Bonneville America Forums Forums General Motorcycle Forums Other Bikes Decisions, decisions

My apologies, i didn't catch that you were in Thailand.

Alex, these bikes are assembled in Thailand, so there might not be any import duties

The difference between the Speedy and America in mainly cosmetic, but with a slightly different riding position. Oh, and the America is far superior

Powerwise, these bikes have got plenty, and they're the best handling cruisers going

As for reviews and reviewers, most of the people doing them are of the "if it can't wheelie, whats the point" mentality

HTH

Do some research on power to weight ratio.I do believe our bikes have that dept tied up in the cruiser category.

I had no idea the bikes were assembled in Thailand!!! Sweet!! That also means that they may actually be reasonable in price and parts should be readily available! Oh man! I'm as excited as an European retiree on viagra!!!

As far as reviewers are concerned, surely they must realize that every type of a bike has its own application. Performance of a sports bike is all nice and sweet, but it's uncomfortable as poop and you can't really go two up on them. A cruiser is just for that: cruising. So, why not just take it for what it is and review it accordingly?

With gas prices at around $4.50 a gallon, gas mileage is a real consideration. 50mpg isn't bad at all, but when you start hitting under 40mpg, your wallet starts to feel it.

I run about 150 miles more or less between fill ups. That leaves me 30+ miles on reserve that I try never to use. I hope that gas doesn't go stale since I never run reserve out. It must be getting pretty old by now.

That means you're getting less than 40mpg.

No, getting a little better than that since I never fill my tank. I always leave a little room at the top. Old habbit from my chopper that would leak out of the cap breather if I filled it too far. I get right about 50mpg. 3 gallons more or less at fill up.

Gotta say I get about 50 MPG too and I ride aggressively through mountainous terrain.

OT but ya got me curious... where were ya from before Thailand?

Yeah, a few of the reviewers stated that they got as little as 35mpg and everyone else says that they hit 160 miles on a tank. 160 miles on a 5 gallon tank is pretty bad. Even if it's 160 before hitting the reserve, that's still only around 40mpg.

I'm happy to hear that you guys are squeezing around 50 from your bikes.

I think you'll find the reviewers who call the America/Speedmaster underpowered are comparing the the bigger cruisers, and would probably say similar about any 800cc cruiser. If you want a bigger, more powerful bike you should be comparing to a Thunderbird or Rocket 3.

When I test rode the America (6 years ago) I got performance from it very similar to other Jap cruisers in the same range. No it did not offer the same "kick in the pants" as a 1500cc Kawasaki Vulcan I rode but that's hardly surprising. It does however beat my friend's 800cc Vulcan in every regard, including quality, appearance, and the ability to garner the interest of strangers (he almost cried when he bought his brand new Vulcan and we rode into the city, only to have a stranger disregard it to come talk to me about my then 2 year old America).

Since then I have put some really nice silencers on it, modified the air box, and removed the Air injectors (as well as a bunch of other non-performance related mods). I have taken it to 175kph (about 110mph I think) and it was me that backed off, not the bike. That's not bad for a 6 year old 800cc bike with 65,000km on it.

It's true that the Jap cruisers are cheaper (in fact you can get a Hyosung for MUCH cheaper) but when you ride them and then ride the Triumph you'll appreciate WHY they're cheaper. It's about build quality & feel... and the fact that the British machine will hold it's resale value much better and last longer (partly because much fewer Triumph owners sell their bikes than the Jap owners). Compare the number of used Jap cruisers in the size range vs the number of Triumph ones, and the differences in mileage. We typically keep our bikes a lot longer and sell them far less often - that alone speaks volumes.

Best advice I can give is: go test ride some 800cc jap cruisers, then ride the triumph, and I bet you don't go back to the jap ones, even at a few thousand bucks less.

I get 45 mpg from my ba in ride like ya stole it mode,maybe 48 in ole man mode.

Why is there such a big MPG discrepancy between Speedmaster05 and Smaug?

Maybe he rides his like he stole it from a hells angel!Lmao.

I doubt FI alone would be responsible for a 10-15MPG difference.

FI bikes here are getting 400Ks per tank i am told
I only get about 260Ks

Wow!! I'm shocked that there's such a huge difference!

My 06 is a carb bike.45-48 mpg.It is what it is.I get 135 miles til I run out on the main tank and switch to reserve.that is 3 gal in my tank.I have never gotten more then 4.2 gal in my tank even the one time I ran it almost dry.I also havnt gotten 48 mpg for a while either cause I dont ride like an ole man

I thought it was a 5 gallon tank, so at 45mpg, you should be squeezing approx 225 miles from a full tank. Am I right?

I dont get 5 gal in mine.Like I just said I get 4.2 .I have only went to reserve twice and even then I only rode for a mile or 2 before filling up.So,,,,3 gal is my normal fill up and 135 miles is what it goes to.
Check out this thread.Im not the only one getting good mpg.
http://www.bonnevilleamerica.com/forums/...5&fpart=all

Oh, I see. That makes sense then. I didn't realize the gas tanks on the newer models are a bit bigger.

Dont forget a US gallon is only 3.8 litres - elsewhere in the world its a little over 4.5, meaning 'mpg' figures vary significantly according to where you live..

I am pretty sure the America/Speedy will more than meet my expectations. I am especially intrigued that the Triumphs weigh about the same with an 800cc engine as my bike with a 400cc. I expect it to fly, which is one of the reasons I couldn't understand why the reviewers called them 'slow'.

As far as Harleys are concerned, they are twice the price here than what they are in the States. Having a Harley in Thailand means you want to show everyone you got 'stupid money'. In fact, from a purely practical perspective, having a 400cc Honda or Yamaha is the best way to go. Parts are readily available and Thai mechanics can service them blindfolded with one hand tied behind their back.

in fact, what got me thinking about the Triumph cruisers is a buddy of mine who bought a Speed Triple. He has owned it for a number of years and he's just giddy every time he gets on it. He said to me: why don't you get a Triumph cruiser? Knowing how much he raves about his bike, I had to start investigating.

You wont be disapointed with a triumph.If you wanna really have fun take your buddies speed triple for a spin!Though your a bit tall for it.As for the compliment value of owning a triumph I was at a pirate supply store tonight and a group of riders on a beemer,a honda and a harly pulled up.They were all around my BA lookin it over and were quite complimentary.The Ba and speedys have plenty of motor and will leave most similar cruisers in there dust but dont have that big feeling over the top attitude about them,leaving them understated yet beautiful.

I completely agree. They are understated and beautiful. Very elegant, without being flashy.

One other thing that's a point of concern to me and that's the Speedmaster/America are air cooled. Thailand is hot. It averages 90 degrees during the 'cool' season and 100 during the 'hot' season. I've seen many people retrofit water cooling on their Honda Phantoms (Honda makes an air cooled 200cc cruiser in Thailand they call Phantom. It's not the same Honda Shadow Phantom that's sold in the States) because they tend to overheat on extended trips during hot weather especially going up the mountains/hills. I was wondering if this is an issue to consider. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

They get hot,no doubt about it. Here in Pa it was a hot summer and I rode carefully due to it. I do have a temp gauge and my rides are about an hour each in frequent stop and go on my commutes. It never got over 225 deg f for me, I don't know what would be considered overhot for these bikes but it still ran well at that temp. Just for info,I painted my cam covers with std rust oleum rattle can red and the heat has not affected the finish so its not getting terribly hot high up on the motor.

My Speedmaster never overheated in hot weather. The oil cooler did a good job.

If anything, it seemed to run better the hotter it got!

How hot do they get under normal circumstances, not in hot weather? Did you guys go at highway speeds or in stop and go traffic?

Been in both during hot weather. Only time I ever got concerned was on very hot days stuck in construction where I couldn't move to get air flowing across the engine to cool it.

70 deg f cruising for extended times mine doesn't get hotter then 175 f. Commuting daily in stop and go it will just brush 200 f.