[IamDavid]

Hi guys, I'm new to this forum so welcome all.

I am out for a new bike search because I've ridden the 600ccs and I think it's time for a step up. The only problem about the speed triple is that I can't reach the floor I'm 5' 5" so is there a way of lowering it so it'd work out right? I would really like the naked 675 version but they just seem soo much more expensive when trying to find the right one for the right price. I've seen some down in texas for about 6000-8000 and pretty interested.

Tell me, would it be dumb to lower it about two inches or so ? Recommendations?

 

[Squeek]

How much do you reckon you would need to lower it by ?

Im 5'4" and run an 02 model with no difficulty. When I was looking for my speedy I was having similar problems but eventualy sussed that all of the bikes I had looked been jacked up at the back or set up for very heavy riders. Putting the suspension back to standard settings worked for me but I eventualy went for a bike with a height adjustable rear shock.

You can spin the chain adjuster the "wrong" way to help drop the rear of the bike a little on SSSA models.

On the 02-05 models the bike cant be lowered too much before you run in to ground clearance problems especialy if the bike has a belly pan fitted, dont know if its the same for later models.

 

[Speed3]

I have a friend with an '08 S3, who is 5'5, and has no issues with the height. He just slides off a bit and puts a foot down. Might take some practice, but it can be done.

 

[Night Train]

You can lower a S3. There are lowering link kits out there. newspeed3.com offers a nice one. However, I don't urge lowering the bike. If you like riding the twisties or ride track, you will have limited ground clearance which mean hitting metal sooner. I do recommend trying other techniques that people use such as shifting one cheek off the seat.

 

[listo]

I wouldn't lower the bike. Once you get over that you only need your feet on the ground with backing out of the garage or at a stoplight you'll be fine. I can only get my toes on the ground and thats with my riding boots. I don't really worry about it too much as the other 99% of the time the feet are on the pegs.

 

[Tripped1]

If you can find any clean 955i's floating around try one of those. My 2000 with the tail jacked up an inch still sits lower then a stock '08 and the Street isn't going to be any better. If memory serves the 675 chassis is as high or higher then the 1050 triples.

 

[kuhnspeed3]

The Street's ride height is if im correct 1/2 inch lower than the speedy. I am 5'5" also. One foot up and one foot down. If i have problems moving the bike i dont care if i look stupid when i get off to move it around. When you take off and that sweet sound and look makes the panties drop you wont look so dumb.

 

[kimcheeal]

hey IamDavid, you can try and have the seat foam trimmed/reshaped lower. it may be worth 1 - 1.5 in , and lower the suspension .5 - 1 in.
that should get you to where you want to be without giving up too much ground clearance. if you decide to reshape the seat, find someone who knows what they're doing, it is trickier than it looks.

 

[psmith]

I took the plunge and lowered my '06 S3. I used the Matisse kit from Wild Hair (took a loooooong time to get it). I had tried the other tricks for almost a year: one cheek off the seat, barely tip-toe, different seat, adjust suspension. Bottom line is I still didn't feel comfortable on the bike when it was stopped. With the kit - no problem. In the twisties I'll probably scrape before a stock bike, but I haven't encountered it yet. If I decide to go hard-core in the future, I have all the stock parts, and I can reverse the operation in a couple of hours.

 

[SPEEDY168]

psmith, where did you get your kit, how much did it cost and how much did it lower it?

thanks