Replacing a 2008 ST1300

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Relax

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A friend of mine is thinking about replacing his ST after owning it since 2011. He no longer does long trips and multi-day rides that bike is designed for, and is looking for something much lighter and nimbler for local riding, but similar seating position, performance and reliability as well as the ability to add luggage temporarily if he does decide to do a longer trip once in a while. The first thing that came to mind was a Yamaha Tracer 9. Any other suggestions? I Assume he wants to stick with 17" wheels as he mostly rides pavement.

BTW, here is his list when I asked what he no longer liked about the ST, with my comments in []:

- heavy
- ⁠so hard on stop and go heavy traffic
- ⁠hard to push forward or backwards [pushing around his garage or driveway]
- ⁠can’t do any maintenance without removing all plastic cover both sides.
- ⁠not gas friendly in the city
- ⁠older bike and will require more maintenance
- ⁠discontinued model [I assume relates to parts availability]
 
I have a GSF1250 Bandit, with factory (removable) hard bags, and a Givi top box.
It's a 2009, in dark blue, not a scratch on it with only 60,000kms. It runs perfectly.
I'm looking for an extremely quick sale (something else on my shopping list), and open to any reasonable offer, if he's interested.
 
I also had a 2007 st1300 that I fell out of love with, rode the Kawasaki and really liked it. Reminded me of the bikes I first rode in my youth in the late seventies/early eighties but waaaay faster. It’s everything the ST1300 isn’t in a good way.
 
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Gary said:
I have a GSF1250 Bandit, with factory (removable) hard bags, and a Givi top box.
It's a 2009, in dark blue, not a scratch on it with only 60,000kms. It runs perfectly.
I'm looking for an extremely quick sale (something else on my shopping list), and open to any reasonable offer, if he's interested.
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That is such a great bike that is also probably the cheapest running bike you can buy. I've never understood why they trade so low.
 
I think the hard thing is to get comfortable seating. Maybe budget for an RDL to open your bike choices.
Vstrom 650 comes to mind for a serious downsize.
Lot's of farkles available including RDL seating. Fun in the twists when you push the revs but quite light unloaded. 470 lb.
Corbin and Sargent make seats as well as
day-long.com

Suzuki Custom Seat Gallery - Russell Cycle Products

Even the most die-hard Suzuki fan can appreciate the value of a custom built bike seat to give them an edge in racing or cruising down the highway.
day-long.com day-long.com
Very low maintenance costs.

The liter version Vstrom 1000 is notch up in performance but heavier at 550 lb
 
MacDoc said:
I think the hard thing is to get comfortable seating. Maybe budget for an RDL to open your bike choices.
Vstrom 650 comes to mind for a serious downsize.
Lot's of farkles available including RDL seating. Fun in the twists when you push the revs but quite light unloaded. 470 lb.
Corbin and Sargent make seats as well as
day-long.com

Suzuki Custom Seat Gallery - Russell Cycle Products

Even the most die-hard Suzuki fan can appreciate the value of a custom built bike seat to give them an edge in racing or cruising down the highway.
day-long.com day-long.com
Very low maintenance costs.

The liter version Vstrom 1000 is notch up in performance but heavier at 550 lb
Click to expand...
Don’t forget Saddlemen - I think their ADV gel seat is the best available for Vstroms.
 
I`d take a serious look at the new Suzuki SV-7GX, got a great review from the recent Motorcycle Mojo press launch ride. For 10 Grand or so, looks like a winner. Comfy, light and powerful enough, running on a proven and good handling platform.
 
Glenn/RZ500 said:
I`d take a serious look at the new Suzuki SV-7GX, got a great review from the recent Motorcycle Mojo press launch ride. For 10 Grand or so, looks like a winner. Comfy, light and powerful enough, running on a proven and good handling platform.
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Never heard of that bike. Just checked it out on Suzuki’s web site, seems like a nicely updated SV650. A little more electronics than I would like but I don’t think there’s any getting away from that.
 
Glenn/RZ500 said:
I`d take a serious look at the new Suzuki SV-7GX, got a great review from the recent Motorcycle Mojo press launch ride. For 10 Grand or so, looks like a winner. Comfy, light and powerful enough, running on a proven and good handling platform.
Click to expand...

Holy cow, inflation's no joke. I didn't realize the Tracer starts at $17k now!
 
Glenn/RZ500 said:
Looking at the U.S. pricing for that CB1000F, I`d figure here it will be 17 G`s+/ OTD.
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I think that’s what the Kawasaki 900RS goes for. The nice thing about the Kawasaki is that you can get the SE model that comes with the Ohlin shocks and Brembo brakes. I’ve heard many times once you’ve ridden a bike with Ohlins it’s hard to go back to the OEM suspension, especially if your doing track days, they are that much better.
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