Take your Pick

I have been looking at getting a new to me bike and have found 3 possible
contenders, and would appreciate your opinions. The budget is around 4.5K.

1st. GSXR 1000 y reg 6000 miles £4400
2nd GSXR 1000 53 reg 10000 miles £4900 (is there much difference between a
K1 and K3?)
3rd ZX9R unregistered D1(?) 2001 bike alittle over budget at £5000 +OTR
4th any suggestions from the FOAK

Looking at it I think I would be daft to get the 53 plate unless there have
been any massive changes between the models.

The bike will be used to commute on occasionally and will be used in all
weathers. I just fancy something a bit more sporty than the B12. Oh it could
also do with being able to take a pillion.

TIA

Ken
B12

 

fish said...

The Y plate bike is over-priced, the 53 regd one is about right, maybe a
little under what a dealer down south would punt it out at. That said,
if I were in your shoes and wanted a good all-rounder with pillion
friendly perch then I'd take the ZX-9R. That one would be an E1 model,
not a bad bike at all.

 

I would hazzard a guess at the ZX9R being an E1 from 2001. I rode my 2002 E2
(little difference) through 2 winters and it was a sorry state even with
regular cleaning, although had I discovered the joys of Scottoiler FS365
back then it might have been a happier story. Excellent bike though. Can't
comment on it against the others as I've never ridden them but from your
post my gut feeling would be that the 9R might suite you better.

Not sure about that price though, you could get a decent second hand one
with low mileage for a lot less.

 

My mate sold his MINT K3 for £ 4k at the end of laast summer
so I'd say overpriced
just my 2p worth

 

There are differences, yes, but whether you'd regard them as 'massive'
I don't know.
Riding position is similar, but the pegs/bars/seat relationship is not
identical, so one may be more comfortable for you than the other.
The K3 is allegedly about three kilos lighter and 5hp more powerful.
Looks-wise, the K3 looks a bit more well-built, in things like fewer
visible frame-welds and less clunky pegs, plus it has a more
modern-looking profile.

Looking at the prices you quote, I'd definitely say it's worth
spending another 500 on the newer bike. That said, I'd also echo
others' views that the Y plater seems overpriced by comparison.

--
_______
..'_/_|_\_'. Ace (brucedotrogers a.t rochedotcom)
\`\ | /`/ GSX-R1000K3
`\\ | //' BOTAFOT#3, SbS#2, UKRMMA#13, DFV#8, SKA#2
`\|/`
`

 

Would you seriously buy a bike that's been sat in a showroom
for 5 years?

 

I for one would not. Its hard enough to store a bike properly for a few
months let alone that period of time.

 

That's what I was thinking. The brake fluid would have need changing
twice in 5 years anyway, let alone things like the battery being trash,
tyres going off, seals starting to shrink or harden because they have
no oil and all the engine internals would be very dry by now as the
oil would have been sitting in the sump for a long time. I doubt it
would show any signs of rust but you'd want someone to give it
a *thorough* going over at the very least.

 

I'd drop the Y reg gixxer from the list and then decide what you want
most from the bike before deciding. The 9R will probably be better for
taking a pillion and possibly better for commuting but the 53 plate
gixxer will be slightly faster, better accelerating, better handling
and generally be a newer bike even if the 9R would be on a newer
plate.

I've had a 9R and loved it but if I was going to choose between the
gixxer and the 9R I'd go Suzuki. This assumes of course that it's a K3
model and not an earlier one on a later plate.

Of course what you should really do is spend another £2k and get a 10R
but not everyone thinks the same way as I do.

 

Bear said...

In on the road terms there's **** all between an E and an F model ZX9.
The F was no quicker, didn't handle any better, was barely lighter and
looked almost the same. About the only major improvement was the fitting
of 4 pot Nissin brakes. The biggest problem comes when you want to buy
used parts for an F model, when was the last time you saw one? I've only
seen 3 in all the time they've been out there.

I'd still rate the ZX9 as a better road bike than the Gixer, it's
comfier and takes a pillion better. If Fish wants an all out sports
bike, then he should consider a Gixer, but if he's looking for a bike
with more of a road/sports compromise then the ZX9 wins in my
book...plus it's a brand new litre(ish) bike for 5 large - bargain.

 

That's about 400 quid too much.

 

snip>

If you think back a few weeks to when WC was looking for a new bike I
told him you could still get a 9R for under £5k and that's an
outstanding price but it really depends on what the buyer wants from
the bike. The better handling would clinch it for me to buy the Suzuki
but (and it's a big but) if I wanted a bike that was as fast as ****,
handled very well compared to a bindit and was better for touring at
high speeds I'd go for the Kawasaki.

I honestly think that anyone selling a brand new 9R right now would
almost certainly take a lot less than £5k for it if no trade in was
involved and the punter was having it on finance so the dealer scored
a bit on that as well.

 

What, an engine not being turned over for 5 years left sitting
there? I know Castrol go on about magnatec in their oils but
surely there won't be any left on the surfaces after 5 years?

My 748 sits in the garage for two weeks and it grows a
beard if it's not shown lots of love and attention. It'd probably
turn into a little pile of rust if left that long.

Whatever. I personally wouldn't touch it.

 

Bear said...

You can bleat about the gixer not being that much better than a 9R all
you like, but having owned both a 9R and a Gixer thou I can quite easily
say that the Gixer is far and away a much better bike than any 9R. It's
lighter, much much faster on both acceleration and top speed, better
braked[1], better handling and altogether a much better sports bike. The
9R wins in only one respect, it's comfier for most people, but not me as
a short-arse. I'm pretty sure those here who've owned both will say the
same. Until you personally have owned and put mileage on both you're not
really in any position to give an informed opinion on this. You owned a
9R and an R1, not a Gixer thou. I own a Gixer now, but I'd still
recommend a 9R over my own choice of bike for Fish's needs.

[1] I don't know why, as they share the same brakes, probably down to
less weight to stop.

 

antonye said...

I'd rather pay a grand more to buy a brand new bike that's been kept
unused in a warm dry showroom for 5 yrs, than a used and registered bike
that's spent long periods of time growing a beard in a dank smelly
garage between abusive rides for 3 years.

 

Bear said...

Whenever this argument comes up you go on about how little difference
there is in performance between a 9R and Gixer thou, we've had this in
here and IRL. In reality, you either rode the wrong Gixer thou, or you
rode it like a big girl. The Gixer is miles better as has been proven on
the road on a number of ocassions by just about eveyone who owns a Gixer
thou.

Someone disagrees and puts up valid reasons why, and that means they've
disappeared up there own arse? Good work, keep it up.

It's easily cureable with Silkolene FST for those occasions when they
will ice. I never had a problem with carb icing on my 9R anyway, but I
had proper plumbed in carb heaters on mine that worked. IIRC, Dick
bought a complete set of carbs just to get the heater plumbing. If this
bike is sitting in D+K then it's almost guaranteed to be an Italian spec
one, which I'm sure come with plumbed in carb heaters as standard.

 

Don't be.

I wouldn't be worried about damage being caused by it being left
standing as long as the bike has a full two year Kawasaki warranty.
Not some fucked up 12 months maximum £1k per claim bollocks but the
full manufacturers one.

 

snip>

My 9R had carb heaters and it still suffered from carb icing. It's
something you have to learn to accept if you've got a 9R but that
doesn't stop it being a right pain in the arse.

Has Fish said where the bike's for sale? I know the one I saw was from
D&K but there are probably others around. As I've said in another
post, I'd want to know what warranty I was getting and if it wasn't
the right one I'd walk away.

 

Bear said...

Chances are it's still got the light protective oil in the engine that
it left Kawasaki's factory with. They put fresh normal road use oil in
at PDI. Bike dealers don't usually PDI bikes until they are sold, just
in case they want to trade them on while still unregistered to another
dealer. It keeps costs down by another 20 quid, and every 20 quid
counts.

 

Bear said...

I dunno, but I can find out. I don't suppose it's any different from
firing up a brand new freshly built engine for the first time. You'll
never have full oil pressure straight away because you'll never have oil
through the whole engine. I'd be tempted to refill with quality oil then
spin it up as you said to get oil circulated, and then connect the plug
leads again.