Happy Golden Anniversary Hayabusa

[Justin]

Well, the little (big) lady turned over 50k on yesterday's ride, so though I'd share some thoughts.



Around the end of 2009 I was originally looking for a used ZX14 to replace my Blackbird. I really loved my XX and the zx-14 seemed to be the closest thing to an update out there; since Honda did not come out with an update I wanted. Along came a great deal on a 2008 Hayabusa I couldn't pass up - had 9k on the clock, full Yoshimura system, power commander, BMC filter and dyno tuned. Was a steal at $8300.

Coming from the XX, the Busa was not as smooth. It's more of an animal like ride in every aspect. You can feel the pent up power beneath you when you ride it, it's more like walking an angry tiger on a chain. It's more like riding a motorcycle.

Likes:

Power - The power is endless, as long as you are twisting the throttle it seems to have more to give. Where the XX would start running out of steam at 170 on the clocks, you can feel the Busa still pulling strong right till the needle is buried. I was told that by a friend, I never tried it myself.  

Reliability - This bike has been absolutely bulletproof. Other than routine maintenance like oil and tires, it has not needed much else.  Of course with 180 HP at the wheel and 570 Lbs of lard (and 200+ Lbs of my lard), it is not easy on tires. The only thing to have "failed" was the fork seals, but that was due to me riding the Busa in places where it didn't have any business: like below.



Handling - At it's core the Hayabusa is a sportbike and handles like one. It is 2 steps up from the XX with fully adjustable suspension. You will hear people that have never ridden one say it's only good in straight line, but truth be told, given it's weight and rake and trail, it handles superbly in the twisties. It does need a lot more muscle to throw around than smaller sport bikes, but given it's heft it performs great.


Dislikes:

Brakes - Take this with a grain of salt as I had become very accustomed to the linked brakes on the XX. The brakes on the Busa don't seem to be on the same level as the power of the engine. But as I said, I was so used to the LBS, I had to totally re-learn how to use non linked brakes. And, are the brakes on any of the liter bikes as good as their engines? It is something you need to learn and be prepared for. If you are riding beyond your ability to stop on anything, you can't blame the bike.


Mixed:

Wind/Weather protection - The XX had great wind protection for a somewhat "sporty" bike. Of all the bikes I have ridden, the XX was the best at cruising at high speeds for a long time. The fairing design cut through the air and the wind passed over the rider for the most part. With the Hayabusa, it's obvious that the design includes the rider in it's aerodynamic profile. With anything less than a full ass in the air tuck, the rider gets a lot of air flow. So the XX get's point for comfort, while the Busa gets point for feeling like your riding a motorcycle. In colder weather I'd have to give the thumbs up to the XX

Electrical - Like any other sportbike, I wished it had more output.  The Busa puts out 400 watts, which doesn't leave a lot of excess. When the temps drop I need to choose between running my Gerbings jacket and gloves at full and turning off my driving lights. I would love another 100 watts of power.

Maintenance - All those fancy fairings that make it super aerodynamic are a pain in the ass for service. More so on this bike than other faired bikes I've had. And basic maintenance requires that you almost always have to remove something. After 50k miles, it still takes me a good 20 minutes to get the plastics off, and another 20 to put them back on. I always have extra push pins in my garage, as there sure are a lot of them, and I usually find one broken every time.

Overall:

It's been a great bike, and I've enjoyed it a lot. It's the perfect mix of "sport" and "touring" for *my* needs. Sure, it won't hang with a supersport in the twisties, but getting there will be a lot more comfortable. And conversely, it's not as comfortable as an ST when covering long miles, but when you come across a twisty road it will leave them in the dust. I am planning to ride this bike until it's dead, and based on it's performance so far, I see 200k without any problems.  

Below is a link to some of my favorite pics

https://picasaweb.google.com/justin.philipson/Passes?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCIjCmMCfrqfwQA&feat=directlink

[st2sam]

 
Thanks for sharing and good luck reaching 200,000...

[Rattlehead]

Congratulations on the milestone. Here’s to another happy 50k.  

I just bought my Busa last year (a 2000) and thus far it’s been one of the best bikes I’ve ever thrown a leg over.   It just does everything well and it seems to be the perfect bridge between the “punk kid” supersport and the “old fart” sport tourer.   I can’t wait to get out on the open road this summer and get some miles on this thing. I’ve only managed a few thousand so far (winter sucks!) and I’m itchin’ to rack up more!

[Cablebandit]

Who says you can't ride those "crotch rockets" any distance.  

[Rincewind]

Thanks for the review.  

[scottzilla]

Turkey vulture.

 

[Justin]

Turkey vulture.

 

Sounds like jealousy to me ...

[LENSMAN]

A good report. I plan to finish putting adjustable suspension on my XX. I'm happy with the number of ponies, and switch back between that and my SV, when I get tired of using muscle to push the blackbird around.

I'm going the other way. I'm looking at a speed triple or a GSX/r750 for a future ( distant) purchase.  I won't miss or notice 10 or 15  less ponies in exchange for getting a machine that's 100 lbs lighter.

[Justin]

A good report. I plan to finish putting adjustable suspension on my XX. I'm happy with the number of ponies, and switch back between that and my SV, when I get tired of using muscle to push the blackbird around.

I'm going the other way. I'm looking at a speed triple or a GSX/r750 for a future ( distant) purchase.  I won't miss or notice 10 or 15  less ponies in exchange for getting a machine that's 100 lbs lighter.

Yeap - the XX with suspension upgrades is still an amazing bike even by today's standards. And the pony difference between the XX and Busa does not really get noticed unless you are really WOT. I never complained about any lack of power on the XX, when I needed to pass, it would be 10 cars at a time, no problem.   That's as long as the RPM's were up, all the power was on the top end.

The Busa on the other hand has gobs of power right in the lower midrange which is nice. According to my Dyno results, at 5k RPMs it's already putting 100HP down at the rear wheel . It's nice to just twist the throttle without downshifting and have that much power ready to go.

But for all the power the Busa has - the XX just felt better at high speed. I really loved the fairing design on that bike, smooth and stable. The Busa gets too much wind blast and dirty air unless you are in a full tuck.

[CLAY]

I still think they are one of the sexiest bikes made.  

[Justin]

Just over 3 months and another trouble free 5k down. I did have to replace the front wheel bearings in that time, and I have another seeping fork seal now . I consider those maintenance items though. Although I am looking into better springs for my weight. I think the seals wind up taking more abuse since the bike is sprung for a 150 LB Japanese guy  

Looks like it's gonna be a big mileage year for me - summer isn't even here yet, and I've already got 5500 or so this year.

[2RR2NV]

dannnnnngggg!  lucky dawg. wish i could ride that much.