I got the chance to ride Dreamer's R6 last night up and down the Featherston side of the Rimutaka hill road and made some observations, mostly in comparison to my GSXR.
Short: Yamaha R6, totally fucking brilliant.
Long: It's great fun. Heaps of fun. Painfully fun. Why is it so much fun?
The whole bike is incredibly thrash friendly. All it's components made it very easy for me (Or any other dim witted fool) to get on and just ride it.
It's probably poor writing to describe the R6's centrepiece, the engine, first. But I will anyway. The throttle is very responsive, but your right hand is a noise requester as much as it is a forward progress requester. Kinda like a boy racer car that makes all this noise, but doesn't actually go very fast. And that is why it is so much fun. The piss weak screaming engine makes you feel like a motorcycle riding god, while keeping the speed down to a level my dim witted brain can cope with.
Once the engine is really spinning, yes, there is power there. Heading uphill on the straight just after the two bridges on the Featherston side I got a little wiggle as the front tyre skimmed the road surface and the speedo said.. Something. Otherwise, if it is in the wrong gear and you exit a corner and you open the throttle, you get that feeling of serious disappointment because you have fucked it up by being in a gear to high.
The engine is very smooth. It also lacks engine braking. 'Cos I am a retard I managed to completely close and then open the throttle mid corner, and that didn't upset the bike. My GSXR discourages such behaviour and punishes you for it.
The suspension is firm, but not harsh. I wasn't quite sure about the rear though. On some of the rougher bits coming down the hill it skipped a little where I know my GSXR would have sailed through. No issues with the front though, that was great.
The biggest difference between the R6 and the GSXR is that the R6 didn't seem to stand up under brakes as much (Or did it stand up at all?) as the GSXR. I've heard people blame the Bridgestone BT-014 that is on the front for this behaviour. Personally, I don't have a problem with it on the GSXR (I enjoy the reaction) but on the R6 it was very conspicuous in it's absence, and that was really good. The brakes I didn't think were as good as the GSXR's, but then perhaps I am linking 'stand up' with how good the brakes are? Anyway, the brakes are pretty damn good on the R6.
The bike tips in quicker than the GSXR. It really reminded me of my 400 a lot. It feels very stable when heeled over, unlike my 400, which gets a little wiggly. That's 12 years progress for you.
It's not as comfy as the GSXR, there is more weight on your wrists. Initially I found this off-putting, but actually it was fine while going up and down the hill. God knows what it will be like on a straight road, it could be torture. You kinda sit 'on' the R6, rather than 'in'.
I couldn't get my feet down that well on the R6, but it feels very light so you don't really need to get your feet down as well as the GSXR, which feels heavier.
I missed the GSXR's gear indicator, and the speedo readout was smaller or something and harder to read. Not that I looked at it much.
So, would I swap in my GSXR for it? No. If I had this R6 and rode a K6 GSXR would I swap it for a GSXR? No, unless it was uncomfortable doing what I am doing on my bike these days (A fair amount of distance 2up).
I was thinking afterwards: This bike is the death-knell for the old 400s really, it handles better, isn't 10+ years old and falling to bits, doesn't have carbs, and isn't faster by as much as the 45-50hp difference would imply. Those who want a thrash machine for some really tight and twisty roads, meet your new tool.
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Originally Posted by Coyote
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