Test ride on Sprint ST and concerns

I just gotten back from a 30 minute test ride of the 2006 Sprint ST. Coming from SV650S as my first bike with 12k miles in less than 1 year. Sprint ST costing twice as much as SV650S was not close to being twice the bike. Dealer sticker showed $11,599 OTD price for non-ABS version with no ABS version available until 2007 models come out.

Positive:
- SMOOOOOOTH power delivery
- Exhaust note of the triple
- Nice ergo
- Comfortable seats
- Good styling with short pegs for great lean angle

Negative:
- Excessive shake on the mirrors. I jiggled the mirrors after the test ride and it was very loose. Not sure if it's made that way or if it can be tighten down.
- Bad front suspension. Looks to be that the non-adjustable compression was too tight for highway speeds. 45 MPH hitting a raised road construction grate almost threw me off the bike.
- Cluncky gear shift. Each gear shift up or down made a "Clunck"
- Marginal windscreen. I know I can buy aftermarket, but considering that this is a sport tourer, windscreen should have been better.
- Warm seat. The heat issue everyone talked about didn't bother me as I wear leather pants for every ride, but the seat was getting pretty warm even in flowing traffic. Not sure how much hotter it'd in stop-n-go traffic.
- Very limited space on the back seat for strapping things down without getting a rack.

I'd like to know what can be done to fix the negatives, specifically the front suspension and mirror shake.

[Aske]

... Sprint ST costing twice as much as SV650S was not close to being twice the bike....

It never is, no matter what the second bike. It only works if your first bike is total *****.

Negative:
- Excessive shake on the mirrors. I jiggled the mirrors after the test ride and it was very loose. Not sure if it's made that way or if it can be tighten down.

Sounds like it was just prepped poorly, bumped, or vibrated loose. I've not had any problems of that sort. There's a thread about Sprint ST mirror vibration, and the gist of it was that they vibrate but not badly. From what I can recall reading, the V-Strom is a fairly low-vibe bike -- maybe you're used to unusually static mirrors?

- Bad front suspension. Looks to be that the non-adjustable compression was too tight for highway speeds. 45 MPH hitting a raised road construction grate almost threw me off the bike.

I've found the front to be less than cushy when it comes to absorbing frost heaves and bumps at speed. FWIW, I'm 180lbs/82kg.

- Cluncky gear shift. Each gear shift up or down made a "Clunck"

No to be defensive of the Sprint, but I have to ask: So? If the transmission doesn't hang between gears or take unusually great effort to shift, I really don't care whether it snicks or clunks.

- Marginal windscreen. I know I can buy aftermarket, but considering that this is a sport tourer, windscreen should have been better.

How tall are you? The windscreen flows air in a certain spot relative to the bike. If your chest or head are not where Triumph expected (because you're shorter or taller than their designed-for rider) or you crouch more/less than they expected, that airstream will hit you differently.

- Warm seat. The heat issue everyone talked about didn't bother me as I wear leather pants for every ride, but the seat was getting pretty warm even in flowing traffic. Not sure how much hotter it'd in stop-n-go traffic.

Do you mean the actual seat material? Never heard of that one, although I have read about the grabrail getting hot.

- Very limited space on the back seat for strapping things down without getting a rack.

Definitely a limitation, not so much the room on the pillion as much as anchor points for the straps. Bungee hooks can be installed in the two threaded holes on the sides of the seats. You can also opt for side cases and/or topcase.

[rodsprint]

comparing an st with a sv650.
you have to be kidding :???:

[rash_powder]

Regarding the clunky transmission, I believe that it has been mentioned on these forums that the Sprint has straight-cut gears rather than the more common helical-cut gears. I can't exactly explain why these gears clunk more, but I can see how it works out in my mind. Also, I have noted that some days my bike is clunky, and some not.

rash

[david_m]

- Excessive shake on the mirrors. I jiggled the mirrors after the test ride and it was very loose. Not sure if it's made that way or if it can be tighten down.

Each bike is different. I have a 2006 ABS Sprint. My mirrors do vibrate but not excessively. My previouos bikes were an SV650 (naked) followed by an FZ1. My Sprint mirrors are a little better than either of my previous bikes with regards to vibrations.

- Bad front suspension. Looks to be that the non-adjustable compression was too tight for highway speeds. 45 MPH hitting a raised road construction grate almost threw me off the bike.

I'm not sure bad is the best description; maybe odd. IMO the spring rates are too soft in the early part of the travel (I believe they are progressive rate springs) which causes excessive brake dive. I agree that the compression seems a bit harsh. The only adjustability is for preload.

The bike handles quite well, and I'm now used to the settings. However, I agree that Triumph missed the boat on the front suspension adjustability.

- Cluncky gear shift. Each gear shift up or down made a "Clunck"

This will improve with mileage. My Sprint gear box is MILES ahead of both the gear boxes on my previous Suzuki and Yamaha. The Yamaha gear box in particular was not smooth.

- Marginal windscreen. I know I can buy aftermarket, but considering that this is a sport tourer, windscreen should have been better.

I quite like the windscreen and receive MUCH more protection than the fairing on the FZ1. Different strokes for different folks, but I actually consider the windscreen a positive.

- Warm seat. The heat issue everyone talked about didn't bother me as I wear leather pants for every ride, but the seat was getting pretty warm even in flowing traffic. Not sure how much hotter it'd in stop-n-go traffic.

I guess it all depends on your tolerance for heat. I've ridden mine in stop and go traffic at 115 degrees. All fully faired bikes with 120+ hp will generate heat.

- Very limited space on the back seat for strapping things down without getting a rack.

This a major fault on Triumph's part as far as I'm concerned.

I'd like to know what can be done to fix the negatives, specifically the front suspension and mirror shake.

I'm not convinced the mirror shake is a problem on every bike.

The suspension is a different story. You'll have to buy new springs and valves for different feel, and this will still not be adjustable. You can start with different fork oil, and move forward from there, but unless you're willing to go with some significant expense you're probably limited to springs and valves.

What other bikes are you considering? I looked at:

Ducati ST3s - $5,000 more expensive, but great suspension. Didn't have as much power as I wanted. In the end, it was the valve adjustment cost and frequency and the less powerful engine that scared me off.

Ducati ST3 - Still more expensive even without the top shelf suspension gear. Still more adjustability than the Sprint. Same engine issues as the ST3s.

FJR - GREAT engine, great carrying capacity. A bit too touring oriented for my blood. Yes, it's sporty but the same rider on the Duc or Sprint will ride circles around the fjR.

ST - If the FJR isn't sporty enough..........

Futura - Discontinued. Sigh.....

BMW K1200s - Drool, drool, drool, $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

I know you complained a bit about the price, but the Sprint is acutally quite a good deal. If sport is more important than touring, but yiou need to be comfortable then the Sprint is a great package. Use the savings to have the suspension work done to your satisfaction.

The Sprint has a fabulous engine, a distinctive exhaust note, unique and attractive styling a soid chassis and good ergos.

[DaveM]

apropos,
I have ridden several SV650's, it is a great little bike but not in the same class as a Sprint I'm afraid. Not even a little except they both have two wheels!

The front end is NOT harsh on Sprints it tends to be on the soft side this could have been an over inflated tyre.
A common complaint on Sprints is needing to stiffen up the front forks so I am not sure what you are on about there.

SV 650 suspension is very soft in std trim.

If you want good mirrors buy a pre '05 model they are rock solid. This is a common complaint on the 1050 Sprints.

Triumph Gearboxes get better with more miles (commonly reported on by bike journo's). Also the harder you ride the smoother the box is.
1st is always a bit clunky and it is on many other brands too.
Ever ridden a VTR 1000? It has a real clunky 1st gear.

There is a kit to reduce the underseat heat but many other bikes suffer from this as did my GSX R600 my last ride was very hot to ride around town in 36 C heat.

Your SV is not 1/2 a Sprint I am sorry to tell you, more like a 1/4. :wink:

I love SV 650's myself but you are not comparing apples with apples.

They are very different bikes.

Can you travel 400kms on a tank of gas?

Does the SV cruise at 180kph without blinking an eye and is rock solid stable two up with luggage?

Can you stay in the saddle for 2 hours at a time or more?

Does it have 120HP or 125hp?

Stump pulling torque in any gear any time anywhere?


The answer is no.

Does the Sprint require some improvement? NOT MUCH.

The Sprint is very very good at what it is designed for;

A SPORTY sports tourer.

Nuff said.

Davem

[ruscook]

On 2006-08-17 03:05, DaveM wrote:
apropos,

The front end is NOT harsh on Sprints it tends to be on the soft side this could have been an over inflated tyre.
A common complaint on Sprints is needing to stiffen up the front forks so I am not sure what you are on about there.

I gotta agree 100% with DaveM on this. My Sprint front suspension was so soft that it felt hard on those bits of concrete slab that end out of height alignment (causing the thump-thump feel as both wheels go over), it was really uncomfortable and the bike moved like a boat in a small swell.. Stiffening up the front forks preload (and yes I know it's only preload) enabled the bike to "sit" better on the road with my weight and soak up those thump-thumps so now while it doesn't glide across them it doesn't undulate up and down either.

Short version, correct preload does seem to fix up some handling issues that you'd think are not related to preload. This lends credence to Dave's view the demo was poorly setup.

A quick summary of the Sprint is can be
1) compare features and there are better bikes on the market
2) compare price and there are cheaper bikes on the market
3) if you want a sports tourer with a sporty edge you won't get a better, cheaper bike.

The chief editor of AMCN, a credible Oz bike mag summed it up last year at the Sydney Motorcycle show (to paraphrase) - it's not the most technologically advanced bike but it is a great value for money package and the allround capability meant it did come 2nd in their bike of the year for 2005.

If nothing else sways you - the 1050 Triple is just a wicked engine

Russ


[ This message was edited by: ruscook on 2006-08-17 04:13 ]

[Nelson955]

Can you travel 400km/250 miles on a tank of gas on a Sprint ST? I could on my '99 ST with the 21 litre tank, but certainly not on my '04 model. A combination of a reduced capacity to 19.5 litres and less efficient engine (when it comes to fuel economy) mean I have yet to see more than 220 miles on a tankful and to do that I had to run it pretty close to empty.

Does the Sprint ST need improvement? Suspension improvements wouldn't go amiss but the area where it definitely needs work is on the build quality. A return to the build quality of the late 90's wouldn't go amiss at all.

[SprintST]

The suspension is a different story. You'll have to buy new springs and valves for different feel, and this will still not be adjustable. You can start with different fork oil, and move forward from there, but unless you're willing to go with some significant expense you're probably limited to springs and valves.

I agree that springs will have to be purchased. But since the >05 model is a cartridge fork, it really only needs to be re-valved (this may be a semantics nit really). If it's a decent cartridge a suspension specialist can revalve the existing hardware to fit your needs. You can go with a Race Tech Gold Valve, or similar product. But one could, concievibly, get away a bit cheaper by just paying labor and small parts replacement on the OEM unit.

On 2006-08-17 03:05, DaveM wrote:
The front end is NOT harsh on Sprints it tends to be on the soft side this could have been an over inflated tyre.
A common complaint on Sprints is needing to stiffen up the front forks so I am not sure what you are on about there.

I believe I did say that harshness came from the compression, which has nothing to do with spring rate, but has to do with valve and fork oil.

Can you travel 400kms on a tank of gas?

Does the SV cruise at 180kph without blinking an eye and is rock solid stable two up with luggage?

Can you stay in the saddle for 2 hours at a time or more?

I get up to 220 miles per tank which is about 350km. Don't need to blink going up to 110mph which is 177kph, and there's no need to go faster while 2 up. I rode from Los Angeles to Las Vegas (about 3.5 hrs @ 280 miles) with no problem. I think the SV650N doesn't do as well as my SV650S.

Does it have 120HP or 125hp?

Stump pulling torque in any gear any time anywhere?

No to 125HP but yes to torque anytime I need. Again, I rarely ride over 100mph. The sports part I like is not the top speed. It's the curvy part of the road that I'm more interested in.

I was really hoping that Sprint ST would be my next bike as my wife wants to take over the SV. A test ride on the Sprint changed my opinion, and I just want to see if my opinion can be changed by aftermarket add ons, and how much more it would cost.. Search continues...