So seeing the new street fighter at the NEC yesterday and not that impressed. Looks like the black plastic wings were stuck on as an afterthought, if you bust one I bet there expensive, the hugger think likewise, the black plastic bit covering the dash. Generally not happy with it, cost cutting on a bike which ranges from £17k to £20k gives the wrong impression.
I thought it was a nice enough looking bike and was nowhere near as cramped as the test rider made it look. Agree, those plastic wings look a bit chavvy. If they were blended in and red they would look better. For a naked bike I think it should be no more than £15k where they would sell to a wider audience, way overpriced.
Agreed, especially since since the winglets are functional at speeds over 160 mph. 200+ HP on a naked is also pointless but I guess it’s keeping up with the market
Just been today. Each of the four wings is held in place with just two bolts. One of the show bikes had a set of carbon wings (presumably a DP accessory), so they're a bolt on / bolt off item. I'm sure it won't be long before someone makes a 'wing deletion' infill part, a la mirror blanking plates. Even without that, it would probably look fine with the wings just removed and put in a box with the pillion pegs! Agree with the OP re the black plastic cable cover at the back of the dash. It's cheap, loose and nasty. The dash was so much neater on the original SF1100. That aside, it looks great! Ref. cost, the original 2009 SF1100 was £12,095 for the base model and £14,695 for the S model. That equates to £15,900 and £19,300, accounting for inflation. Not far off the V4 prices, and there's quite a bit more tech with the new bike. When you consider that Honda want £20k for a base model Fireblade, it's not such bad value!
Not according to the chief designer when he was interviewed at the VIP event on Monday evening. He reckons they are necessary to keep the front wheel down
I'm not a financial whizz but are the prices high to ensure that they're bought on PCP in most cases giving a reasonable monthly payment providing there's a nice big balloon payment outstanding....? Mountain bikes are the extreme example of this that make me wonder.
Yup, and people have them serviced at Ducati dealerships to keep the warrenty etc . A win, win or them
I am sure I heard one of the Ducati guys saying to someone that they were going to restrict them to 180hp as they were too powerful and that they had to fit the wings as they couldn’t keep the front end down.
At 70mph?? I've managed 130mph on a naked bike before my neck was about to snap and no front wheel lift, I stand by - for a naked they're pointless. Saying that, weirdly I've seen a GPS recorded 189mph on my Pani at Aragon on the back straight, front wheel was truly planted then... at what speeds will wings be a benefit?
I’m just saying what he said, so take it up with him not me. I couldn’t give a rats arse as I thought it looked shit.
Any naked bike with 200bhp is a bit pointless, TBH. In fact that is true of any road bike. It becomes a pointless willy waving contest. Watch the latest 44Teeth video and they both admit they had more fun at Aragon on the 25 year old 916 than they did on the V4 Speciale. Fun is what bikes are meant to be about for the majority.
The boss of the Sinclair c5 company also said it would be revolutionary in the transport world... I think that thing in your right hand called a throttle is what keeps the front wheel down or a bit of rear brake
My Tuono lifts the front at 130 mph changing into 6th. Allegedly. And as I wouldn't give much change from 120kg kitted up, would wings help. Asking for a friend.
That's a lot for the Fireblade, but isn't the more relevant comparison a naked CB1000R, or for that matter a Yamaha MT10, BMW S1000R or whatever? It's a personal choice though and I'm sure the new SF will sell - whether anyone would really buy it because they need 220 bhp is another matter; how many people would find any of those other bike underpowered?
I wouldn't say so. All of those bikes are compromised compared with their superbike counterparts, featuring significantly detuned engines and budget chassis components - and they're ugly! They're also heavier than the Streetfighter. In terms of performance (on paper) and component quality, the Streetfighter V4 is on par with the latest superbikes - and by comparison with some it's actually good value. I haven't ordered one, but no doubt I will own one in the next few years.
