Most underrated bikes...

[John C]

Purely out of interest...

From personal experience, what do you consider to be some of the most underrated bikes produced in the last 20 years?

[stinkwheel]

The TRX 850 never seemed to be as popular as it should have been.

I think the W650 is a nicely designed bit of kit that looks more like a Triumph Boneville than a Triumph Bonneville does, again, never sold in huge numbers over here.

My latest bike, a KLE500 also seems to be undersold. They make an handy commuter bike which is excellent in town. Makes far more sense for on the road riding than a KLR650 yet the big single sells a lot better. The price is right too. I bet they sell like hot-cakes on the continent.
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I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[map]

The Honda Deauville.
Rated by the sports bike riding press as the dulls-ville.

However, apparently well liked by those who've bought it, but then they knew it wasn't a sports oriented machine. Resale values are quite healthy so must be something right.
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[FifiTRXibelle]

I think the TRX 850 is an under rated bike too.
Also i thought the ZZR600 was a bit over slated.

[Kickstart]

[NSR Mick]

[map]

[feef]

thunderace was under-rated...

TRX definately...

deauville? definately underated in terms of ability, but not to everyone's liking as far as looks are concerned

a
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[McGee]

The Aprilla RS-125, every one slags it off but it really is a good bike
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Its pronounced Jixxer!

[tatters]

[Itchy]

[FreshAL]

NTV isn't underrated at all - the couriers love them.

[NSR Mick]

[feef]

[Cillit-BANG]

The more recent Supersport Ducati range. 750ss/900ss in particular.
They make for fantastic bikes, more than enough power for on the road, cheap to buy/insure, easy to service, wonderfull handling, look fantastic, have a great spec, brembo, marzocchi etc. Bullit proof engines.

A 3 year old model, mint with 3-4k miles can be had for under £3k

They get little press and are few and far between on the road. They aren't going to rip your arms off, but 90bhp for spirited road riding is more than enough.

I fell in love with mine, but put far too many miles on it and it lost its value quickly.

[G]

I definitely do like the TRX - a lot less twinny than most twins.

However one of the reasons I feel it's underated at the moment is because they're relatively cheap - if it was better thought off they probably wouldn't be so cheap .

[tatters]

[colin1]

a big scooter called a yp250. very popular in europe but not over here.
you can get it for a similar price to a cb250, but its smoother, more comfy, has a tall fairing, is very agile and nippy and can just about cope with motorway cruising speeds
seating position is a bit like a feet forward cruiser

because its a scooter its got undeseat storage too

somehow it all works well together

not to everyones taste, and takes a while to get used to its skittish-ness at higher speeds but i like it. you can get them for £500

efficient and economical. quick at pulling away but will only overtake in built up areas. a nippy cruiser if there is such a thing

i did try a 400 scooter but it wasnt at all nippy as it was designed for higher speed stability
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colin1 is officially faster than god

[DukeRed]

If this thread keeps going I might be able to sell my TRX for more than I bought it
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[tonyyzf]

Thunderace was under-rated, but seriously over advertised by Yamaha, I bought one thinking it was gonna be wicked. It was after I spent £2500 at TTS getting the engine tuned

As for a current under-rated bike, here I go again, I just love my Cagiva Navigator, the Gran Canyons' big brother with a Suzuki TL1000 engine.

[MikeH]

[Huambo81a]

Bandit 1200's

The press hate them, mainly because they get free bikes and free goodies in return for positive reviews, but in the real world its a powerful bike for sod all money!

The Good old BANDIT 1200 i say!! hip hip!!
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[Rookie]

THUNDERCAT!

'The most underrated bike' has to be the 'Cat's tag line by now. For me, after spending so many hours trawling through the net and posts on the forum on all sorts of bikes, I think the 'Cat is severely underrated for what it is.

I remember someone on the net saying they thought the Thundercat was the 'last bike with a soul', and I can see what they mean. These days, manufacturers are striving to cram as many horsepower as possible into the lightest bikes they can, to top the power levels in the category. Everyone's at it, it's not just sports/super bikes. That's what I think gives the 'Cat a soul; it's actually happy not being the fastest at the time. A bike is defined by its flaws, and manufacturers are constantly trying to iron these out with the next years model. Whereas I think the 'Cat is happy to keep the flaws, and know that it's recognised for being what it is.

It's also managed to look pretty current looks-wise, in the same way as an NC-30. If you got a minter of a 96 and changed it to an 06 plate, I think very few non-bikers would know the difference.

It's also the best all-rounder in the world, in my opinion. Comfortable, great for pillions, ideal for touring, but still enough power to blow your head off on the road, and brakes from an R1. Yes, it'll never be as fast as an R1, but life ain't a race track, and let's face it, if you're going on track to get the fastest possible time, you're not going to take a Cat! If the Thundercat has a fault, it's reportedly the suspension (and even that's fully adjustable). I suppose you could throw a wad at it and gets Ohlins all round, but as I say, I think bikes are defined by their faults.

Rookie

Thundercat Enthusiast

[Type_Mo]

The Box Hill Ped Boi Legends Gilera Runnber 50cc that does 70mph OBVIOUSLY
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[Johnny GSX-R]

My brother has a TRX 850, 2 X Ducati 851's , Bennelli 6 cyl, Kawasaki Z900, Suzuki RE5 rotary....

I agree about the TRX but also the Z900 was a bit of kit for its day.