I agree. My two best friends ride a '16 Aprilia Tuono Factory and an '18 BMW S1000RR and we switch back and forth all the time. While both of those bikes are pretty damned amazing, neither one of them has that ability to combine commuting, 500-mile days and sport riding the way my Gen II Fizzy does. I wish it had ABS and a slightly bigger tank, but I haven't found a replacement for it yet. Maybe the Ninja 1000 would come close.
I'v used a Russel daylong seat on my 03 FZ1 for several years. My inseam is 30" so the seat made it hard to reach the ground. then I had to lower the bike and handling was not so good. (155mm dogbone etc.) Russel redid the seat for me, I could raise the suspension back to stock and all is well. The generation 1 factory seat was extremely uncomfortable for me but generation 2 seats seem better.
"I wish it had ABS and a slightly bigger tank, but I haven't found a replacement for it yet. Maybe the Ninja 1000 would come close." I really like the Ninja 1000 and shopped it last year as a possible FZ1 replacement. Unfortunately the ergos were just not quite right for me (bum hip from old "motorcycle mishap"). Something about the FZ1 having the pegs just a touch forward and lower than many other sporty bikes makes it work. The lack of ABS doesn't bother me too much, since I find the front brakes to be decently progressive and sensitive; I've never had trouble riding in the wet. A bigger tank would indeed be nice! The thing that really killed the Ninja for me was when I shopped insurance rates and the quotes were much higher than what I pay. They must think it's a ZX-10r? Otherwise, nothing about the Ninja really made me want to trade in the FZ1.
I agree with you - I've never had a situation (yet) where I lost front wheel traction under braking and could have used ABS, but I commute in the NYC area, so it doesn't seem far fetched that I could have a use for ABS at some point in the future - oil spills, rain, and poor drivers are pretty common. The insurance thing is interesting; same type of bike in my mind, but I guess insurance looks at who buys the bikes as much as the cost of the bike itself. Maybe FZ1 owners are all old sensible chaps like you and me and the Ninja 1000 gets the young guys who can't afford a ZX-10R. But I agree the obvious replacement for an FZ-1 would be the Ninja 1000. I like the BMW R1200RS too, but I'm not spending $20k to replace a bike I already like a great deal.
"I agree with you - I've never had a situation (yet) where I lost front wheel traction under braking and could have used ABS, but I commute in the NYC area, so it doesn't seem far fetched that I could have a use for ABS at some point in the future - oil spills, rain, and poor drivers are pretty common." Absolutely, ABS can be a lifesaver and I should have put ital on the word "too" in my post. I had one memorable experience on my old Honda where I wound up ten feet into an intersection before I could stop the bike. Here in LA the roads get really, really slick when it rains after months of dry weather. Freakishly, almost black ice slick in places. So, I'm a big fan of ABS and don't mean to imply otherwise. Having said that, I do love the brakes on the FZ1. Very confidence-inspiring despite their old school ways.
Got mine out for the first time in several years. Changed the oil, filter, gas, and cleaned the carbs. Forgot how much fun it is. But I just don't ride it... Old dirt rider....always grab the Transalp. So put it on CL.
My Gf bought us a two person tent. She has aspirations of touring off of my 1st gen fz1 and her fz6. So I need bags, any recommendations on a luggage set up? I ride the hell out of this bike it turns as hard as my supermoto I don't want baggage to make it awkward. She has some kind of rack i can't ID and givi bags. So if you have a luggage set up can you show it?
I have a gen II with a bags connection expandable soft bags setup that works well, take a look at twisted throttle for what they have for luggage solutions.
Lots of old stuff in that thread out of production. Was hoping for more recent. Do soft bags need a rack?
Givi rack system (which is getting damn near impossible to find for Gen1's), Givi E22 side cases, Kappa rear rack and Kappa KGR46N Garda rear case. I put all this on last year, but got lucky with the racks (found both on Ebay). I bought the cases from this place... https://tourandride.com/ Alas, my brother liked it so much he bought it from me! I got an FJR, but he still lets me ride the FZ
Where are you located? I never use my setup, and have basically a duplicate of what was just posted here....
I'm an hr west of Chicago, and this is what I've got (minus the top box not shown) I've never used the setup, and coming to terms with not really needing the bags, as travel is incredibly limited right now. Bags are brand new (I'll use them for the first time this weekend), side racks I bought used of FZ1OA, and top rack and box came with the bike.
