8. The Need for Speed
I have owned a fair few motorcycles and cars since gaining my licence in 1980.
This section describes most of them, and some of my motorcycle related projects.
The first vehicle I bought was an old used yellow and black Ford Capri. Although tatty, generally it was in good condition although rust spots were appearing in many places. It was my introduction to Jenolite rust remover, manual oil changes and setting the points and spark gaps. This was the days when spark plugs arrived without the gap being pre-set and I invested in a feeler gauge set, bought my first Haynes Manual and began to delve into its inner workings to keep it running.
At the time this was just something you did as a matter of course and it amazes me how dumbed-down the public has become since then, with garages brazenly describing such trivial tasks as major services with the associated high cost, although mechanical points are thankfully a thing of the past. In those days a major service meant something like removing the upper engine cam cover to access and adjust valve clearances, something you could expect at a full service.
Ford Capri
My first bike was an old used red Honda CD175, an ugly commuter twin with horrible suspension and a top speed of around 80mph, but it was the bike that got me on the road, albeit after I'd bought the Capri: unlike many others, I got my car licence first, only getting into bikes when I fancied a girl who liked bikers. I didn't get the girl, but bikes have remained a part of my life ever since.
That bike lasted me for a fair few years but its mechanical points were a source of constant irritation as they soon became pitted and needed regular replacement; the condenser across them never quenching the spark.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_CD175
Honda CD175
The Capri went first, replaced by a metallic blue Fiat X1/9. After all the rust on the Capri and reading in an article that Italian cars rusted because they were made from metal reclaimed from washing machines (!), I waited until one appeared with immaculate bodywork. The pleasant lingering perfume of the previous female owner added a nice touch for many months afterwards. Despite its small 1300cc engine, if you floored the accelerator it would press you into its Ricardo like seats and the mid transverse axle made it very stable on bends. It sounded even more impressive when a couple of years later a hole appeared in the front exhaust section and I lamented its loss when I had it repaired. Its slightly angular shape gave it a futuristic look and its motorised headlamps could be lowered flush into the bonnet, doubling up as a cool way of drawing attention when the lamps slowly rose in the dark. The targa top could be stored in the bonnet, transforming it into a true open-top sports car, and the tiny boot at the back was nonetheless modestly spacious for such a tiny car, I was also impressed by the leg room, which was plenty for my 36" inside leg. It was a whole load of fun at the weekend but not much fun in morning rush hour traffic, so I went back to using the bike.
Fiat X1/9
After a while the CD175 started to develop a misfire which I never solved. A few months later it started running really badly and I took it to a biker friend to ask his opinion. He removed one of the spark plugs, stuck his finger in the hole and discovered there was no compression. He kindly stripped the engine for me in his parents garage and we discovered the problem - there was a hole in the top of one piston! I got a replacement and between us we put it back together and it ran again, and a few months later when the points were playing up again and I had replaced them, I noticed two of the smaller feeler gauges were stuck together...in fact they had been stuck together for many months and I hadn't noticed. Slowly it dawned on me why the piston had a hole in it.
The bike worked well for a few more months until one fateful night when a drunken driver approaching on the opposite side of the road careened across my path, writing it off and leaving me with a 14" gash in my left thigh and a fractured scapula from the force of landing on the opposite side of the road. The vehicle that hit me was a Toyota pick-up, and the consensus of opinion was my leg had split open from the force of the impact with the top of its rear canopy. I don't actually know if this was the case because I closed my eyes before the impact. I remember landing on my back in the road with my legs bent upward, seeing the wound which did not seem to be bleeding and lowering my leg, and then remembering inside my leather jacket against my T-shirt, I was carrying a 1 litre GLASS bottle of cider which was miraculously still intact.
The irony is I had bought the cider at the pub where I had been earlier, but had deliberately drunk just one pint of beer there because I was on a motorbike and I had left early, planning to drink more once I got back to my lodgings. I was also wearing an open face crash helmet and I later noticed a large abrasion on one side where it had hit the road. I was only wearing jeans and trainers; apart from the hole in my leg and the cracked shoulder I had no other injuries. I realised I had been incredibly lucky and I learned a valuable if painful lesson: from that day I decided I would only ride a bike wearing full leathers, a full-face helmet and proper bike boots. As I lay in the road a friend of mine walked past and I gave him the cider which probably made his night, then I noticed a double decker bus coming towards me on my side of the road. Fortunately the driver saw me and stopped.
A while later I was in the operating theatre and the surgeon noticing my curiosity and fearing I would be sick, suggested I look at the ceiling, which I did. The operating table had a highly polished metal dome on the ceiling above it from which the surgeon's flexible lights emerged. He didn't realise it, but I spent my time in surgery watching him operate on my leg in the reflection on the dome! He did have a sense of humour though - at one point he held up a fragment of paint in his long tweezers and asked me if the car that hit me was blue (he knew it happened after sunset).
Perhaps it was the optimism of youth, but the incident certainly didn't sour my interest in bikes. I spent my week in hospital dreaming about buying my then dream bike, the feisty 6-cylinder Kawasaki Z1300:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kawasaki_Z1300 (way beyond my pocket), admiring the wonderful pretty young nurses, and bemused they were oblivious of the open heart surgery programme that appeared one evening on my ward's communal colour TV. Not being squirmish I found it quite interesting but had the other patients been awake I suspect I would have been alone in enjoying it.
Kawasaki Z1300
The CD175 was a write-off and the driver, who admitted drinking 6 pints of lager and lime, was uninsured and had taken his employer of one day's truck without permission, and at first it didn't look like i would get compensation, but eventually my insurer was able to put a claim into an independent fund that existed for such circumstances and I did eventually get compensation.
Once the leg had healed, I bought my next bike, a used silver Honda 250 Super Dream: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_CB250N/CB400N
Honda Super Dream #1
The 'Dream' was only marginally faster than the CD175, but did at least look like a proper motorbike and I enjoyed riding it for many years, keeping it as a reliable backup whilst I bought bigger bikes. About the only remarkable failure I suffered was one of the throttle grip cables snapping on the way to work one morning, but even that was saved by the design, which had both a 'pull' and a 'push' cable. I managed to complete the journey to work and later back home, by swapping the push cable for the pull cable, the difference being that acceleration was now by rotating the throttle in the opposite direction, very easy to forget in the heat of the moment, and somewhat hairy on busy roads.
Commuting daily on the Super Dream, inevitably I outgrew it and looked for a bigger machine, deciding to buy a used Honda CB500T which also joined the saga of unreliable bikes. Being the days before electric starter motors, there was a knack to ensuring the kick starter didn't fly into the back of your leg, which was seriously painful, and this was much more likely to happen if the engine was running a bit lumpy and prone to the odd misfire.
As it says in Wikipedia, the seat was comfortable, and when the bike was running well it pulled nicely with a satisfying big twin vibe through the bars which greatly appealed. I was so taken with it, I eventually owned three of these in the hope I would eventually find a reliable one: a brown one, a silver one and a bright orange one, but each suffered various mechanical adventures including the infamous loosening mechanical points issue that always seemed to plague my bikes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_CB500T
Honda CB500T brown (silver) orange
The most serious 500T upset was one wet winter night on my 12 mile commute back from work when I was surprised to find steam rising from the front of the bike and oil on my boots, although the engine still ran fine. When I got home I discovered there was a hole in the centre of the barrels at the front of the engine where the cam chain tensioner was supposed to be mounted, and a metal cog was protruding.
Remembering the CD175 engine rebuild, this time I decided to repair it myself, which involved removing the top end with its camshafts to gain access to the narrow cam chain tunnel between the cylinders. The CB500T engine was unusual in one respect - it used torsion bars in place of valve springs. Torsion bars are rods that are twisted along their length to produce a spring effect, but they are quite delicate and the slightest scratch can cause them to fail, although this never happened to me. Nonetheless all three of the bikes suffered continual breakdowns and were in various states of disrepair, until one day I managed to get one working reliably by cannibalising the other two, and sold it for a decent price.
By now I had grown tired of second hand bikes that were continually breaking down and decided to buy my first new bike, a custom Kawasaki Z750LTD twin, a departure from sports bikes as I had found a new group of friends who were into custom chops (I had considered converting the 500T into a custom chop and moulding Gothic bone outlines onto its exterior, but it was too unreliable to warrant the effort). I had a lot of fun on the Kwak and enjoyed my first European bike tour on it with my friends, who were impressed by its torquey engine and top speed of around 115mph, and another nice comfortable seat: http://www.wikiwand.com/de/Kawasaki_Z_750_LTD
Kawasaki Z750 LTD
As time passed I found myself drawn again to more sporty bikes and after a couple of years I traded it in as part payment for a new Honda VF750 V4 that all the bike magazines were raving about at the time:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Interceptor_VF750F.
It was indeed a good bike, but it suffered from a couple of major mechanical issues: an oil cooler pipe kink that constricted the flow of coolant to the engine, and early cam demise.
Honda VF750
Honda offered to freely modify the oil cooler pipe but as Wikipedia reveals, the cam issue was down to the cam bearings. I had the oil cooler modification done, and being unaware of the cam problem at the time I would have kept it longer, had I had not been in a relationship and we decided to buy what is now my house. With just over a thousand miles on the clock I sadly sold the bike to pay the deposit for the house. I still had the Super Dream so I wasn't without a bike, and we both worked at the same company so we could share her car which was an old light blue Volkswagen Polo, my Fiat X1/9 having long gone.
VW Polo
Eventually the relationship ended but I kept the house and her car until it had done over 100,000 miles and eventually failed, donating it to the local fire brigade on condition they posed for a photo with it after their practice. I liked the Polo so much, I bought another just like it and eventually when I had to part with that too, I sold it to a local garage owner for £50 as a present for his teenage son to practise on.
Somewhere in this time frame my 1st Super Dream died and I bought another as a useful backup bike.
Honda Super Dream #2
A year or two passed and I bought a blue Suzuki GS750 from a friend and went around Europe on it with a new group of friends who pointed out it was smoking, resulting in getting it bored out to 920cc (the biggest bore kit I could find, from Orient Express Racing USA; I would have preferred their 950cc kit but it was no longer available). I also tarted it up in black and gold, see [Projects: Suzuki GS920 Special]. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_GS_series
Suzuki GS750 GS920
Whilst the GS750 was off the road I looked for another bike and bought a cheap, used Suzuki GS550 that I could commute on because it shared many of the parts of the bigger GS750, although the 550 too was not without its issues, leading me to nickname it 'The Dog'. Somewhere around this period the 2nd Super Dream came to the end of its life too.
I commuted on the GS550 for a few years until one day I was knocked off it by a car driver who pulled out of a line of stationary traffic that I was overtaking down a narrow country lane.
Suzuki GS550
From that day's experience I now overtake as far to the right of vehicles as I can get. The stem of his driver side wing mirror disappeared into my left knee, gouging an L-shaped hole in the skin about an inch on a side. I avoided more serious injury because I was wearing a brand new pair of Levi's, leather trousers with padded knees and a waterproof over-suit. For the first few minutes it hurt like hell in the same manner as clonking an elbow would, but then subsided and I collected my senses. A short visit to the hospital for a some stitches and more compensation a few months later meant I could buy another used bike, which was a white Honda VFR750:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_VFR750F
White VFR750
Unfortunately now well back in the second hand bike groove, it too proved to be a lemon. When I opened the tank lid to fill up with fuel and peered deeply into the recess, I was very surprised to discover the bike had originally been red and someone had (professionally) spray-painted it white. Why?! Red bikes keep their price far better and I would much rather have had a red one. It also ticked over too quickly, but this didn't really bother me until one day a few months after I bought it, I gave it an oil change and lowered the idle speed and then realised why it had been idling so quickly - there was an ominous rattle coming from the engine that was not audible when it ran faster. Not having the money to strip the engine and too late to return it to its previous owner, I put the idle back up where it had been and sold it at the earliest opportunity. It did run without issue, but I didn't know if it would stay like that.
The next bike was a used red Yamaha XJ600F I bought from a local bike shop and although quite small for mt 6'4" frame, I have to say I found it one of the most enjoyable bikes I've ridden. http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamaha_XJ_600_N/S_Diversion
I much enjoyed riding the XJ600 but like the previous bikes, it too became plagued by various mechanical issues. During one of these times when I had booked it back into the bike shop for repairs that I could not do myself, I was loaned a shaft-drive BMW R90S Flat Twin.
Yamaha XJ600F
The first time I went around a roundabout on the BMW and opened the throttle to exit, to my horror the whole bike tried to roll over in the opposite direction, courtesy of the uncompensated shaft drive.
I have never understood why anyone would build a bike with the cylinders jutting out at the sides, the first thing to hit the deck when the bike was dropped. Warm knees yes, but common sense? Surely gravity must also play a part in causing excess wear on the bottom of the bores? That and the shaft drive issue (I recall the Paralever version was little better).
Perhaps Karma, I found contrary to popular opinion, BMW bikes were actually rather unreliable but the company had such a good sales pitch they managed to convince riders they were any thing but. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_engine
BMW R90S Flat Twin
Another example of BMW's skulduggery was their futuristic K-1 motorbike that from a distance appeared to have swish modern clip-on bars, but on closer inspection actually had a piece of plastic covering an ordinary single piece steel tubular handlebar attached to the fork stanchions, no better than on my old CD175. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_K1
I've hated BMWs ever since, the only exception being the modern S1000RR which is the only BMW I've ever wanted to own. https://www.bmw-motorrad.co.uk/en/models/sport/s1000rr-2019.html
BMW K1 K1 bars are a just a tube BMW S1000RR
About this time I began to suspect I could not trust UK bike magazines for their opinions either, as they appeared to relish backhanders from bike manufacturers.
During this period the electronics manufacturing base in the UK had really begun to go downhill and many of the companies I worked at went bust and I spent quite a while between jobs. With no money coming in, I bought a tatty old Russian Lada from a drinking buddy for £300.
Not long after I bought it as I went round a roundabout, it spun its back end out in as similarly startling manner as the Boxer incident. I inherited my ex's Polo When she left and it never had a problem on that roundabout but even that had gone and now the horrible Lada was all I could afford.
Around about this time I changed from a paid employee to a self employed contractor, and spent two years working away from home in the week, travelling a 100 mile journey to and from digs at the weekend in the Lada, which also began to break down.
Lada
After a couple of years the 100-mile contract ended but the design work I preferred had became even more scarce. However I had accrued significant savings from the contract and could afford to take a break until the market picked up again, although I had not expected it to take a whole 9 months, by which time most of my savings had again gone. I was not not idle though.
It was summer and during this long break I immersed myself in the design and creation of my futuristic GS920. In the daytime I created its fibreglass fairing from scratch, and in the evenings I designed and built the hardware and software for its computerised dash, taking only 8 weeks to write and test the entire 2400-line program in 80C31 assembly language.
This will eventually be described in [Projects: Fish and Chips].
Shark
Towards the end of that year a local 3-month contract appeared at a much better rate and I could again commute on the XJ600, but still the problems continued. The 3-month contract got renewed and showed every sign of continuing to be renewed and I realised I would be able to afford to buy a new bike and pay it off.
It was now 1997 and I remembered enjoying the power of the white VFR with the hidden engine rattle that I had to quickly sell. I decided to buy a new Honda VFR750FV (RC36), which by now had been voted best sports tourer bike for ten years (https://www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-reviews/honda/vfr750/1995). The 1997 model was the last carburettor model, all following models being fuel injected. After suffering a poor reputation from the VF750, Honda went overboard building reliability into the VFR750, even loosely basing its fairing design on their exotic oval piston NR-750: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_NR.
Wary of past cam chain issues, they replaced the cam chain (which despite a chain tensioner, still wears like a drive chain and eventually also has to be replaced) with direct drive gears. All of this made the bike quite heavy, but in 1997 it had a reputation for performance and reliability and after so many years of frustrating problems, was a no-brainer purchase. The only thing I lost out on was not long after I paid the full price for it cheaper grey imports started to appear, but these had warranty implications that I could do without. https://bikez.com/motorcycles/honda_vfr_750_f_1997.php
1st Honda VFR750FV NR-750
The VFR proved to be as reliable as Honda claimed, but from the outset I made a point of changing the oil and filter every 2000 miles and always used Silkolene Pro-4 semi-synthetic oil that was recommended to me by a race shop long ago when I modified the GS750. Now in 2024 with over 139,000 miles on the clock, that decision has proved to be one of the best I ever made; when in use the bike still starts almost instantly and apart from a little cam gear slap and an obviously looser engine, still runs as well as it did the day I bought it.
The contract lasted for two years they gave me another one that lasted another three years and all the time I commuted the 44 mile round trip all year round on the VFR. The engine was a gem but understandably as the miles mounted up, various parts needed replacing, some of which I could not do myself (rear shock, clutch plates, tyre punctures), and I had to book it into a garage. Although these were normal wear and tear, I realised it would be a good idea to get a back-up bike.
Having enjoyed so many pain free years with the VFR, I decided the best candidate would be an identical VFR as that would share the same parts and I could swap parts to keep one bike always on the road. By chance a local bike shop had a used one for sale and I bought it, but once again I found it had problems, the first issue being the rectifier unit blowing.
As it was still under purchase warranty the dealer took it in to fix it and lent me a newer fuel injected Honda VFR800 but I was unimpressed. It had better linked brakes (which I read were a pain to service) and steeper acceleration but it flat-lined around 8,000rpm unlike my VFR750FV which makes power all the way to the 12,000rpm redline (it takes longer, but it's a whole load more fun), and the mixed mechanical / LCD dash layout was awful. The VFR750FV layout is near perfect, why did they change it? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_VFR800
Honda VFR800 VFR800 dash VFR750V dash
The dealer fixed the backup VFR750 but after a few more months it became evident he had just tarted it up to sell it, knowing full well it would only last about six months before it fell apart. After so many years with bike issues I could see what was coming and set about finding another VFR and eventually located one at another dealer not far from where I worked.
I rode it to the dealer to trade it in and he ran an *HPI background check on it, only to reveal it had been officially written off and should never have been put back on the road. *HPI stands for 'Hire Purchase Information' and is the name of the dedicated software company that performs vehicle checks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HPI_Ltd. I was horrified and angry my local dealer, whom I had been going to for many years and knew by name, had ripped me off. I test rode the replacement VFR and satisfied myself it was a good 'un, and desperate to get rid of the awful VFR, took a very big hit and traded it in for less than half the price I had paid 6 months earlier. The new VFR also suffered a dead regulator rectifier not long afterwards but the dealer honoured his warranty and replaced it, and it has been fine ever since, and it came with fitted heated grips, a great bonus for winter commuting.
VFR #2 had 13k miles on it when I bought it and now has almost 64k,
VFR #1 was bought new, and now has almost 140k on it and still runs really well (and better than #2).
2022: VFR #2 64k VFR #1 140k miles
Seat Ibiza 1.3i
More time passed. My friends grew up, got married, moved away, and in 2001 I inherited my father's 1993 Seat Ibiza Mk II 1.3i, which meant I again had a reliable car as well as bikes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SEAT_Ibiza
In the summer months I adopted the habit of visiting my local pub whenever it was especially warm, sitting in the garden quaffing ale and reading either National Geographic to plan my next adventure, see [Adventures], or whatever UK motorbike magazine took my fancy.
One day I found myself reading about the new Suzuki GSX-R range, and thought back to the distant past when I had dreamed of owning a Kawasaki Z1300 and later, the demonic race replica Suzuki GSX-R750:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_GSX-R750.
At the foot of this web page you can select another bike to compare:
(the 1997 Honda VFR750 is surprisingly close)
http://www.bikez.com/rating/suzuki_gsx-r_750_1985.php?idbike=15553
GSX-R 750 (1988)
I had wanted a GSX-R750 for as long as I could remember, but had never really been into race bikes, so I had never bought one, but by 2007 I was beginning to lean that way (pun intended), and visited the nearest used Suzuki dealer to see what was available. Whilst there I ummed and erred at the high prices and found myself chatting to a mechanic in the workshop where there was a 6 month old blue and white K7 (2007) GSX-R600 with just 240 miles on its clock, for sale at 20% off the new price. Although a bit small for my 6'4" frame, it was utterly gorgeous and when they ran it, the tiny standard pipe made a such a deep howl I wondered how Suzuki had managed to get it to pass EU noise regulations.
The first owner had returned it saying it was too scary for him. I was stunned, since it came with a three position mode switch that was a crude forerunner to traction control: two of the three positions simply chopped down the power.
The mechanic said the owner was very short and they had to fit a suspension lowering kit for him which also amazed me, as next to me it looked more like a Mini-Moto. Yes, I've ridden those too, nobody could get past my knees: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocketbike_racing
Mini Moto
I had come in search of a 750, but having read up on the GSX-R range beforehand, I was aware of the 600's pedigree and its high 16,000rpm limit. At a around 100hp it beat the VFR's 91hp and if I could actually sit on it and ride it, it was very good value and I seriously considered it; I took it out for a test run. Whilst small, I found I could ride it without discomfort, and the noise the pipe made put a big grin on my face. I couldn't resist it and for the first time, bought a bike on my credit card: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_GSX-R600
Suzuki GSXR-600K7
Over the next 6 months or so I carefully ran the engine in and had a lot of fun, but it eventually became apparent there just wasn't enough bottom end power. It was really intended for out and out racing at the peak of revs and even though I had a few good long straights on the way to work, a lot of the route was town based and there was never time to get up the rev range high enough to make enough power to get out of tricky road situations. I realised I would have to sell it before I put many more miles on it and lost the advantage of the low price I paid.
I still loved it though, so decided to trade it in for an almost identical, brand new K8 (2008) GSX-R750, although this sadly didn't have the nice pipe and was instead disappointingly quiet. I had expected it to share the same feistiness of the 1980s Gixxer and stupidly didn't road test one first.
It too suffered from the same abysmal lack of bottom end power.
I realised I should have bought a GSX-R1000.
Suzuki GSXR-750 K8
Without the noisy K7 pipe, the 750 felt lifeless and the grin had gone. It was still beautiful, but like the 600, it had to go before I lost too much money. At the same time I had now reached the point when I was thrashing the VFR and had outgrown it. I needed a bigger bike. Fortunately it was 2009 and Ducati had launched their (now infamous) traction controlled 1100cc Streetfighter, and I took a shine to it.
Ducati Streetfighter
Ducati had a reputation for poor reliability in the past, but they were now launching new bikes with greatly improved engine life and I liked the idea of traction control which unlike the crude Suzuki power reduction, actually measured slippage between the wheels and adjusted power output to one of nine selectable levels from a hand holding level 8 intended for rain, to level 3 recommended for most users, to completely turned off with full 150hp wheelie power. With Termignoni exhaust slip-ons the World famous Ducati pipe sound appeared, probably selling a fair few of their bikes just by itself:
I decided I'd had enough of Jap bikes and seriously considered the Streetfighter, but I remembered the VFRs had remained remarkably clean over the years from their full fairings, and needed minimal effort to keep them that way; an un-faired bike would be a pain to keep pristine and the high price of a Ducati warranted that.
Largely on the basis of this practicality, I changed my mind and test rode the new 1198 that had rave reviews in the press, particularly from Australian racer Troy Bayliss:
https://ultimatemotorcycling.com/2009/10/29/2009_ducati_1198_s_review
Ducati 1198
I found the full race riding position pushed my arms forwards uncomfortably onto the bars and the seat was thin and hard, but the bike lunged forwards on the slightest throttle and the brakes were the best I had ever tried. The free Termignonis were the icing on the cake because of the wonderful noise they made (the bike was a bland gelding with the standard bike silencers), and I knew I had to buy it.
I traded in the GSX-R750 and actually got the same price I paid for it, and spent the next 3 years painfully paying off the Ducati. The 1198 didn't come with traction control (DTC) because that was only available on the more expensive S version, but the base model 1198 was already stretching my budget.
Enthused by the potential of owning a true race replica but wary of its high torque, my partner joined me on a combined wheelie and knee down course where we learned the knee doesn't just allow faster cornering, it also provides a third point of stability. Sadly they wouldn't let us wear the sparking knee sliders I'd bought for the occasion as apparently they tear up tarmac.
Later I discovered both my standard bike as well as the S version had the same dash, wiring loom, and software on board and it was possible to retrofit the S version Ducati Traction Control to the 1198, which I did, the only difference being a slight modification to the front wheel to add a wheel slip sensor. This gave me the added advantage of more control when my partner was on the back, somewhat sneaky as informed observers would have noticed it wasn't the S. I enjoyed opening up the trottle and watching the DTC light show that I'd set to bite just before the front wheel came up. Doubtless Ducati diehards would frown at riding a Supersports bike two-up, but we found it was a whole load of fun.
Over the decade I owned the 1198 I discovered why Ducatis are regarded as having 'character', things I found very annoying: I got blown across the road in the slightest wind. I'm not sure if this was because it was too small for me (I felt like I was an elephant riding a pinhead) or if this was normal. I believe the VFR design was wind-tunnel tested, I'm sure the 1198 wasn't.
Not long after I fitted DTC, I discovered the standard pipes, even with Termignoni slip-ons (silencers that are 'slipped onto' the ends of the engine exhaust pipes), caused a flat spot at 5,000 rpm, doubtless the price of meeting EU noise regulations. The only solution was to fit larger race edition down pipes and a compatible Engine Control Unit (ECU), which I also added, at huge expense. All this just to get it to work the way it was advertised.
Impracticality: 11 custom made hex head screws hold each fairing panel on vs the VFR's 6 (Ducati clearly never heard of quick-release Dsuz fasteners).
The battery had to be the smallest and lightest they could get away with as I soon learned I had to connect it up to a trickle charger when the bike was garaged otherwise it discharged itself in less than a month. I assume it was too small to counter the high discharge rate of the immobiliser: high discharge current security circuitry in the age of voltage management ICs is again down to poor design. Furthermore the battery is located behind the left fairing cover: woe betide anyone crashing the bike on that side. I guess they assumed this 'road bike' would only be used on (clockwise) race circuits.
The bike got incredibly hot in a short space of time, and similar to its Panigale successor (named after a small Italian town):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ducati_Panigale which burned your bum, the 1198 fried your right leg because the right exhaust pipe runs around a similar loop there to keep the pipe lengths matched.
Whenever I got stuck in traffic on congested roads I watched anxiously as the temperature needle crept up, often wondering how it could survive in Italy where the climate is far hotter.
Ducati Panigale
Another frugality exposed by reality, is Ducati said they had shunned the single piece monocoque engine mount found on modern Jap superbikes for their familiar lattice frame. At the time they claimed it was because their frame was much stronger.
The next year they brought out the 1299 Panigale and guess what? It was so powerful, they had to ditch their frame and go for a monocoque instead. Quelle surprise. It seems to me the real advantage of the frame was it was simply cheaper to manufacture.
Monocoque vs trellis
As for the optional USB DDA datalogger, they seem to have employed a third party software company. It looks to me like Ducati wasn't prepared to pay Microsoft's licence fee to run under Windows as it reported incompatibility, and the driver was a pig to install as a result. Lacking a mechanical gear sensor, the software tried to guess it and of course often got it wrong. In fact the whole program was a mickey mouse affair with minimal content, matched by the monochrome LCD dash (colour, anybody?) and an unnecessarily fiddly 2-button handlebar control.
The worst characteristic of all was the fuel tank warning light coming on after just 60 miles and the tank running out after about 70. It's not because the engine is particularly thirsty, it's because everything was done to save weight. In its defence Ducati might argue the 1198 was designed to be used on a race track but if that's the case, how do they explain having to remove 22 fiddly (and they are particularly fiddly) allen head screws to get the fairing panels off? They also have invisible clear nylon washers under their heads that instantly disappear into a workshop floor.
When the 1198 came out all the bike magazines said it was the best thing since sliced bread. When the Panigale came out, they all changed their tune, saying the 1198 had far too much torque and the Panigale instead was top toast. Odd they all test rode the 1198 and found it sublime. This is why I now take 'professional' bike reviews with a pinch of salt.
The one thing that annoyed me the most, is something I didn't know before I bought it: again to save weight, Ducati fitted synthetic fan belts instead of cam chains. Those belts have to be run on a regular basis or stiff spots develop on them that can cause them to snap, and like the German Panzer tanks of WWII, once a month I ran the Ducati, either on the road or in the garage. Worse, they have to be replaced every 2,000 miles, or every two years regardless of the bike being ridden. Furthermore this can only be done by someone with a special Ducati-approved machine costing £2,000 that if my memory serves me correctly, uses some form of frequency measurement to determine when the belts are correctly tensioned.
My love hate relationship with the 1198 lasted over a decade but eventually I decided it just wasn't worth paying an arm and a leg to service a bike I only really enjoyed riding when it wasn't windy, a rare event in the UK. The VFRs lacked its wonderful bottom end grunt, acceleration, handling and brakes, but they were far more practical, cheaper to service and far cheaper to insure. Late 2020 I sold the 1198 for the same price I had traded in the 750 Gixxer for it, some 11 years earlier.
Part of the reason I sold the 1198 was my Seat Ibiza was requiring more and more repair work, although the body and chassis were still ok. A few years earlier the speedo had packed up, and my local garage who by now were more like friends (now run by the son who had been given my old Polo many years before) recommended I fit a cheap GPS head up display speedo from eBay, which would not affect its MOT.
Not long after that, the engine began to skip a beat every few minutes, and the petrol gauge began to stick on empty when it was half full (but I'd rather have that than the other way around). In 2017 the ignition was replaced and in 2020 both rear bearings went but afterwards it managed a 1000 mile trip to Scotland and back without issue. It started easily all year round and ran well despite its repeating hiccup, but after 27 years - you heard that right - it was coming to the end of its life and I promised it retirement, with a new home in mind.
Others will doubtless comment I had been flogging a dead horse but it didn't cost me anything to begin with, was stunningly reliable, and the price of final repairs for little more than expected wear and tear was a relatively small price to pay. I had hoped to keep it a few more years and then like the VFR, buy a new car just as my father had bought his Seat new, but the UK Government's 2019 diktat that new petrol cars would soon be banned and electric vehicles the only alternative, together with likely price increases after the looming Brexit made me reassess my plans.
I have every wish to preserve the planet, and I support the notion that electric vehicles are the way forward. The day they invent a battery that can be charged fully at the same speed I can fill a petrol tank and physically lasts as long as a petrol tank and is supported by a network of nationwide fast chargers, is the day I'll buy one (see my comments bottom and [G23]). I'm also not going anywhere near a hydrogen cell that burns with an invisible violent flame.
Until then I won't be carting around a large heavy battery that will slowly become less efficient over time and cost an arm and a leg to replace, nor will I indulge in a complex hybrid with multiple engines and the same battery issues. The more complex a vehicle, the shorter its working life and the greater the cost to recycle it. Diesel is also out of the question, so for now I will stick with petrol. Hopefully filling stations will still exist for a couple more decades, after which I probably won't need a car anyway.
Nowadays I rarely drive except to my local stables for weekend hacks, the occasional visit to the dump,
or picking up DIY items for my projects. I always walk into town or to the local supermarket and I carry shopping in a rucksack so despite buying a petrol car, I am also doing my bit for the environment.
Automatics waste fuel, reduce performance and often have transmission reliability issues so I would have a manual gearbox manual like the Seat. Having decided on the engine type, I next researched reliability, insurance group, economy, and carrying capacity for garden and general DIY. My partner had had a RAV4 which was very reliable, but hugely expensive to run and insure and we don't need a 4x4. She likes Mazdas, but they too are expensive. I looked at the cheap and simple Dacia Duster, but hated the huge bonnet and the raised seating position also raised the floor well, giving my long legs no advantage. The doors also sounded tinny to me.
After much research ironically I settled on another Honda, this time a Jazz but the petrol engine version ceased production in 2019, accelerating my plan to find a new one. By chance a year old pre-registered SE with 30 miles on the clock came up nearby at a good price and we bought it together at the end of 2020:
https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/honda/13-i-vtec-se-navi-5dr-cvt/spec
Honda Jazz 1.3i
In 2022 the Jazz is returning an impressive average 54.7mpg, almost double the best 28mpg we got out of my partner's 150hp Toyota 5-door RAV4, which was otherwise ideal for visiting relations in the highlands in the middle of winter, but who have now passed on.
The only worrying thing is I've discovered it's regarded as an old person's car but I don'think this applies to me, as if I had the money and the space to keep it somewhere safe, I'd much rather have an Aerial Atom instead:
Aerial Atom
EVs
In January 2021 the initial development of a 5-minute fast charge battery was announced [G23], the design aim being a minimum of 500 charging cycles with anticipated launch around 2024. However I still stand by my decision to buy a petrol car because the UK's charging infrastructure falls well short of what is needed to support the existing 2-hour car chargers, let alone fast chargers that will require completely different systems with far higher current capacity. It isn't difficult to find tales on the Net of people who have bought electric cars and got stranded due to large numbers of non-functional charging stations: 28/11/20 'Why did it take nine hours to go 130 miles in our new electric Porsche?'
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2020/nov/28/electric-cars-porsche-charging-network#:~:text=Money-,'Why%20did%20it%20take%20nine%20hours%20to%20go%20130,in%20our%20new%20electric%20Porsche%3F&text=A%20couple%20from%20Kent%20have,power%20to%20their%20electric%20car.
I think a new generation of high current fast chargers will cause a significant electric grid headache if it's to eventually be rolled out to every petrol station in the UK. Only a year ago (2020) I saw talk of the UK grid being insufficient to power the existing infrastructure as it is. New power stations, substations and high capacity cabling will all need to be built and the UK is notoriously slow at getting major projects like this completed on time. Look how long it's taking to roll out the so-called Smart Motorway hard shoulder 4th lane system (which continues to kill people), and successive UK governments' HS2 vanity rail project (they should upgrade the existing infrastructure first).
Now in November 2024, this article describes an 11 year wait to connect new generators to the grid:
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/nov/04/renewable-energy-grid-wait-green-renewal-stellantis-warehouse-solar
Like any modern vehicle, the Jazz is a complex machine not without its issues (it's particularly noisy and at 102hp, surprisingly gutless compared to the 60hp Seat) but overall it meets all our criteria and has already proven its worth transporting a 2.5m long rolled-up carpet 500 miles along with the two of us. Hopefully it will be a fitting replacement for the Seat and far less hassle than the 1198.
Meanwhile we have matching VFR750s awaiting summer.
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