[ku69rd]

Folks,
Every Motorcyclist worth his salt would have a burning desire to own a superbike. After spending close to 12 years with my Yamaha RD 350 going through both high's and low's that one usually experiences with such a machine thought it apt to upgrade to a more powerful/modern bike. Thus began my search for a bike which would satisfy my hunger and need for speed. A few key outliners which helped make my decision was it should be easy to use, good handling, comfortable riding posture, Decent fuel tank and lots more. Objective with the bike is to do an occasional city use and more regularly on highway.
With these sole parameters and off course budget being around 8 Lakhs made my way towards HD. Should say the experience at their dealer was too good and feel it apt to thank Srinivas Reddy for being all ears with patience to my repeated queries and asking all sorta thrifty questions (including range of petrol tank as Iron has only 12 Liters) Booking done early this year March and then began my waiting period. Unfortunately HD could not keep up with their committment of 45 days and beginning to lose my interest, decided to check on the 48 which was then recently launched. Got to know that 48 had a more aggressive delivery dates which was confirmed by one of my friend who had upgraded from iron 883 to 48 and got his bike delivered within 15 days of his booking.

If i have to step up for the 48 it would mean enter/cross the 10 lakh market for which one has more options.

The following bikes were considered and have put my thoughts around them. Not an expert's view but from a typical layman.
1) Ducati 796: Not a big fan of Ducati considering the expensive service, not quite easy on pocket. Felt the engine to be quite noisy when compared to other bikes.Legacy Technology when compared to Jap Liter Bikes (due apologies to my dear friend Jayant aka JVH)
2) Sportster 48: Ride quality is poor with hard/non existent suspension. Very low GC of just 100 MM means i have to be extra careful when doing the bumps even the toll booths, a very small range of 150 Kms
3) Suzuki Bandit: Good All rounder, but very poor in its looks, when you pay the money guess it matters a little. Handling is poor as per the many reviews i have read, a bit of legacy technology
4) Iron 883: Just stick to it as am pretty much convinced with the bike, yes you get legacy via name, decent posture, proper city bike and can do long rides. Suspension is poor when compared to FZ-1. GC is questionable at 120 mm when compared to 135 mm of FZ. 12 liter tank compared to 18 of FZ1
5) Honda CB1000R: Very good quality bike, Super Silent engine. Felt it less VFM compared to FZ-1, as she makes 126 horses compared to 150. Had to extend my budget which i felt was a bit of overkill. Quieter Engine compared to FZ-1, probably due to the fact that it has 4 valves lesser than FZ-1?
6) Yamaha FZ-1, Famed R-1 Engine, excellent seating posture coupled with decent suspension. Very practical bike for the city and for long rides. The only con that i see is, lack of an overwhelming street presence and understated looks

Checked with our esteemed forum team bhp & a couple of friends, closely followed both ownership threads of Jayant & Nikhil. So it was to be the Yamaha FZ-1, booking done on the June 4th with a downpayment of 247K. Pretty clear with delivery dates and did not want dealers to set any wrong/false expectations. Gave them ample time incuding buffer which they stuck to. Should say 'Perfect Riders' did a Perfect Job after the initial run around given to me by Bangalore Wheels. They gave me regular updates right from the time bike was setup on the delivery truck, got a call on Saturday, July 16th asking me to inspect the bike. As luck would have it, was out in mysore to get some spares for my RD and made a dash for the showroom but thanks to Bangalore Traffic could not make it on time. Sunday spent restlessly, finished work early and headed out on monday. There she lay in the cage waiting to be unleashed.Have posted the photos when i first seen her. Apologies for the poor quality, clicked off my mobile.






D day arrived, August 5th all excited like a kid with his candy decided to take leave and head to showroom along with Dad n Mom by 1030. Was quite surprised looking at the way bike was decked with all ribbons . After the update session on bike by the showroom guy (hardly remember what he was telling) got Dad n Mom to crank her for the first time. Froze for a second and being careful on the Revs slowly made my way into the traffic.

[ATTACH][/ATTACH]

Ride impressions after a few rides & first Service
1) Found her very easy to ride contrary to my expectations
2) Flickable
3) Surprised at the mileage, recorded a best of 21.9 Kmpl with a steady 120-130 Kays. Worst of 16 with stop go movement
4) Satisfactory First Service
5) Have noticed that Engine tends to be smooth with the usage of BP when Shell is not around. Have not bothered much about the Octane readings so far. If there is a choise, premium it will be else plain vanilla.

Will let the visuals take over as it might turn to be an endurance test for readers

[shrini78]

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Please view our board rules carefully before proceeding any further.

[ku69rd]

Thank you Shrini, She has done 1000 Miles so far.

[Motormania]

Congratulations on the "super" buy. Looks really good in white. This bike goes largely goes unnoticed within the city and thats what i like most about it-Peace of mind!!

[seedyk]

Hey, congratulation on acquiring the beast.
Although you might feel that she looks a bit understated, i call it as a blessing in disguise. Will help her not to be an eye candy and at the same time turn heads when she would roar !
C'mon, we need a proper photoshoot and your views on the beast !

[bigron]

Congratulation ! White looks nice . How much is the "break-in" period before you can let open the throttle ? Any mods in tow ? Ride Safe

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by Motormania

This bike goes largely goes unnoticed within the city and thats what i like most about it-Peace of mind!!

Thanks for your wishes Motormania, yep when parked the bike goes largely unnoticed. However sometimes people do poke checking out the huge tank

Originally Posted by seedyk

C'mon, we need a proper photoshoot and your views on the beast !

Thanks seedyk, will try to upload some more photos taken courtesy my riding group. Regarding the views do pour in your questions and will answer them to the best of my limited exposure with the bike. Handling the bike is a dream both within city and outside. Does not make its bulky weight felt at all except when you park and try to push it around. Uphill curves, bike takes it to like a fish to water. Downhill curves, weight is felt but not a great inhibitor if you get the line right. Awesome seating position have so far done close 480 Kms in a day and was in my office the very next day with no pronounced effects. Wrists do not pain/ache like its brother R-1.

Originally Posted by bigron

Congratulation ! White looks nice . How much is the "break-in" period before you can let open the throttle ? Any mods in tow ? Ride Safe

Thanks Bigron, yep the white actually stood out when compared to the black. A sore point that this bike comes along in only 2 colors, and it appears that the 2012 model will be no exception. Regarding the break in period, bike is supposed not to be used for extended periods above 6K for initial 1000 Kms and not above 7K for next 600 kms. But speeds you get at 6K, final gear actually exceeds 140K. So am not complaining on that front.

Regarding mods, have not given a serious thought as of now. Not a big fan of changing the end cans as many would do for an Inline 4 cylinder engine. Planning for some addons so that long distance travelling becomes easier. Will keep you posted around that.

[JVH]

So, finally we get to see a separate thread on your 'Rajyam'
Many congratulations once again! Nice detailed write up. Naked is the way to go for our conditions and it doesn't get better than the FZ1.

And bro, no need to apologize. If everyone had similar tastes, the world would have been a mundane place. To each his own I say. I only have one point to disagree with you, thats on the term legacy technology coined on the L-Twin engine of Ducati. Its far from it and one has to really ride it to believe it. Its just a different configuration, that's all.

Good to see your parents enjoying the passion with you on the delivery and ownership. What more one can ask for when a superbike finds its acceptance among your most loved ones

Ride safe Bro! Let's ride a long one soon!

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by JVH

Ride safe Bro! Let's ride a long one soon!

Agree to your thoughts bro and yep parents were a part of the decision on the bike as well. Dad was keen for me to pick up the Iron so that he could ride it along considering its low seating and ease of handling. But then yep he too was bit cheesed off with the moving delivery dates.

Regarding the technology, probably my vision has blinders and that could have made me arrive at that conclusion at the time of decision making. Guess only after interacting with you am i able to see the Ducati with more eyes. Love the lines on the monster. Honestly apart from the 2 cylinder stuff, Duke was running high on my list, because of its GC (probably you can do off roading if required) and petrol tank range. Perceptions do change and interactions with you have greatly changed my view around the Duke.

Regarding the long ride, let me know am planning to take a week off during November. Can align it to suit your dates

[ashwin.terminat]

I remember a person on a White FZ1 near Yamaha Motors wearing shorts near Perfect Motors a few months ago, was that you ku69rd?

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by ashwin.terminat

I remember a person on a White FZ1 near Yamaha Motors wearing shorts near Perfect Motors a few months ago, was that you ku69rd?

Hopefully i would not get reprimanded for not wearing the right gear

[coolboy007]

Congrats ku69rd, thats a sweet sweet choice and am sure you are enjoying that naked beauty to the full extent , i really like the FZ1 and prefer it over the CB1000.

Originally Posted by ku69rd

Hopefully i would not get reprimanded for not wearing the right gear

- you do buddy be careful, team bhpians are everywhere. I wear everything when i go out just barring the jacket if its a short 4-5 kms spin.

[ashwin.terminat]

Originally Posted by ku69rd

Hopefully i would not get reprimanded for not wearing the right gear

So it was you! I remember telling my friend that you might get your legs burnt on that thing! Anyway, congrats on your buy and ride safe and hard! Looks like I got a sneak peek at the bike before anyone else on Team-BHP!

[bigron]

@ku69rd : I completely understand when you say there is a dearth of colors available for most big bikes. But as they say , you cannot go wrong with white. Good that you like the sound of inline 4. Enjoy your ride and you ll have even more fun shopping for goodies online.I know i do.

[Sheel]

Neighbor's envy, owners pride

At approx Rs. 10L, you can't have a better Motorcycle. No, I am serious. If I was in the market, it would either be this or the 796 or maybe, maybe the CB. No potato potato for me