bike for my daughter

[rednax]

:question:My daughter 25 years old bought an mt03 last year. Lovely bike for her and really nice on shorter trips and in the city. Not a musclepaket and worthless for touring I think. (at least for the faster part down Germany (unavoidable)) So I´m trying to convince her to change to something like a v strom but she says that that one is buttugly and won´t even consider it. We look at the 600 diversion (latest model) but she findes that one uncomfortable. Any ideas, suggestions from you guys out there ? She is a calm sensible girl and a carefull rider. I´d very much like to take her along on a long trip next summer. Last summer she came along as a pillion for a trip of a bit over 700 km and that was a very nice experience. Next year I´ll probably have my wife on the passenger seat. Anyway, she is around 5,6 and very fit but the bike shouldn´t be to heavy. :question:

 

[Dirt_Dad]

Do you guys have the new (to us) Honda CB500 or NX700 over there? I would guess one of those might work nicely for your daughter.

http://powersports.honda.com/2014/nc700x.aspx

http://powersports.honda.com/2014/cb500x.aspx

Good luck. It would be great to have my daughter along on her own bike. Hope it works out for you.

 

[advswede1981]

The options are endless, depending on her price range and preference. I'd look into a BMW, maybe a GS800, considering where you're from and the power they have. Kul att se nagon fran Sverige! Jag flyttade fran Kungsbacka nar jag var sexton.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Went through this same thing with my son last summer. Ended up with a Ninja (ER) 650 twin. Great bike, torquey and very friendly power delivery for a new rider.

Good luck with the search!

--G

 

[ArkieTenere]

Versys...lowered perhaps... loved mine.

 

[Downtown]

Why not the s10 with a low seat/seat mod and/or the lowering links? Would not need to ever upgrade...

 

[Checkswrecks]

It sounds like the autobahn speed is the issue, which means horsepower. Any of the single 600/650 bikes are going to be somewhat similar. If the MT03 is insufficient, then the Dulleville and WeeStrom won't be massively better. Even though the DL650 would probably get the job done, she also has to live with it and thinks the Strom is ugly. You can't fight that feeling.


What should really fit would be the Yamaha FZ6. It looks good, can carry bags, and has enough power to move well. It should fit for a smaller female and she may even like the smoothness of the 4 cylinder.


Or would is she so small that she would be interested in a Ducati mini-Monster? With a small windshield the 600/620/696 can make an OK tourer for SOME smaller people and still be a darned good commuter. IT would also look a bit like her current ride and she can proudly wear Ducati accessories.

 

[tomatocity]

If the FZ6 is a consideration then she might look at the FZ8 and get a good deal on the phased out model.

 

[AVGeek]

If the FZ6 is a consideration then she might look at the FZ8 and get a good deal on the phased out model.

Might as well look at the MT-09 then...I was able to swing a leg over one this weekend, and was amazed at how small and light it was. For the record, I am 5'9", and was comparing the bike to my FJR and Tenere.

 

[rednax]

Do you guys have the new (to us) Honda CB500 or NX700 over there? I would guess one of those might work nicely for your daughter.

http://powersports.honda.com/2014/nc700x.aspx

http://powersports.honda.com/2014/cb500x.aspx

Good luck. It would be great to have my daughter along on her own bike. Hope it works out for you.

Yes, we have them. As a matter of fact I had the 700 out for a testride myself not so long ago wich cost me some 420 dollars speedticket. Think I was fooled by the smothness of the engine ::010:: but it´s a really nice bike and very agile. Allmost to easy to ride...It´s certainly one for my daughter to test.

 

[rednax]

The options are endless, depending on her price range and preference. I'd look into a BMW, maybe a GS800, considering where you're from and the power they have. Kul att se nagon fran Sverige! Jag flyttade fran Kungsbacka nar jag var sexton.

BMW is an option. Quite a few used on the market allthough a bit highpriced I think.
Så du lever i Arizona? Skulle själv inte ha något emot lite varmare klim,at, särskilt så här års. Själv har jag ett litet hus på Råö, nära Onsala observatorium. Världen är inte så stor ibland. Åkte bil med frugan o ungarna i Arizona i våras och ett återbesök är säkert. På hoj nästa gång. Vi har lite vaga planer på en tur från Florida till Californien, men även en nordligare rutt känns lockande...

 

[rednax]

Went through this same thing with my son last summer. Ended up with a Ninja (ER) 650 twin. Great bike, torquey and very friendly power delivery for a new rider.

Good luck with the search!

--G

My sister in law has one. Personally I not so fond of it Wonder why : Might have to reconsider..

 

[rednax]

Versys...lowered perhaps... loved mine.

Only heard good things about it, love the design

 

[rednax]

Hmm, really timeconsuming answering each and everyone. Thought it was the polite thing to do, but I´ll just settle for a thanks to you all !! Very nice of you all!
Short comment on the bikes though: S10: well maybe when the price comes down on the used ones and still a little to big for my little daughter. Fz8: Yeah love that one, Mt 09 She says she´s really in love with the design but we´ll see..its a very powerfull bike .... :-\ Who knows anyway The mt03 she bought when we were at Yamaha in som other errend. I thought we were leaving when I heard from the store "wait a minut, I´m buying this one" ??? ::26::

 

[EricV]

My thinking is with ChecksWrecks - The FZ family is a good option. If she's used to a single 660 power plant, any of the multi-cylinder bikes will seem much smoother and more powerful. The older FZ-1s are inexpensive and Yamaha reliable. Some luggage is certainly possible, or just soft bags. There is even the FZ-1 TE that came with panniers and a top box. Have her test ride as many bikes as possible and see what excites her. The power of the FZ-1 rivals the FJR, but it's more Sport and less Touring, and 100 lbs lighter. The main penalty is chain drive and less weather protection, but she's used to both of those.

 

[Dirt_Dad]

The older FZ-1s are inexpensive and Yamaha reliable. Some luggage is certainly possible, or just soft bags.

And even though the FZ-1 is blindingly fast, it can be ridden as gentle as a 250cc bike. When I sold my 2005 FZ-1 the buyer wanted a test ride to make sure it was capable of being enjoyable at everyday commuting type speeds. He did a calm and easy test ride, then handed me the money. If you don't push it, the FZ-1 is a very well mannered bike.

 

[EricV]

I wouldn't suggest the FZ-1 as a first bike, but it has the advantage of having been out for the longest time. It's got very good ergos on the older, one seat, generation and is an easy bike to ride well. I enjoyed mine a lot, but for my mostly touring type of riding, I ended up wanting more weather protection and hard luggage. It seemed better to get another bike, rather than attempt to make the FZ into something it wasn't. In that regard, the Deuville or NX-700 has some advantages.

 

[Rasher]

My wife past her test last year at twenty-something (that's all I dare give :exclaim

She fancied a CBR600 or Diversion, but I knew she would find it hard to keep spinning as modern 600/4's don't move until the tacho has 5 digits showing and thought a twin would be better, she also likes to ride round the countryside on narrow roads and single track lanes (again hardly head down / bum up / 12,000rpm territory) and finally convinced her to start on a simpler machine, she quite liked the V-Strom so we found a tidy one of them.

She loves it, it really does do everything, she has now ridden my ER6F and liked the sportier feel and handling, but noticed to get the extra speed was hard work. She now thinks she needs more "power", but I know she means more grunt, any 600-4 will give more power, but probably give nothing extra until way past 7,000rpm whereas I think she needs something that pulls harder from lower down so she does not have to change down 3 gears every time she wants to overtake.

In March she will have held a full licence for a year and will be able to get demo rides more easily (with a new licence nobody wold let her test anything last year) and I will be getting her to try bikes like the TDM900 and Tiger 1050 as I think they will better suit her needs for more grunt and sportier handling but without sacrificing the comfort and position required for the back lanes.

I would highly recommend the V-Strom, but the looks may be a deal breaker, I tested a Versys and liked it, but she point blank refused to consider one on looks and I suspect your Daughter is unlikely to love the Versys if she dislikes the V-Strom and if the build quality on my '09 ER6F is anything to go on the V-Strom is way ahead as her 2005 30k Suzuki looks far better than my 2009 / 7k ER6F.

We will be looking at TDM900 / Tiger 800 (Although I think this is too revvy) / Tiger 1050 and anything else she takes a fancy too when we start going around the bike shops, the TDM's and Tiger 1050's are very common and will be easy to find plenty of good examples at fair money.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Like Rednax's daughter's commented, my daughter thinks the Strom is fugly. It may be the best thing since sliced bread, and we've had both versions for my son.


But if she's going to be the person on it and thinks it's fugly, the door is shut.

 

[rednax]

One problem here in Sweden is the incurance costs. They are insane if the effect is high on the bike and if there is an s(as in sports) in the modelname, the insurancecompanies are obviously not intrested in having them as objects. A fz8 I think will cost around 11000 kr (divide with around 6 for dollars) a year ??? in her age. The factors are age, living in the city and effect. A versys 650 for example is "only" half that. No wonder the average age of new bikeowners here is (someone correct me if I´m wrong) 52 years... How is it with this in the states?