Total Motorcycle Community Forums

SW Michigan guy here... Late 20's, Great looking if you close your eyes...JS.

I'm pretty new to riding I guess..my first bike a few years ago was a 1983 Honda interceptor 750 VFR ($500). Never rode a bike only manual cars...My father had a bike throughout my childhood & my uncles raced uphill..I guess just being on a bike was in my blood? I hopped on it..never dumped it, missed a gear or laid it down.. I rode that bike like it was going out of style..(& it was, years before I got it) but I loved it. I had no 2nd gear, clutch & brake handle were about 3" long BC it had been flipped and dropped countless times by it's previous owner. BUT, I didn't care! A summer of riding turned me into a fanatic tbh...That fall it was stolen.. & BC it was illegal..I couldn't do anything about it. But, 3 years of cursing the cage I was in every nice day throughout spring, summer, & fall I finally got a bike! It's old but in amazing shape. A little smaller than I was wanting but the deal I got was kind of an easy decision. I grabbed a 1998 Yammmmy FZR 600R for $1,500 with 6,000 miles on it.

The reason I got a little thorough about this is....BC I got this bike, my neighbors caught the fever & got theirs as well. There is a 2001 CBR 929 & a 1995 CBR 1000 outside of my house right now..I rode the 929 & was blown away...it is Very fast & smooth. Needless to say, I was jealous.

Question: Should I stick to the older 600 to get my bearings back or should I go grab this CBR 954 for $4,500 I have my eye on?

I'd stick with your Yammy. In the real world, with real roads and traffic conditions, I don't think literbikes have a significant performance advantage (and it can be argued that in the real world, there are advantages to a lighter, nimbler, more exploitable 600, although this is generalizing). This is a really nerdy thing to think about, but check servicing costs and insurance too, to be able to decide if a literbike is really worth it.

The Yamaha hands down. The cbr is a race bike I don't care how old it is and if you ride your FZR right it will handle just as good with more than enough power. Getting on a straight road and wacking open the throttle is something anyone can do, dropping into a lefthander at just the right lean angle and powering out so nice and smooth and low you can smell asphalt well thats EPIC either machine can do the latter but the cbr will way more easily have you runnin in WAY to hot. That usually ends BAD but best of luck on whichever decision you make.
Dave

+1 what they said.