Hi. I've been riding bikes for years now and after 1 zx6r, 2 fireblades, 1 tl1000r and an original r1, I went looking for the most powerful thing I could afford. Whilst looking at hayabusas and gsxr1000's I stumbled across my zx12. Bought it last summer and loved every minute of it. The straight line power/speed is unrivaled by anything else I've owned and thanks to dropping to a 190 rear the handling isn't bad for a 180kg+ bike. Only thing I miss being able to land gently from wheelies and as these are quiet regular I'm starting to look around for something new, like the new generation of litre bikes, as they are so much more powerful than before and manuoverable.

Anyone have any suggestions? I only really have around £5000 to play with. Is there much difference in power/speed between a k4 and k5 gsxr1000? and a side exit and underseat exit zx10r?

Thanks for any suggestions.

Dude good question,
the real answer i think is the abilty of the rider.....
i ride a k4 Gsxr 1000,
my mate riders a 06 Zxr 10, blinged up single side exhaust, etc. sticky exspensive tyres.
i whoop his arse every time we go out,
my advice get a Gsxr k6 1000. trim some weight of it, sort the exhuast\ppower comander, filter etc, get lighter wheels( big difference)...
and be amazed....
then after the honery moon period, strap a supercharge unit on to it......
you will need to lenghten the the wheel base but..
sub - stupid. sec 1/4 mile easy....

been riding my gixer for 18 months and ive had a few interesting times with new 06/07 bikes...still held my own )

dont for get the BRAKES.... dohh...

dude i just realised you live in bristol.
we should hook up mate, have a blast to wales... usk to abbergavenny..
bit of a favourite.if you are up for it......

why can't you land the front wheel gently?

why can't you land the front wheel gently?

I thought that also great minds :norty:

Dude good question,
the real answer i think is the abilty of the rider.....
i ride a k4 Gsxr 1000,
my mate riders a 06 Zxr 10, blinged up single side exhaust, etc. sticky exspensive tyres.
i whoop his arse every time we go out,
my advice get a Gsxr k6 1000. trim some weight of it, sort the exhuast\ppower comander, filter etc, get lighter wheels( big difference)...
and be amazed....
then after the honery moon period, strap a supercharge unit on to it......
you will need to lenghten the the wheel base but..
sub - stupid. sec 1/4 mile easy....

been riding my gixer for 18 months and ive had a few interesting times with new 06/07 bikes...still held my own )

Someone needs to teach your mate to ride. :norty:


Back to topic, why not go for something a bit different, VTR1000 or Millie

I have an 07 zx10 and its pretty awsome, as are all the litre bikes, not sure they will feel much different from yoiur 12. Accept a bit more nimble espcially on the track.

You could always go made get some credit and delv into a ZZr1400. Nice :)

Thanks for all your replies. Unfortunately what next is no longer an issue. Totalled my bike this morning on the way to work. Front tyre slid halfway round a 50mph bend, the bike dropped and we both hit the kerb. I'm fine apart from cuts and bruises, bikes pretty much wrecked: bent forks, no fairing, snapped front wheel, oil everywhere and more.

Third party fire and theft insurance means I'm knackered. Looks like my budgets just dropped by the price of a zx12!

Thanks for all your replies. Unfortunately what next is no longer an issue. Totalled my bike this morning on the way to work. Front tyre slid halfway round a 50mph bend, the bike dropped and we both hit the kerb. I'm fine apart from cuts and bruises, bikes pretty much wrecked: bent forks, no fairing, snapped front wheel, oil everywhere and more.

Third party fire and theft insurance means I'm knackered. Looks like my budgets just dropped by the price of a zx12!

Oops :eek:

Yowza.

Suspect fully comp next time, hindsight being 20/20 and all that. Good job it didn't highside.

Why'd it slide? any diesel on the road? if so you might have a claim for damages. If you were going a bit quick in the damp/cold tyres ye stuffed though.

5t.

Not quite sure why it let go to be honest. It happend on the turn off to Whirle, goin towards Weston. Couldn't see anything in the road apart from a groove by the white lines and cats eyes by the groove. I've slid on cats eyes and white lines in the wet, but never in the dry and never fell off! The corner was a slip road off a dual carraige way and over a bridge turning right and over the carraige way. It was pretty tight but I didn't see any warnings and to be honest didn't feel like I was going to quickly for the bend as I could see the exit as I fell. Been riding for 15 miles before hand,so I had warm tyres and I am a pretty experianced rider. Strange?

hmmm weird.

wonder if it could have been something already on the tyre that hadn't come incontact with the road surface while you were upright on the dual carriageway. i'd retrace your route and check for spillages though.

5t.

Sounds like a good idea. Should be taking that route tomorrow so I'll keep a close eye out. Cheers.

So then what after 189bhp wrecked zx12. Now have a £2k budget?!

half the cash half the size zx6-R love mine, corners like nothing and never wheelies. still hits 150 leptons (on the track of course) and you can use all the power it has without worrying.

Thinking of a zx10r but the side exit exhaust models are meant to have vicous power delivery and mapping. underseat more ridable but out of the price range and i don't want to step back or get something that won't handle!

5t.

ouch :/

Sounds like a good idea. Should be taking that route tomorrow so I'll keep a close eye out. Cheers.

So then what after 189bhp wrecked zx12. Now have a £2k budget?!


Bummer

I suggest the bus.

Go for comp next time, for me the difference was only £120 a year, not worth saving.

A nice CBR600F-M or zx-6 or zzr600, VTR1000 Firestorm.

Sounds very much like you slid on something, unless you were fully cranked over, footpegs dragging the tarmac, at 50mph i cant see how the front would loose grip unless some other factor inviolved.

Bummer

I suggest the bus.

Go for comp next time, for me the difference was only £120 a year, not worth saving.

A nice CBR600F-M or zx-6 or zzr600, VTR1000 Firestorm.

Sounds very much like you slid on something, unless you were fully cranked over, footpegs dragging the tarmac, at 50mph i cant see how the front would loose grip unless some other factor inviolved.

It is strange to loose grip at low speeds. Has anyone ever heard of loosing traction on dry cats eyes before? Also the dip in the road is visible by car and slightly pulls the steering to the side. Do you think there could be a grounds for a claim against the council or is it a no hoper?

Just sold my K6 GSXR 1000. Great bike but did everything so well I got bored of it. Insanely fast, in fact I think too fast so to can't take the whole experience in!

Contemplating either another V-Twin or a 600cc sports next but would miss that torque on the latter:Whatever_

It is strange to loose grip at low speeds. Has anyone ever heard of loosing traction on dry cats eyes before? Also the dip in the road is visible by car and slightly pulls the steering to the side. Do you think there could be a grounds for a claim against the council or is it a no hoper?

To be honest unless the road was in a real bad state i doubt you would get anywhere.

Just seems strange, cant see a cats eye doing that either, it really sounds like diesel or similar.

If you can salvage bits from the 12 then spend the rest of the year selling them on ebay.

Maybe look to getting funds together for next spring.

zx750r mate thats what you need. plenty of poke faster just than the newer 636'sd but at motorway speeds its not reving as hard as the 636 either. the handling ther's not a lot in it with the right tyres on and you can get a good 2000 model for £2000. i know its not as fast as the zx12 or as new as the 636 but they still look mint toiday and hold there own against the other marques.. im slightly biast as i own 1 and passed my test last week but i love it. i cant conpare it cos never riden anything else apart from the er 500 training bike but there sooo dull. get 1 you'l be surprised at how capable they are..