parting of the sensory
Ooh yeah. At 28mpg (for those of you who know what one of them is), it didn't take long to slurp it dry. Aout 150 km in fact, until the Red LED Of Doom was glaring...Originally Posted by 98tls
And unlike "most" bikes, it was ignored at your peril. From announcing, "I'm starting to run dry here, Dude!" to "Get your fat arse off and push!" was a few hundred metres at most.
... and that's what I think.
Or summat.
Or maybe not...
Dunno really....
Forum whore
You want a C model (98 on) or later. I had an E model (2000) earlier this year, with some bits on it and I preferred it to the Gsxr1000! It felt like the Yam SP only with 30 more HP!
Have you tried the Kawasaki owners websites?
What happened to the RF400?
“- He felt that his whole life was some kind of dream and he sometimes wondered whose it was and whether they were enjoying it.”
Cyborg Biker
I've never gone that low on gas on my VTR but I get 220km's no problem... never pushed it to 250km's but if I nursed it (yeah right) I probably could...
Hardcore Biker
If you want midrange and a bike that's easy to ride buy a Firestorm.
ZX9R are nice bikes to ride but are prone to carb icing..
TLR is a pig when pushed, but ok when you ride it like a nana.. TLS has the better motor for the road and probaly handles better.
I have low k TLR in good condition that i would sell...
The metal is always nude.
Ah,...you can always be tempted by 1100cc twins....ala Guzzi..!!!
"...you meet the weirdest people riding a Guzzi !!..."
Moped rider
Got a '97 TLS with 75,000 on the clock. With a chocka tank (litterally filling it up with the bike vertical ), get about 165 km before the warning light comes on when town riding. In cruising mode, get bang on 230 (Taupo to Samson). Get at least 30 k on reserve (tested this out on a journey around the south island).
The flip side of the coin is that I have also put 10 dollars worth of petrol into it in what seemed to be as many miles...
Reliability:
Touch wood, no major problems. Recently replaced the water pump seal because it was oozing coolant very slightly. Couple of points of note were that the water pump drive shaft was a bit rusted, and that the clutch cover O ring is about as much use as a chocolate teapot. I found that one of the previous owners had bodged the cover on with araldite type stuff and now I know why.
Various other bits are starting to wear (namely the chrome from the fork tubes and moreso the chrome of what would be the damper rod on the rear spring assembly), but that's to be expected on a bike of this mileage. It is actually the latter that has me thinking of getting a new rear shock assembly, as I've had no issues with the rotary damper (which I quite like from a maintenance perspective, as its actually fairly easy to replace the damper oil).
All in all, I'd term it a fairly reliable bike. Maintenance wise it's easy to work on. No pissing around taking of full fairings to do a simple oil and filter change. Bit of a pain in the arse if you want to do anything with the tank / airbox / sparkplugs, as then you do have to take all the front fairings off (oops and drop the rad for sparks...), thanks to the stearing damper mount getting in the way.
As for riding - well its already been said here. Sure it's not the latest and greatest and it may be a big heavy ol' bastard, but I love it.
Fortunately herself doesn't know about this website, so I can get away with saying things like that...
If it ain't a V twin, it ain't worth shit.
Hardcore Biker
Cheers SP.
I'll look harder for a 'C' model but the prices are giving Sharon the shits. More on the mortgage she's keeps saying...
I traded the RF (my word you have a good memory) on a Thundercat back in '05- was a great 600 too. Sold it that Spring to help buying another house. Now The house is being sold so I can have another bike
See you on a ride soon.
What is the cause of the ZX9's carb icing issue? To be honest I'm not 100% sure what that is but doesn't sound too good...
The VTR is starting to sound a little boring. I have a test ride on a new one arranged for tomorrow morning but the Pillion seat will probably scratch that model for good.
Tell me about your TLR...always liked the fairings on the twin and I doubt I'd ever truly push a machine like that. Is the engine tuned differently to a TL1000s?
Forum whore
Not as bad as it sounds... all the big Kwakas had a rep for it. I guess it depends on where you live, I've seen posts on here from owners of ZX9Rs that have never had a problem. IIRC Kwaka did a recall on them to fix the problem, but also IIRC the fix didn't work 100% of the time.
WHOA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!
I will gt you contact numbers for these guys...
"Here for a good time... not for a long time" DUREX
Scooter boy
I thought the same originaly, I was dead keen on a TLR for ages and thought the firestorm was kinda boring.
Then I rode a TLR and was so dissapointed, it was really uncomfortable, i felt like I was hanging over the front of it! It seemed reluctant to lean into corners as well, and could just imagine having very sore wrists after riding it for any time, this was after living with a ZZR 600 for a year.
Next i rode a VTR and it just fitted, somehow Honda has a knack for that. Ok its down on power compared to a TLR but I haven't found myself wanting more (yet), but I liked it enough to buy it and I'm happy.
Long story short, . . . different strokes for different folks, try them all.
Hardcore Biker
I have to agree that the VTR does seem to fit really well. Sharon & I went round the bike dealers yesterday and sat on a few different models... The VTR offers the worst pillion comfort of those sat on so far while the SV seems to offer the best compromise...Sharon wont entertain buying a naked nor spending more than is absolutely necessaryso its gonna be a challenge finding a bike to meet both our expectations, and the SV's for sale privately, in our price range all seem to be nakeds
. I didn't ride any beacause of the rain yesterday & the thought of testing a 1000cc twin on brand new tyres on wet roads really didn't make too much sense. When I do ride them I want to be able to stretch their legs a little so will wait for a sunny avo this coming week.
Forum whore
my one weight in at 217kgs fully wet on some very accurate digi cattle scales..not really a heavy bike at all...but yeah big compared to the latest and greatest...
I miss my old TLs......hmmm
Scooter boy
I got my K3 sv1000s about a month ago and i absolutely love it, my first big bike and I'm pretty sure I made the right move. The handling is very encouraging, hasn't pulled any nasty tricks on me at all.
And my gf liked it so much she went out and bought her own, gutting thing is her's was cheaper and it had pair of Yoshi's on it too.
Trademe is absolutely mental for selling SV's though (actually it's mental for buying just about anything). Having said that trademe was handy for flicking on the 250.
Forum whore
Only coz you keep trying to reduce yr gixxer to component parts............
“- He felt that his whole life was some kind of dream and he sometimes wondered whose it was and whether they were enjoying it.”
Weekend cruiser
If you want a newish twin, you are looking for a VTR or SV.
The last of the TL was 2001 (correct me if I'm wrong)
The R version has an extra 15 ponies of top end over the S, but still commands an extra couple of grand on the price too. It got lots of fruit, braced swing arm, double injectors, forged pistons, lightened rods etc
But lets face facts. Its the rider that makes a bike quick.
If you want cheap, get a TLS, theres lots on trademe, but they are getting older now so dont expect new bike shinyness. Just solid motorcycling.
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