I sure appreciate the responses.
My wife just got a rebel and I must say after doing a quick maintenance that it's absolutely simple to work on and a breeze to check the valves. I didnt go any faster than 55 on the test drive of her bike but I found the torque very nice on take off (almost comparable to the ninja). Looking in the mirror, I noticed the cars behind me fade quickly as I pulled away from them at the light. I dont know how her bike performs at higher speeds but at low speeds I was completely satisfied.
If the S40 has considerable more grunt at low speeds than the rebel, I'm sure it will it will win points there.
The determining factors of buying an S40 will likely toss around in my mind for the next couple of weeks, contemplating fuel economy, valve adjustments and the mentioned cylinder head retorquing (not liking that part).
In the rebel service manual, I didnt see anything about cylinder head retorquing. Hate to say it but as far as fuel economy goes the rebel scores searious points there from what I'm reading.
I don't mind turning wrenches and I'm competent in that area but I don't have a garage so open engine wrenching needs to be quick... I wont miss the ninja. It's a great bike but those valve adjustments alone are the main reason I'm getting rid of it. It's simply a pain in the rear to do (especially if a gust of wind stirs up dirt and the rushing and cussing starts).
This is what's also keeping me from buying a much larger cc bike. Although I hear somebody makes a bike with hydraulic valves.
Maintenance as far as cables, chains/belts, oil changes etc is normally fun stuff and allows the owner time to appreciate and bond with the bike. Valve adjustments on the other hand can cause an owner to get rid of the bike if it ends up taking hours to do (ninja).
Anyhoo, thanks for the replies and YES you are a great bunch of guys