Got the green light for busa or zx14, help!

[suicideman]

My wife has finally agreed that I can have a 2nd bike. My 2005 FJR stays. Question is : I will be choosing between the Kawasaki ZX14 or the Suzuki Busa - both 2008 or 2007 models or possibly another bike depending on response from the forum. Any educated opinions are appreciated. :clapping:

 

[FJR919]

Having ridden both bikes. I can give you a little perspective. If you are tall person, long of arm and torso, you would probably find the ergos of the Busa more to your liking. If you are short or medium height and don't have long arms, I think the 14 would be more comfortable. The Busa is more rangy and feels like you're reaching more for the bars. The 14 felt more close coupled, which I prefered. I liked both bikes, but my preference wasa the ZX14. But then again I am short.

 

[Randy]

What are you looking for? Just top end speed? Not considering a liter sportbike (R1? CBR1000RR? GSXR 1K? ZX 10?)?

 

[Silent]

I vote Busa, it's just sexy :lol:

 

[Warchild]

I would also vote Busa. Particularly after learning about the CRACKED FRAMES on the ZX-14! :blink:

In fact, I DID vote Busa... with my wallet, just three weeks ago:

Really wasn't diggin' the pillion hump, that tiny windscreen, or that ginormous fender, so I got those sorted:

I tinted the taller, light smoke windscreen to all-black.... came out looking pretty good, I think....

Here's close-up of the Kanji artwork.... look subtle against the heavy tinting:

:thumbsupsmiley:

 

[suicideman]

I'm, 6'1" 225lbs. Looking for crank in every gear. Yes, I have knowledge of the cracked frame problems for the ZX. Warchild's Busa looks awesome. So far, it looks like the Busa is the way to go.

 

[BuilderBob]

The magazines will be doing a shoot-out between the new Busa and the 14 soon. I'd wait till a few of them do it and see what the general consensus is.

As a former owner of the previous generation Busa (2004), I'm partial to the brand, but I haven't really warmed up to the looks of the new one. In that department, between the Busa and the 14, it's a toss-up for me.

 

[camera56]

I would also vote Busa. Particularly after learning about the CRACKED FRAMES on the ZX-14! :blink:

In fact, I DID vote Busa... with my wallet, just three weeks ago:

Warcraft, how on earth do you decide which super bike to ride on any given day? Did you keep your blackbird?

 

[Warchild]

The magazines will be doing a shoot-out between the new Busa and the 14 soon. I'd wait till a few of them do it and see what the general consensus is.

I wouldn't begin to let a moto-rag "shoot-out" influence my decision... not even a trace mount. There seems to be no rhyme or reason why these "shoot-outs" are so very inconsistent across the board. Just in the last two years, the FJR1300 has been in first place, mid-pack, and in one instance I recall, dead last.

Kinda like the ST1300. And the K1200GT. And the GTR1400. And...and... and.

There is no substitute for personal evaluation... if demo rides can be had, they should be taken advantage of. But these so-called "shoot-outs" are little more than for entertainment purposes only. You might be able to glean some general trends on some of the bikes, sure. Maybe.

But IMO, to allow "shoot-outs" to actually influence your purchasing decision is ill-advised, UNLESS these moto-journalist ride exactly like you do, and you have the identical body weight, the same torso, leg and arm dimensions as they do, and they test these machines in your riding environment.

Otherwise, it's entertainment. And true, the comparo's certainly look appealing on the cover of the magazine. Almost makes you want to buy it right away. That's what the Marketing folks are counting on..... folks rush to buy up that issue, and all the advertisers who spent mega-$$$ on that issue just smile.

But I am willing to bet you these moto-rags will say NOTHING about the ZX-14 cracked frames. And you damn sure won't be seeing photos of the resulting carnage...

Kinda disconcerting, huh....

 

[RoadGlide]

Here's close-up of the Kanji artwork.... look subtle against the heavy tinting:

:thumbsupsmiley:

HIJACK>>>Dale, how did you tint that screen? I want to tint/paint the lower half of my screen on the FJR to hide the electronics shelf from the front view.

WAde

 

[Warchild]

HIJACK>>>Dale, how did you tint that screen?

1) A brutally painful and tedious taping of the screen edge and surrounding front of the screen using that blue Painter's Tape and wrapping paper.

2) Take a pad of Medium steel wool pad and "polish" the inside of the screen.

3) Krylon Satin Black enamel spray paint on the inside.... ~ 5 coats of paint (each one neither heavy nor thin... "medium" coats). Let dry a good 30 mins or more between coats.

I did the identical treatment to the FJR.....

 

[painman]

Not to hijack here, but was looking at the X-14 forum and seems there was 3, X-14 owners that had cracked frames where the rear suspension mounts and one found out it was not a crack but a grease line. Out of the other two, one had an extended swingarm (that shouldn't cause a crack really), and the other was a stock setup. Said Kawi is aware of the problem and is checking it out to see if in fact the problem is in design, construction, or abuse and really not a panic situation at the present. Personally I would wait and see the out come before jumping to conclusions and or making a purchase. Just my $.03 worth. It was also said a few Honda Goldwings were having a similar problem. Good luck in your search. PM. <><

 

[Warchild]

Said Kawi is aware of the problem and is checking it out to see if in fact the problem is in design, construction, or abuse and really not a panic situation at the present.

Unless you're one of the victims. :blink:

I'm on one of the smaller ZX-14 boards.... and they gots a LOT of photos.

The bike above? A 2007 model with approximately 4500 miles on it, had just had it's 4K service, and the rider maintains his bike immaculately and doesn't do any tricks, stunts, stoppies, wheelies (intentional) or anything else that could have caused this.

Below are photos of a different ZX-14 Frame Crack Failure.... this bike is a 2006 with 5100 miles on it.

Notice how the frame failure happed to be pretty much in the IDENTICAL area?

Wait... I gots some more.... :huh:

Here is a 2006 model with the frame crack in its early stages (before complete separation). The crack is in the same region.... this bike only had 4000 miles on it:

In this case, Kawasaki did stand behind the frame even though it was out of warranty and they sent him a new 08 frame, but the dude (who apparently is a master welder himself) didn't like it since it looked exactly like his 06 did without the crack.... "cold welds and sloppy" he said.

So he re-welded his old frame... braced and gusseted:

Like I say, this is just off one of the smaller ZX-14 sites..... represents only a a tiny fraction of ZX-14s on the road.... so who knows, really....

It may not be a widespread issue, but.... I personally have enough to worry about while moving above the Ton out in the Desert West, without adding this nagging concern to the mix....

 

[painman]

I hear ya Dale, and also find it interesting the 08 has a revised frame in this area the few reported bikes have suffered. Not in the know here really but maybe the problem is cured for the 08's and a buyer of the new model could rest at ease. Still like my trusty old 06 FJR, tried and tested in the Nevada desert on hwy. 50 on the way to WFO-6. Ya baby.....and congrats on the new light bulb, er Busa. Nice choice my friend. Ya know really the info gained here on the forum is incredible for all those who are in the process of looking for a new purchase and the bikes we already have. It was very instumental in forming my decession of the FJR buy several years ago. This place rocks. unk: PM. <>< :aggressive:

 

[Warchild]

maybe the problem is cured for the 08's and a buyer of the new model could rest at ease.

Truth be told, I am really hoping that's the case. Because I am seriously feelin' bad for my ZX-14 bro's.... the bike is obviously an awesome piece of machinery; this situation with the frame is just a complete and total bummer. Hopefully, this issue dies out in 2008 like the Ticking issue did for us in 2006.

 

[DougW]

I got a 08 ZX14, the main reasons I picked it over the busa was leg room and styling. I am 6'4" with long legs and the ZX seemed a little more comfortable, also I like the conservative styling of the ZX .

 

[mmonroe]

I too am thinking of making a move on either an 08 Busa or 08 ZX-14. I am really leaning towards the 08 ZX-14. Kawi's have always been good to me. I had the ZX-11 (still have the ZX-11 and rode it to work today) and ZX-12r. I love the looks of the orange Busa and love the looks of the black/red ZX-14. I mainly ride in the east coast mountains and my gut feeling is that the ZX-14 will do better in curvey roads.

It also seems that the Busa's around here have become more of a "pimp ride" along the same lines as Cadillac's with 22in wheels.

Time will tell..

Mark

 

[Waaane]

Why would you want to have two Sport Touring bikes in the garage? I think I would have to go for the Busa, or get the ZX and get rid of the FJR and buy a used Busa in a year or so. Since I am happy with my FJR as a touring platform I might take all that money the ZX or the Busa is going to cost and find a nice used R6 for fooling around on and a Veestrom for those time when I really want to get away. At that point my MC world would be pretty much complete.

But hey...its your money...Do what floats your boat

 

[Warchild]

Why would you want to have two Sport Touring bikes in the garage?

Easy. They each have different missions, and are outfitted accordingly.

FJR ==> Work truck for commuting and occasional long rides where I need to carry a lot of crap.

XX ==> LD rally bike. Gets sparse use outside of that. Still, ran up 37,000 miles on it this year.

Busa ==> Replaces the R1 for rampaging in the canyons and steppes of the western High Desert.

B)