Question: I've had my new 2010 Z1000 for a week and I love it. The thing is that on 6th gear and over 80mph it feels and sounds to me like if I have to shift again to ease the engine, but I am already on 6th. Is it me? I had a Suzuki 2000 naked SV650 for five years which I traded in when I got the Z. Am I missing something? I appologize if I am posting in the wrong message board. Thanks!
Performance
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Franklin , I felt the exact same way on my ride home from the dealership!
And even after i was riding in town i still kept trying to shift into seventh!
I too had been riding a sv650 and still have it.
The funny thing is that when i ride my sv now i seem to be leaving it in 5th a lot.Its crazy!
The Z seems to be geared way to low and the SV seems to be geard too high well not too high i just have gotten used to hearing the engine speed on my Z.
I solved the upshft problem on my Z by getting a GiPro Gear indicator so i can physically see what gear im in and not try to go for the non existant 7th gear its helped me alot and i highly recommend it!
And even after i was riding in town i still kept trying to shift into seventh!
I too had been riding a sv650 and still have it.
The funny thing is that when i ride my sv now i seem to be leaving it in 5th a lot.Its crazy!
The Z seems to be geared way to low and the SV seems to be geard too high well not too high i just have gotten used to hearing the engine speed on my Z.
I solved the upshft problem on my Z by getting a GiPro Gear indicator so i can physically see what gear im in and not try to go for the non existant 7th gear its helped me alot and i highly recommend it!
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How easy was it to install the gear indicator? How big of a display is it? How hard/easy is it to see? Post pics here if possible.
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Most bikes are over-geared. My 599 was geared so high that you'd hit the max speed of the bike long before redline in 6th. In fact, you could drop a tooth on the front sprocket, add three teeth to the rear, and you STILL wouldn't limit top speed. But it'd sure give the bike a lot more acceleration!
Compared to other bikes in the segment, the Z1000 is geared aggressively. That's not a bad thing, in my opinion, and it accounts for why the Z has better acceleration than even Ducati's Streetfighter. There is no sacrifice on top speed due to this gearing, but it results in higher RPMs at cruising speeds. You could change the sprockets, but you'd be sacrificing acceleration. Give it time before making any changes. Get to know the bike on its own terms and see how you feel about the setup. If you plan to do a lot of touring, longer gearing might be better. For commuting and sport riding, though, the stock setup is fantastic.
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Here are some numbers to put things in perspective. All provided from Motorcycle Consumer News' independent testing. The Z is geared shorter than any of them without sacrificing top speed, giving it better acceleration than the entire lot.
Engine Speed at 65mph (actual):
Z - 4770 rpm
Streetfighter - 3900 rpm
Tuono - 3900 rpm
Speed Triple - 4150 rpm
Super Duke - 4200 Rpm
FZ1 - 4520 rpm
Top speed comparison:
Z - 149.3 mph
Streetfighter - 157 mph
Tuono - 147 mph
Street Triple - 146 mph
Super Duke - 140 mph
FZ1 - 153.6 mph
Acceleration 0-60, 0-100:
Z - 3.05 sec, 6.45 sec
Streetfighter - 3.07 sec, 6.62 sec
Tuono - 3.63 sec, 7.62 sec
Street Triple - 3.47 sec, 7.64 sec
Super Duke - 3.35 sec, 7.64 sec
FZ1 - 3.23 sec, 6.68 sec
Engine Speed at 65mph (actual):
Z - 4770 rpm
Streetfighter - 3900 rpm
Tuono - 3900 rpm
Speed Triple - 4150 rpm
Super Duke - 4200 Rpm
FZ1 - 4520 rpm
Top speed comparison:
Z - 149.3 mph
Streetfighter - 157 mph
Tuono - 147 mph
Street Triple - 146 mph
Super Duke - 140 mph
FZ1 - 153.6 mph
Acceleration 0-60, 0-100:
Z - 3.05 sec, 6.45 sec
Streetfighter - 3.07 sec, 6.62 sec
Tuono - 3.63 sec, 7.62 sec
Street Triple - 3.47 sec, 7.64 sec
Super Duke - 3.35 sec, 7.64 sec
FZ1 - 3.23 sec, 6.68 sec
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im 63, a old school naked sport bike fan. i also thought my 04 zed was short in the gearing at first. well i love how you can just let the clutch out at a stop and pull away without needing to slip the clutch ,try that with a DUC street fighter. my bike will never see 135 on the speedo. i also like down shifting with this gearing .i almost do not need to touch the brake . my normal riding speed is 70-75 mph. even my 04 is pretty vibtation free at 5,000 rpm.
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57 Posts
So they basically shortened 1st to 5th but lengthened 6th as to not sacrifice the top speed? That's wicked since most people wont top out their 6th gear anyway. Well unless they're insane.
nice. those are some pretty long twistys if its gonna be a 150 to 180 mile ride.where i live once on the road shifting is optional most of my riding is in 6th, don't have to down shift unless under 50mph or going down one of the many mountains in my front or back yard.rick heading out for 150 to 180mile ride right now bye.
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there is no way to get to my hquse with out going up or down a mountain. i live 23 miles from 341, maybe you have heard of it, people come from all over to ride it. ican can take 8 different ways to get there. all the roads have many curves. just right for rexes or z1000's. it' about 3 hrs to eureka or as much as 5. depending on which way you want to go. very blessed when it comes tochoosing routes.so many roads so little time. should be riding now. rick
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Thankfully you missed them all. It is one of my biggest fears to have a deer or something jump out in front of me. Back on topic though, I guess because I am used to riding a 600 the high whine in 6th doesn't bug me either. Especially looking at the chart posted that show me why. I am happy to have the good acceleration and still damn good top end.oh yeah did make 180 last night. saw 4 deer and 1 fox,missed them all. rick
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Im pretty sure most people wont mind the compromise. It does have a high whine but you get off the line quicker than most bikes plus you have a pretty decent top speed. Thats a win/win situation in my books. Plus people shouldn't really be worrying about the whine and just enjoying the ride instead.
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was riding my rex with my son last week. he just bought an 09 new zx10r. rolling at 10mph we both hit it i jumped out. way out, just in 1st. z1000 is even quicker at jumping out. i'm sure when he comes back from work next week, we'll see how the two compare. heh! heh! i know i don't have a chance after he gets into second or third, but 1st and part of second(for him) probably 1st through 5th for me, should be interesting. should have 1000 miles on by then. also sunrise honda in searcy, arkansas is having a rolling dyno next weekend. might hook her up. rick
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