I need one last opinion on this...

[Balian]

What do you guys think is better, and why?

 

The GSXR-1000 or the R1?

[customhillbilly]

Yamaha baby

[XChris1632X]

i used to ride nothing but blue and swore by yamaha only but man have i loved my gsxrs. the way i look at it is as long as your not on a honda or especially a kawasaki your doing good. but really it depends on what years your talking if you are talking brand new i would say gsxr.

[Balian]

Yea, for this conversation, lets say 05 vs 05.

[Guest Meatwad]

These two are so close in performance that the smallest mod would put say the yamaha over the top in terms of hp. Just by adding an aftermarket exhaust, you could improve the hp of the "lesser" of the two bikes. In my opinion it basically comes down to personal preference. Which bike do you think has a better appearance? Color scheme? Which bike do you feel more comfortable sitting on? What bike you think has a better selection of aftermarket parts? What kind of deal can you find on either one? Many of these questions only you can answer to determine which bike you think is better. I hope this helps.

[owndjoo]

GSXR. if you ever go to a roadrace, you'll see that Gixxers dominate the paddock and the podium. Yamaha is a close second while Kaw and Honda are no where close.

[AJ]

i have an 04' (they didn't change anything for 05') and love it! its fast as fuck and with the suspension set up it handles like alot better than stock even with shitty tires.

[lemosley01]

These two are so close in performance that the smallest mod would put say the yamaha over the top in terms of hp. Just by adding an aftermarket exhaust, you could improve the hp of the "lesser" of the two bikes. In my opinion it basically comes down to personal preference. Which bike do you think has a better appearance? Color scheme? Which bike do you feel more comfortable sitting on? What bike you think has a better selection of aftermarket parts? What kind of deal can you find on either one? Many of these questions only you can answer to determine which bike you think is better. I hope this helps.

 

Right on.

 

Use looks, comfort, and deal to make a decision. Simply put, you don't ride a magazine page. Get what you like the best and don't worry about having 'the best' because 99% of the guys on the street don't use 'the best' to 75% of it's potential.

 

It is the rider that makes the bike, not the other way around.

[street pilot]

personal preference: Yamaha.

 

You could put Mladin on a Vespa and he would still dominate the superbike circuit.

[owndjoo]

you dont know much.....he's gettin manhandled by spies on the other yoshi.....there's a reason yamaha isnt in the superbike series. they admitted they wouldnt be competitive.

[street pilot]

I think you missed my point. You seriously think a vespa could hang in superbike? Mladini, Spies, teamates, suzuki, my point was you put good riders on any bike and they will do well. Plus, I dont exactly consider a couple hundredths of a second manhandling. Maybe Yami decided they would rather focus on the real shit. Where are the zooks in GP?

[owndjoo]

i call spies winning 6 straight manhandling, especially when he's winning in the 3 second range. yamaha has rossi.....and even then he's not winning this year. suzuki has only been in motogp for 3-4years. Go to a non-ama event and you'll see the big difference. hondas are almost non existent now as well as kawis. Suzuki is THE best bike on the market 600 or 1000.

[customhillbilly]

I've had both. And I agree it is more a matter of opinion, because they are so close. I say go with which ever one looks better. they both look pretty sexy in 05' and 06'

[Putty]

Gixxer all day...Got motor for days.!! IF you want a pretty bike, go for the R1...but if you want to be all about business on the streets....GSXR-1000. I'm not a brand loyal guy either...I've had both and big Kaws..

[lemosley01]

i call spies winning 6 straight manhandling, especially when he's winning in the 3 second range. yamaha has rossi.....and even then he's not winning this year. suzuki has only been in motogp for 3-4years. Go to a non-ama event and you'll see the big difference. hondas are almost non existent now as well as kawis. Suzuki is THE best bike on the market 600 or 1000.

 

If you want to use race results to determine which bike is t he best, then it appears that Ducati makes the best bike because Bayliss has been kicking Corser's butt riding the Duc.

 

In the AMA Supersport class, the Hayden brothers would happily dispute the claim that the GSXR-600 is 'the best', as well as, I'm sure Jason DiSalvo, while in World Superbike Supersport, Patrick Charpentier and Honda would appear to make the best bike.

 

Regardless, Superbike != Street-going bike. There is no point in even comparing what those bikes do on the track vs. a street bike. What we see running on the track in Superbike isn't what we can buy off the showroom floor - those bikes are made of 'unobtanium', and about the ONLY thing they share is the name of the bike and manufacturer.

 

Superstock is a much more valid comparison, IMO, because those are real bikes. That's why I love that class.

 

The simple fact is, that until you get into the highest levels of racing, it is all about the rider. You can see that on the same teams - why is it Mladin/Spies are running 1 and 2 and Yates isn't really in the mix beyond qualifying and the first 3 laps of a race, even though he is riding the same bike?

 

Buy what YOU like the best. Don't worry about what the rags say and what others claim is the best. If all you can worry about is 'my bike has more horsepower than joe schmoe's', or 'it won the latest Sport-Motorider-RoadRacing-News-shootout' then you are riding for the wrong reasons. I know you have had your heart set on a R1 - if you really like it, then get it.

 

Now, my opinion, based on looks alone is either the GSXR-1000 or the ZX-10R. I've never been a fan of Yamaha - don't really know why, just haven't. I like the Honda, but it doesn't seem to invoke the same sense of 'excitement' if you will that the Kawi and GSXR-1000 do.

 

Also, I believe that next years models for Suzuki and Yamaha (and Honda?) are going to be new, so you might want to wait until then to see what goodies will be on the new bikes. I have to believe it won't be very long at all (maybe 2-4 years) before we see traction control available on these bikes. They are getting to the power levels that TC is almost a requirement.

[owndjoo]

that's why i'm saying check out the amateur stuff. there's a reason why the amount of gixxers highly out number the other bikes. if you want pro, then look at the privateers. suzuki stands behind their product and it's a great product. they also dont lie to their customers about new bikes like yamaha has this past year... you cant compare the haydens or disalvo or hacking with the supersport/superstock stuff since they are running full factory rides. privateers are where it's at to truly see what's the best.

[lemosley01]

that's why i'm saying check out the amateur stuff. there's a reason why the amount of gixxers highly out number the other bikes. if you want pro, then look at the privateers. suzuki stands behind their product and it's a great product. they also dont lie to their customers about new bikes like yamaha has this past year... you cant compare the haydens or disalvo or hacking with the supersport/superstock stuff since they are running full factory rides. privateers are where it's at to truly see what's the best.

 

The reason that there are more Suzukis may not be the reason you think (ie, they are 'better'). I don't disagree that the GSXR-1000 is the best liter bike for RACING there is right now, but racing is not street riding where you have to consider more than just 'how fast I can turn a lap and accelerate down the straights'. There is a whole lot more to it than that.

 

IMO, it seems silly to consider 'what the racers are doing' because they are two different disciplines. If I had done that, I never would have even looked at the ZX-9, and instead would be squidding about on the latest GSR110RR. I recognized that every liter bike, the GSXR-750, ZX-9 and all of the Supersports out there far exceeds my ability to use them fully, which, from a performance standpoint, makes them all equal. Who is winning races on what, how fast the bike can run the 1/4, and how much HP it put out had very little influence on my decision. Instead it was what was more comfortable for both me and 2-up riding, good for distances, price, and, most importantly, what did I like the best.

[owndjoo]

well yea, 90% of street riders will never see the true potential of one of these bikes. but he asked what the best bike was in my opinion. I have a racer's standpoint and therefore think as a racer. even for street riding i would want something that i know is the bomb on the track, as i'm an aggressive twisty rider on the street as well. basically, for the street it's all about comfort and looks.

[AJ]

well from a racers standpoint you would have had to race both and compair lap times from one bike to the next. also you see more suzuki at races because they have a better race contingcy pay back out of the other brands. the guy at the yamaha shop i get my stuff from races Ducati but he said that the R1 is an awesome bike over his Ducati and has since rebuilt a wrecked one for his weekend track days. just get the one you like the best, i've ridden about all of them and i'll stick to my yamaha

[owndjoo]

i look at all that when i consider the "best bike" i guess it's more of the "best package". contingency, initial price, reliability, handling, etc. etc.

[Balian]

All good points. Thanks.

[Guest Meatwad]

Have we made it hard enough for you yet Bailian?

[Balian]

Nope. Not yet..