Yamaha Vmax, Show your love...

[D1on]

Always fancied a vmax!
Who here has/had one?
Still unusual to see one on the roads now...

[Jazoli]

What the old or the new ones?

The old ones were fast in a straight line, but pig ugly and very 'american', the new ones...meh, completely off my radar.

[Greenmantle]

The father of my daughters friend has a 16 plate one in white. He's a very experienced rider.
As a piece of art / engineering they look wonderful standing still.
Make an amazing sound but how practical are they on the roads since they are huge.

[D1on]

Still love these, are they used for drag racing?...

[Turn7]

D1on said:

Still love these, are they used for drag racing?...

Not here......its Turbo 'Busa or big block Nitrous GSX lumps.....

[bogie]

The latest 1700cc version was expensive when it came out which limited appeal. Apparently much better handling than 1200cc original and not bad as a road bike considering the size/weight - 320kg ish wet . The price dropped over £5k in later years which no doubt p*issed off owners who had paid near £20k. They still holding value well though - £13k for a 10 year old bike.

The key selling point is a near 200bhp "cruiser", but paired up with 320kg its not quite as mental as you anticipate. At the time there was no competition other than things like Harleys VRod which in its fastest variant was 160bhp/300kg ish.

These days if you are looking for a fast feet forward style bike then the Ducati Diavel-X is the one to have. I have a couple of mates who ride them, very capable all round bikes and getting better VFM all the time.

[Nikk]

Love my Gen 2. The engine is just incredible, amazing torque and revs to over 9K. It handles pretty well, too. It's no sportsbike and very heavy when standing, but it's really stable in corners at pretty much any speed, just takes some getting used to.

[trickywoo]

bogie said:

These days if you are looking for a fast feet forward style bike then the Ducati Diavel-X is the one to have. I have a couple of mates who ride them, very capable all round bikes and getting better VFM all the time.

I thought the vmax was more mid than forward controls.

Either way I’d say a Rocket III is closer in spirit than a Diavel.

[Salted_Peanut]

bogie said:

These days if you are looking for a fast feet forward style bike then the Ducati Diavel-X is the one to have. I have a couple of mates who ride them, very capable all round bikes and getting better VFM all the time.

+1

Both the Xdiavel and the Rocket 3 have similar power (about 160 bhp). But the Xdiavel is around 100 Kg lighter! The Rocket may have been on a diet but it's far from being a cover model for Slimming World.

[bogie]

trickywoo said:

bogie said:

These days if you are looking for a fast feet forward style bike then the Ducati Diavel-X is the one to have. I have a couple of mates who ride them, very capable all round bikes and getting better VFM all the time.

I thought the vmax was more mid than forward controls.

Either way I’d say a Rocket III is closer in spirit than a Diavel.

There are/were options for forward controls...a bit like Diavel-X in that respect ...VMax was on my list when I was looking for a feet forward bike about 10 years ago, but too expensive for me at the time.

[bogie]

Salted_Peanut said:

bogie said:

These days if you are looking for a fast feet forward style bike then the Ducati Diavel-X is the one to have. I have a couple of mates who ride them, very capable all round bikes and getting better VFM all the time.

+1

Both the Xdiavel and the Rocket 3 have similar power (about 160 bhp). But the Xdiavel is around 100 Kg lighter! The Rocket may have been on a diet but it's far from being a cover model for Slimming World.

Exactly ...you cant beat physics. A couple of mates have had Rocket III originals and now Diavel-X, some others still have Rockets. Test rode the new Rocket, and its so much better than the original...but still a huge bike to throw around. I might still get one when they are 1/2 price as it would make an interesting bike to go touring on/take a pillion. (currently have a VRod for that)

Diavel-X and Vmax 1700 are quite similar with about 40 deg ish of lean angle as standard (before you remove the peg pins etc) ......dont think there is much in it straight line as you have 250kg ish and near 160bhp vs 200bhp and 310kg etc

I really like the VMax too, its a great bike and holding value well. When you line up all the "performance cruiser" style bikes they all kinda carve out their own niche, rather than being too alike....which is great for buyers.