Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

Hey guys,
How are we all going, well time has come and I would like to upgrade (keeping the bike though cos my other half is getting her licence )
Choices are:
zx6r
zx7r
zx9r
z750
z1000
buell (i now not a kwaka) xb9s firebolt

I have ridden the zx6,zx9,z1000 and z750, and to be honest I felt more comfortable riding the zx6/z750 at the time I rode them, but bear in mind I have only been riding for 6 months and the only things I have ridden were zxr250 and an aprilia rs250.

I would like ppls honest opinions on these bikes so as when I decide what to get I can keep it in mind when I test ride them.

Cheers and thanks for any help you can give me.

Scotti

PS. put a pipe on the 250 and sounds the goods now, if not a bit loud

i'm biased zx6

IMO an excellent step up from the ZXR250 would be a ZX6R.
But any of the bikes you have listed would be a good step up.

Yep, the 6 would be awsome if you want to do full on sports riding. But if you want to just hoon around having fun I reckon the Z750 / Z1000 is the bike to beat.

Don't even think about the buell. I understand you might like the look of them, maybe even the sound, but they are a POS. Your 250 probably goes harder, is way more sporty anyway, and the things are just too costly and unreliable in the long term. You never know how long you will end up keeping it. At least the Kwakas just keep on going, no matter what the abuse thrown at them.

I'm biased, but I think the 6R. A 600 is a decent jump in power from a 250 but not so much that it will get you into trouble (unless you do something dumb). They will also probably be the smallest weight increase. But if your six five and 120 kg a 12R could be ok. No matter what you're on you've just got to remember when you twist the throttle,you asked for it.

And I am biased as well, but go for the Z750 or the Z1000. As Hemi said, both are great to hoon around on and both are extremly nimble...plus you can do some great mods to customise them. If you like the naked bike look, go for one!

My cousin had a Buell, and while it was a nice bike, nice and shiny and sounded fabulous and went quite well, he had a fair bit of trouble with it. Nothing too specific, just little problems. Especially when riding in the rain, it would cut out and stall alot.
I remember the exhaust fell off cause the bike used to vibrate so much.

Iam reading this too,any more suggestions guy's&gal's
Esie75 your Z750 pic looks great.

stay away from the buell.....wendy is looking at offloading hers real soon...im talking her into a zx6r or a z1000.....
the buell has a service interval of 4000km...its not a real bad bike..but geez is it costly to maintain!!..oh and it doesnt handle newhere near as good as a 600 zxr/cbr...

Why not a ZZR250?

6R...

7r

I'm biased, but I love the J series (00-02) ZX6R. Handles well capable of reasonable speed, and handles pretty well IMO, passed plenty of 9's, etc on the track.

I prefer the seating position to the 03 - onwards 6's but i'm a bigger bloke and I like to have a reasonable sized screen (I have a double bubble) blocking the wind and rain, which keeps me quite dry.


But at the end of the day, you have a good short list, you're prob just going to have to go out and test ride a few.

You have an easy way to cut the list in half though.. Buell.. bugger that for a joke, I've read so many bad wraps about them it's not funny, even a mechanic down the road who has one was telling me how much trouble he'd had with his... then you have the sports bike (fairing style) or the naked.. they are quite different i guess, if you're going to be out in the elements.. Dropping a naked bike as the potential of being cheaper, but at the same time drop a naked and you're going to go straight to the tank, engine and frame as they have nothing covering them. the seating position is completly different also.. So decide on that and you'll prob have either the Z750 or Z1000 to chose from, or if you drop those options, it's down to the ZX6, 7 or 9...

Having gone from a ZX2R myself the ZX6R was a good size jump for me. I just felt that at the time and after 6 or so months riding the 9 was going to be abit much. The 6 doesn't quite have the poke, but at the same time it doesn't have the potential of getting you into trouble quite as quickly in terms of losing the rear end... But the 9 is a slightly larger version of the 6. the 7 has a completely differnent feel. It's lower, and heavier (approx 230kg's) it is essentially a race bike i guess. The seating position is prob as close to the ZX2R as you'll get IMO, it's lower and has the similar style of reach to the grips as the ZX2.

So it's just a matter of deciding on what factors you'd prefer to go with...

I rode a mates '00 ZX6 and it was enough to tell me it was exactly what I wanted. So try to take the time to test ride 2 or 3 bikes and sit on a few more. It will help you make a decision you won't regret after a couple of weeks/months.


Good Luck.

Dan

how much $$$$$ you got to play with mate?
i went from my gpx250 to a brand spankers 05 zx6r. fuken AWESOME bike and havent had a single problem with it after 10,000kms.
its a blast to ride, thumbs up from me for sure

Im a larger guy too and I still prefer the 03-04 ... zx6r... The styling is just too wicked to pass up.... I have also got a double bubble screen...

At over 110 BHP on the rear wheel it is easily as powerfull as an older 750..

It has plenty of power (obviously not compared to a thou) and can drag off any car you come across and pretty much every 600 out there...

It is plenty exciting... (its all in the wrist)... and will allow you to grow as a rider..

It ducks through corners better than anything I have ridden, and the riding position is agressive (leaning forward)...

In my humble opinion I recommend the ZX6R, CBR600RR, R6, GSXR600 range...

Ofcourse the zx6R is the best out of that lot...

Oh, and avoid the Buell, a friend of mine who has owned more than 15 bikes said it was the worst bike he ever owned..