new s3 owner. just saying hi

[sy0296]

just came home with the almost new '06 with 700miles on her yesturday. i've been waiting for a black 05~06 to show up at the local shop, but this white one was too clean to pass up.

just went for a 2 hour ride this morning and i'm totally in love with the bike. i came from a 98 xz-7r and a '02 919 and while i love those bike as well, the s3 is on a completely different level. anyways, you guys have a s3, so you know what i'm talking about.

i'm a modaholic so getting home last night i've already got some parts on order. boneville fender elimiator, some frame sliders, clear alternatives LED tail light, rizoma bar end mirrors, factory belly pan, CF hugger, and a couple tid bits here and there.

quick questions. are the orange reflectors on the forks just stuck on there with double sided tape? it looks like i can just pull them off eh?

the one thing that i drastically want but can't decide on is the exhaust. i've already gone through the huge exhuast thread and looked at the options. my top two choices are blue flames evo3 tri-oval cans and the wolf snubs. i also read on a couple UK sites that blue flame is come out with some new cans call the mega oval which go under the seat. anyone seen these?

in any case, gonna read up on some more threads and get out to ride some more.

here are a few photos
the noob


side by side


face off


staring down the new guy


home sweet home

[odium]

Syclone #0296?

www.syty.net

I like my Typhoon.

If I am completely wrong about your screen name, disregard!

[Texascat]

sy0296,
welcome to the board... I removed my orange reflectors just by pulling. It did leave a layer of adhesive which I was able to remove with a glue remover. I believe you can use a heat gun or hair dryer to loosen it up.
Enjoy the ride... I have a little over 1k miles on my and it gets better with every ride.
:wink:

[Mulcahey]

The Micron stainless cans sound awesome!!!
Try a seat cowl, makes the bike look heaps better too.

[Litlgi74]

Welcome to the incredible world of the S3... I can't believe your top two exhaust choices did not include Velocity pipes from http://www.chainreactionmoto.com/ ! If you haven't seen or heard these beauties, you should most definitely check them out.

Congrats on your new baby!

[Stampy]

Welcome aboard mate, looks nice. Yip I have twin Microns on mine, But there are lots of options out there duals, singles, I quite like the look of the twin pipes, But the Arrow single system looks hot to, As does the Zard. Decisions, Decisions!! :-D

[jimmie]

Welcome. Nice pics... never rode a 919, give me some comparison.

[Catenaccio]

+1 on the comparo and CONGRATS! on the bike.

[lootyman]

mine had the factory off-road pipes and they sound good.
Plus, they look like stock. Fits in nicely with my sleeper approach to this bike.

hey, you are obviously a photographer...right?
great pics

[ This message was edited by: lootyman on 2007-04-29 21:44 ]

[sy0296]

thanks for the warm welcome and appreciate the kind comments on the photos. photography has been one of my longest hobbies, but i'm not pro by any means. do you guys ever have meets/gathering with locals? i'd be more than happy to be the dedicated photographer.

i got the yellow reflector off, the glue residue was a b-tch to remove. ended going to the local auto parts store for some glue remover making the job easier. the bike looks a lot cleaner without it.

still not sure which exhaust i want to go with. i love the way the stockies look. they just flow with the body work so well. many of the pictures i see have the cans sitting too far away from the body or sticking out like a sore thumb. that's the reason why i like the wolf racing and blue flame cans. the velocity pipes look great, but looking at the photos, i don't think it will work with the boneville fender eliminator kit i got. gonna install that kit first and see if the pipes will clear. as for single can setups, they look very good. the entire rear of the bike look much cleaner especially with the rear fender removed. eventually i may go that route for a different look but for now, i think i will stay with the twin exhaust look. anyways, the more suggestions the merrier. i'll probably make the purchase sometime this week.

and a quick comparo:
both are great bikes but they ride very differently. the 919 is a great bike for cruizing around on but can still handle the twisties. seating position is about 3 inches lower than the s3, but extremely comfortable. i can literally ride for hours without feeling cramped. the motor is very torquey and pulls in every gear--power wheelies no problem. the new one's are fuel injected, but mine is the older carbuerated version. it still gets the job done and practically maintainence free. the suspension on my '03 is very outdated and in my opinion, the weakest link of the bike. the bike has a great chasis and is very nimble, but the suspension just can't keep up. try to go fast in the twisties with the bike is a lot of work. if it wasn't for this reason alone, i probably would noy be getting ride of the bike. actually, the quest to upgrade the suspension is the reason why i started looking at the s3 in the first place. it would have cost me about $2.5k to get the mods i wanted, and after doing the math, using that money to finance a s3 is the more logical decision.

just riding around in the parking lot after the s3 purchase, i could immediately tell the bike is on a different level. it guess i can say that it's a much more refined version of the 919. after riding the 919 for a few years though, the s3 really boosts my confidence level when i ride. riding the same routes i usually do, i can get into the turns deeper and faster. while fast switch backs on the 919 required some muscle and a lot of concentration, the s3 just glides through those same turns with ease. a few more days of riding, i'm sure i can go even faster.

what's my one favorite aspect of the bike? it's the torque baby! while the 919 didn't lack in this department, the s3's 1050 motor just pulls and pulls. i surprised myself a little bit the first time i went past half throttle in first gear at about 4000rpm...the front end came off the ground but i didn't expect it to. with the 919, you'd need to twister the throttle faster and harder to get the front end to come off the ground. anyways, loads of fun.

one thing i don't like: it take a lot of effort to pull in the clutch lever. i rode in stop and go traffic today for about 20min and i eventually had to pull over becuase my left hand started to cramp up.

while the good 'ol niner has provided me with years of great memories, i can tell it's not going to see much day light anymore. better off selling her off to someone who can get as much enjoyment as i have.

and finally, a quick question. even after the temperature cooled today in the evening (60 degrees or so), the water temperature still read high with 6 bars. i could occasionally hear the fan turn on even though i was moving constantly only stopping once in a while for a traffic light. is this normal? i'm worried that when the weather really heats up, the bike will overheat easily.



[ This message was edited by: sy0296 on 2007-04-29 22:51 ]