Reviews on your new bikes

I picked up my S (AU S have ABS as standard) today. I was a little nervous but I needn't have been, the bike is so easy to ride, although you can get the sense of what lies above 6,000rpm. Love it.

Surprised how high the seat is but my other bike is a Harley fatboy!

The only negative is the heat, fark it's hot, even at moderate speed. Seriously you need Kevlar jeans just to stop your legs being roasted. Going to hope someone comes up with a way of keeping it under control!

I picked mine up on thursday and have put 900 miles on her since then..
(not had an oil service yet but mileage was ok'd with dealer as long as i watched the oil consumption, next miles will be to dealer for service)

Good Points
1. surprisingly comfy...ish for what it is.
2. getting 100 miles before the fuel light comes on...still keeping her under 6k revs tho.
3. feels un-crashable through the twisties. followed a guy on an older blade who told me he was scraping his pegs.... i thought we were taking it easy!! felt like that anyway..still have about half an inch of chicken strip on the rear!
4. you will feel like a celebrity riding this thing....everybody wants a look and asks loads of q's about it...had a neighbour in my garage i've never spoken to before drooling over it yesterday..
5. clocks are superb and easy to read.
6. a Decent sidestand on a Ducati...much better than my old 999 on which was made of chocolate.
7. it's gonna be hyper fast once you break the 6k mark...it just wants to go and go.
8. Best looking bike out there by far.
9. i find the suspension (non S) just right. i ride on the road only and it's set to Progressive.
10...i could go on and on....

Bad/annoying bits.
1. keep hitting the seat cowl when throwing my leg over and leaving little black marks off my boot.
2. Also keep flicking on the high beam accidentally.
3. gets hot riding around town..has been well mentioned before..
4. i gotta go to singapore for a month today and she's sitting in my garage waiting to go!!!!!!!!!!!! bummer

Pros

Bike is amazingly beautiful
Handles like its on rails
Sound is great but not quite a sexy as an 1198 wit full Termi's
over 8000 RPM the bike has great power
Comfort - doesn't matter in canyons or track as you are moving around a lot so you can go a long time as the bike is not tiring.
Quick shifter is awesomely smooth when above 2nd and on the throttle.

Cons

Useless under 6000 RPM my Multi pulls much stronger and in first gear the fuel mapping is just really rough.
When stopped my leg hits the suspension on the left
Heat - well its damn hot if you cant get moving above 60 MPH
comfort - definitely not a commuter bike - Wrists and ass get sore when just sitting there.
Quick shift is a little jerky under third gear

I'm starting to feel like a serious minority - the guy who hasn't ridden, or even seen one of these things in person.

tstephenson said:

Pros
Cons
When stopped my leg hits the suspension on the left
Heat - well its damn hot if you cant get moving above 60 MPH

Click to expand...

+1. Not huge problems but still noticeable.

tstephenson said:

Pros

Bike is amazingly beautiful
Handles like its on rails
Sound is great but not quite a sexy as an 1198 wit full Termi's
over 8000 RPM the bike has great power
Comfort - doesn't matter in canyons or track as you are moving around a lot so you can go a long time as the bike is not tiring.
Quick shifter is awesomely smooth when above 2nd and on the throttle.

Cons

Useless under 6000 RPM my Multi pulls much stronger and in first gear the fuel mapping is just really rough.
When stopped my leg hits the suspension on the left
Heat - well its damn hot if you cant get moving above 60 MPH
comfort - definitely not a commuter bike - Wrists and ass get sore when just sitting there.
Quick shift is a little jerky under third gear

Click to expand...

Glad I'm not the only one having issues with 1st gear mapping.

jjmontesanto said:

I'm starting to feel like a serious minority - the guy who hasn't ridden, or even seen one of these things in person.

Click to expand...

i've seen your bike already! right behind me and by bella...

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concerning the reviews, some additions from me after 428 miles:

- that thing grips! thanks to the 200 in the rear

- that thing handles though it has a 200 in the rear! the combination of agility and stability is just awesome

- the looks of the base rims is way better in natural than in the pictures, i really love them.

- the motor seems to be getting stronger, i broke it in as hard as i could on public roads, trying not to exceed the 8k, and reving up and down as much as possible.

- there is still a flat spot between 4-5k, no matter if valve connected or not

- with the valve connected again, it seems to run better

- the paint is really soft, one fairing screw damaged the clear coat

- the brakes and the ABS are just pure awesomeness

- no hot starts? hot seat? hot city rides? well, get used to a hot life ;-)

- still looks so hot!