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ive recently really like the v-max and thinking of getting one as my next bike. is there any issues to worry about with used ones. they havent changed it in 20 years or whatever so i dont like the idea of dumping 12 grand on a new one, ive seen used going fo 3-5 grand for fairly recent ones. are they reliable or prone to any problems. i read that you have to do some work to them to get rid of handling issues, is that a hassle/expensive?

any over all thoughts on the vmax good or bad?

They can run a tad bit hot in traffic.

You see them all over for 3-5k until you are ready to buy......

The one downside that comes to mind is the bike is too responsive, you hit a pot-hole and you get bounced around because you cracked the thottle.



Tom

That was my second bike choice when I bought the ZRX. The only downside I saw was handling. It is a straight line screamer but has the rake of a cruiser. Not that I heard the handle horible, but they are not carvers really. Still would love to ride one.

Same as buying any used bike, just look it over well for signs of abuse. The big motor is a real work of art, with the stock exhaust it's the best sounding bike ever, imo. There is a yahoo vmax owners group you can join, I think it's linked at www.v-max.com.

Common mods to the max, not counting all the possible exhaust variations... new fan switch from local auto parts store to make the radiator fan kick on at a lower temp. Frame brace, on a hard dyno run the frame flex is visible (that's how strong the motor is). Fork brace to cure the high speed cornering head shake some max's show (mine doesn't). I believe the frame brace is the most expensive and it's under $200. I think. You can also do what is called the "Furbur Fix" by rearranging the steering head nuts and washers to eliminate the shake. That can be explained with a google search.

two sites to help you out, if you haven't seen them already...

http://vmaxoutlaw.com/ This history page is neat, tells you of the changes over time. 93 on has bigger forks, 96 on has the spin-on oil filter, etc.

http://rmsportmax.com/gateway.html I think this is John Furbur's own site, plenty of stuff for the max there, including used bikes. He's in PA.

The handling issues are a bit overblown, imo. I race through corners and scrape the pegs just as I did on my 95 Magna, it just takes some getting used to the feel of the bike's weight. When you come up out of a corner and hit the throttle hard, better hang on tight. The v-boost kicking in is like getting a hard push in the middle of already hard acceleration.

This is my 97 sitting next to my recently acquired Kawi ZRX...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v215/ ... 07f5cf.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v215/ ... 4365a4.jpg

Hope this helps... max is a truly awesome machine, old tech or not. It still kicks but and draws a lot of attention.

cool thanks for all the info. i was just curious about going used. mostly because of the more complicated air intake setup and the bigger motor, wasnt sure if they were prone to more wear and tear than any other bike.

i really dont like the exhausts look on them though it looks like a ninja250 or something. that flared out pipe just doesnt do it for me.

The V-Max has the V_Boost system that allows two carbs to feed one cylinder after you reach 6000RPM. It's like the bike is super charged when that kicks in, be sure you're hangin' on.

There is a mod you can get that starts the boost at 3000RPM and you can remotely switch from the mod to the stock setting. My gawd what a ride that would be....

I love the look of the VMax, iwannadie, We have the baby brother of the VMax, 750 FZX. Its a lot lighter. If you look on FZX site, you can see a VMax and FZX together on a drag strip, Head to head and there is hardly anything in it. It comes under Ricardos homepage. Also has all the technical info etc

dr_bar wrote:The V-Max has the V_Boost system that allows two carbs to feed one cylinder after you reach 6000RPM. It's like the bike is super charged when that kicks in, be sure you're hangin' on.

There is a mod you can get that starts the boost at 3000RPM and you can remotely switch from the mod to the stock setting. My gawd what a ride that would be....

Just ordered one

I don't know if this is an issue for you, but sitting on it for me was really weird. It felt like the handlebars wanted me to lean way forward, but the pegs wanted me sitting up straight. Not something I was comfortable with.

You might want to jump soon if you are gonna pick one up. I think the 2005 is the last year they made them. The price may jump if they are discontinued.

On the other hand, they sure do look cool!