grover750

Can I ask how the '99 has held up? Any major repairs besides comsumables (brakes, tires, chains, etc)? What kind of oil did you use, how often did you change?



Why did you buy the '02 instead of going for 150?



Stock seat?



Ride on!

rsheidler

Great description! I was liiking for the right way to describe it, and I think you hit it square.



Given that the current Mille R kicked even the heavily (and expensively) breathed on RC-51's and the 999's asses in recent tests track tests on this site, my guess is that it WILL have the balls to back up its looks!

SlowBear

Patrick,



We are both guessing but I think you are on the right track. What I think they are giving is what airplane people I know call the "Flat Plate Equivalent" in square meters. This is the bike has the drag of a flat plate of 0.295 square meters. This is not the same as the coefficient of drag, that is the percentage of drag relative to a flat plate with the same surface area. It would be nice if everyone used FPE, it is a true measure of drag where as the coefficient of drag is a meaningless number without the total surface area, a bit like knowing the torque output but not the RPM at which it is produced.



SlowBear

TheFox

You scare the crap out of me sometimes.



--Foxy

__________________
--The Fox

The best bike to take a trip on is the one you have.

TatdNPrcd

I'm glad you're no longer selling R1s and GSXR1000s to squids with little or no riding skills just to pay the phone bill. It's salesmen like you who help to give motorcycling a bad name.



In most states if a bartender sells you one too many adult beverages then you leave the bar and kill someone that bartender is also responsible for that death.



IÂ’m not saying legislating morality is right but if more salesmen showed restraint when an obviously inexperienced buyer comes into the shop looking for the top line racer replica fewer folks would crash-and-burn and hopefully be riders for many years to come. Those folks should be steered toward the 600 class of bikes.



Someone wants a new 999? How about a 749s? If they demand the 999, politly decline and show them the door. Someone else will come along and buy the bike who knows what they are getting and hopefully knows how, when and where to use it. Salesmen like this do exist. They are the ones who stay in the business many years and they sleep well at night.



Responsible sales folks and responsible riders will keep the legislators and insurance leaches out of our garages.



You like the 1000cc class of bikes? Keep selling them to demanding, inexperienced riders and the only way youÂ’ll be able to get one is used.

__________________
Cages are for Hamsters!
http://www.ridetowork.org
http://www.ironbutt.com

rsheidler

My engineering background leaves much to be desired (I switched out of engineering school sometime in 1969) so I likely have this totally hosed -- maybe you or someone can clarify:



I recall that drag cooeficient is represented Cx, with 1.00 representing the Cx of a 3-dimensional rectangle. It is unitless -- total aero drag is a function of Cx, air density and frontal area.



All the articles I have read on motorcycle aerodynamics suggest that the best Cx figures for street or race bikes (excluding Bonnville streamliners) are something like 0.60 -- about twice that of cars. Of course, due to much smaller frontal area for sport/race bikes, total aero drag is usually less, thus top speeds are typically much higher than for cars of similar horsepower.



Compared to cars, it seems that motorcycles have several handicaps when it comes to producing low Cx figures:



> Current race rules (and marketing considerations for street bikes) prohibit enclosing the wheels.



> Styling and race rules limit the ability to "properly" close off the air flow at the rear of the vehicle.



> Rules and practical considerations prohibit enclosing the rider withing the bodywork



> Wheels make up a relatively significant portion of the relatively small frontal area of motorcycles.



> Compared to cars, a much larger percentage of air flow is required for engine cooling



Given these handicaps, I don't think it is possible for a 999 to have a drag cooefficient lower than say, a Honda Hybrid.

Pain_Seraphiin

I agree with u Grub. I've owned two Ducs, a 750 Paso and a 900SS. Both were slower than your average Jap 600, but both felt faster with all the torque. I luved em, but did not buy the bikes for the status (even though I did feel special on them, I confess). I've always been down on Harleys, but I bet someday I will have one. But it would definately not be the only bike in my stable. In general, riding a Harley is like going to bed with a fat woman, why bother. But if I had a slinky woman for bed....I wouldn't mind a fat woman cooking for me.



Actually I would like a Harley or Goldwing to take my slinky wife for cruises. SportBikes don't cut it. I recently bought a VFR800 and it is not comfy enough. Bought a crappy Corbin seat and am still not happy. Argg, *****, *****, *****. Why didn't Honda put the VTR twin in the VFR's chassis?



Geez, I better get back to work. Damn government employees!

Pain_Seraphiin

I have mixed feelings bout ya burning the other riders. I agree, ppl should be polite, cuz we all enjoy flying thru the curves. But in the same token, when you pass someone in the same lane, especially the inside line, you could scare the novice or inattenive rider INTO crashing. Ya, I know you don't think that is your fault or problem, but it is.



I've done it too, though. So I guess I should talk. Ignore all I said. Scratch if from the records. Make it so, Number one.

Buzglyd

Here's a ladder, let me help you off your high horse.



I always would try to talk buyers into something more sensible like an SV650 or something. Many were not interested. They had to have the latest, greatest and fastest.



I believe it is the consumer's responsibility to purchase the product they feel is best for them. There's not a dealer in the world that would "show someone the door" because they thought a buyer wanted the "wrong bike."



I don't work in bike sales anymore since starting my own company 2 years ago but your naive notion that someone, anyone could talk sense into a squid is laughable. Don't you read the posts from the KPaul types on this list?

TatdNPrcd

If that helps you sleep at night good for you. But don't be so ignorant as to think every "dealer in the world" has the same philosophy.



I'm not speaking from a naive notion. Idealistic maybe but not naive. I am speaking from what I know. I have seen it in action at a local, million dollar inventory dealership. The dealerships policy leaves it up to the salesman but it promises to stand behind their decision should they not wish to sell to someone.



A person doesn't have to be the whole solution to the problem but they don't have to be part of the problem either.



Call it what you will but since you're out of the business maybe you can admit that, even to a small degree, salesmen have some responsibility to keep from selling a gun and bullets to someone who looks like they're stupid enough to play Russian roulette.

__________________
Cages are for Hamsters!
http://www.ridetowork.org
http://www.ironbutt.com