Well as my tires on my 2000 mark II bandit are… well lets say fuggered! Ive dropped the bike off for a new set
but in the mean time before i’m seperated with 220 of her magisties crisp notes They’ve lent me the village slag.
A 2 year old Mark 4 Bandit sport.
So here my findings after giving it a rag around (Sorry I mean carefully riding it round some country lanes)
Firstly not having all the extras ive built up over the years is obvious, braided hoses & good pads, renthal bars, full exhaust system (no baffle ;):P)
But getting down to the physical stuff apart from this bike being shagged left right and center by every tom fool. the ride seems alot higher making cornering not quite as natural (for me), although once over it is very smooth, plus it seems to be improved on the bottom end - It pulls nice an steady right through where as mine tends to have nothing till 6grand (I’d put that down to the fuel injection as mine is carbed). Top end is the same but mine although seems to lack on the bottom makes up for it on the pull towards the end. I reckon mine would thrash it basically. Errr the wing mirrors seem to be far better situated and more usefull. loving the digital dash. but in a nutshell…
My opinion… what theyve gained in a bit of smoothness here and there they’ve lost in looks, and style. My 8 year old bandit looks sweet compared to this transformers extra. It feels plastic and doesnt seem half as fun as mine, they seemed to have stripped away the fun for mid range boring rubbish. I picked mine up in mint condition for £1500, this you’d be looking at £2500-£3000 and again in my opinion would be dissapointed after a few weeks of getting used to it. Mine although isnt the fastest bike on the road continues to make me smile day in day out and always turns a few heads from time to time. SO bottom line buy a mint Mark II and have endless fun, Or buy a new smoother boring lump for day on day performance.
Not the most technical of reviews ever but hey… thats what the mags are for ;)