2011 Big Four model changes?
 

Any new model changeovers, or are they going to keep feeding us the same 4-5 year old shit? Specifically I'm wondering if the Gix will receive a major update, specifically the 750.

Supposed to be a seriously reworked zx10 this year. I seriously doubt the 750 will get a major overhaul

Is there even a reason that the 750 will get an overhaul or are they just going to let it fade away. It really has no japanese competitors, and the other 3 have completely left the sportbike market between 600 and 1k. All the 750 does is to be a direct competitior to suzukis own 600 and 1k (and by default the 600s from the other manufacturers). No0body is racing any 750s that need homoligation, I just dont see any need for another bike in their line.

I would like to see the % of sales between the 750, 600 and 1000. I would bet it does some decent numbers. Especially when you consider it doesn't cost them much to build it, since the frame and bodywork and trim is the same as the others.

Suzuk didnt even import any '10 literbikes, they aren't doing anything.

Yammie is riding Spies WSBK success, new colors.

Honda will refine but no major changes, they just got the pistons right.

That leaves the ZX which was already close to top of class and prolly only minor changes...

the 750 makes a great track bike though

That's exactly why I see the gen 4 rumours being true. Kwack wants racing success and if everyone else is on 3-4 year old bikes... hell, even vermulen said there was going to be new equipment next year iirc

The global economy makes the choices for them. Who is hurting worse will have to make appropriate steps.

I think companies have to look at the sales and decide. Honda dealers always have new 2 yr old bikes on the showroom, Suzuki didnt import cause of slow sales, , Who knows what gambles they will take while they cant get bikes finaced....

Again, of all of them khi has the most diverse range of products. They don't need sales

250 2 strokes???

I wish, its a true shame the vee due didn't catch on

The gix 600 and 750 are due for an update.

Derf: The nice thing about the 750 is that it really is a 600 that has had the engine punched out 150cc over. The bikes are identical right down to every bolt. The only difference are the cylinder bore and some fuel mapping(and color options of course). It's a better bike than a 600 for both street and track. It's the best of both worlds. 600 handling with liter bike power. Just because it doesn't have a race class, means it's an obsolete bike. For a street going sport bike, a 750 is all I would ever own..... As long as they were still in production.

I will heartily agree. It is the perfect compromise. I wish I had an old ZX7. My 636 would run all over it, but they were excellent fun bikes. That and I drooled over the Muzzy Bikes bac in the Day...

The current 750 may have less displacement but it has as much performance as the first couple generations of R1. And it has better suspension than most ten year old designs...

I dropped by the local Suzuki dealership the other day and they're being told that there's only going to be a "limited number" of new motorcycles imported for the upcoming model year and that for a lot of models like the V-Strom the '09 is still to be considered the "current" model (which is why my most recent attempt to obtain a new one at a decent price fell through).

I don't see Kawi updating anything. They had to slash prices just to get rid of the 09s. Until the economy rebounds, I don't expect to see much in the way of updated models

Ok i thought it was a different and seperate bike that required a full re-design team and resources to update. The ZX7r was its own bike and needed its own design. It still requires suzuki resources to design build, and test a bored out engine, and I wonder if the profit they make from selling the 750 is worth the extra effort to build a seperate engine.


Yeh I've been looking at Vstroms too (not seriously) and they are holding their value big time right now, with many of them selling at or near new price, and the new ones at or above full MSRP

Bimota couldn't get the fueling right on the direct injection system. A few were converted to carbs and from what I read they worked much better, but they couldn't pass emissions so they weren't street legal. I know there are plated RS250s out there but Bimota didn't want to go the "Race use only" route and was broke anyway.

Yeah, sucks. Cool ass design.

Considering the 750 is generally about $1000 more than a 600, I would assume they recoup there engine R&D on the 750 pretty quickly given the number of units they sell. I'm guessing by the time they sell 5000 units they are making a profit.

what happened to all this talk about the other three brands comming out w/ a comparable mid/heavy size bike to compete w/ the 750? why will nobody touch this market?

ya k but what are you going to do w/ that extra 150cc? you're really not gonna need any more powe on the track, and we all know damn well even a 600cc sport bike is just insane for street riding.

The economy.


More torque, better power curve.

maybe the stepped licensing in europe keeps people away?

I was thinking that why should they add another competitor to the sportbike market, all it will do is lower sales of their current 600 and 1k bikes

Yea i get the benefits of the bigger motor, but thats my point. do you really NEED more torque and a better power band on the street? 99% of riders will never get close to the potential of their bike anyways.

well my logic is that they're competing manufacturers. It seems the norm nowadays is if you see a rival outselling you in a specific niche because you dont offer that product, you get on R+D until you can satisfy the demand in that area. same reason why car companies usually offer the exact same line-up of cars as their competitors.

But then again i dont really think the 750 is stealing much competition from the other companies, i dont really see any more of them out there than anything else. "gixxerrrr" is always gonna be a go-to brand anyways.

It's a more user friendly power band, you don't need to rev it to the moon to make it go, or it won't require that extra downshift that a 600 might.

i must have some sort of different 600 then, my tach ends with a redline, not the moon. I will look into this.

The moon actually comes right before redline...
Yours may have fallen off on one of your guardrail encounters.

lord only knows what i've left under the careful watch of mother guard rail.

litre bikes fit that bill well, so do medium and heavyweight twins and triples

I'm with rider on the greatness of the gsxr 750. Its a great overall bike.

On the subject, I hv no input.

Yes because you don't need to shift as much. Also, the older you get, the less revs and noise you're willing to tolerate on an extended basis.

hah so its an old mans bike.

you said it not me.

where's rider?

True, but liter bikes are more $$ for insurance (depending on person/area) and it is getting hard to find a good twin sport bike that doesn't cost $20K new.

Tires. Liter bikes eat em! Middleweights dont eat them as bad.
Handing, liter bikes stop and shoot, cause all that crankshaft makes for hard turning and slow direction changes...
Power, if they made a 2000 I would want one!

i think we're making mountains out of mole hills.

I got the shovel.

Really though the newest batch of 1k's are they even any heavier than the 600s now? By what 30 lbs? 5 or 10 years ago yes the liter bikes were much more point and shoot bike, but they have grown so much on the last decade to the point where an 09-10 CBR1k or ZX10r really can handle like a 600.

from the sport rider page my bike was either the same weight as comparable year 600s and lighter than 750s and up. its only become more so with all the new emissions crap they are stuffing in there

dont work your wrist so much, they last longer :lol and triumph makes a two litre

Rocket III for serious tire carnage!

Liter bikes are point and shoout for many reasons:

Weight, usually 50 lbs heavier.
Crankshaft and reciprocating engine weight.
Engine power delivery on throttle take up and tire management.

exactly my point. some of you guys want to make the liter bikes seem like they are just bothersome and terrible in turns, but its just not true. my 2003 600 weighs in at 370 dry, a 2006 1000rr comes in at 388 dry...

We're talking weight differences under thirty pounds for the most part. I weigh 160 lbs... i'd venture to guess a lot of the people arguing that a liter bike wont handle like a 600 are upwards to 200lbs. seems your 40lb love handles would affect the center of gravity much more on a 600 than my added engine weight would effect my riding on a 1000.

It's not just about total mass.........it's reciprocating mass as well. The crank, pistons, rods, cams, and transmission gears. If the sum of those parts is greater in Bike X than it is in Bike Y, you're going to feel it. Objects in motion resist change in motion.

Liter bikes rule!!! Oh and my '88 V-Max was the worst destroyer of rear tires I have ever owned!!!:rockwoot:

They also spin at a lower rpm...

If you're a racer with a 1000, then yeah, you'd use lower rpm at probably every point on the track.......But street riders? When I owned a 600 it's not like I went screaming around at 10K everywhere. Shit I probably only hit 10K like once a day. The need and/or the opportunity just don't present themselves on the street.

In that case, a litre bike actually can be at a significantly lower rpm. You can lug a litre through the corner because of the larger amount of tq on hand. You roll into the throttle of a 1000 at any rpm and it gets going in a hurry. Do it on a 600 and you're met with... A delay.

mph to mph the 1000 will always be spinning at a lower rev.

They do on the highway.

i have had alot of experience in the Ozarks chasing ZX10s and Gsxr 1Ks with my 636. I can corner inside them and roll open quicker, they can't. They corner hard and they have to feather the throttle on the edge of the tire, spinning and throwing rocks and gravel at me.

when they brake deep, square off, and get opened up on the fat part of the tire they drive off and leave the 636. All while spending major cheddar of tires.

And the zx6 destroyed the r1 in laptimes on motorcyclist's bike of the year test last year. Guess which one they picked? Hint: it wasn't green

Dont blame em, I want an R1 too, but Its all in what you prefer but just for arguments sake...here are some real numbers from Sportrider...
Honda 600RR wet 412
Honda 1K wet 442
Yammie R6 wet 427
R1 wet 477
ZX6R wet 421
ZX10 R wet 462

Ownage.....The liters are all 30-50 lbs heavier.
Not to mention, except for the Honda, they all have those STUPID dual exhausts.

I think you should have one of each, like a Remington 700 in .308 for when you want the long kill, the M4 when you wanna lay down some cover fire...

Duh see above about emissions. More cc's = more catalyst and silencers. 03 - 05 was the best year for that kind of comparo. Btw. Where's the twin exhaust on the zx10?

The R6 is due for changes, but I'm not holding my breath. They update about every three years usually, and 2010 makes three. Maybe them pulling out of WSS in a year they would be defending the title means something, I dunno.

All Honda really has to do is put a slipper clutch on the 600RR and be good, haha.

isint it four years old? the current design came out in 06'

Yep, just like the Gixxer, it has only had "updates" since 06. :td: They are pussying out and not giving us all-new bikes anymore.

I won't buy the current Gixxer, because I don't like how its riding position or how its fuel tank is shaped. The 04-05 felt a lot better IMO.

Yeah well the 06/07 had duals :p

the second gen had a lot of faults, its really more of a busa fighter than a superbike

The 2 year development cycle has come to an end, I think. Even when the global economy turns around I don't think we'll ever see brand new models every couple years.

No doubt! Liter bikes suck! 50% more horsepower, 75% more torque, 60% more CC and approximately 10% more weight than a 600... how terrible!

Awful.

hrm well girls cant tell the difference so i guess thats one for the downside list :lol

Still rather have a 750, sorry.

How about 25% more HP, 25% more torque, 25% more cc's and same weight? 750 is king for a reason. Liter bikes are for race boy posers with small penises. :lol

Oh no...here comes those pesky little 600's and 750's again !! :rofl: :rofl:

http://images.icanhascheezburger.com...0808160656.jpg


I like my R1 better than my R6 on the street...period.

I'm mostly joking....

So am I. I've stated before that I "think" that the 750 is the perfect all around sportbike for the street and I 'wish' that the other manufacturers still produced one.

I like my R1 better than my (wife's) R6 for sure...but I've never ridden/spent time on a 750. :cheers:

My CBR is a big heavy fatty and I should have gone with a GSR-750 as it weighs WAY less.

yup...
CBR: 439 lbs (Includes all standard equipment, required fluids and full tank of fuel--ready to ride.)
gsxr: 437 lbs (Includes all standard equipment, required fluids and full tank of fuel--ready to ride.)

What is a GSR 750?

Its is gsxr-750 when you slur your words.
Thought it was pretty obvious.

04 gix 750 was the funnest bike I've ever ridden......It wasn't all that flickable, but the stability was awesome, the intake noise was awesome, and above all, its stretched-out riding position made it feel awesome in sweepers because you could feel yourself countersteering more so than most bikes where you are just hovering over the bars.

Lots of rumors flying around the ducati camp about 2011...

Very obvious when hubby and I are out riding. He pulls away like nothing, unless I'm revving to the moon.

Liters might be heavier by number but my 600 compared to hubby's 1000 feels like a freaking pig to move around.

Seems like 04-05 for any manufacturer was one of the best couple years and from there they went down hill.

Agreed. Hubby disliked his 07 ZX10 very much. He is much happier on the 05 now.

Might be a ride height or tire issue. I had an 03 zx6rr like yours, and didn't notice anything unusual.

Gen 1s are BEASTS.

On the bike yes, I struggle a bit to move around because of my height versus the bike. But I was referring to off the bike pushing around. It is a fat pig, even Erik thinks so. The other issue I have is the turning radius. Erik used to think it was me but then he tried to turn it around in the garage. It's like a 50-point turn versus a 2-point for him. Oh well. I'm used to both and wouldn't trade what I have for anything new out there.

They are a bit on the unstable, hyper side.

Homie, stop ignoring my statement...

13000 rpm divided by 15,500 =83% difference. Do you think the "lighter valvetrain" offsets the difference in rotational mass? Or is that a buzzword you're just throwing out there?

:lol: a bit? lol they got a picture of one under the definition of headshake and a link to widowmaker :lol:

i hope your hubby has a serious steering damper on that thing ;)

motorcyclist is only showing a 10lb difference between a 04 636 and a 04 zx10.

i know the bike in question is the limited edition zx6-rr but is there a weight difference between it and the bigger bore model?

How do you know that lower RPM is enough to offset the difference?

Nobody is going to know for sure unless they took the weight of all the parts, as well as their size and their distance from the bike's roll center, and made all the necessary calculations.

Not yet. He had one on the 04 but sold it when he sold the bike (not knowing he would end up with an 05 now).

Per Kawasaki's website specs, no there is no weight difference between 600 and 636. But we shouldn't be discussing a 6 year old bike. I was simply trying to say that numbers some times don't matter, that it is about how it is dispersed.

This sounds WAY too complicated :lol:

Fair enough. I'm sure you already do but tell him to be careful. I'm in the same boat: known shakey bike without a damper. I want a gpr...one of these days

He knows to be careful (former racer). He will want another Ohlins and it will cost a pretty penny.