4 (lack of local dealer support), and ZX-10R (all the power at the top is common wisdom)...then I came to the Fireblade.

Widely considered a jack of all trades, the Fireblade seems to strike the right balance of price, build quality, and usability for one's first 1000cc bike. There's more torque available at ~4k RPM compared to most other litre bikes, I'm lead to believe.

This Honda CBR1000RR (with an A for the ABS I believe - bronze calipers...) has come up at a place local to me.

It's a '12 plate 20th anniversary model in HRC colours, 7k miles, up for £8k.

I will be using it for commuting 40 miles round trip per day in (almost) all weathers. The roads on my commute allow me to combine commuting with my hobby, i.e. they're great fun.

Am I going wrong anywhere? Is the price reasonable? Is my thinking about which bike to focus on reasonable?

Many thanks.

 

[Participant]

I'm pretty keen on the R1, the only thing is that there are way more Fireblades to choose from near me than there are R1s. And everyone says the CBR1000RRs are more road-friendly than R1s.

Have you had a test ride? After a fruity twin, the IL4 might seem a little boring... Although as a commuter supersports they're probably one of the best.

Not had a test ride yet. Is there really any danger of me finding a Fireblade boring?!

Seems a little pricey, also check out why it has a bazzaz sticker on it, does it have a bazzaz fuel controller on it?

You're paying for the color and 'anniversary edition', I'd be wanting something with traction control for that kind of money.

Guessing it's a controller but I haven't confirmed yet.

It does seem pricey but there's nothing private with ABS anywhere near me.

 

[Participant]

What's wrong with R1s?

I'm pretty keen on the R1, the only thing is that there are way more Fireblades to choose from near me than there are R1s. And everyone says the CBR1000RRs are more road-friendly than R1s.

There are a few Honda dealers right on my doorstep but no Yamaha dealers, for some reason. Also your bike is too old for me.

I'm hearing everyone say it's too much money for what it is, but that seems to be the market from what I can see, unless I'm doing something wrong in my search.

MT10s and S1000Rs aren't faired, aren't supersports, and I don't want that type of bike, so I don't know how relevant that is.

Let's say I can get £3k for my SV PX and get them down to £7.5k for the bike, that's £4.5k to change.

 

[Participant]

All great points people, thanks for the opinions.

Don't care about running costs really, I just want the fun, the looks, and the power.

I'm guessing even below 5k revs it'll have a great deal more poke than my SV!

Back to trawling Autotrader.....

 

[Participant]

It's relevant in that the £8k asking price for that Honda seems a lot of money to spend on it. Ok, if that was the EXACT bike/version you wanted I can see it, but it's not is it? You seem quite open to ideas?

I just think 8 grand puts you in territory you may not have considered. A work colleague just bought a newer S1000RR for the same money you are looking at. It's a supersport, faired and absolutely loaded with toys.

I'm definitely open to ideas as long as they're fully faired SS litre bikes, yes.

Now the bit in bold is very interesting, maybe I'm not looking hard enough.

 

[Participant]

I'd hope he's done some insurance quotes, otherwise he might be in for a large shock! There's a reason I'm going for a naked 1000cc as my next bike, even 600cc sports bikes are £1200+ insurance, vs £300 for a naked litre bike.

Haven't run any quotes yet, I'm 35 so I'm hoping it won't be horrible, <£1k wouldn't be the end of the world.

For 8k I can think of a lot of nicer bikes than that CBR1000.

Everyone keeps saying this, but I'm not seeing any actual links to better bikes for my purposes (first 1000CC bike for commuting + weekends) for less money, age and mileage taken into account.

RSV4s look great, such a bike would be perfect, but the nearest RSV4s are 40 miles away and the cheapest is £13k.

 

[Participant]

Went and sat on a Fireblade at the local Honda dealership last night, it felt a surprisingly comfy riding position and a very solid piece of kit. Smaller than I expected.

Also sat on a green ZZR1400 with luggage. Loved it.

The Triumph place had street triples and speed triples, which they recommended I consider. I think they detected my sports bike virginity.

I also sat on a Daytona 675, which felt absolutely miniscule, almost like a 125.