New Member

Hi Guys

Signed up for the forum yesterday, I am not yet an SV owner but have decided that for my first bike I'll be buying an SV650S probably second hand but not too old and with as low mileage as possible.

As someone who knows very little about bikes I was hoping for some advice on what to look for when buying used... Are there any issues that are common which should be checked/avoided when shopping around? When buying my first car I made the mistake of buying one that was 1000 miles away from a cambelt change which while not too expensive was an unexpected cost a month after shelling out the 4k for the car and was an experience I hope to avoid with buying a bike.

[Matt-EUC]

Buy mine. PM me if you're interested.

http://forums.sv650.org/showthread.php?t=210503


Sent via the medium of interpretive dance.

Hi Matt

Thanks for the offer but I'm looking for one of the newer shape models and ideally around 5 years (or less) old. It needs to be something that I can stick with for 3 to 4 years as I will be upgrading my car in between that period as well. There seems to be quite a lot going locally to me on autotrader and I have been looking mainly at dealers (I know I will pay a higher price) but the attraction of even a short period of warranty is winning me over at the moment

[Bibio]

welcome to the mad house.

my advice is buy the naked version, if you drop it you wont do as much damage and they are better bikes to ride than the sport version. your first purchase (unless they are already fitted) should be R&G crash bungs then a scottoiler, after that it's just cosmetics like a nice exhaust.

when buying the bike look out for tell tale signs of crash damage like bent and scuffed levers, rearsets and paintwork rash. the late 2007 onwards are twin spark bikes and these are the ones you want to get.

[L3nny]

Welcome to the forum. If I had my time again I would buy buy an SV which had the suspension sorted out as the stock suspension is terrible.

Other than that they are great bikes and very little in the way of common problems.

Hi Bibio, You are not the first person to advise me that, I know the plastics will damage easily even from the gentlest of drops. However... and please don't flame me for saying this. I'm not a fan of the look of the naked bikes and much prefer the half faired S model, I know it makes practical and financial sense to ride a naked bike for a while but I would struggle to fall in love with the look of it.

I have no problem driving around in practical utilitarian cars but for a bike I need it to be something that makes my heart skip a beat when I open the garage door ready to go for a ride. If that means running the risk of doing some expensive damage after a newbie mistake then that is a risk I am prepared to take, I do see crash protectors as a must have and if I buy a bike without them I will certainly have them installed very soon after.

[Bibio]

no flame as its your choice but the sport version seating position is terrible and almost everyone who has a sport wishes the riding position was better. until you strengthen your wrists and lower back you will be in pain after about 30 miles. who cares what it looks like in the garage your riding the thing and thats what it's all about, grin factor

TBH i think the SV650 a is fugly bike in both guises.

what ever you decide have fun, stay safe and keep it shiny side up.

hopefully being a (fairly) in shape 26 year old should help with that. I best start doing some more bar curls in preparation lol. As it will be my first bike and first time on the road on a bike unsupervised I will only be doing short journeys to start with anyway so I should be able to get used to it gradually before tackling any long rides

[Matt-EUC]

The best way to strengthen the appropriate muscle for riding, is by riding. The longer the better. When your wrists get tired, ride another 5 miles before you stop.


Sent via the medium of interpretive dance.

Originally Posted by Bibio

no flame as its your choice but the sport version seating position is terrible and almost everyone who has a sport wishes the riding position was better. until you strengthen your wrists and lower back you will be in pain after about 30 miles.

From someone who rode 600 miles in a day on a 2009 stock SV650sport, I completely disagree.

The suspension however, now that I do completely agree. Far too soft and some good threads on here about how to sort it. If you can find one with a rear shock already done, then front forks are pretty easy.

P.s. Welcome to the forum