Greetings all.  I am a new member and reside in East Tennessee.  My current "ride" is a 2009 Sym HD200 scooter and it is great.  It does 90% of what I need to do but I am looking for another bike to fill that 10% gap.  My SYM is great on any road with speed limits up to 55.  I can go just about anywhere without getting on the interstate but would like to have that ability also.  The SYM will do an indicated speed of 80 on flat roads (about 72 actually) but that is full throttle.  I am not looking to "tour" hundreds of miles but just to jump on the interstate for 20-30 miles.

I have narrowed it down the the Savage/S40 or the Vulcaln 500.  I am looking for a used one and looks like either one can be purchased at a reasonable price.  I would really pefer a single cylinder to keep maintenance cost down but not if it won't do what I need it to do safely.

Many of the reviews I have read indicate that the Savage/S40 is not really comfortable at interstate speeds.  Is that correct?  I'm sure the interstate highways here are jus like everywhere else.  If the speed limit is 55 the traffic runs 70.  If it is 70 everyone runs 85.  Since 4 major interstate highways "merge" in this area there is a lot of high speed "thru" truck traffic.

If you missed it in my ramblings my question is can the Savage handle the interstate safely.

Thanks in advance for any replies.  I though that the best answeres would come from the folks that ride the bike everday in all kinds of conditions.

I think the interstate complaints are from people  (writers) expecting too much from the bike. The riding your explaining is very well suited to the machine just as it's better around town then a heaver large displacement bike. Rider weight isn't as big a factor as size because it's got an abundance of torque. I'm double the weight babyhog just stated however I"m 5'11" which is at the limit for seating comfort. I have larger bikes for distance but prefer the LS for the riding you described. Remember, many writers reviews are biased because they wouldn't want anyone to know they were having fun on such a simple machine. That's what most here appreciate most. Do some test rides and see how it feels.

I have had about 15 different bikes been ride 38 years,And I can tell you the S40 isn't a good interstate bike,It vibrates at speeds above around 60mph,Its geared to low for the interstates,the front end is light at speed,The suspension has the least travel of any bike I've had so stock it rides pretty hard,People seem to have a lot of problems with this bike,My wife had a 1980 GN 400 Suzuki and drove it 24000 miles with no problems.It is a good back road bike with speeds up to 60mph,Lot of power and handles good.

I think that the S40 does fine going down the interstate. Mine is bobbed so is quite a bit lighter than stock and the wind isn't any worse than when I am on my Suzuki Burgman 650 that weighs around 750 lbs. My major complaint is the stock seat, but I do have arthritis and fibromyalgia which makes it worse. Even with my health issues and the seat the way it is, a 250 mile day isn't bad.

I do 60-65mph with a windshied with no problem (other than the sitting position is tough on my back); the stock tank limits your distance to @100 miles between fillups..so if you want to do 500-600 mile days on the superslab..frankly I'd look elsewhere, otherwise it is a wonderful ride.
Actually, if all your riding is going to be all  multilane highways, get a Miata - it'll be more fun. (IMHO) Of course.

Both bikes and sports cars are fun on back road and twisties, only sports cars are fun on the superhighways.

ut1205 wrote on 10/07/10 at 14:07:13:
_I_ am completely comfortable on the Interstate, with my National Cycle little 17" Street Shield, doing 500+ mile days rolling at 65-70 mph.  65-70 is fine on the I-40 out on the west side.  65-70 mph is comfortable at that vibration, for me.  And I have no problem with the wind on the Interstate...  but I do know the wind, and I compensate for the wind/truck gusts without thinking.

On the other hand, I have never riden a overweight sow of a bike, so I do not know how comfortable they are.

ut1205 wrote on 10/07/10 at 14:07:13:
Los Angeles Freeways run speeds from stop to 85 mph.  My fastest run in about 7 miles up the Harbor, doing 80-85 mph.  It is not really comfortable for me.  But then, I'm usually with just the Flyscreen on it.  Not totally comfortable, but acceptable, at least for a 5 minute run.  Mostly wind, not really bad vibration.  It does let you know you are faster than it should be.  

On the other hand, when speed of traffic is 80-85, usually some are slow at just 65-70 and you can pace with them and be comfortable.  80 mph versus 65 mph, on a 20 mile run, is just 18.5 minutes versus 15 minutes.  Is 3 1/2 minutes that important?

I commute 50 miles roundtrip in Memphis almost daily. About 50% freeway. I have the factory sport shield. I am 6 ft and 250 lbs. My morning run is with little traffic at 65-70 mph. Evenings about 40 mph. The bike in my opinion is great for what I ride. I am nearing 18,000 miles on my '06 and have had no issues with the bike. Rejetting the carb and a freer exhaust makes it a lot happier at freeway speeds. I went to larger tires and it makes the bike totally different at freeway speeds. Doesn't follow grooves in the road as bad and the taller rear tire moves the sweet spot to appx 70 mph. I have family in North Carolina and have many trips across I40 in the car. The east TN roads are great compared to the Memphis roads. If you are happy with your scooter you will love the Savage.

First of all, thanks for all the great replies.  I read a lot of forums and am a member of a few and this place beats them all for quality of information.  

I think I need to do what Lupo suggest and find one I can use for a test ride.  As for my experience, I guess you could call me a “new old rider”.  Back in the 70’s I had a Honda CB750 that I rode for about 3 years.  Things were different then.  Not as much traffic, interstate speed limit was 55 mph, trucks were smaller, and cell phones and “texting” had not been invented.   I sold the Honda in 1979 and did not ride any type of bike for 30 years.  Fast forward to 2010 and I got the “urge” again so I took the MSF course and purchased my scooter.

Before you get the wrong idea, I am not a speed demon.  I’m way too old for that.  In my perfect world people would run 80 mph if I am driving my “cage” but would slow to 55 if I am on my bike.

The comparison that I was making was based on “CC’s” only.  I know two locals that ride single cylinder Maxi Scooters.  One is a Burgman 400 and the other has a Majesty 400.   They ride the interstates and cruise at 70 with some power to spare.  I assumed that the 650 Savage/S40 would have similar or better performance but based on your replies it seems that 70 is about the max comfortable speed.

I know this is not a “Scooter” forum but since that is what I currently own it is what I have to compare other bikes against.  I don’t want to spend two or three thousand dollars and find out that the Savage is only marginally better performer than what I already have.  My SYM has 16” wheels so it rides and performs more like a motorcycle than a scooter.  The 200 engine (actually 171 cc) puts out 15.5 horse power and the “wet” weight is about 315 pounds.  That is getting very close to some of the 250cc motorcycles.  I have the tall GIVI windshield and get a very comfortable and vibration free ride up to about 62 mph (68 indicated).   Above that it starts telling me that maybe I should slow down.  Most of my riding is 55 mph two and four lane highways and the scooter excels in that environment.

Based on your “feedback” it seems to me that the Savage/S40 would be fine if it were my only bike but not much of a performance upgrade from what I have (I’m not selling the SYM).  I guess that no matter what you have you always want something “just a little bit bigger”.  I will try to find one to ride before I make a final decision.

Again, thanks for all the great replies and even if I don’t purchase a Savage I will probably hang around for the impressive conversations here.