Wong!

I'd get the wife to visit the office, if it was me, but we've never had a problem with them.

I'm not sure, but I think she pays direct to the office anyway. We were told I couldn't do a bank transfer, which I found a bit strange, but there you go...

What are they like with a passenger inboard ? More comfortable ?

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Not sure a passenger would want to spend more than 5 mins on that pillion seat.

I got 12,500 baht off my truck, interest free credit and all the 'extras' for free.

But generally speaking, I think you will only get the 'extras' (you know, the stuff that in reality comes with the car like mats, bed liners, rear seats for the extra cab models and if you have no taste those awful chromed plastic bits that you can stick in various places).

Anyone know how the hell I'm supposed to clean the bike in there?

The fan is roughly 5 inches across.

It's quite well hidden, so this is the best I could do.

I'm not talking about the seat comfort. I'm talking about the riding position. Terrible. Sitting on the front 1/3 of the bike.

The Streetfighter 848 or Diavel s probably their most ergonomic bike in the lineup, no?

I sat on the 795 the other day. Dreadfully uncomfortable for me. Knackers squashed into the tank and my head felt like it was almost over the headlight. Beautifully made though.

I had a similarly crappy petcock on my old VF750. See if you can find a rebuild kit on ebay or through an specialist forum. If not, you'll be ok using a standard petcock.

It's generally easier to downscale from a premium product than it is to upscale from a value product. So I think Ducati's going to be all right on design alone.

KTM and Ducati are doing all the right things to hit the growth markets, Honda of course keeps killing it from the low end. BMW is missing out; Triumph might yet change course.

There will be a low displacement scrambler from Ducati soon- imagine it's a 250cc or 300cc cafe racer for 200k baht, would be highly competitive with Honda & Kawasaki here.

I read (and talked to the company who is building a new BMW dealership in Udon) that BMW were also developing smaller bikes and they will be made in Thailand along with one or two mid-range bikes.

^ I just went to Big Wing where their entire range is waiting for me to rub my bits up against.

We also went to Ducati. I liked the Monster, but the riding position is bloody awful. The 2 guys were clueless except when it came to showing me the price of the small range of bikes they had in the showroom. They did have a 795 available to ride away though.

My friend had a monster and a simple handlebar changed made a HUGE!!!! difference.

I didn't like the way the seat ensures my unfeasibly large testicles get squashed on the fuel tank.

^ I just went to Big Wing where their entire range is waiting for me to rub my bits up against.

We also went to Ducati. I liked the Monster, but the riding position is bloody awful. The 2 guys were clueless except when it came to showing me the price of the small range of bikes they had in the showroom. They did have a 795 available to ride away though.

Here is the video that he's talking about^^

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both cbr and ninja are modified. The cbr destroyed the ninjas ( yes, multiple) that day. Ninja is a nice bike but the cbr handles better , the only way the ninja can get ahead is if the straights are long enough. nice video and proof to all the people that look down on a cbr250 that this little inexpensive bike is way better then they think it is.

I hope Honda's spam team doesnt do the same thing they did to this forum when the 250 came out, that seriously turned me off the bike for many years and would not even consider it thanks to those trolls.

So people who realise Hondas are better than Kawasakis are trolls, right? How does that work?

Popped into Udon Kawasaki today.

"Where is the Z800?" I asked.

"You pay. We get for you" was the answer.

FAIL!

^ Uh. OK.

Wheels look the exact same.

Not the same as a 500, as I presume that's what we were comparing it to.

^ Wheels and dash are different!

^ Your keys have chip in them which is programmed to match a chip in the ECU, so you cannot just get a key cut at the local key place.

There is a way to flash new keys...

i mean know some friends at honda and met with the owner of one of the major big bike shop - which i will not be giving the names - and that guy make parts for cbr650 and he saw the bike and know the details.

also bigwing confirmed me as well about the announcement of the bike on 28th of November. so lets see jonny.

I had this info independently confirmed by the manager at Honda BW in Udon a few months ago.

If they have finally sorted out the cam-chain issues and improved the general quality of ALL of the bike it still wont be a patch on the Kawasaki 300 Ninja , which has a much more powerful twin cylinder engine , better brakes and much better adjustable suspension. This is why the Honda cant be more expensive than the current overpriced model. IF this engine is reliable , it will much needed in the sluggish CRF 250 dual sport bike , although it will still need two radiators.

Have you ever ridden a 300 Ninja? The brakes are terrible - much worse than either the CBR250 or the CB500 range.

Brilliant cars - love what you've done to your one.

^ Not Ducatis

My SIL's partner is looking to buy a new truck. He wants an Isuzu and so I suggested he takes a look at the Chevys as they have IFC at the moment. He says that Chevys are no good and I tried to explain that it's the same bloody truck as the Isuzu, but it was like talking to a 7 year old (as is most things here). Up to him - his money.

As for getting monks involved and getting finger painting done on my brand new vehicle... luckily my wife isn't daft enough to suggest any of that nonsense to me.

Wong!...you got it wrong....Isuzu and Chevy share the same platform and similar interior,but engines are different now and of course the exterior.

For Thai drivers there is Isuzu,Toyota...............................................................Chevy(that will be the last choice).

Yes, they're essentially the same, as I said.

Sorry for expressing an opinion on a discussion forum. To my eye, Kawas and Dukes are fugly and Kawas unrefined compared with other brands.

Does one have to be a sheep to post on here?

Hi Wong, you're not hurting my feelings at all and I'm a Ducati owner. Express away. Though you have to accept that there will always be folks who take offense at someone tainting the image of their preferred marque. Opinions are like ar$eholes, everyone has one

I've got two!

My SIL's partner is looking to buy a new truck. He wants an Isuzu and so I suggested he takes a look at the Chevys as they have IFC at the moment. He says that Chevys are no good and I tried to explain that it's the same bloody truck as the Isuzu, but it was like talking to a 7 year old (as is most things here). Up to him - his money.

As for getting monks involved and getting finger painting done on my brand new vehicle... luckily my wife isn't daft enough to suggest any of that nonsense to me.

Good service from Kawa. Well done.

Sorry for expressing an opinion on a discussion forum. To my eye, Kawas and Dukes are fugly and Kawas unrefined compared with other brands.

Does one have to be a sheep to post on here?

No surprise there - your profile pic says it all. Well not everybody can have a sense of aesthetics - not your fault I guess.

Just out of curiosity I ran the search term 'ugliest motorcycles' on google and clicked on the first link. Here is what I got:

http://eatsleepride.com/c/15768/Top_Tens__Ugliest_motorcycles_of_all_time

Hmmm 3 Hondas in that list but only 1 Ducati and no Kawasakis

Other freakishly fungly Honda bikes that come to mind are the CX500, DN, PC800 The list goes on and on...

And here is the next monstrosity Honda has planned for 2014: http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/624/15484/Motorcycle-Article/Honda-Reveals-CTX700-Models-for-2014.aspx (don't forget reading the comments near the bottom).

I agree - that CTX700 is fugly. Obviously designed for the US market.