Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Hey guys, I've been scouring the internet for the past few days to try to find some advice on a bike purchase, im lucky I found this board, its been really great to look through all the posts!

I am a newer rider, I currently ride an 81 honda c70 I picked up this past spring its basically a glorified scooter, but it does have peddles and stuff, so i guess its technically a motorcycle.

Anyhow, I'm looking to pick up a real bike now, the c70 tops out at 40 mph. I want a comfortable cruiser, but I don't want something sluggish. I want to pick out a bike that can last me for several years.

Originally I was looking at a v star 650, seemed great, was comfortable to sit on even though im 6'3", but once I saw its 1/4 mile times I was less than impressed.

I still have to go to the honda and suzuki dealerships to try out a few boulevards and shadows, but the same place that had the v star also had a 1995 virago 1100 with 4000 miles on it, asking $3500. It looks impressively clean on the outside, comes with a lot of extras (solid luggage bags etc.). I'm having a hard time digging up numbers on that bike though, I can't find any info about how fast it is (or was) I'm not trying to buy a speed machine, I just don't want something slow. The bike is European and all the gauges are metric. Apparently some rich guy brought over here on vacation, toured the country with it, left it here when he was done, some local kid bought it, never rode it and now its sitting at the dealership again.

So im just throwing this out there, wondering if any of you know about this bike, or have had some experience with it, and can say whether it could possibly be a bike that might last a while, and if it might be worth owning - assuming the internals look as good as good as the outside. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks guys!

Have you taken the time to sit on the Virago? It's a bike with plenty of power, but like every bike I've ever owned, after a while you're still wishing it had a sixth gear. Don't get me wrong, I rode one for about 3 1/2 years and thoroughly enjoyed it.

For a 6'3" person, the erg's on the Virago may not quite be there, I actually found the 650 VStar (Classic) to be a more comfortable bike. Also, don't put down the 650 for it's 1/4 mile times as, that bike will take you just about anywhere you want. My friend took a 650 loaded for bear on a trip down the Oregon coast, then up through central Oregon to Crater Lake and it never skipped a beat, and when I say loaded, I mean loaded...

thanks for the tips! I know what you mean about the riding position on the virago, I forgot to mention that this one had some kind of extenders put on the foot pedals, so they are placed way out in front, like maybe 1.5 feet in front of where they typically would sit, so its a lot more comfortable.

Is that a picture of the loaded v star? It looks great, and what a beautiful ride it went on!

Thats nice to hear that the v star 650 can still get the job done, still can't make up my mind though. An old bike for a better price, but since its pretty old, and doesn't have a lot of miles on it i'm guessing it did a lot of sitting around, but it had to have been garage kept - none of the plastic or paint is faded at all, and its virtually rust free, or a new, and smaller bike for more money - I would feel more confident in its reliability, but its not as fast, I might outgrow it in a while, and I think the virago looks cooler.

I'm not sure if this is mostly personal preference, or if underneath that there is a definitive "wiser" choice.

Yes, that's a picture of my friends 650...

If you know anything about the west coast mountain ranges, that 650's been through several of them. All without a hitch, and with better fuel mileage than you'll ever get with the Virago. I also found the range on the Virago shorter by far than the VStar and that's also something you may want to consider.