ducati m400 vs RVF

[MIGHTY MAX]

  xXxRatedxXx said:

.

 

Back to the topic, i am also keen to try V twin but i don't have the financial means to own a Duke... so i've been also looking around for alternatives.

 

Suzuki Bandit - Trellis Frame also, but inline 4

Suzuki SV650 gladius - Trellis frame and v twin engine, much cheaper than a duke. However rare in sg, spare parts might not readily available even though its relatively new.

 

http://www.motorbikespecs.net/images/Suzuki/GSF_400_M_N_Bandit_91-94/GSF_400_M_N_Bandit_91-94_1.jpg

http://twistingasphalt.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/2009_gladius-01.jpg

 

Im riding Honda VTR Sp1(Honda World SUperbike V twin that beat Ducati 916)

[DM]

  xXxRatedxXx said:

video

 

 

hahahaha!!!!11 that's a cbr400

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and a car with a dented door

[stantheman]

  thenation said:

That was a quite uncalled for attack.

 

 

 

And an RVF sounds like a chicken next to say, an RSV4. Why make this kind of pointless comparison? Oh and yes, there is a sound unique to Ducatis. It is not 'so-called'.

 

Unique sound for ducatis = all ducatis

Unique sound for RVFs = RVF only.. dunno why u come out with RSV4?

[Stoned]

  stantheman said:

Unique sound for ducatis = all ducatis

Unique sound for RVFs = RVF only.. dunno why u come out with RSV4?

 

I think he made the comparison because of a similar engine configuration. As far as I can tell.

[Stoned]

  natgw said:

no offense but seriously...

 

u sound rather shallow and senseless to me.. and most others.

 

Well, if you cared to substantiate your point beyond just inane flaming you'd probably have a case, but as it stands your statements hold no water.

 

I only ride Italian machines because to me biking is more than just performance(which you generally can't utilise fully in Singapore anyway). I treat my toys with care and love. I place value on drool factor, sound, and soul and not just ponies and lb/ft. I feel sad when i see a dirty machine, and great when I see one that sparkles and shines.

 

For the same reason most people will prefer a Lamborghini to a Subaru WRX or Nissan GT-R. It's not about the performance, but rather, the connection to the machine and the experience it gives you. This is important to me when it comes to machines. Of course, there is also the exclusivity and the prestige.

 

Exotic cars are out of reach for most people, but exotic bikes are far more accessible to the typical wallet. Bikes are cheap and great ways to buy into exclusivity, prestige and the soul that comes with Italian heritage. When you sit on or in an Italian machine and cruise down the street, you understand, if only just for a moment, why some Italians wash their cars and bikes with mineral water. There is real love put into each and every piece of the construction, as compared to factory-produced mass-market machines and you can own one for the price of a Honda Fit.

 

If you've never owned an Italian machine before today, I'd advise you to go pick one up. Sit on/in it, rev it, ride/drive it. Suddenly all that talk about "expensive" maintenance will seem totally moot.

 

Minerva allows test rides on the 1198 and 848 for prospective customers. Try it and see if you aren't sold. I picked a Streetfighter eventually, but it's good fun in any case.

[CSV]

hmmm

 

you cant compare these 2 bikes, totally different class.

 

like apples vs oranges.

 

but if its me, i take ducati anytime. cause its a freaking DUCATI.

 

and the monster looks like sex on wheels.

 

just like stoned, i get a bike that i enjoy and feel a connection with. not on top speed or acceleration whatever.

 

to each his own.

[thenation]

  stantheman said:

Unique sound for ducatis = all ducatis

Unique sound for RVFs = RVF only.. dunno why u come out with RSV4?

 

My point is that you shouldn't compare small capacity bikes with large capacity ones. I used the RSV4 because I couldn't think of any other V4 powered sport bike with oomph. Why compare a 400cc bike to a 1000+ cc one?

[natgw]

  Stoned said:

Well, if you cared to substantiate your point beyond just inane flaming you'd probably have a case, but as it stands your statements hold no water.

 

I only ride Italian machines because to me biking is more than just performance(which you generally can't utilise fully in Singapore anyway). I treat my toys with care and love. I place value on drool factor, sound, and soul and not just ponies and lb/ft. I feel sad when i see a dirty machine, and great when I see one that sparkles and shines.

 

For the same reason most people will prefer a Lamborghini to a Subaru WRX or Nissan GT-R. It's not about the performance, but rather, the connection to the machine and the experience it gives you. This is important to me when it comes to machines. Of course, there is also the exclusivity and the prestige.

 

Exotic cars are out of reach for most people, but exotic bikes are far more accessible to the typical wallet. Bikes are cheap and great ways to buy into exclusivity, prestige and the soul that comes with Italian heritage. When you sit on or in an Italian machine and cruise down the street, you understand, if only just for a moment, why some Italians wash their cars and bikes with mineral water. There is real love put into each and every piece of the construction, as compared to factory-produced mass-market machines and you can own one for the price of a Honda Fit.

 

If you've never owned an Italian machine before today, I'd advise you to go pick one up. Sit on/in it, rev it, ride/drive it. Suddenly all that talk about "expensive" maintenance will seem totally moot.

 

Minerva allows test rides on the 1198 and 848 for prospective customers. Try it and see if you aren't sold. I picked a Streetfighter eventually, but it's good fun in any case.

 

well FYI i had previously owned an Italian bike before. Great ride.

 

But my point here is, at the end of the day, its all about the rider and how he/she takes care and pride of his/her ride. No need to degrade the bike if you do not know it well enough.

[ghost04]

no way ppl cannot tell the sound of RVF...even on stock pipes..

unless they nvr see an RVF b4...v4 sounds very distinctive...same to VFR...

they sound even nicer in the tunnels...

ducs wise class 2 machines sounds more obvious..

the 400s to me sort of not loud enough but can still tell its a v-twin..

[natgw]

  ghost04 said:

no way ppl cannot tell the sound of RVF...even on stock pipes..

unless they nvr see an RVF b4...v4 sounds very distinctive...same to VFR...

they sound even nicer in the tunnels...

ducs wise class 2 machines sounds more obvious..

the 400s to me sort of not loud enough but can still tell its a v-twin..

 

not to forget, RVF is gear cam driven, which makes it sound even more unique and distinctive.

[xXxRatedxXx]

  natgw said:

not to forget, RVF is gear cam driven, which makes it sound even more unique and distinctive.

 

I'm sorry i'm ignorant, cam driven?? As in driven by a camshaft??? Isn't that how all bikes are driven? Sorry can someone pls explain?? :confused:

[natgw]

  xXxRatedxXx said:

I'm sorry i'm ignorant, cam driven?? As in driven by a camshaft??? Isn't that how all bikes are driven? Sorry can someone pls explain?? :confused:

 

normally cams are chain driven. but for rvf its gear driven.

[xXxRatedxXx]

  natgw said:

normally cams are chain driven. but for rvf its gear driven.

 

OH!!! iciic..... so that's what it means.... usually they are driven by cam chains and RVF is driven by gears instead.... thx!!

[Snoek]

ride the bike that you like. even if you think italian bike is best in the world blah blah blah etc. end of the day, we just ride what you like or can afford.

[Stoned]

  natgw said:

well FYI i had previously owned an Italian bike before. Great ride.

 

But my point here is, at the end of the day, its all about the rider and how he/she takes care and pride of his/her ride. No need to degrade the bike if you do not know it well enough.

 

Apologies for the lack of response, was away for the weekend. I think, as another forum user pointed out, that not all RVFs are bad, and Ducs are good. However, with the tendency for the RVF to be a "prostitute bike" (ie. short ownership, many owners) as mentioned by xxxRatedxxx, the impetus to maintain such a machine is far less. Just like the impetus to invest in a prostitute is far less than the impetus to invest in the wife.

 

My opinion is perhaps also influenced by the fact that I have had many bad encounters with the RVF itself. The ones owned by friends are either problematic and appear generally unreliable, or are ridden by riders that have zero knowledge of or do not care about maintenance. Personally, I have yet to see an RVF in good condition.

 

My conclusion therefore, is that while I'm sure the RVF may have been a spectacular machine when it was released, due to years of abuse and neglect, most specimens are now not worthy purchases, especially given the market price for them locally.

 

Bottom-line, it is exceedingly difficult to find an RVF today that has never been abused in its life time by some cheapskate ah beng, which is why, to answer TS' original question, I would not recommend the RVF.

[yanwei]

  Stoned said:

Apologies for the lack of response, was away for the weekend. I think, as another forum user pointed out, that not all RVFs are bad, and Ducs are good. However, with the tendency for the RVF to be a "prostitute bike" (ie. short ownership, many owners) as mentioned by xxxRatedxxx, the impetus to maintain such a machine is far less. Just like the impetus to invest in a prostitute is far less than the impetus to invest in the wife.

 

My opinion is perhaps also influenced by the fact that I have had many bad encounters with the RVF itself. The ones owned by friends are either problematic and appear generally unreliable, or are ridden by riders that have zero knowledge of or do not care about maintenance. Personally, I have yet to see an RVF in good condition.

 

My conclusion therefore, is that while I'm sure the RVF may have been a spectacular machine when it was released, due to years of abuse and neglect, most specimens are now not worthy purchases, especially given the market price for them locally.

 

Bottom-line, it is exceedingly difficult to find an RVF today that has never been abused in its life time by some cheapskate ah beng, which is why, to answer TS' original question, I would not recommend the RVF.

 

I don't agree with your statement that RVFs are prostitute bikes or that they have a lot of trouble. I used to own an RVF(my 3rd bike) and was the 4th owner, had no problems with the bike except for a rectifier & batt change, and the regular eo change, spark plug change, oil & air filters, carb wash etc. Had totally no problems with it. The same can be said with my previous mito (2nd bike), & I was the 3rd owner. However, my first bike, another mito, gave me lots of problems that I sold it off within 3 mths of ownership. That was my first buy, w/o much thinking. Maybe your frens bought lemon RVFs and did not do enough hw (viewing, test rides etc) before committing?

 

Be it italian or jap, a lemon is a lemon. It's obviously not about the bikes' age that determines whether it is problematic or not, it's just the history of ex-owners, how cheapo or bor chup they are, weekend bike etc.

 

To TS, you are comparing the wrong items, perhaps you should be considering m400 vs super4, rvf vs cbr400 vs rs250 vs pgm. Then you would have placed them on the correct basis for comparision, and not attract a flamewar between the respective m400 & rvf fans.

 

IMO, I would prefer the bigger cc monsters as the road presence would be relatively more than the m400. Have you seen the Streetfighter S or the M1100 S? For 2a, get a transition bike so as to save up as much to get a nice big monster with the ducati exhaust note for you class 2. RVF would be a nice bike to ride (love its sound too), but be prepared to lose some money when selling it. Getting a gsxr400 would be recommended, as the bike is relatively cheap to purchase, cheap to repair, if extremely problematic, can either sell or scrap, won't lose as much compared to the rvf.

[Cracked]

No offense to RVF bros.. it is a gd bike. But its cost to buy and keep 1 doesn't justify it.. might as well keep the money and buy cl2 bike.

[Stoned]

  yanwei said:

I don't agree with your statement that RVFs are prostitute bikes or that they have a lot of trouble. I used to own an RVF(my 3rd bike) and was the 4th owner, had no problems with the bike except for a rectifier & batt change, and the regular eo change, spark plug change, oil & air filters, carb wash etc. Had totally no problems with it. The same can be said with my previous mito (2nd bike), & I was the 3rd owner. However, my first bike, another mito, gave me lots of problems that I sold it off within 3 mths of ownership. That was my first buy, w/o much thinking. Maybe your frens bought lemon RVFs and did not do enough hw (viewing, test rides etc) before committing?

 

Be it italian or jap, a lemon is a lemon. It's obviously not about the bikes' age that determines whether it is problematic or not, it's just the history of ex-owners, how cheapo or bor chup they are, weekend bike etc.

 

To TS, you are comparing the wrong items, perhaps you should be considering m400 vs super4, rvf vs cbr400 vs rs250 vs pgm. Then you would have placed them on the correct basis for comparision, and not attract a flamewar between the respective m400 & rvf fans.

 

IMO, I would prefer the bigger cc monsters as the road presence would be relatively more than the m400. Have you seen the Streetfighter S or the M1100 S? For 2a, get a transition bike so as to save up as much to get a nice big monster with the ducati exhaust note for you class 2. RVF would be a nice bike to ride (love its sound too), but be prepared to lose some money when selling it. Getting a gsxr400 would be recommended, as the bike is relatively cheap to purchase, cheap to repair, if extremely problematic, can either sell or scrap, won't lose as much compared to the rvf.

 

Granted there are some good RVFs out there, just that many are in less than spectacular condition.

 

Larger bikes are always more fun IMO, but I think TS probably posed the question of comparison as he only has a 2A license.

 

I do agree with your point though that TS should stick to something cheaper if he would like to go for a sport bike. The current price point for the RVF is not quite on par with the other jap sport bikes of that era.

[yanwei]

  Stoned said:

Granted there are some good RVFs out there, just that many are in less than spectacular condition.

 

Larger bikes are always more fun IMO, but I think TS probably posed the question of comparison as he only has a 2A license.

 

I do agree with your point though that TS should stick to something cheaper if he would like to go for a sport bike. The current price point for the RVF is not quite on par with the other jap sport bikes of that era.

 

Ya, it is true that rvf price point is on the high side, perhaps due to demand and buyers' perception of the bike. Nonetheless, TS should follow his heart and buy what he likes. The joy of riding will outweigh the cost of maintenance (hopefully). Whichever bike TS choose, must really view lots of bikes and research before committing, if not, be prepared to burn a big big hole in pocket.

[bntyl]

  natgw said:

rvf sounds like just about everything else out there?

 

pardon me but i used to ride a RVF a couple of years back..

 

even till today, with eyes closed. i could hear the difference and know its a RVF. even till today with a 1000cc machine and aftermarket pipes. i still miss the sound of my rvf very much.

 

i guess beauty (or rather, sound) lies in the eyes of the beholder. and to me the noise that an rvf produce is as hopelessly addictive. its that unique whistling and weird grunt of a v4 that u will not hear in an inline4.

 

nice siggy

[Darky_80]

  Snoek said:

ride the bike that you like. even if you think italian bike is best in the world blah blah blah etc. end of the day, we just ride what you like or can afford.

 

Agree with you Snoek. No point riding something which you like but cannot afford or something which is affordable with you hate. There ought to be a balance

[gilbert85]

  Stoned said:

Apologies for the lack of response, was away for the weekend. I think, as another forum user pointed out, that not all RVFs are bad, and Ducs are good. However, with the tendency for the RVF to be a "prostitute bike" (ie. short ownership, many owners) as mentioned by xxxRatedxxx, the impetus to maintain such a machine is far less. Just like the impetus to invest in a prostitute is far less than the impetus to invest in the wife.

 

My opinion is perhaps also influenced by the fact that I have had many bad encounters with the RVF itself. The ones owned by friends are either problematic and appear generally unreliable, or are ridden by riders that have zero knowledge of or do not care about maintenance. Personally, I have yet to see an RVF in good condition.

 

My conclusion therefore, is that while I'm sure the RVF may have been a spectacular machine when it was released, due to years of abuse and neglect, most specimens are now not worthy purchases, especially given the market price for them locally.

 

Bottom-line, it is exceedingly difficult to find an RVF today that has never been abused in its life time by some cheapskate ah beng, which is why, to answer TS' original question, I would not recommend the RVF.

 

 

brother things cannot like that say one... italian bike owners have a passion for bikes does not mean honda bike owners dun have... ts is asking for an opinion and as more seasoned riders we muz give our advice as unbias as possible...

 

first rvf engine noise is distinct no doubt abt it.... but nice or not nice its up to the individual.. to me i dun find it nice either but its distinct... and rvf is a sports bike... its MEANT to be push to the limit... thats the whole purpose....

but pushing it does not mean abuse...

 

 

second ride rvf means ah beng then wear shorts is my father and wear skirt is my mother ar??? no right... you dare to say whole of spore no ah beng ride ducati????

 

third i know you are a italian bike person... but let mi tell you there r honda lovers too... and for everyones info... motogp champion last year is YAMAHA, this year is either YAMAHA or HONDA... both asian makes... i think over the years jap bikes have closed the gap alot... providing good performance at reasonable price...

 

fourth and last reason... i had the chance to buy a m400 but i chose a cbr400 in the end reason being... i feel ducati owners r arrogant... look at the things stoned says... rvf is prostitue riden by cheapskate ah bengs... this kinda comment tells alot abt the type of riders u will mix with if you go for roundings often....

 

ts the real question is do you want a naked bike anot??? to mi i find that bike with fairings look great as compared to naked bikes... performance wise i can tell you on the track confirm rvf win... and if you wanna go msia at high speed, the aero dynamics of a sports bike makes it less stressful on the body when you are travelling at 200km/hr...

 

yes i would recommend the rvf... but unlike some pple i wont put down the m400.. ducati has a great tradition and they make great bikes but overall i still find the rvf a greater ride...

 

but if your question is 1098 and cbr1000 then story is diff...

[Kioz]

eh don't mind me but here's my point of view.

 

both bikes are sweet in a way.

 

if i had to choose between this 2..i would go for the RVF.

 

reason is cos:

i seriously find the RVF so unique regardless how old it is.

the way it's built is like a technology break through during those olden times.

even till now i still think it's a beauty esp when it's stock. =D

not forgetting the unique sound it gives..no other bikes has that feel

well of cos besides the RVF750. haha!

 

I just LOVE NAKED BIKES!!!

cos to me naked bikes are ment to be customized to

look like a real street fighter! that's more of a hobby kinda thing for me..

esp when you get to achieve something different =)

 

sadly, reason i got a s4 was cos RVF & m400

are too old already and sadly i didn't manage find a reasonable one.

 

haha both bikes are unique in their own ways.

[Dafanshu]

both are old bikes.. zzz nono for me

[Metal_Jawa]

both are two totally different bikes, one is a naked and e other a sportsbike. get the one that you like, also do take note of the condition of the bike. As depending the age of it, its likely that wear and tear from either one of the bikes is high and especially if there has been abuse by their previous owner it may cost you some money to replace certain parts and u may just end up going to the workshop.

 

If ur planning to settle for something bigger in the next few years, why don't u get a S4 or old GXSR400 as a transition bike. It will save u the money to get ur dream bike.