I have yet to ride an "Iron Butt" event so I do not have the long range experience, but I sure can attest to the durability of the Savage under hard riding conditions.  I ride hard and fast, cruising at 80-85 mph frequently with hard acceleration most of the time unless there are children/animals present, and my modifed Savage just loves it.  The only noise I hear is the sweet purr...eh...roar of a well tuned engine...soon to be even more well tuned with the addition of a custom built exhaust system.  I have the pipe for a new 1 3/4" header plus a new upswept  Supertrapp that will be welded to the header.  All black of course.

RoughRider wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:08:


Sounds like a bunch of misconceptions here.  First, let's remember that air cooled engines were here long before liquid cooled and in that period engineering designs improved the engines quite a bit.  It's been a long time since valve rockers had to be oiled manually or had external adjustments.

All engine parts are designed for temperature changes.  That is why some parts are aluminum and others steel.  They are designed to allow for expansion in relating parts (valves stems and rockers for example) as well.  Liquid cooling does control the expansion of materials by making things consistent, but this doesn't mean that a properly maintained air cooled engine can not be just as reliable.  Just look at how long BMW produced air cooled twins capable of 100,000 miles use.

Remember too, that a "water jacket" around an engine is also sound insulation.  You won't hear internal noises as easily as those resonating through cooling fins.

No Suzuki employee here 8).  In fact, this is the FIRST non-American street vehicle that this 40 year old American Jarhead has ever owned.  $3995 plus tax/tags/title and K&N filter, a back rest (hey, after humping 40 pound packs in the Marines, my back ain't what it used to be) and a 152.5 main and I'm scootin' around.  Do all my servicing myself.  Two valve lash checks, the second one in about 45 minutes!  

Know what I like about my bike?  It scoots fast enough and leans far enough for a 40 year old father of 2 and husband of one.  I have less than $4500 total in my 2005 S40. including taxes/tag/title, I can do anything and everything it will ever need, and can pick it up off the ground myself (practiced in the yard).  And around a hundred a year for full insurance.  No pinging, ticking or other weird noises.  Belt drive is SWEEEEEET.  And I can modify this bike easy...thinking side draft K&N next...

Now all my friends...they get a pipe and pay big bucks for rejetting and carb balancing....they pay big bucks for maintenance and valve checks.....ever known someone with a sport bike....they pay more in 50000 miles for all this stuff than I will on my whole bike!  You know the difference between rocker adjustments and "bucket over shim"?  If you don't, you don't ever want too.  And they pay more for insurance than our 'bottom of the stolen list' bike....

If you are someone who doesn't want to play with your bike or learn how, and like to bolt on lots of goodies instead of engineering them yourself...then this bike may not be for you...but that doesn't make it a bad bike.

IF THE SAVAGE WASN'T A GREAT BIKE...

WHY DID I BUY 3 OF THEM !!!???

???

mrbusdriver wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:08:

My feeling toward the large full fairing luxery touring bikes is "why bother?"  You get a motorcycle and then you get rid of the vibrations and the wind -- and you end up with a two-wheel convertable car that is hard to set back upright if it falls over.

Savage_Greg wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:08:

Because neither of you were willing to ride pillion!

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Actually, I have owned 3 new SAVAGES at different times:   1992, 1996, 2002.  I keep coming back to it because I love thumpers.   I have owned aprox 23 bikes (all I can remember!) over the years from a ZUNDAP scooter to an H-D. but the thumper is a real bike. what MR. P says is true- a honda gold wing is really a convertible car. Since my wife can't ride (back surgery) I
think a big thumper is the answer. All my trips (long and short) are on back roads- the only way to travel !!

Hey Lancer
Certainly wouldn't go any bigger than a 40mm carb on a Savage (45 on KLX).

Clive W