OK, so, next march I turn 17 and I’m looking at my first real big bike. I’m mainly considering new 250s, but after some research, a new avenue has opened up to me, getting a 600 and restricting it for the duration of my 33bhp limit.
I know there are really good bikes out there for restriction (V-strom650, Bandit, the V-twins basically), but what I’m wondering is how well do inline-4’s, like your CBR600s and R6s restrict? Are they totally gutless or do they still have usable power, just not the whole bunch?
I only ask because there’s a garage near me that’s got a 2005 R6 for £3850, and he’s agreed that if he hasn’t shifted it by March, he’ll be dropping it closer to the £3200 mark, and I’ve seen similar bikes in similar prices.
Have you looked at the SV650, I am personally going to be getting a new one next month and not only are they cheap to run and insure etc they still perform quite well with the restriction in place. Have you looked at quotes for the r6 on insurance, I know when I was looking I was getting quoted stupidly high prices(4k+ for tpft) and I am a year older than yourself.
Make sure you actually speak to someone to get your quote and dont just do an online comparison check as they are not all that accurate and when it comes to actually getting the insurance, you may be refused or be asked to pay more money.
I had this issue with my RR but fortunately it wasn’t so much more that I had bought something I couldnt afford.
I cant advise on your actual question…no idea about such things.
Plus make sure you see it in writing, as it’s pretty common practice in my experience for the person on the phone to ‘omit’ to log unfavourable items in order to make their quote sound more competitive. Then when you finally get the paperwork through & question this they’ll deny it was anything to do with them & you’ll end up having to pay the extra or cancel the policy & go find another insurer.
Anyway, I though your father had given you the whole ‘over my dead body’ speech re your getting a 600 ?
I’m also somewhat amazed how anyone still at school can afford to buy & run an R6, are you selling crack to your classmates or something ?
I don’t post here much, just would like to say - I think you’re over thinking it a bit too much. I had a bandit 600 and a hornet 600, both on 33bhp, still fantastic bikes, an excellent step up from the 125’s I’d been riding. Yeah, towards the end of the 2 years you may be getting a little bored of it, but so what? Whats the rush?
An r6 will blow your mind, restricted or otherwise, and you’re still gunna have plenty of fun dragging your knee on the A roads safe in the knowledge you’re gunna be able to ride it at full power down the line.
Drop it down a gear and you’ll be happily overtaking most vehicles on the road. In all honesty, on a full license, I don’t think I use much more than 33bhp unless I’m ragging it now anyway.
So yeah, get whatever floats your boat, you’ll be short shifting the gears a bit to get to the power sometimes but I promise you won’t be disappointed.
On the ‘no to a 600’ issue I twisted his arm and convinced him it’d be identical to a 250, and more economical in the long run, which it will be when I don’t have to buy a bigger bike at the end of my restriction.
And I just don’t spend money!
I’ve been doing some insurance scouting and for '03 models, on TPF&T, I’m running at about £800, which is steep, but I reckon I could cover it.
05 r6 is costing me £750/yr atm with introductory 3yr NCB. Im almost 40yo… This is gonna go up next year cos my 04 R6 was nicked So I’ll say again, lock em down.
Now, only due to the other thread, at 33BHP your prob limited to about 75% of the R6’s torque, max torque is about 42 odd ft-lb. And looking at the graphs, there should be a good 30 ft-lb of torque there at 33BHP. I dont ride much above 6000 rpm normally and thats enough. So… like someone above, I dont often use more than 33BHP! :w00t:
Now I’ve never tried a resrtriced R6, but should be worlds away from the 125 is my prediction.
dont forget…sports 600’s go missing an awful lot…another reason to have an SV:D or similar.
also a restricted 600 will still be as juicy to run, and forget performance figures, whatever bike you choose after your current bike 50 or 125 , will blow your socks off.
OK, we’ve established it’s doable and still works.
I now have a slightly different question for you all (was going to open a new thread but don’t want to spam the entire board).
CBR600RR (2003)
OR
CBR600F (all denotations) (2003)
OR
R6 (2003)
I’ve heard that the 600F is a lot comfier and easier to ride as a bike, and the RR can be a bit small for larger riders (ie Me) and not quite as suitable for non-track riding as the F. R6 seems like a happy compromise between the two, without the hardcore racetrack focus of the RR but a bit sportier-looking and handling than the F. Which would YOU go for as a 17-year-old rider as your first big bike on a restricted licence?
PM Raquib on the forum, he restricted an 05 r6, and it seemed to run OK when I went out for a ride with him on it
But I would probably go for the CBR600F, nice bike to learn on, definitely good enough handling to keep up with more modern stuff (they used them in Ron Haslams race school I think?) and you will learn some good stuff from not being on a bike that hides riding imperfections.
Still massively surprised about the insurance quote, although I guess you might be living in a decent post code and have a garage, still dont know about 800 TPFT for an 05 r6 for a 17year old, maybe the restriction helps…?
The insurance quote was actually on an 03 CBR600RR, and yeah, my area is in the lowest bracket for thefts and it lives in a locked garage, which helps to drop the price a lot.
CBR600F you say… hmmm… It’d certainly take my larger frame…
There’s another string to the F’s bow, it’s a damn sight cheaper to insure than the RR or the R6. Almost half the price for TPF&T.
Although… the double seat just looks a bit… un-sporty. I know it’ll be comfortable and all, but I’m a young, do-no-good racer fan who needs to keep up in looks with his friend with an 03 ZX6R!
But, common sense will prevail in the end, we know it will… Can probably expect me down BMM on a CBR600F in six months!
EDIT: CBR600FS and CBR600FS-2. Perfect balance for me, looks and comfort!
of course by the time you have finished your 33bhp stint you’ll be sick of the sight of any bike you have owned for that long so you’ll be changing it whatever get something that you can sell on in 33bhp format and save the hassle of reconverting
The trouble with that is that when I finish my limit, I’ll be in University, not in any place to be buying myself an R1 or Fazer etc. I’ll likely have to stick with the bike I get next year for 4/5 years, so it has to be reliable, comfy and run well/cheap too…
So I’ll say again, lock em down.
get something that you can sell on in 33bhp format and save the hassle of reconverting