Masterbike 2009: and the results are...........

Not surprised on the Aprilia.. thats the kind of performance you should get for $20k USD.. but the R1 is a bit of dissapointment. I wonder why the K9 Gixxer did best of the Japanese bikes. Everything I've read on the K9 says its a bit of dissapointment compared to last year.

Im kinda afraid to see how many seconds Mladin will win his next race by.. Im guessing over 20 seconds

 

Which brings the question.. is the Ape V4 AMA SBK legal.. and is Chip/Chaz gonna run it??

 

BTW: The BMW will be much less thank $20k.

 

I saw a 2009 R1 today on the showroom of a local dealer, and they had already dropped the stock exhaust for TwoBrothers. That alone made a SIGNIFICANT difference in the look. MUCH better, and that is probably what 99% of riders are going to do, whether street or track. I'm guessing, sort of like those whale dicks on the GSXR 1000, that the factory just said fug it and put those on to meet noise/emissions requirements knowing that people would replace them anyway.

 

Mr. Jensen seemed to do pretty well on the K9 this past weekend.

 

What a joke, as mentioned before MCN tested the liters available and the R1 trounced the others on the track and the street and the Suzi was last on the track! This other rag has DOT race tires on the bike and they went over 2 seconds faster on the Aprilia than the Yamaha??? How about put the Ohlins suspension on all the bikes and make it a fairer fight. The Honda had ABS???!!! What does it really matter anyway, Spies is kicking ass and was fastest at the Misano test and beat Aprilia and Ducati on tracks he had never been to before. The Yamaha is the best bike I've ever ridden and that Aprilia looks fugly. That KTM is pimp! It's all political bullshit! Go Spies and Bostrom!

 

Well that's Spies not neccessarily the bike. The RSV4 is probably a better bike than the R1. I do like the R1 a bunch let's be honest here. I has less hp than last year, it weighs almost 20 lbs more than last year - not a good combo btw. The new RSV4 is likely to be the as light as the 1198 and have more power and a smoother torque delivery than either the R1 or the Ducati. If I bought a new R1, swapped the rims for magnesium Marchesinis, a full exhaust, Ohlins TTX shock and cartridge kit and a power commander or Bazzaz the R1 would only be about 20 lbs lighter and it would handle better but would it be on par with the RSV4??? Maybe, maybe not.

RSV4 > http://www.akrapovic.com/motorcycle-exhaust/products/aprilia/model/rsv4-2009/racing-5151172ebe/

R1 > http://www.akrapovic.com/motorcycle-exhaust/products/yamaha/model/yzf-r1-2009/evolution-49/

The power delivery looks much smoother on the Aprilia and it looks to be a significantly smaller machine which I think is really nce as well!

 

I don't know where you get your info but 20 lbs heavier? I don't think so! Spies not the bike huh? It's apples and oranges. Shouldn't a bike that's $10K more expensive BE BETTER?

 

I like the R1. It has potential.
Oh, and anyone that thinks Max Biaggi is riding that Ape close to its full potential like Spies and haga are on the R1 and 1198 respectively, then you're clearly in denial.
The R1 makes the same power, is a tad heavier not no 20lbs and most def has a wicked smooth power delivery. But there is no denying Spies is a huge factor, just look at his teammate.

 

I believe Chip said the RSV4 won't be homologated until next year. Not possible to get enough of them Stateside to qualify. But the intention IS for them to run them in SBK next year.

 

Love the Ape but last time I bought one (2005) the resale sucked!!!

The 1198s with Traction control might be the privateers dream now that it can use any tire instead of just the stock one like the 1098R. They just need a contingency program and realistic parts pricing.

The R1 might be bad in Ben Spies hand but its still nowhere near the GSXR in supersport trim, yet!

So I will be sticking to the GSXR1000. Easier to go fast on than the 08, ebay friendly, great contingency, tons of spares, plenty of fast guys to help with set-up, etc etc.

 

how about other mfg come standard with ohlins, dont cry about something that isnt made with them

your view would probably be of the rear of the aprilia

 

according to the results, it is

remember marchesini's ohlins, brembo componants cost money, and any of those mfg's can choose to use them in there bikes also

 

The question is whether the Aprilia is an actual production bike and will the showroom version be like the one in the test? What's the delivery date again? Oh wait, there isn't one.

The Aprilia is awesome but I'm keeping my eye on BMW. If you go to the Miller WSBK rd you can actually sit on the new BMW streetbike.

 

later this year as a 2010, no biggie i can wait, i have a bathroom to remodel

you can sit on a goldwing right now, doesnt mean its running up front in sbk though

i've had two aprilia's so far, the v4 is a real step forward from my rsvr, i like my current bike, it handles great, but really looking forward to a v4

 

HRC colour scheme on the CBR looks nice.

Cheers
Barry

 

Rumor I heard was within 10% of the Japanese liter bikes.

 

bmw will sell at that price, i dont care for the looks of it, nothing cutting edge, nothing all new, looks like it took this and that from everything else out there

 

I think it's pretty widely known that the R1 in anything less that full WSBK spec isn't really up to par.

I'm having trouble understanding - Your favorite brand is Suzuki?


I'll wait for RRW to do their shootout. No other shootout is worth reading, including masterbike.

 

to further solidify your argument:

remember the limited edition r1 in 06? how much was it?

love my 09 r1 but am patiently waiting on the new v4.