SuzukiSavage.com - What would you do?

HawkEye1967

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What would you do?
09/20/05 at 19:12:03

Okay here's the deal, wife has agreed to my buying a new motorcycle Shocked

, basically any thing I want up to about the $15 000.00 range (max amount, also in canadian funds.) have considered the vtx 1300 as well as the 1400 intruder have also thought of going with a smaller bike 800 intruder or 750 shadow sprit. but to do this I have to sell the Savage :'(. other option is to spend up to about half of that on the Savage I have now, which is a 1986 LSF. bike is stock but would be allowed to buy whatever toys I like Grin

. raask muffler, k and N filter new carb, windshield, lightbar, forward controls, etc.

Both options have a lot of appeal, love my baby, but could learn to love another (life taught me that)

So the question of the day is what would you do? 8)

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Trippah

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #1 - 09/20/05 at 19:25:08

hi-Hawkeye 1967, tough decision. Do you ride two up often? AT all?Does your wife have her own cycle? Second barrage of questions..lots of highway riding or a little. Third issue- do you like to do your own maitenance etc. Is the biking experience simply the riding or the mod and maintenance as well. Could you buy the bigger bike and keep the savage "for your wife" Wink

answer the questions honestly and I think you'll know which ride to own. Tough question - but what FUN! Enjoy and keep us posted please.

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HawkEye1967

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #2 - 09/20/05 at 19:35:14

Thanks Trippah, bike is mainly for my own use, wife basically won't ride with me until kids are to old to be orphaned, mainly ride in city but want the highway option, not for any rides over say 6ish hours, do take my kids on the bike ages 9 and 3, but either way they would be happy, I just like to ride,will do some of my own maintence, but have a bike doc. that helps me out. most of the mods that are plug and play (within reason) I will do myself, with the help of my bike experts, (this site). have tried the, keep the savage and get another option, have found not a option at all. I still think it would make a good gift for my son when he turns 16, but hey, well money is available, it does not yet grow on any trees I have found, (still looking though).

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sluggo

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #3 - 09/20/05 at 20:10:04

HawkEye1967 wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:

Okay here's the deal, wife has agreed to my buying a new motorcycle Shocked

, basically any thing I want up to about the $15 000.00 range (max amount, also in canadian funds.) have considered the vtx 1300 as well as the 1400 intruder have also thought of going with a smaller bike 800 intruder or 750 shadow sprit. but to do this I have to sell the Savage :'(. other option is to spend up to about half of that on the Savage I have now, which is a 1986 LSF. bike is stock but would be allowed to buy whatever toys I like Grin

. raask muffler, k and N filter new carb, windshield, lightbar, forward controls, etc.

Both options have a lot of appeal, love my baby, but could learn to love another (life taught me that)

So the question of the day is what would you do? 8)

i was faced with a simular situation last year, i could have spent as much as you. i chose a brand spanking new savage that i chopped into a bobber. 4500. spent the next 5 grand on a great vacation with the wife, the spent the final 5 grand on 2 plots at the local cemetary.

it's just the wife and me, and our fur family

here's another look at thumper.

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SINGLES RULE, HARLEYS DROOL

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Jim_R

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #4 - 09/20/05 at 20:30:50

I like the yamaha vstar series , or kawaski vulcans. Heck even the honda looks good too. I would want a motorcycle that I could take on the highway and not worry about either being blown all over the road or have acceleration to actually pass someone.

Dont get me wrong the Savage is a great bike around town and definitely has some advantages like a very affordable price, great manueverability, super gas mileage, bulletproof reliability. It a hard choice but I guess it depends on where u wanna go and if it involves interstate travel.

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WD

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #5 - 09/20/05 at 21:57:36

As you know I gave my Savage to my stepson. I now ride a Kawasaki Vulcan 800A, the model with 21 inch front wheel and Fat Bob style rear fender. We also have a 1996 800 Intruder in the family.

The Vulcan gets the most use. Roomy enough for my 6'2", 220ish pound self to haul my 6'2", 185ish pound stepson on the back if needed. Can run to 100 mph in fourth gear on the highway, and still have 5th (double overdrive) for mileage. Depending on how I ride, the bike pulls mid-40s to mid-50s mpg. Handles interstate and country lanes equally well (flawlessly with Dunlop 404 tires). Mechanically noisy, but, so is a Savage.

The Intruder is perfect for a 4" margin of height in the comfort department. If you range 5'6" to 5'10", the bike will fit you quit well. Power is adequate, but, nothing to write home about. A stock Savage will walk all over a stock 800 Intruder. At roughly 90 miles per hour, the bike flat runs out of steam. There is a massive amount of parasitic power loss via the shaft drive and rear differential. The seat is as bad as a Savage seat. Yet, the pillion is more comfortable for most passengers.

What can I say about the Savage? I enjoyed the time I had with mine. That said, I get more enjoyment from watching my son ride it. I'd buy another one.
-WD

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Hammy211

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #6 - 09/20/05 at 22:20:40

No offense to anyone, but if I had the money and wanted to spend it I would go for a bigger bike. But see when I bought the Savage I had the money, just didn't want to spend it which is how I ended up with the Savage. And I am happy enough with it that I'm glad I saved the 4k or more I would have needed to spend for any significant step up. Now I sometimes think I would like another bike, but then I think why do that when I still enjoy the Savage and have had so few problems with it. Of course you situation is a little different. 1. Your bike is older than mine will probably ever get. 2. You have "up to 15k," don't see that happening around here any time soon.

Is it a space thing that you have to sell the Savage? I doubt you get hardly anything out of it.

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shawn_b Ex Member	Re: What would you do? Reply #7 - 09/20/05 at 22:29:48 if it were me i would go with a bigger bike i love the savage but it no perfect look at triumph the bonni is killer only 6999 us 750cc :ohttp://www.triumph.co.uk/usa/ shawn
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Paladin.

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #8 - 09/20/05 at 23:03:33

HawkEye1967 wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:

....have considered the vtx 1300 as well as the 1400 intruder have also thought of going with a smaller bike 800 intruder or 750 shadow sprit....other option is to spend up to about half of that on the Savage I have now.....

What do you want out of a Motorcycle? Bigger is not always better. What I like is not necessarily what is best for you.

My requirements were low saddle, light weight, not riding in the fetal position. I am partial to the simplicity of a single cylinder. Which had me considering the GZ250, LS650, and the Enfield Bullet. My first choice, the Bullet, is a 49-state bike.

The Savage has all the power and speed I could ever need. I would like a trailer hitch, a Corbin saddle, and a flat slide carb. And maybe a taller windscreen for when I do the SS1000.

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Starlifter Serious Thumper Offline It only snows seven months of the year here. Posts: 3746 Eastern Michigan Gender:	Re: What would you do? Reply #9 - 09/20/05 at 23:38:42 Heck, I would just step up to an S-50 Boulevard.
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WD

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #10 - 09/21/05 at 01:20:10

S-50 is just a (slightly) dolled up 800 Intruder. The M-50 is a fuel injected Marauder 800, the C-50 is an injected Volusia 800. Step-up? The 1600 Marauder (M-90) was a good bike, it was a Kawasaki Mean Streak with a hooded headlight. The C-90 (LC1500 Intruder) is an alright bike. The S-? (1400 Intruder) is pound for pound the fastest of the bunch, but the ergonomics are lousy (1400 cc in an 800 cc frame).

I'd keep the Savage, or update it for a 5 speed version. For primarily around town use or two lane country lanes, with occasional superslab, it's still the best bang for the buck. Or is it BOOM for the buck? If you think the Savage backfires too much, don't buy a Vulcan, they are equipped with an air injection unit. ALL of them. No such thing as a Cali spec Vulcan, they are 50 state legal.
-WD

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Dr_D Full Member 2005 No Login Offline 30 bikes in 39 years Posts: 190 Jarvis, Ontario, Canada Gender:	Re: What would you do? Reply #11 - 09/21/05 at 03:52:07 Check out the Triumph line. Anything from a twin in the Bonnie derivative line to one of those delicious triples. I have a 99 Legend and it complements the Savage wonderfully. One for cruising, one for go-go and touring.
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red2k1

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #12 - 09/21/05 at 05:12:01

HawkEye1967,

Had a similar situation as you but solved it with two bikes. To me, the Savage is just too good a bike around town and back roads to dump. The Savage is also simple and fun to work on and is very easy to modify.

I kept the Savage and bought a slightly used Kawasaki Concours with less than 4,000 miles and all kinds of goodies (including electronic cruise control) plus the remainder of a five year warranty for just over $6,000. For fast highway and mountainous back roads the Concours is great. It is 180 degrees different from the Savage, does its job extraordinarly well and is nearly as bullet-proof as the Savage.

You have the fun kind of problem to solve.

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mornhm - FSO

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #13 - 09/21/05 at 05:14:17

As I am looking around, I've pretty much settled on a sport tourer for longer trips. The Savage is still OK for going back and forth to work, and my wife wants me to keep it. The Concours seems to be a great bike for the money. Purchased new, it would fit your plan of not parting with your Savage and still leave some (quite a bit of) change left over. Unfortunately I didn't do the conversion so I don't know how much. The 2006 Concours have been announced, so the prices for 2005 models should go down.

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Savage_Rob

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Re: What would you do?
Reply #14 - 09/21/05 at 05:50:46

HawkEye1967 wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:

Thanks Trippah, bike is mainly for my own use, wife basically won't ride with me until kids are to old to be orphaned, mainly ride in city but want the highway option, not for any rides over say 6ish hours, do take my kids on the bike ages 9 and 3, but either way they would be happy, I just like to ride,will do some of my own maintence, but have a bike doc. that helps me out. most of the mods that are plug and play (within reason) I will do myself, with the help of my bike experts, (this site). have tried the, keep the savage and get another option, have found not a option at all. I still think it would make a good gift for my son when he turns 16, but hey, well money is available, it does not yet grow on any trees I have found, (still looking though).

To be honest, it seems the Savage fits your bill. Single rider, mostly city with some highway, self-maintained... That's the Savage alright (legroom requirements/restrictions aside). I'd say to get some cool stuff for it (or gear for you) and put any remaining cash aside for future use (you could happen upon a great deal when not really looking).

Personally, I don't have a need for a bigger bike and I'd probably only change bikes if I decided to change to a different type... I've considered someday getting a dual-purpose bike that would allow a bit more backroad riding or something like that. For just street, I'm good.

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