Hello all,

I am thinking about getting a savage/s40 for my next bike.  I am still riding my first bike, an '82 honda cm450 which I have put about 2000 miles on so far this season.  Its been a good bike but is seriously dated and im getting bored with it.  

I like the savage because of the simplicity, air cooled single with belt drive...seems like a low-maintenance dream come true.  I am a relatively small guy, about 5'10 150 pds., so I am not worried about being too big for the bike.  I am only concerned about the bike's power, and will it will be enough for what I use it for?

My riding style consists of riding around-town, some secondary highways (around 50mph), and occasional short (less than 1 hour) freeway trips (around 65-70mph).  I am a bit worried that since the bike is a single, the vibration might be excessive at 65-70.    

My questions are,

1. Does the Savage/s40 seem like a suitable bike for me? How does it handle freeway travel?  

2. What is the maintenance schedule like?  Its seems like  all you would have to do is keep on top of the oil changes and valve checks.  Am I right?

3. How bad is the notorious "backfire" I hear about?  Does a aftermarket pipe and rejet help reduce it?  

Thanks for the help guys.

Assuming you like riding cruisers" if you stick to the riding you have described you will do fine on the Savage.

It's when you start pushing the limits (longer trips on the interstate, higher speeds, etc.) that the shortcomings of the Savage (or any MC) show up.

Maintenance on the Savage couldn't be much simpler.

I was able to "tune" the backfire out of my Savage without rejetting.

For around town and short freeway rides, I think the Savage/S-40 is a great bike.

It is light enough to not get tiring, especially when riding in traffic and the single large displacement cylinder has torque to spare.

The only down side is high speed performance.  At speeds over 55mph, the whole bike shakes.  It's a little discomforting at first, but you will get used to it.

The backfire issue (as I have found out) is common to ALL single cylinder 4 stroke engines, regardless of displacement.  

The stock tuning on the Savage/S-40 is very lean.  Almost too lean.  This lean condition leads to the backfire issue, especially on decelleration.

If you go to the technical/reference section of the forum, there are several threads about the backfire issue and what can be done to correct it.

If you have a modecum of mechanical inclination, it can be done in under an hour.  (I did mine and it took longer to figure out how to re-route all the gas tank cables than it did to do the mods.)

Please check out the technical/reference section.  There are GOBS of useful knowledge there.

The comments so far have answered the questions you started with, I just want to fill in a little between the lines.

Keeping in mind that this is a large single cylinder motorcycle with 25 year old technology, it WILL VIBRATE when running .. it is supposed to.  It is only a relatively recent thing (past decade or so) that most riders nowdays expect to have NO vibration on a bike.

What??? No vib's???  I am dating myself a bit, but a REAL  motorcycle is supposed to vibrate !!  That is part of the whole experience.  Vibration on a bike is kind of like a message chair (my wife bought me one... good wife), so you can think of the vibration as one of the benefits ... a message while riding down the road.

Since you are going to replace the muffler for better sound, and the need to rejet as a result, that will take care of the backfire issue in the process.

Let me add my two bits here.

I bought my Savage totally untested, just as well as I was unlicensed then.  I had stopped by a dealer looking for a new one, he didn't have any in stock and basically bad mouthed them -- leak oil, shake so bad people keep returning them.  (That last a bit suspicous as he didn't have any of those returns sitting around.)  I was thinking, "huh, it's a bloody THUMPER!  Of Course it'll vibrate!"

But with that dealer attitude I got a used bike, dude rode it up from Laguna Hills to Gardena which I figured cinched any questions as to ridability/reliability.  Took the CMSP course, got licensed, got riding.

The vibration is A LOT less than what I expected or would have accepted.  I'm actually a bit disappointed that it doesn't vibrate more.  I have done a few medium-long trips, 350 miles after work.  Bike runs smooth upto 65mph, doesn't get annoying until 85.  It runs smooth enough at 65-70 that I am planning on a 3-4000 mile scoot  next month.

HP=Speed.  Torque=Acceleration.  For HP you want a multitude of cylinders spinning fast.  For Torque nothing beats a Thumper.  Stock, the Savage is remarkably quick off the line.  If you get bored go talk to Lancer.

Paladin. wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:08:


Paladin is right - this bike is just plain FUN.
Without even trying to go fast I have a little smile on each time, looking in my rearview mirror and seeing the little spec of whoever tried to catch up to me at the last traffic light. Torque is gooood.  

And goodness knows you have the right forum for mods if you get the tingle.

Go for it ian! You wont regret it. Nice bike, lots of fun! Not like its gonna burn a crater in your pocket either...at least, not comparatively...

Well the cam chain issue is a maintenance issue.

Ignore it and it will become a monster and bite your a$$ right in the pocket book.

But watch it, and feed it dollar bills once in a while and it will remain a puppy dog.