I'm looking at 3 bikes- 2012 Bonneville SE, 2012 Harley-Davidson Forty-Eight, and a first gen Vmax.

The bonneville is my favorite ti look at, and I'm a sucker for triumphs. The Harley takes a close second, but the Harley name is nothing I care about. The vmax is just badass in its own way.

The bike will be a dailt driver, commuter, weekender, fun bike, toy, favorite possession, light touring, a fun way to get lost, etc etc etc

Anyone have any input or experience?

My uncle rides a bonnie and loves it.
harley davidson
and the vmax is an awesome bike.

shaft drive vs chain drive... v4 vs parallel twin
the v-max has a lot of positives over the bonnie... but the bonnie is oh-so-pretty.

The bonneville pretty much has my heart. My woman hates the harley because it lacks a passenger seat.

The vmax is epic...but I can just see me falling In love witb the bonnie. More than i am now, that is

Whatever is more comfortable and handles best.

Bonnie its more of an all rounder.

Just be aware it its not That much of a step up. But it has gobs more torque.

Michael

the Bonneville has the cool factor that can't be beat but isn't that much different from your GS whereas the VMax is heavy, fast, more of a power cruiser, doesn't handle bad but isn't as flickable as your Suzuki, by all means ride one, the rush is incredible, I've never owned or ridden a Harley.

vmax. more power, more comfort, more awesome. looking at it doesn't count in my book. the only looking is when they're PARKED, which doesn't matter.

bonne - anything 'new' is a huge setback in my opinion. price is too high, insurance too high, worried about a scratch, and it is more of a golden calf than a motorcycle. or car. or boat. whatever, new sucks.

hd - parts are everywhere. everyone knows how to work on them. the experience compared to the vmax is very blah though.

Thanks for the input guys, just fyi I don't need a step up in power or performance, I bought the gs after riding super sports. I just couldn't love the gs like I wantedvto, so I'm moving on.

I am worried about buying new....last time I bought new I messed up 3 weeks in and nearly totaled in, and it all came out of pocket.

The only worry I have with a vmax, or any cruiser, is ground clearance. I've never been able to do a twisty run on one, just around town and highway.

Anyone have input going from sport to  cruiser?

I'd say go Bonneville. Guy at work has one with 40k on it already and says the cost of ownership is minimal and it's perfect for commuting about. Not to mention it just looks great. If you buy a Harley it's gonna cost a paycheck to replace a turn signal bulb and probably two for tires. Not much fun to ride, but you get to dress up like a ghey pirate and sit at the dealership and talk about riding and "living free". Going to a cruiser isn't that much different except that you'll feel the need to approach things a little slower (or at least I did) and you won't want to lay it over as much in the twisties.

Quote from: Huff1371 on June 19, 2012, 08:25:46 AM
I'd say go Bonneville. Guy at work has one with 40k on it already and says the cost of ownership is minimal and it's perfect for commuting about. Not to mention it just looks great. If you buy a Harley it's gonna cost a paycheck to replace a turn signal bulb and probably two for tires. Not much fun to ride, but you get to dress up like a ghey pirate and sit at the dealership and talk about riding and "living free". Going to a cruiser isn't that much different except that you'll feel the need to approach things a little slower (or at least I did) and you won't want to lay it over as much in the twisties.

Id love the bonneville, but itll have to be newish if I get one, since they started FI in 2009. I have literally seen a variance of 60 degrees F in the course of a week here so Id love to ditch the carbs....which makes the Bonneville the only answer.

Scratches and things wouldnt bother me, they give it character and a good USED look....but if I were to drop it at speed   

I suppose thats a risk we all take, though.

EDIT:

On another note, since were all hating on Harley here, myself included...check this out



Its just so sick.  Any good alternatives  available for this style bike though...? Nope? All garage hack jobs. sigh....Good thing the bonneville is uber sexy, rides awesomely, etc etc

Well I just bought a Triumph Street Triple R and an throwing my hat in for the Bonneville SE. I almost bought one of those instead, really great looking bike... and come on, its a Bonneville. Every real motorcycle enthusiasts wants one! One of the true classics.

Yes, you want fuel injection!!! That was the biggest thing i wanted in an upgrade. The HD and newer Vmax give you that at well. I was considering a HD too and the forty-eight is nice bike but a few things killed it for me... One, the price was higher than other bikes I was interested in. Two, the gas tank... 2 GALLONS! You wont get very far before you need to find a gas station. 80 miles until empty. I dont have much to say on the Vmax, never liked the style, loads of power tho.

I would say the Bonneville is the most practical and still very nice looking. You can pick up used ones from 2010 between 5-7k too. The SE adds some nice flare and paint options too.

The SE also has a Tach, stainless engine cases, and taller gearing..maybe a few other things.

And I am not even looking at the new vmax....180rwhp...? I get bored when I ride my buddies R1, I feel bad that its not on a race track.

Getting bored on an R1 sounds like a recipe for disaster.  Must...twist...throttle...

The V-Max is a bit of a gas guzzler, for a bike (around 35-40mpg), but one of the bikes I've always thought it would be nice to own. Resale prices for used V's are typically fairly high, so it's more expensive than your typical used bike but it should also retain more value over time. I would have to test ride the HD 48 to comment on it ~ some of them are OK and some are not. The Triumph Bonneville is probably the best daily driver, but it doesn't do anything for me otherwise.

Quote from: NesquikNinja on June 19, 2012, 08:39:18 AM

Quote from: Huff1371 on June 19, 2012, 08:25:46 AM
I'd say go Bonneville. Guy at work has one with 40k on it already and says the cost of ownership is minimal and it's perfect for commuting about. Not to mention it just looks great. If you buy a Harley it's gonna cost a paycheck to replace a turn signal bulb and probably two for tires. Not much fun to ride, but you get to dress up like a ghey pirate and sit at the dealership and talk about riding and "living free". Going to a cruiser isn't that much different except that you'll feel the need to approach things a little slower (or at least I did) and you won't want to lay it over as much in the twisties.

Id love the bonneville, but itll have to be newish if I get one, since they started FI in 2009. I have literally seen a variance of 60 degrees F in the course of a week here so Id love to ditch the carbs....which makes the Bonneville the only answer.

Scratches and things wouldnt bother me, they give it character and a good USED look....but if I were to drop it at speed   

I suppose thats a risk we all take, though.

EDIT:

On another note, since were all hating on Harley here, myself included...check this out



Its just so sick.  Any good alternatives  available for this style bike though...? Nope? All garage hack jobs. sigh....Good thing the bonneville is uber sexy, rides awesomely, etc etc

A toaster parked at the beach looks good. Buy for the ride, not the looks.