ZXR400 - Shall I Keep It?
Discussion
Hi, I've got a ZXR400 that I bought for £500 last September. I passed my test in March 2006 & haven't ridden all that often since I passed. So I bought the bike last year from a friend, with the intention of getting some miles done & getting back in to biking on a cheap bike.
However, my other half wasn't too keen about this & promptly moved my bike to his dads (a big biker & great mechanic but 150 miles away!) to be fettled & brought up to scratch. It had a few faults that have now been sorted, at no expense to me & it's now a sorted bike.
However, the other half is now my ex & I'm wondering what to do about the bike as now I've got a fair amount of free time, I quite fancy getting out there on the bike.
So, here are the problems:
1. It's in Shropshire & I'm in North Cambs (where the roads aren't great!)
2. My ex's dad has put in considerable time & money into getting the bike sorted.
3. Is it a bit too powerful for me, as I'm essentially a beginner.
4. If it went wrong mechanically, I've no idea what to do, but happy to learn!
5. I paid £500, it's worth a bit more now.
So, should I sell the bike to my ex's dad or get it back for my use? Or is it better to write it off, let them keep it & buy a more sensible bike with some dealer support/on finance?
I suppose all this can be summed up as - is a ZXR400 suitable for a beginner?
Any advice appreciated!
However, my other half wasn't too keen about this & promptly moved my bike to his dads (a big biker & great mechanic but 150 miles away!) to be fettled & brought up to scratch. It had a few faults that have now been sorted, at no expense to me & it's now a sorted bike.
However, the other half is now my ex & I'm wondering what to do about the bike as now I've got a fair amount of free time, I quite fancy getting out there on the bike.
So, here are the problems:
1. It's in Shropshire & I'm in North Cambs (where the roads aren't great!)
2. My ex's dad has put in considerable time & money into getting the bike sorted.
3. Is it a bit too powerful for me, as I'm essentially a beginner.
4. If it went wrong mechanically, I've no idea what to do, but happy to learn!
5. I paid £500, it's worth a bit more now.
So, should I sell the bike to my ex's dad or get it back for my use? Or is it better to write it off, let them keep it & buy a more sensible bike with some dealer support/on finance?
I suppose all this can be summed up as - is a ZXR400 suitable for a beginner?
Any advice appreciated!
Ring your ex's dad up and tell him you're coming round this weekend to pick up the bike.
Turn up with a bottle of his favourite tipple and the offer of compensating him for the work he's done on the bike.
Shake hands, hop on YOUR bike and ride home. Take it steady as you've not ridden in a while but i'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Soon you'll be back home with a bike ready to go and the knowledge that a 400 is fine for beginner. You don't sound as if you're going to be a hooligan / reckless.
If it goes wrong, take it to a local independent to get it fixed, same as everyone else does. You don't need a shiny dealer and all that stuff.
Turn up with a bottle of his favourite tipple and the offer of compensating him for the work he's done on the bike.
Shake hands, hop on YOUR bike and ride home. Take it steady as you've not ridden in a while but i'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Soon you'll be back home with a bike ready to go and the knowledge that a 400 is fine for beginner. You don't sound as if you're going to be a hooligan / reckless.
If it goes wrong, take it to a local independent to get it fixed, same as everyone else does. You don't need a shiny dealer and all that stuff.
B15TT0 said:
Ring your ex's dad up and tell him you're coming round this weekend to pick up the bike.
Turn up with a bottle of his favourite tipple and the offer of compensating him for the work he's done on the bike.
Shake hands, hop on YOUR bike and ride home. Take it steady as you've not ridden in a while but i'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Soon you'll be back home with a bike ready to go and the knowledge that a 400 is fine for beginner. You don't sound as if you're going to be a hooligan / reckless.
If it goes wrong, take it to a local independent to get it fixed, same as everyone else does. You don't need a shiny dealer and all that stuff.
Sound advice! Do this!Turn up with a bottle of his favourite tipple and the offer of compensating him for the work he's done on the bike.
Shake hands, hop on YOUR bike and ride home. Take it steady as you've not ridden in a while but i'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Soon you'll be back home with a bike ready to go and the knowledge that a 400 is fine for beginner. You don't sound as if you're going to be a hooligan / reckless.
If it goes wrong, take it to a local independent to get it fixed, same as everyone else does. You don't need a shiny dealer and all that stuff.
hornetrider said:
B15TT0 said:
Ring your ex's dad up and tell him you're coming round this weekend to pick up the bike.
Turn up with a bottle of his favourite tipple and the offer of compensating him for the work he's done on the bike.
Shake hands, hop on YOUR bike and ride home. Take it steady as you've not ridden in a while but i'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Soon you'll be back home with a bike ready to go and the knowledge that a 400 is fine for beginner. You don't sound as if you're going to be a hooligan / reckless.
If it goes wrong, take it to a local independent to get it fixed, same as everyone else does. You don't need a shiny dealer and all that stuff.
Sound advice! Do this!Turn up with a bottle of his favourite tipple and the offer of compensating him for the work he's done on the bike.
Shake hands, hop on YOUR bike and ride home. Take it steady as you've not ridden in a while but i'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Soon you'll be back home with a bike ready to go and the knowledge that a 400 is fine for beginner. You don't sound as if you're going to be a hooligan / reckless.
If it goes wrong, take it to a local independent to get it fixed, same as everyone else does. You don't need a shiny dealer and all that stuff.
400 is fine for a beginner. ANY bike has too much power when your first starting, even a 125 can get you into trouble after all. i started on a 600 & didnt die (not sure how at times). just go get it & enjoy
I did my DAS then had no bike for 2 years except twice hiring a ZX6R for the weekend 
but then I bought a ZXR400 as my first bike 1 as it had not that much more power than the 500 for the test, 2 it didn't weigh much more and 3 it was far more interesting that just another typical commuter first bike.
I loved it, plenty of people have said it's a great bike to learn throttle control on and you'll see enough of them going underneath bigger bikes at corners on track days.
Get the EX's Dad a bottle, get the bike back and enjoy it. It's a fantastic first bike........oh yes
but then I bought a ZXR400 as my first bike 1 as it had not that much more power than the 500 for the test, 2 it didn't weigh much more and 3 it was far more interesting that just another typical commuter first bike.I loved it, plenty of people have said it's a great bike to learn throttle control on and you'll see enough of them going underneath bigger bikes at corners on track days.
Get the EX's Dad a bottle, get the bike back and enjoy it. It's a fantastic first bike........oh yes
yep great advice.. Im sure he'll understand if you make a little effort in rewarding him.
Don't worry about the power issue. I passed my test on a 125. Didnt ride for a while then did a track day on a FZR400RRSP thing at Cadwell Park..
400's are great beginner bikes.. They can handle fantastically and you have to rev them to oblivion to really go that fast.
My first big bike that i owned was a ZZR600 which was and still is a very quick bike. For the 1st week or 2 i just kept the revs down to about 7k when the power didnt really kick in till about 10k.
You'll be fine. and lets face it. a bike should be ridden. not just stored in a garage.
Don't worry about the power issue. I passed my test on a 125. Didnt ride for a while then did a track day on a FZR400RRSP thing at Cadwell Park..
400's are great beginner bikes.. They can handle fantastically and you have to rev them to oblivion to really go that fast.
My first big bike that i owned was a ZZR600 which was and still is a very quick bike. For the 1st week or 2 i just kept the revs down to about 7k when the power didnt really kick in till about 10k.
You'll be fine. and lets face it. a bike should be ridden. not just stored in a garage.
Thanks everyone, my ex has told me I owe his dad £200 for the work he's put into it. I've got a quote off a bike transporter to fetch it for me (£100) as I'm not happy about riding it down the M6 & A14 for 150 miles for my first ride in ages! I may just hire a van with floor hooks & do it myself for £50. I'm not sure yet.
It's such an ace looking bike and at £500-700, if I scratch it/drop it then it doesn't matter so much & I know it's had a full check-up so there shouldn't be any unforseen mechanical surprises.
It's such an ace looking bike and at £500-700, if I scratch it/drop it then it doesn't matter so much & I know it's had a full check-up so there shouldn't be any unforseen mechanical surprises.
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