I want a v-twin sport bike.
The SV650 is light and very common, and less than the SV1000
The SV1000 is heavier and less common. However, it sounds fantastic and seems like it would be better at sport-touring.
The TL1000 is older, but still fuel injected. It's harder to find, but has depreciated nicely.
Discuss...
On the other hand, the new crop of supermotos (DZR400SM, WR250X, KLX250SF, CRF230M) interest me too. But that's another thread!
I'm dreaming of an SV-650 to replace my bike.
reasons?
Light
good gas mileage
standard seating (I want the SV650, not the SV650s)
Cheap on insurance (liter bikes get pricey up here)
common for parts
Well, I have a DL650, which has less top end than the SV, but a bit more midrange grunt. Neither the wife nor myself are small people (I like the term "well developed), and we rode together on the bike to north GA from Charlottesville. Figure near 475 lbs of stuff, since we were ATGATT, but travelled light for luggage. At one point, I believe around Charlotte, NC, I felt her weight shift, and then she started to poke my shoulder. I was indicating over 100 MPH, but was getting passed by everyone on the road. The speedo is known to be 9% high, and I know that I certainly could have held a higher cruising speed, but the road was still wet from a recent rain storm, and I didn't want to scare her any more than I already had. Don't let the higher revs at cruising speed scare you, I've got 25K on my bike, a large amount of which has been highway, at a good clip (though not normally that fast). Now, if you plan on doing a LOT of 2 up touring, the 1000 might be a nicer mount, but for the occasional jaunt, the 650 should do you fine.
I've ridden the SV650 and SV1000. You're gonna notice the difference. The SV650 is probably the slowest entry level bike you can get your hands on... not a whole lotta power compared to just about anything else in its category. Like any SV though, every part in the world is at your fingertips. Egononomics are good (better on the non S varient, but the windblast without the fly shield is annoying on the freeway), fuel economy is good, maintenance is cheap, but its pretty slow.
SV1000- amazing idle thump just by replacing the cans. Has the power to outrun 600cc sportbikes and keep up with even larger ones. Comfortable all around, would make a great sport tourer. Power wheelies at any speed. It is significantly more expensive and parts can be harder to come by that are 1000 specific. Probably not the best beginner bike.
TL- beautiful and sounds good but hard to find and tend to be expensive when you do. Had a lot of reliability problems from what I've heard. I'd still like to have one.. v twin power with sport bike styling...
TLs are like RC 51s, hard to find, and harder to pry from their owners. I wouldn;t go looking for one, but if a deal fell in your lap, take it.
If your looking for an entry level bike, get the 650. The folks that ride them love them, like the Ninja 250 crowd. The beauty of the 650 is the ease of riding. Everyone forgets how much fun it is to go fast on a slow bike. Take a 650 to a track day and you will learn volumes about energy management and maintaining the proper line.
SV1Ks are great but again I come back to the 650. The 1K won;t ba as bad, but TL1000s eat tire like nothing else. A big V-Twin with engine breaking and you'll be replacing rears every 3rd month if you ride a lot. A SV650 can run an entire race season on set.
Don't be swayed by the bigger is better crowd, I have 2 liter bikes, but my track toy is a 600.
I owned a TL1000S for quite a few years.
Good:
power everywhere
sound with yosh pipes was glorious
very stable with the stock steering damper
as the Russians say "reliable like anvil or AK-47"
has a great widow-maker mystique while being a Bob Costas-cat if you ride with any sense.
Bad:
will kill you if you don't respect it
steering damper takes the edge off the knife edge handling
is hard on rear tires. Mine would last about 10k miles. I ride like an old man
long, very long. Takes some serious lean to get through some corners.
heavy. It's an older bike so the weight is all there.
Bikes I would consider as replacements:
Buell something. I'd even go as far back as the tube frame jobs. I would start when they improved the seat and go more current from there
Any SV650 based bike including the DL650. I'm considering more touring now than scratching so the DL sounds like a great bike for that. See Kawasaki Versys as well
The BMW 800S - way more pricy but interesting.
Insurance comment: didn't even think of that. Probably the deal-sealer.
Plus by the time I want a bigger twin I'll just snap up a Duck. Unless somebody makes big-bore/stroker kits for the 650...
I imagine the FI 03+ SV650s are the ones to get. I've started poking around SVrider, any morsels you all have?
mmmm, ducati twins..... If you take the exahust all the way off you can almost hear that sweet rumble over the clutch!
I've ridden an sv650 both s and non s (the s was older, like an 01). I love the all around usability of the standard version, I would honestly buy one right now if I had the money.
Osterkraut wrote: Insurance comment: didn't even think of that. Probably the deal-sealer. Plus by the time I want a bigger twin I'll just snap up a Duck. Unless somebody makes big-bore/stroker kits for the 650... I imagine the FI 03+ SV650s are the ones to get. I've started poking around SVrider, any morsels you all have?
Actually, becuase the FIs are so "desirable" the carbed ones are quite affordable.
In addition to the usual culprits, look at the CMRA, WERA boards. Those are cheap to maintian track bikes and a few have ended up there. If they have good titles, you can bet they were maintianed and can be had fairly cheap.
Mental wrote: Actually, becuase the FIs are so "desirable" the carbed ones are quite affordable.
Eh, I'll probably pay the premium for FI, then. FI is nice to have. Power Commander, hoooo!
I agree with what Xceler8x said, for the most part.
I have a '97 TL-S, which was the first year, and the one with the widowmaker reputation. There are some first-year teething issues, and a few ongoing abnormalities, but POs have likely sorted them. After '97s, the ECU neutered throttle response in low gears to mitigate some of the problems that pitched off the Brit journalist and gave it its reputation, which may be desirable or not, depending on your point of view.
If this is a first bike, I would recommend against a TL. They're mean, and a little idiosyncratic. It will try to catch you being lazy, and won't suffer fools in the saddle.
But, the power is addictive, and it will reward your respect.
They're getting cheap, which, again, is both good and bad. Cheap literbikes fall into the hands of squids, which means they'll be abused and neglected. 'Full bodywork' in a liter size means pretty high insurance rates, too.
Honestly, you don't need anything more than a PC'd/piped SV650 for the street. You may want more, though.
Dude-nothing you ride on the ground is really that fast. They are all comparatively slow. Buy the less slow one.
From Sport Rider magazine:
SV650S ('04) quarter mile: 12.02 @ 108.9 0-60mph: 5.24 sec
TL1000R ('98) quarter mile: 10.75 @ 130.21 0-60mph: 4.3 sec
SV1000S ('03) quarter mile: 10.82 @ 127.1 0-60mph: 3.79 sec
The 1000s are certainly quicker, but I wouldn't call the 650 slow by any means.
MrJoshua wrote: Dude-nothing you ride on the ground is really that fast. They are all comparatively slow. Buy the less slow one.
They won't let me drive a T-38!
The SV650 is the Miata of the cycle world. It does everything reasonably well. Aftermarket up the wazoo. So maybe SV650 is the cycle answer.
Osterkraut wrote: I want a v-twin sport bike.
As opposed to the bike you already own but have never ridden??
dyintorace wrote:Osterkraut wrote: I want a v-twin sport bike.As opposed to the bike you already own but have never ridden??
Owned!
I'm going to start with a more...complete platform this time.
i would go with the 650 sweet bike a joy handling wise and aftermarket support out the wazoo, btw how you liking TX?
The last time I bought a new bike, I swore I would never buy another inline-4, but still wanted cheap. I thought for sure I would get the SV1000--but I absolutely HATED the ergos, YMMV... . Instead, I bought a new 2003 Kawasaki Z1000; I still have it and still love it.
stuart in mn wrote: From Sport Rider magazine: SV650S ('04) quarter mile: 12.02 @ 108.9 0-60mph: 5.24 sec TL1000R ('98) quarter mile: 10.75 @ 130.21 0-60mph: 4.3 sec SV1000S ('03) quarter mile: 10.82 @ 127.1 0-60mph: 3.79 sec The 1000s are certainly quicker, but I wouldn't call the 650 slow by any means.
these specs surprise me.
my 87 Ex-500 was rated at 0-60 in 3.74sec
and
Standing start ¼ mile: 12.73 s @ 102 mph
My intial reaction to that was "HUH? and then I checked, and dang, you're right. The EX was rated that quick.
double post
Mental wrote: My intial reaction to that was "HUH? and then I checked, and dang, you're right. The EX was rated that quick.
Did those numbers come from Kawasaki? The numbers above are from sport rider so I'd trust them a bit more than manufacturers claims..
Anything that does the quarter as fast as an XS Eleven is fast enough for street use.
I've got a 97 TL and while I love the "two-stroke" powerband that pins the tach at 6 to 7 grand it's got all the potential in the world to put you in a place you DON'T want to be if you're not paying attention. The 650 has all the rep of being almost the perfect balance for street use. My brother owns an SV1000 that I've ridden (albeit with Superbike bars) and it's got a much more linear powerband and is much more controllable. The SV 1000 is worth having just because it doesn't have the funky rotary damper of the TL. If I were making recommendations I'd go with the SV 650. If you're wanting more after a year or two then go up to the SV1000. The later 650's have EFI and better suspension than the early years, but the seating positon sucks with much less legroom. Keep that in mind.
if you find the right SV1000 it will cost less than a sv650.
imho most bikes on SVrider are overpriced. esp compared to ebay and CL.
I havent ridden a 650 but I love my 1000. I waited about 6 weeks total to get it and paid less than most 03+ 650's are going for now(got her on oct 5)
I'll have to ride my friends new WR250 though to see how fun it is, I think he paid under 6 for it OTD on an 08 new leftover
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