BBS Advice Needed—Brand New Bike for a Race Bike

Dear WERA BBS,
Been saving my pennies for a while and plan to buy something at the end of the year to for racing. The SV1000 K5's time has come to be put to pasture. So I have some questions for buying a new model motorcycle for racing only. Keep in mind this is a plan B if I cannot find a well sorted race bike from an established race team / bike builder. The make and model is irrelevant at this point, just want to have a decent plan in place for when I decide buy.

When buying a new bike for racing only, no street use:
Do I have to get a license plate (thinking no)?
Do I need to title it (thinking I should)?
How do you break in an engine on the track?
Any other good ideas when buying a new bike to race?
Thanks for your time.
-Chris

 

You don't have to get a license plate unless you're financing the bike; I say this because finance companies will probably want to see the bike legally titled and registered in your name.

I would title it regardless though only because it helps with the resale afterwards. I had some issues selling a new bike with just an MSO, and had to title it after the fact to make the buyer happy.

Ride it like you normally would, change the oil and filter at the end of the day.

If you're never going to use the stock bodywork, you'll get the most money for it selling it immediately versus hanging onto it for a couple of years. Same applies for clips-ons, rearsets, etc.

I can send you some links to build pages if you want some ideas on how to start from scratch.

 

buying a new bike and prepping for racing is a PAIN in the ass, especially for us club racers working during the week and just doing this as more of a hobby. I have been racing for 8 years, purchased a bunch of bikes from Rob Jensen, one from Brian Stokes, and one from Josh Day. Few years back i figured i would be a smarty and prep two 2007 r6 bikes from ground up. Holy crap.. 2x what i would have spent buying and even redoing some stuff. Don't forget, new bikes = premo price and tax. Then you pay shipping and maybe tax (depending) and LABOR to get everything done, prepping bodywork etc. IT is an ORDEAL.

I vowed never again unless i find a big bag of money and pay someone to do it all. If your really into that stuff (prepping a bike, spending time ordering stuff, etc.) it can be a nice project. I would rather pick up a decent bike from a reputable racer, and be able to RACE the following weekend. I do R&R motors after a season of racing when i get a bike from these guys unless they just freshened it up.. There is SOME risk in buying a used bike, but even sending the motor out for rebuild you will likely have MUCH less in a decent used race bike than prepping from new. AND, you won't cry the first time you really bin a used bike vs. crashing that brand spankin new bike. I think it cost me AT LEAST 1/2 a second a lap when racing brand new bikes.. LOL

 

My money would go to an already race prepped bike.. much easier.. and better value, plus you help a fellow racer

 

Prepping a bike from stock sucks and costs a ton unless you hang around patiently waiting for the parts you need to show up on classified sources.

Buy a ready to go one. Normally plenty of them to go around.

 

What's your time line? A lot of already prepped, quality bikes become available at the end of the year. If you plan on going that route, it may not be a bad idea to go ahead and contact teams who's bikes you may be interested in, now.

 

After building a bike new from the dealer, I learned I probably wouldnt do it again. I loved building the bike and working on it, but I could have probably bought a used one for way cheaper.

 

I did it in 2008.


Probably wouldn't do it again. It was fun to build it all my way, but the cost was probably 1/3 or more. more than a prepped bike would have been.

But some "tips"

I bought mine out of state and did not register it so I paid no sales tax. I did take a loan from Kawi but paid it off as soon as the "deal" was up (6 months if i recall) and then the title was sent to me.

I did insure it and threw a plate on it from another bike I had, rode it 77 miles to the beach and back, then stripped it, built it (late winter, early spring) and took it to the track with that 77 miles on it. Ran it like I would any other fully "broken in" motor.

It was just dyno'd about a month ago, cases have never been cracked, put down 121 at the rear wheel with race gas on a cool day, 118 the next day when it was warmer and more humid.

I still wouldn't do it again.

 

Thanks for the replies!

I was researching a new bike from a dealer if there was not anything available from the race community. I am currently looking to see what is available from the race community, and was going to start a new thread for who would have race bikes for sale information.

I plan on getting a bike in December, for the January WERA races on the left coast.

 

ya don't need to start a thread, how about just look in the "bikes for sale" forum..?

 

But Greg, where are these mythical bikes for sale forums?????

 

I keep an eye on the WERA classifieds.

 

Mustve been a dynojet, or its not the 07 zx6 in your sig. 121 bone stock is extremely optimistic.

 

My friend bought an SV off the showroom floor and built into a race bike. Three years later, I bought it off of him, so I got to read through the invoices and history. He did finance a part of it on a Suzuki card. He never registered it, but he did title it. Truth be told, you're probably better off selling it as a street bike when its race life is done and sell the race parts separately. After all, it'll look brand new when you pull all of those pretty street parts out of the box.

WCW technically built the bike for him and they broke it in on the dyno. This is a good way to make sure that it was put together right and isn't going to break. Of course, he built it specifically for LTWSS, so he didn't want to do motor work.

 

KWS motorsports can source the bike you want...Suzuki, Yamaha, Kawi, etc, and do all the race prep for you. They can install the power commander/bazazz unit, and other go fast items you want. They will properly break-in the motor, and dyno tune it. All safety wire will be done. You show up with a trailer, and go have fun. All the stock stuff will be bubble wrapped and or boxed for you to take with you.
Just a thought.

Good luck.

 

No
No
Turn the Key

And on a side note buy one already prpped and save Thousands...

 

Depends on your financial situation, timeline etc.

Personally, I like buying new bikes and prepping them from scratch. I have bought and 100% prepped from stock every bike i have taken to the track (except the 1098S)...well, technically, I didn't do most of the labor, but you know what I mean.

Researching and getting the parts I want are part of the fun for me. I like to see the transformation, feel the difference from stock etc. But like others have said, that isn't the most financially sound route. You are better off buying a bike that is already prepped.

It all depends on the extent of your build, but by the time you buy a brand new bike and then go with full Ohlins suspension, full exhaust, motor build, PC/QS/etc, rearsets, levers, clip-ons, damper, brake lines and pads etc you will have well over $20k in the bike.

Then if you go SB with it and go with more motor work, Carbon Fiber wheels, Brembo Calipers, aftermarket Slipper, subframe, MC etc etc...you will end up with over $30k in the bike.

....or you could buy a relatively new bike, already prepped, for $10k-ish or even less, depending on the build and age of the bike.

Then again, the case could be made that depending on your experience and skill level, you could buy a brand new R6, install a QS, some SS brake lines and race pads, bodywork, safety wire, springs (if needed) and have a Novice Podium-ready bike right out of the crate.

So basically it depends on how much time you have and how much money you want to spend.

 

What he said.

My street bike kinda morphed into a race bike... started off with trackdays, trackdays turned into race days. Race days saw the street plastics go on e-bay and the rest is history. Having said that, my Gixxer had 6000 street miles on it before it before I started racing proper.

As for buying a brand new bike for the sole purpose of racing - unless you have a big budget I wouldn't... You'll have plenty other opportunities to spend money....

 

There used to be a LOT of good deals on 2 year old bikes that were going to be ineligible for manufacturer contingency the following season.

Although that seems to have waned a little now that the contingency dollars aren't flowing the way they used to...

If you're ultra competitive, and plan on winning said manufacturer contingency, then that doesn't help you much, but for the other 95% of us, that has always struck me as the cheapest way to get a really really nicely set up bike.

 

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