SV vs CBR600F for starter rider

Originally Posted by kwak zzr

hondas are built much better than suzis, its all in the price tag.

True - you also get an extra two cylinders

yea you cant have it all with a cbr can you

Originally Posted by ASM-Forever

The only valid point the dealer has is the poor build quality....i.e. suzuki cheese bolts. If you dont look after it, winter can do alot of damage. That said if you clean/lube it properly it is fine.

SV's IMO are very reliable bikes....not much truth in what he has said on that score. Try something Italian if you want unreliable!

As for the "heavy throttle hand" argument...that is complete tosh as well. Yes it has lots of low down torque...but if you are hard on the throttle on a CBR, it is more powerful. I am too lazy to check the BHP of the respective bikes but the CBR will have comfortably more horses.

The SV is a great bike for its price and a good choice for a DAS rider. That said the 600F is a better bike pretty much across the board...suspension,handling,build quality etc.

The negatives of the F are the higher purchase/insurance costs and also that if you are a new rider its quite likely you will bin the bike....it will be worse to damage a F than an SV financially.

In summary SV= great bike for the money and certainly should not be discounted.

600F=better bike, but it costs more and some people might not like the riding position.

I would say if you really want a sports bike and have the £'s, then get one or you will only end up trading up in the near future.

having rode both bikes extensivly, id say you are pretty much spot on there.

apart from in the recent years, the CBR600F has come down in price quite a bit,

it was cheaper for me to insure a 2 year old CBR than a brand new SV when i first started out,, by over a grand.

but once i got a years no claims, my insurance halved, now im paying 150 quid to insure my CBR, (25, 3 yr no claims, parked outside)

interesting thread this, just sat here for 2 hours reading it, keep it going

NEITHER!

You WILL be falling off , possibly quite a few times, in your first three years of riding. Buy something cheap, SLOW and easy to fix for this time..

You might just survive until 2010 that way

Carl

SVs for me have more character - I did look at the CBRF when i bought mine but the typical IL4 noise, unimpressive looks (as well as yukky colour schemes) and the fact that theyre probably like the Ford Focus of the bike world (loads of 'em) I went for the SV. The SV has pitfalls but some of these can be sorted (suspension) and its fun when you can keep up with the bigger bikes in the twisties.

Originally Posted by robchester

SVs for me have more character - I did look at the CBRF when i bought mine but the typical IL4 noise, unimpressive looks (as well as yukky colour schemes) and the fact that theyre probably like the Ford Focus of the bike world (loads of 'em) I went for the SV. The SV has pitfalls but some of these can be sorted (suspension) and its fun when you can keep up with the bigger bikes in the twisties.

If the CBR is a Focus, then surely the SV is a Mondeo or Corsa

Originally Posted by ASM-Forever

If the CBR is a Focus, then surely the SV is a Mondeo or Corsa

I would say the SV is more like a tuned down TVR

Originally Posted by ljharmitt

I would say the SV is more like a tuned down TVR

From the lad thats never ridden one

I can do this all day.

I might be able to offer an insight into this in a few weeks I suppose

Though I can offer this controversial comment right now: Hondas suck for reliability!