Living with a sportbike!? Overkill for commuting?

[modular]

Hello!

Got a quick question for those who can help out. I have a Ducati Monster 821 that I love, yet I always wanted to have a sportbike, but was too wimpy to buy one until now.

The thing is... I ride mostly in the city. I use the bike to commute, lane split, etc. I do ride in highways, but it's like 20% of the time, maximum. For this the Monster is perfect and I have zero complains and I don't really need a sportbike. But, I would like to

Is it too stupid to have a sportbike for this kind of use? I don't have enough garage space to put an extra bike, so if I do get a sportbike I need to get rid of the Monster.

Of course that with a sportbike trackdays will be a must, yet I'm just afraid it will be overkill to day-to-day use, even though I don't want a liter bike.

I just have three potential bikes under my eyes and in specific order of preference they are:

- Ducati 959 Panigale
- MV Agusta F3 675
- Triumph Daytona


Other important notes: I'm 1.91 meters high and weight around 95 Kg. Strangely enough I don't look like a bear on a bicycle on my Monster.

Any feedback!? Thank you!

[Itchy]

No it is not stupid.

The sharp brakes and turn on a dime ability are useful to avoid SMIDSY incidents.

It will however cost you more money in the medium to long term.

As sports bikes have shorter service intervals, use more expensive tyres (BT45s on my NTV were around 100 for both while a CBR600 tyre is £100 each).

It will have worse MPG, old NTV did 60, CBR does 35.

In addition to this sporty suspension means you feel each and every pot hole and crack in the road. I rode over apocalyptic roads in Russia on my XT and only felt the really big holes. CBR I feel everything...

Sports bikes are also IL4 which means they're wider than big singles and twins which depending on how you filter can affect your transit times.

The slow nature of city riding means weight will be on your wrists compared to more upright tube bar bikes like CBFs and trailie bikes. As sportier bikes have clip ons where the weight lifts off your wrists only at speed.

Luggage for a sporty bike is also harder to find compared to tourers, offroad and commuter bikes.
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[pompousporcup...]

^^ what he said.

I switch between the twin and 4 cylinder i have and the only downside to the 4 is that some gaps are small enough for me to have to think twice... and the fuel consumption.

overall it normally choose the sportier one

[waffles]

I have commuted on my gixer. Every day I pass someone else on a gixer, another one on a blade, someone else on a Kwak something or other.....

Why do you think it is overkill? There are drawbacks to it as Itchy has already pointed out but as long as the bike is comfortable for you to ride then there shouldn't be too much of an issue at all.
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Past rides Yamaha XT125X, Triumph TT600, Honda XR250
Current rides Suzuki GSXR 600, Honda MSX125

[hellkat]

Mmmmm, I'm seriously considering a Monster as my next bike.
And I rarely leave town

I'd go with the Ducati, but only cos I like the noise (does the Panigale have that sexy rattle?)
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[Ste]

IL4 bikes and commuting?

How many cylinders do a Ducati 959 Panigale, a MV Agusta F3 675 and a Triumph Daytona have? (each, not in total )

[ZX-7R]

Commute daily on my ZX-7R.Suits me fine,but i have a short commute with no need for filtering due to the hours i work.

Horses for courses really,all down to your own personal commuting situation.
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Current Bike - 2000 ZX-7R

[Howling TerrorOutOfOffice]

2 drawbacks if I used the MV for commuting.

Sportsbikes aren't very good on fuel and most have crap turning circles.
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[Wonko The Sane]

I know it's not an out and out sports bike but I use a ZZR600 for commuting

mix of motorway (slow, boring filtering / sitting in roadworks) victorian terraced streets and normal roads

I have to be picky with my route or my tyres square off quickly and it's usually at temperature for the fan to come on and give off a fair bit of heat in summer if I can't keep moving

Other than that, it's fine.
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[Irezumi aka Reuben]

Yes, I think so.

If you carry a rucksack to work (as I do) then having a more upright bike is much easier. Easier to see whats going on around you, much more relaxed in various conditions and a lot easier for me to wiggle a bike side to side to get through gaps at slow/walking speed (this may be due to me being a short arse as well!).

I ride an Aprilia Falco which is a sporty-ish riding position. I'd much rather be on a Monster/Tuono for my commute.

In the real world youre speed is dictated by you/your environment not your bike anyway. So any extra sports bike performance is a false economy in most situations.

Having said that. MV!
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Pictorgraphicalfantastical

[kramdra]

Itchy is wrong.


Cbr600 is perfect for commuting. 40-80 miles a day for me. Twisties or motorway.


At 70k miles, not needed anything but tires and oil since 50k. Last weekend tbe forks got a clean and last jan 2015 so did the brakes.
Width is no issue for filtering. 120/180 tires are the most common and by far the cheapest of all proper tires.

[Fin]

[haroman666]

[craigs23]

I'm getting older these days and would personally prefer something a little more upright for commuting through London, irrespective of wider bars and a little less weather protection.

How about a bit of the best of both worlds? MT07, Street Triple or the like?

[Nobby the Bastard]

I commute on my exup 50 miles daily.

In other news, my elbows and back permanantly hurt and my hair is getting greyer.
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Triumph Sprint ST 1050

[G]

[Itchy]

[Hokum]

Another thing is ergonomics, some race style bikes can be comfortable when moving but when coming to a stop at lights or in start stop traffic can give rise to wrist ache/pain due to changing position to support your self.

You need to find a bike which fits you well and also gives you adequate comfort in city driving. My RC390 is great when you are riding and not stopping but on my Manchester commute it can get a pain if you are in seriously bad traffic you can't filter past for more than an hour.
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[skatefreak]

CBR 600 F3 here.
Commuted for a few years.
Perfect.
Cheap as chips,
50MPG, enough grunt to leave everything at the lights comfortably and have many times folded the mirrors in for extra man points getting through traffic/small gaps.

Cost peanuts to buy and will run forever with a little TLC...

Cheap enough to not worry about damaging it so is faarrr more fun to ride

[bladeblaster]

I commuted on a CBR600, then a Fireblade, then a ZX10R, the an R1 for a combined total of about 15 years and 175,000ish miles. That was from my early 20's to mid 30's. Loved it.

Would I do it now? Not a chance in hell.

[Aspire2]

Touring bike every time.

Great wind protection
Arm chair seat
Up right riding position
Torquey engine
Good headlight
Good carrying capacity
More than enough ooomph
Good road presence

I've commuted on

Honda Cb500
Triumph Speed four
Suzuki Sv 650
Gilera SC 125
Triumph Trophy 1200

Would take the trophy every single time without thought.

[Mudshark]

[modular]

Hello! Thank you all for the replies. Let me put these in topics to help out a bit:

- my concern is about ergonomics (my wrists and back!?) and the bike engine. A sportbike is for fast speeds, and my average speed in town is around 50-60 Km/h. Highway speeds I usually go over 140 Km/h, but with a naked I get spanked by the wind full-time. Won't I screw up the engine if the revs are too low!? Also, regarding full consumption will I suffer too much!?

- is a sportbike a good option for lane splitting? I’m doing it all the time and I’m afraid it won’t turn as good as a naked bike, but I’ve never riden a sportbike before. That’s the reason of my concerns.

- my choices are probably just the Ducati 959 and the F3 675. The Daytona is a perfect bike spec-wise, yet it lacks the looks. At least in my point of view. Since I'm a bit shallow I think I will go - again - the italian route. Considering these two options, what would be the "best choice"?

- regarding these two bikes, which one do you think will get a better value in the future for resale? I see MV Agustas F4 all the time dirt-cheap - and not so cheap - but they are everywhere. Never seen a used F3 though…

- I won’t need any kind of luggage. Even though I use the bike to commute, if I need to carry stuff around I just use the car. I look at the bike as a commuter, ok, but mainly as a fun thing that will make my life less boring. Hence the sportbike

- my previous bikes were a Triumph Street Triple and a Moto Guzzi V7. The Triumph was wicked and the Guzzi a motorcycle with an engine. This Monster 821 is simply outstanding, but sometimes it lacks on the engine. At least for small races from traffic light to traffic light against sportbikes

- Touring bikes are nice. I really dig the Ducati Multistrada, yet they start at 17.300 euros up to 24.000 euros. A bit too much for a bike that I do not adore, even though it would be the best choice for my size. Regarding the Ducati 959 Panigale it goes to 16.100 euros and the MV Agusta F3 675 is 13.450 euros.



So essentially:

Why I want the sportbike:

- looks / coolness
- wind protection
- speed
- trackdays would be a possibility at last



What concerns me:

- riding position (back and wrists pain?)
- handling in slower speeds / lane splitting
- fuel consumption
- too much HP?


https://i67.tinypic.com/sfz9e9.jpg

[Nobby the Bastard]

[G]

Your current bike should be fine for a trackday.

Buying a shiny new bike and worrying about mpg seems silly.