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I have owned a '91 Katana 1100 since '99, it is still in fine shape, has Kerker 4-1, jet kit and other stuff. I originally wanted a Goldwing, wife let me get a C14, cost $13,999.
I booked the flight to travel out of state to get one. Why? It was the only real way I could get a 49 state model. No evap crap, different ecu, that's what I wanted. Day before the trip, came down with sinus infection, was feeling real bad.
Flew out, got bike, felt bad. My mission- on a new bike, drive 1000 miles in two days, get back home before it snows.
Day one- got up at 4:00am to go to airport. Got bike around 12:00pm. It looked gorgeous! On the road, it was an easy fit from my Kat. I still have yet to stall it. I know it sounds cliche to say it didn't feel as heavy as it is (685 lbs?) but it is the truth. It handled better than my lighter katana 1100! Curves were a dream, it felt more stable,smoother. It made the kat feel like an old klunker. Still breaking in, observed the speed limits on highway 50 in CO. Hands started to get cold- no problem, I turned the hand warmers on.Computer says I am getting 38 mpg, not bad for a new bike.The computer also will tell you how much pressure is in your tires. If you have a leak, the bike will tell you-neat!
I get to the motel late, around 10:00pm- I feel like crap.
Next day, get up 5:30am. Bike is covered with ice, I scrape seat off clean, still have ice on windshield. That windshield is electric like the kat, but it goes much higher, offering real protection.
As I drive, there is a lot of fog and the road is wet- ice maybe? Temperature display says 28, so I take it careful. Time for gas.
Bike has an electronic key you keep in your pocket. Get on the bike and start, no fumbling for a key. However, for gas or saddlebag access, you need a key, which I keep in the glove box on the fairing. The box is self locking.When you are near, you can open it- it has a nifty electromagnetic lock.
Back on the road. The display tells you what gear you are in and an indicator tells you if you are driving efficiently. I switch into eco mode. This is a lean fuel map that extends mpg by 10%.
Entering NV, I am now enjoying cranking the engine up to 6000 rpms as recommended by the break in instructions. Now, I start to experience fear- high winds are rocking the bike. The bike is more stable than the kat, but still, despite 75 mph speed limit, I drop down to 60. The winds here are among the worse in the continent- you can have gust of 50mph or more and that can knock you down.
I look at the outside temp- 35 degrees. Snowflakes are whizzing past me, some large ones splat the windshield- $hit! The dandruff is not sticking, so I trudge on.
The snow turns into rain, lots of it. I keep looking at that temp gauge. I pull over and call wife. She looks up the weather on the net. I need to decided whether to try to make it home or hole up in a cheap motel on the road. Wife said they had snow, but it melted off, I80 into CA is closed, snow is not supposed to fall until 7:00pm. I think that I can make it by 5:30, so I continue on.
I get on the freeway, road is wet. I guess I accelerated too hard because the traction control warning came on. That's right, traction control! Had this been my old katana, the rear wheel might have been doing one of those crazy side to side dances. But not the C14, didn't even feel it, the Ktrac took care of it.
Braking is incredible. It has linked brakes, but I still use the front a lot, old habits. When i pulled off the freeway, I got to experience the abs kick in.
ABS+ traction control, I'll never get a bike without them again!
Now I am driving into high winds and the fuel economy read out says mileage sucks, plus bike isn't happy. So, I draft behind a semi for a while.
Comfort is excellent, all things considered. The seat has a dual layer foam design. Part is soft, part is firm. Hit a hard bump and you'll feel the firm part give. It is almost as if the seat is part of the suspension. My *** is now starting to hurt, but hey, I have been riding for 10 hours straight, the only breaks are for gas. The bike has no vibes at all, has electric motor like smoothness. I synched the kat two weeks ago with the morgan sticks and it has a zillion times more vibes. Speaking of vibes, the mirrors show exactly what is behind me, clearly. My Katana mirrors are wobbly things that show a blurry image of what is back there.
Geez, it is pouring rain! The temp is 37 degrees, I am really not enjoying it!
I made it home, put bike in garage, am grateful that I didn't wreck or get any tickets. Parked next to the kat, the C14 looks huge. Those saddlebags really hold a lot of stuff.
Compared to the katana 1100, the C14 is superior in every area- faster, smoother, more comfortable, better mpg, better handling and braking, fit and finish,just everything.
Oh well, I'll think of something to do with the big kitty. Even though it has a Corbin seat, I prefer the seat on the C14. I do prefer the height of the katana 1100. I am 5'11" and on the Katana, I can sit on it with feet flat on the ground. On the C14, it is more of toes touching the ground, the bike is tall!
Also, it takes a maneuver worthy of a gymnast in the Olympics to get off the bike without scraping a boot on a saddlebag. I think I have gotten the maneuver down- lift right leg up in the air, like dog taking a pee, slowly swing up and over.
Believe it or not, these C14's have a lot of mod potential.The motor is based on the ZX14, except it has VVT. Change the muffler, get larger throttle bodies, redo the tuning and you can have over 160hp at the rear wheel, easy. I can see a modded bike like this kissing 9 seconds in the quarter mile. Not bad for a bike that you can comfortably tour on, eh?
Still feeling like crap, that's my review. There are still some leftover '09 C14 bikes out there going for $8K-$9K and they are screaming good deal of a bike!
I booked the flight to travel out of state to get one. Why? It was the only real way I could get a 49 state model. No evap crap, different ecu, that's what I wanted. Day before the trip, came down with sinus infection, was feeling real bad.
Flew out, got bike, felt bad. My mission- on a new bike, drive 1000 miles in two days, get back home before it snows.
Day one- got up at 4:00am to go to airport. Got bike around 12:00pm. It looked gorgeous! On the road, it was an easy fit from my Kat. I still have yet to stall it. I know it sounds cliche to say it didn't feel as heavy as it is (685 lbs?) but it is the truth. It handled better than my lighter katana 1100! Curves were a dream, it felt more stable,smoother. It made the kat feel like an old klunker. Still breaking in, observed the speed limits on highway 50 in CO. Hands started to get cold- no problem, I turned the hand warmers on.Computer says I am getting 38 mpg, not bad for a new bike.The computer also will tell you how much pressure is in your tires. If you have a leak, the bike will tell you-neat!
I get to the motel late, around 10:00pm- I feel like crap.
Next day, get up 5:30am. Bike is covered with ice, I scrape seat off clean, still have ice on windshield. That windshield is electric like the kat, but it goes much higher, offering real protection.
As I drive, there is a lot of fog and the road is wet- ice maybe? Temperature display says 28, so I take it careful. Time for gas.
Bike has an electronic key you keep in your pocket. Get on the bike and start, no fumbling for a key. However, for gas or saddlebag access, you need a key, which I keep in the glove box on the fairing. The box is self locking.When you are near, you can open it- it has a nifty electromagnetic lock.
Back on the road. The display tells you what gear you are in and an indicator tells you if you are driving efficiently. I switch into eco mode. This is a lean fuel map that extends mpg by 10%.
Entering NV, I am now enjoying cranking the engine up to 6000 rpms as recommended by the break in instructions. Now, I start to experience fear- high winds are rocking the bike. The bike is more stable than the kat, but still, despite 75 mph speed limit, I drop down to 60. The winds here are among the worse in the continent- you can have gust of 50mph or more and that can knock you down.
I look at the outside temp- 35 degrees. Snowflakes are whizzing past me, some large ones splat the windshield- $hit! The dandruff is not sticking, so I trudge on.
The snow turns into rain, lots of it. I keep looking at that temp gauge. I pull over and call wife. She looks up the weather on the net. I need to decided whether to try to make it home or hole up in a cheap motel on the road. Wife said they had snow, but it melted off, I80 into CA is closed, snow is not supposed to fall until 7:00pm. I think that I can make it by 5:30, so I continue on.
I get on the freeway, road is wet. I guess I accelerated too hard because the traction control warning came on. That's right, traction control! Had this been my old katana, the rear wheel might have been doing one of those crazy side to side dances. But not the C14, didn't even feel it, the Ktrac took care of it.
Braking is incredible. It has linked brakes, but I still use the front a lot, old habits. When i pulled off the freeway, I got to experience the abs kick in.
ABS+ traction control, I'll never get a bike without them again!
Now I am driving into high winds and the fuel economy read out says mileage sucks, plus bike isn't happy. So, I draft behind a semi for a while.
Comfort is excellent, all things considered. The seat has a dual layer foam design. Part is soft, part is firm. Hit a hard bump and you'll feel the firm part give. It is almost as if the seat is part of the suspension. My *** is now starting to hurt, but hey, I have been riding for 10 hours straight, the only breaks are for gas. The bike has no vibes at all, has electric motor like smoothness. I synched the kat two weeks ago with the morgan sticks and it has a zillion times more vibes. Speaking of vibes, the mirrors show exactly what is behind me, clearly. My Katana mirrors are wobbly things that show a blurry image of what is back there.
Geez, it is pouring rain! The temp is 37 degrees, I am really not enjoying it!
I made it home, put bike in garage, am grateful that I didn't wreck or get any tickets. Parked next to the kat, the C14 looks huge. Those saddlebags really hold a lot of stuff.
Compared to the katana 1100, the C14 is superior in every area- faster, smoother, more comfortable, better mpg, better handling and braking, fit and finish,just everything.
Oh well, I'll think of something to do with the big kitty. Even though it has a Corbin seat, I prefer the seat on the C14. I do prefer the height of the katana 1100. I am 5'11" and on the Katana, I can sit on it with feet flat on the ground. On the C14, it is more of toes touching the ground, the bike is tall!
Also, it takes a maneuver worthy of a gymnast in the Olympics to get off the bike without scraping a boot on a saddlebag. I think I have gotten the maneuver down- lift right leg up in the air, like dog taking a pee, slowly swing up and over.
Believe it or not, these C14's have a lot of mod potential.The motor is based on the ZX14, except it has VVT. Change the muffler, get larger throttle bodies, redo the tuning and you can have over 160hp at the rear wheel, easy. I can see a modded bike like this kissing 9 seconds in the quarter mile. Not bad for a bike that you can comfortably tour on, eh?
Still feeling like crap, that's my review. There are still some leftover '09 C14 bikes out there going for $8K-$9K and they are screaming good deal of a bike!
.
I have got to work on my sensitivity ........ok thats over lets get to the next caring moment
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