May be on a bike soon...help me decide

[Captain Morgan]

No, marko, I'm not lying. I've been waiting entirely too long and I'm tired of "waiting till next year." 99% sure that I will have a bike sometime within the next 2 weeks and 75% sure it's going to be the v-strom.

I also went to the Suzuki/Yamaha/Honda dealer today and looked. A brand new V-strom 650 starts at 7500 (8k if you want ABS, which wasn't offered till '07) and they're offering 2% financing (if you qualify). I checked kelly blue book and retail on an '06 V-strom is 4200, so I plan on offering the Vic dealer 4k (maybe even 3800), after really looking the bike over.

I sat on the V-strom and it doesn't seem to be too tall, even with my 5'7 height. Sure, it's a small stretch, but nothing extremely uncomfortable. I intend to ride both bikes tomorrow at lunch, weather permitting.

The thing I like about the strom is that I can, as Rae said, ride it damn near anywhere. I also talked to a guy in the parts dept at the local dealership who has a 650 strom and absolutely loves it. Says it's good on highway and fun on dirt roads at good speeds, without getting squirrely.

Bags can be found on twistedthrottle.com for them.

Can't wait to ride it tomorrow.

[ericr]

Big con on the V-Star is valve adjustments every 4k miles...$$$. It's a decent bike but old design.

Of the two, I'd go with the Strom.

[Homeslice]

Originally Posted by ericr

Big con on the V-Star is valve adjustments every 4k miles...$$$. It's a decent bike but old design.

Serious? That's fucking pathetic.

[Cruzergirl]

Originally Posted by ericr

Big con on the V-Star is valve adjustments every 4k miles...$$$. It's a decent bike but old design.

Of the two, I'd go with the Strom.

Hmm. Really? I had mine (1100) for a little over 30,000 without a problem. Was this just on the 650s?

[Rider]

Originally Posted by Cruzergirl

Hmm. Really? I had mine (1100) for a little over 30,000 without a problem. Was this just on the 650s?

Yes every 4k on the 650. Don't know if the 950, 1100, and 1300 are the same.

[nhgunnut]

One of my more stupid moves was selling my V Strom .. You owe your self a ride on it.

[ericr]

Originally Posted by Cruzergirl

Hmm. Really? I had mine (1100) for a little over 30,000 without a problem. Was this just on the 650s?

Originally Posted by Rider

Yes every 4k on the 650. Don't know if the 950, 1100, and 1300 are the same.

The VStar 650 and 1100 both have valve adjustment intervals every 4000 miles. They may not actually need adjustment but they call for a check.

The 1300 and 950 are more reasonable, 10 or 12K if I remember right.

[racedoll]

Originally Posted by Captain Morgan

Haha, salesman called me and said he was out sick yesterday, but the manager is willing to work with me to get me on the bike if I can go down there today. Too late, suckah!

How convenient that he was sick.... I think you made the right choice.

[marko138]

Originally Posted by Captain Morgan

Haha, salesman called me and said he was out sick yesterday, but the manager is willing to work with me to get me on the bike if I can go down there today. Too late, suckah!

What did you say to him?

[Kaneman]

I put 25k miles on a V-Strom 1K in about 6 months back in 2007. I loved pretty much everything about that bike except for the looks...but after a couple of rides I didn't even notice anymore and grew to love it. It is the best all-around bike I've owned out of around 10 different street bikes. It did everything well from railing twisty roads, to holding tons of luggage and off-roading. I caught air off-road quite a few times with my Strom and it just held up.

I wrecked it, dropped it, abused it and did things most people would never do on a street bike. It always started and always ran smoothly. In that 25k miles of HARD riding I only had one service done one it. Absolutely rock-solid.

I'd still be riding it if Moira's Goddamn Ducati hadn't shot oil on the road in front of me!