Most Suitable 2A bike for Touring

[nineh]

hey guys..

I need some suggestions and advice regarding the above.. I'm thinkin of upgrading to a 400cc 2A bike...

 

what bike to choose is the problem!.. :dot:

 

Im basically considering these 3: - (any other suggestions most welcomed!)

Super4

Monster 400

Drz400sm

 

the bike is tended for day to day commuting and regular trips up north...prob once a month at least... preferably can reliable and comfortable to ride all the way up to thailand.

 

I also carry a pillion almost every where...so tats another consideration.can anyone suggest/advice which would be the best choice of bike and why??

 

also does anyone know the top speed and/or confortable cruise speed for these bikes???

 

thanks a million guys...

 

hope to learn somethin new from the vetrans...

 

PS: all comments will be appreciated.

[4DToToBig Sweep]

Get a Super Four :thumb:

U can Cruise with this baby... with top speed 2...

Plenty of Accessories 2 mob...

Spare PArts are much easily 2 find...compare 2 a Italy model...

With Pillion>? the bike is big enough :cool:

[endlessloop]

Of these 3, I think Super4 is the only one that can tour long distance, but you need to fit a windshield. If you are those type that travel to tour off road trails, then the dirt bike more suitable.

 

For long distance touring, you want to cruise at higher speeds along NS at up to 130-150. Super4 is the only one of this lot can reach this speed for prolong duration and remain comfortable to rider/pillion.

 

At NS speeds, the wind blast will be very strong. It will be very tiring to the rider if the bike has no wind shield. For S4, the common low screen type will allow you to cruise at above speed (eg: Givi brand). Cruiser's more upright riding positions is even worse than S4 in coping with wind blast, unless fitted with a large windshield. For the dirt bike, I think you just have to have strong arms and strong chest

 

If you carry a pillion, cruisers and dirt bikes tend to have a very small pillion pad as a seat. So pillion butt will ache faster and has little room to move about. S4 has a full sized seat for pillion.

 

Long distance trip + pillion => large luggage capacity. Hard luggage is not a must for touring but of course, it will be more convenient than soft luggage. Although most of the time, you will leave your luggage in the hotel, the inconvenience of soft luggage is when you are loaded with luggage, you can't just park the bike, leave it and go sight-seeing. Whereas with a lockable hard luggage you can.

 

Both S4 and cruiser can fit up to 3 hard boxes. Cruisers can too, but will loose their classic lines. Both S4 and cruiser can fit these soft luggage options: tankbag, throw-over side panniers. I think dirt bike cant fit tank bag so you loose some luggage capacity.

 

You might also be caught in heavy rains which you need to ride through, and also ride up and come down on very steep hilly mountains (you can't avoid them because they are the attraction esp in thailand). So it is good if you have a bike with good brake system. Cruisers have longer braking distance. S4 has a very powerful brake system. If you fit off road tyres on your dirt bike, you will lose braking effectiveness. If you fit road tyres, you loose some off road capability.

 

Downside of S4 is that when not touring, it may not be as pretty as a cruiser. And it is kind of common.

 

Advantage of dirt bike is that you can go off road. S4 and cruiser can travel badly paved or unpaved road too. But dirt bike can go anywhere. Depends on your touring preference. To me, most touring destinations do not need you to go off road. It is a nice-to-have and seldom use capability unless you purposely seek to tour trails.

[diddy the patient]

get Translap lahhh

[ChaoPuzzy1968]

i saw some transalps 400 .....at looi

[Demon]

I would even consider the Honda NX-4.

 

For touring, simplicity is the key to reliability. It will happily do 110kph all day with your pillion and all your barang barang, with almost no maintenance. Naturally, speed is not it's forte, but if you need to rush from destination to destination, I would suggest that you fly:angel:

 

As we are speaking, there is one for sale through word of mouth. Contact "AJ"

[DVD]

Super4

[duracellb]

Of these 3, I think Super4 is the only one that can tour long distance, but you need to fit a windshield. If you are those type that travel to tour off road trails, then the dirt bike more suitable.

 

For long distance touring, you want to cruise at higher speeds along NS at up to 130-150. Super4 is the only one of this lot can reach this speed for prolong duration and remain comfortable to rider/pillion.

 

At NS speeds, the wind blast will be very strong. It will be very tiring to the rider if the bike has no wind shield. For S4, the common low screen type will allow you to cruise at above speed (eg: Givi brand). Cruiser's more upright riding positions is even worse than S4 in coping with wind blast, unless fitted with a large windshield. For the dirt bike, I think you just have to have strong arms and strong chest

 

If you carry a pillion, cruisers and dirt bikes tend to have a very small pillion pad as a seat. So pillion butt will ache faster and has little room to move about. S4 has a full sized seat for pillion.

 

Long distance trip + pillion => large luggage capacity. Hard luggage is not a must for touring but of course, it will be more convenient than soft luggage. Although most of the time, you will leave your luggage in the hotel, the inconvenience of soft luggage is when you are loaded with luggage, you can't just park the bike, leave it and go sight-seeing. Whereas with a lockable hard luggage you can.

 

Both S4 and cruiser can fit up to 3 hard boxes. Cruisers can too, but will loose their classic lines. Both S4 and cruiser can fit these soft luggage options: tankbag, throw-over side panniers. I think dirt bike cant fit tank bag so you loose some luggage capacity.

 

You might also be caught in heavy rains which you need to ride through, and also ride up and come down on very steep hilly mountains (you can't avoid them because they are the attraction esp in thailand). So it is good if you have a bike with good brake system. Cruisers have longer braking distance. S4 has a very powerful brake system. If you fit off road tyres on your dirt bike, you will lose braking effectiveness. If you fit off road tyres, you loose some off road capability.

 

Downside of S4 is that when not touring, it may not be as pretty as a cruiser. And it is kind of common.

 

Advantage of dirt bike is that you can go off road. S4 and cruiser can travel badly paved or unpaved road too. But dirt bike can go anywhere. Depends on your touring preference. To me, most touring destinations do not need you to go off road. It is a nice-to-have and seldom use capability unless you purposely seek to tour trails.

 

i agree with endlessloop. s4 is probably one of the best overall 2a bikes, but the lack of windshield is a shortcoming for touring trips. speed, handling and comfort are there, except that the windblasting at you when you exceed 130-140 isn't enjoyable for long trips. personally, i prefer the posture of maxi-scooter for such trips.

[flareon1982]

GSR 400 good good. High speed also can. comfy. Tested

[seoulnow]

Silverwing / Burgy 400?

[coolcat]

Good advice above. Will add my own.

 

Super 4 gets my vote. The single cylinders can get a bit vibey; whereas the Super4 will give you a better ride. The only thing about it is that the rectifier is prone to problems, so you may want to carry one along. More importantly, the Super4 can hold its value fairly well, parts are easy to get, and you do not want to lose too much when you sell the machine when upgrading to a Class 2. In fact, older Super4 are pretty good value as depreciation can be as low as $500 if you buy well.

 

Stay focus on what you mainly do; not what you might do; otherwise you will drown in the sea of confusion and advice.

 

cheers

 

cat

[ab]

Super 4 lah. Tested and Proven by lots of bikers up to Thailand. Just install windshield and hard boxes; which can be detached and used for luggage to check into hotel. comfortable speed 160km/h anytime.

[stantheman]

Get super4 den go Get the kind of windshield which those civil defence super 4 have.

POWER!! man...

[nineh]

Wah....tats fast and efficient!! thanks for all the advice guys! realy didnt expect this much replies.... sincerely appreciate it.

 

yea I get the point overall. I can see why the S4 will be the most suitable choice.

 

Jus wondering though....the Gsr400...heard is pretty high maintainence right? interms of finance and repairs??

 

the only issue i have with the S4 is honestly the riding position.

Im currently rolling with a vara125...so the position is very comfortable and the bike is extremely stabe. reliability is not an issue at all. with semi-off-road tires...I can almost go anywhere (including thailand). but the lack of power is the main concern. fully loaded with pillion and luggage i can barely hit 110km/h...and it does get tiring on the NSH after prolonged periods.

 

I would most prefer a translap 400...but then again....parts are very hard to find and the resale value is pretty bad...if you find a buyer tat is.

 

so yea...

 

ultimately I will seriously consider the S4...

 

once again...really appreciate all teh comments and suggesations guys.

cheers!

[kmax]

for touring, scooter also can, doesnt matter what u ride, it's the rider that matters. recently one guy ride KSR110 all the way up to thailand...

 

but if u wanna go fast, get a fast bike lor..

NX400, translap 400, bandit 400, SV 400: all are good bikes for 2A.

same goes for ducati monster 400, DRZ 400.

 

dont worry about parts for translap.. pm our hero AJ, he can advice you where u can find parts for rare bikes..

 

one of my friend seriously recommend SV400 over super4... handling, speed, too bad i couldnt find affordable and reliable one.

 

u can have all the glamour on ducati monster 400..

 

GSR 400 is a good bike... and the best advantage of not so common as S4 on the road. maintenance ? well, Engine Oil, Spark Plag ofcuz need to change, petrol need to top up, other than that... (if i remember correctly, flareon1982 change from vara 125 to GSR)

 

just get something which suits ur budget, dont burden urself with long term loans for a bike which u might wanna change for class2.

[diddy the patient]

Wah....tats fast and efficient!! thanks for all the advice guys! realy didnt expect this much replies.... sincerely appreciate it.

 

yea I get the point overall. I can see why the S4 will be the most suitable choice.

 

Jus wondering though....the Gsr400...heard is pretty high maintainence right? interms of finance and repairs??

 

the only issue i have with the S4 is honestly the riding position.

Im currently rolling with a vara125...so the position is very comfortable and the bike is extremely stabe. reliability is not an issue at all. with semi-off-road tires...I can almost go anywhere (including thailand). but the lack of power is the main concern. fully loaded with pillion and luggage i can barely hit 110km/h...and it does get tiring on the NSH after prolonged periods.

 

I would most prefer a translap 400...but then again....parts are very hard to find and the resale value is pretty bad...if you find a buyer tat is.

 

so yea...

 

ultimately I will seriously consider the S4...

 

once again...really appreciate all teh comments and suggesations guys.

cheers!

 

if u maintain, the bike, treat it well, i dun c any prob selling it..

[PaLmEr]

Super Four.

 

This is where i went with my Super Four.

[spaiduhz]

very inspirational ride.

 

a distance of over 10,000km travelled, under $1000 spent.

Solo trip, and navigating without GPS assist.

[khaitronic]

Initially i was looking for SV400 or Transalp...i believe this bike in term of it characteristic and features....should be better for touring but couldnot find a good sv for sale...while cant find a shop selling transalp...hmm i went to looi too that time...now they are selling...damn...

 

anyway i got a spec 3....well not bad...a good choice for me!

[skateboy]

Jus wondering though....the Gsr400...heard is pretty high maintainence right? interms of finance and repairs??

gsr 400 high maintenance? so far so good, there's nothing much to maintain less the oil change, plug change n those wear n tear parts which is almost the same to other bikes.

 

comparing S4, maintenance of gsr is slightly higher is due to the slightly bigger engine oil sump n bigger rear tyre. parts is abit steep in price cos its a PI bike. other then that, almost the same for both bikes.

 

Initially i was looking for SV400 or Transalp...i believe this bike in term of it characteristic and features....should be better for touring but couldnot find a good sv for sale...while cant find a shop selling transalp...hmm i went to looi too that time...now they are selling...damn...

 

anyway i got a spec 3....well not bad...a good choice for me!

SV400? there is only 10 units available in singaopore rite?

[khaitronic]

not sure about how many unit...but i know of 2 shop selling one each...but both condition not that good...

 

one selling at freaking low price cause the shop dont even know how to rectify the bike probs....

[skateboy]

its a V engine. not as easy as inline 4 engine. anyway, the bike is about 6 to 7 years old. can't expect it to b in very good condition.

[khaitronic]

its a V engine. not as easy as inline 4 engine. anyway, the bike is about 6 to 7 years old. can't expect it to b in very good condition.

 

 

Yeah man... sv was the bike that drive me up to take 2a

[Zachery]

super 4 is the best !!!!! haha .. high resale price ... lower depreciation lol

[barefoot]

hmm yamaha dragstar? shaft drive