First ride impressions: (my background: Other bike: Gen 1 Hayabusa. Rode R6 at Miller recently. Lots of time with bikes that are now antiques decades ago, heh, heh)
Disclaimer: This is still rev-limited and I’ve not ridden it on curvy roads yet.
Pro (2012 model)
Front brake exc.
Shifting exc.
Quality exc.
Throttle feel exc.
White tack dial: like it
Sound: good, fairly loud at rpm (it sorta like a 2 cycle at neutral throttle)
Wheelie control is fairly smooth in Sport mode
Gear indicator
Very nimble
Rear light is stunning (but I like 59 Cadillac’s too)
Con
Frame (where my knee rests) gets very, very hot
Rear brake - what? It might stop from 3 mph in 30 feet. I even checked to see if the pads were in backwards.
Brake fluid reservoir: looks like a urine sample cup above the instruments ($9 sock on eBay handles that)
Track timer - nuisance, hit the wrong button and display changes (OK, I’ll read the manual again)
Not as comfortable as busa - ready for a break after an hour
My wife won’t ride on it (OK, sometimes that’s a Pro)
Cleaning time - hours vs. minutes for ‘busa
No gas gauge
Front seat attachment - poor design
Need to buy accessory and carry cable to lock even one helmet
Misc.
Seat: significantly higher than my slightly lowered busa
Need to work a little harder to find neutral
Power: pulls a little 5 up and gets lively over 7k (rev limited to 9k until first service)
Tires: Conti Attacks
Need full Torx set (to at least T50) to check tightness of bolts
Summary: Great huge-fun high-tech 1k bike but I’m keeping my busa and maybe getting a Gen 2. If I had to have only one bike, at this stage, it would be a Hayabusa.
Disclaimer: This is still rev-limited and I’ve not ridden it on curvy roads yet.
Pro (2012 model)
Front brake exc.
Shifting exc.
Quality exc.
Throttle feel exc.
White tack dial: like it
Sound: good, fairly loud at rpm (it sorta like a 2 cycle at neutral throttle)
Wheelie control is fairly smooth in Sport mode
Gear indicator
Very nimble
Rear light is stunning (but I like 59 Cadillac’s too)
Con
Frame (where my knee rests) gets very, very hot
Rear brake - what? It might stop from 3 mph in 30 feet. I even checked to see if the pads were in backwards.
Brake fluid reservoir: looks like a urine sample cup above the instruments ($9 sock on eBay handles that)
Track timer - nuisance, hit the wrong button and display changes (OK, I’ll read the manual again)
Not as comfortable as busa - ready for a break after an hour
My wife won’t ride on it (OK, sometimes that’s a Pro)
Cleaning time - hours vs. minutes for ‘busa
No gas gauge
Front seat attachment - poor design
Need to buy accessory and carry cable to lock even one helmet
Misc.
Seat: significantly higher than my slightly lowered busa
Need to work a little harder to find neutral
Power: pulls a little 5 up and gets lively over 7k (rev limited to 9k until first service)
Tires: Conti Attacks
Need full Torx set (to at least T50) to check tightness of bolts
Summary: Great huge-fun high-tech 1k bike but I’m keeping my busa and maybe getting a Gen 2. If I had to have only one bike, at this stage, it would be a Hayabusa.