Downsized to Himalayan 450

[Dinosaur juice]

Hi everyone I've slowly been getting slower bikes over the last few years

Fireblade to V-Strom 1000

Vstrom 1000 to now a Himalayan 450

I'm finding it enjoyable so far, I got a bit fed up of not being able to use the power of the fireblade without fear of my licence/ injury etc

The vstrom was a great bike but just a bit long in the tooth

Just wondered if anyone has done similar and enjoyed it?

I do miss the overtaking power at times, I will admit that

Cheers

[Biker9090]

Still on stage 1 of that - 170hp VFR to a 106hp V Strom.

Those 450s do look good. I just don't want to trade down in terms of tech. You'd have thought some of the non EU makers would have twigged some of us want smaller bikes but still want the tech.

[Dinosaur juice]

What tech you after?

It's got phone connection, so has sat nav, messages, calls etc

Power modes( unsure why with 40hp)

No traction control, again it's 40 hp

Has abs and can switch the rear off

No cruise control or speed limiter

[Neal H]

I have a Triumph 400 Scrambler alongside my Speed Twin 1200, so I haven't completely downsized, but I must admit that the 400 is a lot of fun on small minor roads where you can't really get above 60mph anyway.

The 400 has surprised me with how well it goes up to about 60/70 and has no problem overtaking slower moving traffic. Above that though and it starts to get quite buzzy. 80 mpg average is a major plus point as well!

I couldn't live with one as an only bike, but as a second bike, on the right kind of roads, it's great. Light, agile and fast enough.

[P675]

Dinosaur juice said:

What tech you after?

It's got phone connection, so has sat nav, messages, calls etc

Power modes( unsure why with 40hp)

No traction control, again it's 40 hp

Has abs and can switch the rear off

No cruise control or speed limiter

For me I couldn't live without cruise control, use it all the time for 30-40 mph stretches to stop me speeding out of boredom, and give my wrists a rest. Possibly quickshifter too.

[Dinosaur juice]

I've never had either of them on a bike to be honest so can't comment.

I've seen companies offering cruise control as a upgrade available now.

Can see the benefits of a quick shifter on something with a lot more power

[OutInTheShed]

I've got a 350 trail bike as well as a sports tourer.

The small bike is more enjoyable around the lanes and B roads.
The kind of riding where I'd choose to be on a small/mid-size bike, cruise control doesn't seem relevant.

I prefer a bigger bike for two-up.
We borrowed a learner-spec bike a 500 IIRC, for a 100 mile ride around the borders/Hadrian's Wall, would have preferred more power and weight at times!

A mate has downsized to an old, tax-exempt, 400. No regrets at all.

[Dinosaur juice]

Neal H said:

I have a Triumph 400 Scrambler alongside my Speed Twin 1200, so I haven't completely downsized, but I must admit that the 400 is a lot of fun on small minor roads where you can't really get above 60mph anyway.

The 400 has surprised me with how well it goes up to about 60/70 and has no problem overtaking slower moving traffic. Above that though and it starts to get quite buzzy. 80 mpg average is a major plus point as well!

I couldn't live with one as an only bike, but as a second bike, on the right kind of roads, it's great. Light, agile and fast enough.

I'll agree with that

It did seem before I was using 10% of the fireblades power at times which did feel a bit of a shame

Compared to being able to use all the revs and not into naughty speeds on Himalayan etc

[marcella]

I've went full circle! Last few bikes before downsizing were 1200 Monster, MV F3 800 and a Z900. Went to a Royal Enfield Classic 500, Himalayan and a Super Meteor 650.

All the RE's are gone and now have a Ducati 749, Ducati 1260 Pikes Peak Muliti and a ZX10RR

I must admit, I do miss my 411 Himmy and have contemplated changing the Mulit for one!

[Speed addicted]

I bought a 78 CX500, mainly for slow rides. Didn’t sell the Triumph Explorer or the others but I’ve found myself reaching for the Honda keys far more often than I expected.
After years of having fairly ample amounts of grunt it’s refreshing to actually look at scenery and not feel like I have to overtake absolutely everything.

[Rubin215]

Speed addicted said:

I bought a 78 CX500, mainly for slow rides. Didn t sell the Triumph Explorer or the others but I ve found myself reaching for the Honda keys far more often than I expected.
After years of having fairly ample amounts of grunt it s refreshing to actually look at scenery and not feel like I have to overtake absolutely everything.

When I had a CX500, I still felt like I had to overtake absolutely everything anyway...

[Biker9090]

Dinosaur juice said:

What tech you after?

It's got phone connection, so has sat nav, messages, calls etc

Power modes( unsure why with 40hp)

No traction control, again it's 40 hp

Has abs and can switch the rear off

No cruise control or speed limiter

Cruise and an IMU if i was downsizing

[CHLEMCBC]

I downsized to a Guzzi V7 about 5 years ago, but although I had fun times and did 50,000 smiles on her, I was hankering after something bigger so I've upsized again. I love the regained power and torque.

[Dinosaur juice]

Biker9090 said:

Cruise and an IMU if i was downsizing

Yeah fair enough, I'm yet to have them, my bikes have usually been a bit older

They keep the costs down on these bikes by not having everything

[KTMsm]

Not to that extent

But I've sold my 1190 (150bhp) and kept my 990s (110bhp) I find them more rewarding to ride as I regularly use all their power, which rarely happened on the 1190

I could cope with maybe 80bhp but get frustrated much below that as there are fewer overtaking opportunities

[Onelastattempt]

KTMsm said:

Not to that extent

But I've sold my 1190 (150bhp) and kept my 990s (110bhp) I find them more rewarding to ride as I regularly use all their power, which rarely happened on the 1190

I could cope with maybe 80bhp but get frustrated much below that as there are fewer overtaking opportunities

I find now that 80bhp is the sweet spot for me for fun, anything more powerful I tend to find myself even at 67 years old riding like a dick , I also find the smaller ,lighter bikes more fun, I recently had a Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 for a couple of days and it was great fun.