Motorcycles: Cruiser or Sport?

[ugottabayou]

Once I get the starter fixed on my motorcycle I'm gonna sell it. I want something way more reliable. I'm headed to college this fall, and I'm hoping to make enough money this summer to throw a down payment on a bike and make payments after that. Most riding will be around a college town, with the usual weekend trip home (2.5 hours). I'm thinkin a sport bike (Gixxer, CBR, 600cc) would be much easier to handle around town, but riding 2.5 hours on a cruiser would be much more comfortable. Not sure which to compromise. I'd like a better bike cause the fraternity I'm lookin at is a ways from campus, and 10mpg city in my truck sucks.

Any thoughts?

btw - lookin at around 5 grand, maybe a little more depending what i can do with a loan

[250xridamatt]

I dont ride bikes, but I think this would be a nice compromise. http://www.yamaha-motor.com/sport/products/modelhome/273/0/home.aspx Its not so much of a lay down on the gas tank bike, but it still has that really sport look. The dual exhaust out the back is sick too.

[Project300EX]

I'd go for a sport touring if I were you. The rocket's going to be rough for a 2.5 hour ride. Maybe try an SV650S or if you have good experience the 1000.

[ugottabayou]

If its a sport bike I'm gonna stick with 600, with my experience I want to live past college. If its a cruiser larger would be fine. As long as I can outrun my grandma on her goldwing :p

[Project300EX]

Originally posted by ugottabayou
If its a sport bike I'm gonna stick with 600, with my experience I want to live past college. If its a cruiser larger would be fine. As long as I can outrun my grandma on her goldwing :p


The SV1000S is a sport touring. It's a V-twin instead of an I4 like most sport bikes. It won't perform like a Gixxer 1000. It would probably rate somewhere between a 600-750 rocket. The power is a lot easier to handle too. Not to mention it will be a lot more comfortable. You should really check into one of these.

[HiperEX]

i just recently sold my quad for a brand new 07 harley davidson sporster nightster first year for this style and I love it i had a rocket in the past but this thing is way better i like it alot, already orderd pipes, efi controller and forward controls a week later, the brochure says 57mpg not bad at all and insurance is way way cheaper then a rocket

[mephyst]

I love my 07 r6. =]

I love riding Harley's as well. My dad has one, and my uncle has 3 of them that I can ride whenever I feel like it. I took Harley's brand new Sportster CVO out for a spin the other day, a 32 thousand dollar bike. It's the biggest engine Harley has ever put into a bike- the new 110 (equivalent to 1800cc's). It is a FAST bike!! And looks sooo sleek with an old school type look.

[Tommy 17]

college town def = sport bike!!!!

you won't be able to keep the girls off the back... as soon as girls know u have one they won't leave u alone about takin them and also u'll be sittin on it gettin gas or just goin around town and girls will come up 2 u... its great...


i can ride 2.5 hours no problem on mine!

[ugottabayou]

Tommy- Nice bike! The cbr with the orange/tribal flames is my favorite as far as styling goes.

[Jonesy]

Originally posted by Tommy 17
college town def = sport bike!!!!

you won't be able to keep the girls off the back... as soon as girls know u have one they won't leave u alone about takin them and also u'll be sittin on it gettin gas or just goin around town and girls will come up 2 u... its great...


i can ride 2.5 hours no problem on mine!

My experience with girls wanting to ride with you has been the opposite. The girls liked the idea of having a sport bike but I never had one that would actually go for a ride with me. A cruiser has been a different story. They have no problems throwing a leg over the more comfortable cruiser saddle.

I'm looking for a new bike as well. I have my eye on a 1000CC+ cruiser, namely the V-Star 1100 or the Honda VTX 1300. I had a 2000 CBR 600 F4 and loved it to death but sold it before I hurt myself or someone else.

You might want to check into many of the "naked" sport bikes as most of them have a more upright seating position and a higher bar height. A lot of the comfort factor comes from your body stature. I'm 6'3" so I don't fold up as well to tuck in on a little 600rr or R6. For me the Gixxers were the roomiest, but I was fine on my 600F4 which you might want to look into. Good luck with whatever you buy.

[ugottabayou]

What about some of the smaller cruisers, like the Vstar 650, Shadow 750, or even the XL883, would they be a little underpowered on the interstate?

[Regular_Joe]

I've had quite a bit of time on these 3 bikes:

2003 Honda F4i
2001 Honda Shadow 1100
2002 SV650

The F4i was cool but it sucks in town. Its a lot of weight on your wrists and every stop you make is like doing a pushup. Plus 1st gear is bogging at anything below 25mph. So IMO it blows in town. Out of town its fun of course. Its got all that bling factor for chicks. It also attracts a lot of attention from the police.

The Shadow is fun because its relaxing to drive. Its just heavier than a tank. Once your moving its ok though. The big advantage is w/ a passenger its comfortable and you can still talk as your driving. It is geared so tall you can't tell the difference between gears 3rd through 5th. But in any gear it just chugs along no matter how big a hill you hit. But be warned if you have a cruiser, its nothing unless its a Harley to 99% of the population.

The SV is awesome in and out of town. The v-twin torque curve means there is power anytime you need it. It has a more relaxed stance so in town driving is better. You can go slow in town when you need to. The F4i power curve builds from nothing to totally amazing. The SV has the same power from 2k on up, and its equivalent to the power the F4i builds up to at 8k.

Overall the SV is "good" at everything, but "awesome" at nothing. The F4i is awesome at canyon carving, but sucks in town. The cruiser is awesome at relaxed longer drives, but doesn't handle that great.

[Tommy 17]

Originally posted by Jonesy
My experience with girls wanting to ride with you has been the opposite. The girls liked the idea of having a sport bike but I never had one that would actually go for a ride with me. A cruiser has been a different story. They have no problems throwing a leg over the more comfortable cruiser saddle.


outta the last 3 times i had my bike in a college town "penn state and IUP" i had a few differnt girls on my bike... and outta all of those i knew 2 the others were just random that asked me for a ride at a stop light or a gas station... this friday and saturday i have over 5 girls that want me to take them for rides... its very very easy to get them i think...

i have no problem running around town in stop lights with a sport bike... my temp gauge will go to 225 to 227ish in the redlights and i've seen 230 once revvin it up at a red light infront of a frat house... the looks u get on a sport bike and the fun that u can have is the best thing about them... not only in town but outta town when cars that think they are fast pull up along u... its just an all around good time! also anyone that says they can't ride a sport bike at a normal speed is liein... yes its easy to do 140+ but its also just as fun cruising around...

my friends dad has a harley 1200 sportster custom and i've traded with him a few times now and don't get me wrong its a NICE bike thats very comfortable butttttttt it beats the crap outta u riding down the road compared to the sport bikes... the brakes are alot better also... you can go and buy the v-stars and shadowns but u will always be considered as a poser to everyone... u'll never fit in with the harleys and the sport bikes will just laugh at you... the only bike i'd own outside of a sport bike right now is the 1400cc yamaha road warrior and thats just because they are fast and big and comfy but can still run with a sport bike in a straight line... my friend has one and its pretty kickass...


yeah its nice to cruise on the other types of bikes but i just don't think those types of bikes and 20 year olds go together... in a college town ur just another plain harley or a boring cruiser not a badass sport bike rider... remember in college its show an image of being a hardass and an ******* and it'll get u the girl....

[Tommy 17]

Originally posted by ugottabayou
What about some of the smaller cruisers, like the Vstar 650, Shadow 750, or even the XL883, would they be a little underpowered on the interstate?


i had a v-star next to me on the highway once and he went up to a 100 mph no problem tryin to outrun me... they have no problem that i saw...

[mxdad]

I agree 100% that if you are in a college town you should get a sport bike. Girls love sport bikes!!! Also i had a Sportster 1200 Custom and I didn't like it on the highway at all!!! Anything over 70-80mph was a little shakey. I rode my buddies gixxer and it was a lot better on the highways. He would ride 3 hours to Ocean City with no problems at all.

[30liveStar]

get what you WANT...

everyone in this thread that is bashing them is either BIAS beyond belief, or has listened to the same "get a harley" speech every kid gets...

Harleys are fine - fun to ride - they are best at NOTHING.

I've been on almost every sportbike made... I've been on sportsters, fatboys - custom choppers... I can get on ANY sportbike and ride to flordia from southern indiana... Of course i'll be stiff - but thats part of the ride. I would be stiff on anything else as well.

also - an SV is nowhere near the performance of a "sport" class bike, and if you think a 600cc is that much slower than a 1000cc bike, you need to get a "seat of the pants" ride on both... Most 600cc bikes will OUTRUN the 1000cc bikes for a good while.

Also - Tommy, 230* is HOT ! ! ! Rev-limiter, ect shouldnt matter. Try putting "water wetter" or "engine ice" in your bike for the summer, and see if it helps. I stunt in a parking lot ALL day during the summers, and if my bike gets over 200* i shut it off... (i also have the fan wired to run constantly)

[30liveStar]

oh - and the girls wanting a ride...we've got a code word for em...

B-dubs ! (be careful, they usually arent worth keeping)

[mephyst]

I'm not really all for giving chicks a ride on the back of my r6... Too much that can go wrong with some dumbass girl on the back of my bike to make us both go down. Yeah, I've done it... but I am going to get the solid plastic rear race cowling, that way I wont be able to take anyone for rides anymore. More safe for me and them... it's a track bike. =]

Have you ever sat on the back of a sport bike? It just feels dangerous and its uncomfortable as hell. Hahah.

[30liveStar]

yah... 80mph coaster gone bad on the freeway. (my bike was raped - LoL) I had to ride about 100miles on the back to go get the truck and trailer... Very uncomfortable, awkward at best.

[Tommy 17]

Originally posted by 30liveStar

Also - Tommy, 230* is HOT ! ! ! Rev-limiter, ect shouldnt matter. Try putting "water wetter" or "engine ice" in your bike for the summer, and see if it helps. I stunt in a parking lot ALL day during the summers, and if my bike gets over 200* i shut it off... (i also have the fan wired to run constantly)

i was told if u see 235 shut it down... my bike rarly runs under 215ish i have engine ice for it but i'm waiting till i put on my signals and pipe to do it when all the plastic is off it...

[30liveStar]

do it - more than likely the bike will run @ 180-200 constantly... Engine Ice & Water-Wetter are amazing products... Does your automatic fan kick on about 210-217 degrees? because that should stop the climbing of temperature. Let me know how it works out. :cool:

[Tommy 17]

Originally posted by 30liveStar
do it - more than likely the bike will run @ 180-200 constantly... Engine Ice & Water-Wetter are amazing products... Does your automatic fan kick on about 210-217 degrees? because that should stop the climbing of temperature. Let me know how it works out. :cool:

i hear my fan kick on like 218... the day it got to 230 it was 72 degrees and i was in traffic for a good half hour riding around penn state never gettin over 25mph...

[30liveStar]

sounds to me like your engine ice will cure your problem... I left my 954 running to "warm-up" one night, and forgot to toggle the switch so the fan would run... Well i went in and the significant other brought some food home - so i ate... LoL. I came outside and the coolant was spewing everywhere - temp gauge was reading 280 and blinking...:eek2: I thought she was done ! Good ole honda though, never missed a beat:devil:

[ugottabayou]

lol, I keep hearing "Get this it attracks more chicks!". Honestly, I know chicks dig bikes, but thats not the reason I'm getting one. I have a good girlfriend already, and I'm not worrying about looking like a badass, when I will admit I'm not at all one, so I'm not gonna try to pose as one. I just want to see what some of you other guys have done, so I'll be glad with my decision and enjoy my ride :cool:. Even though a decision is gonna be tough cause I like bikes of all kinds!

[mxdad]

Girls aside... I have owned a harley and ridden a sport bike. If I were to go buy a bike today it would be a sport bike. Handling alone is such a big advantage. Like someone else said. You will be stiff no matter what you ride if you take a long trip. Just go to a dealer and sit on all of the different kids of bikes you can and see what is comfortable to you.