2022 MT09SP

[treedoc_imp]

Well finally it arrived last weekend... I was a bit bummed about the wait, especially considering the dealer had the MT10SP on the floor long before mine arrived, but the bike is amazing!

Initial impressions when I first got on was the seating position, bolt upright with wide bars and reasonable legroom. Really comfy and takes no time to get the confidence up. The wind blast seems cleaner than the RS but you take more on the chest.

I started in drive mode 2 and traction control 2 at the recommendation of the dealer (1 is the most aggressive throttle mode/least intervention TC mode). He said not to worry too much about break-in, just dont lug it or excessively redline it before the 1000km first service.

Pootled through town, nice at low speeds, headed to a curvy backroad and oh-my-god this bike is fkn fun... dangerous... naughty...

The engine has power everywhere, it just keeps pulling as you smash up through the gears with the quickshifter, the engine noise up through the gears is epic and before you know it you are doing stupid speeds.

Very easy to ride fast, beautifully balanced, and you just have to think about cornering and it tips in, stable through the bends at apparently any speed, and super confidence inspiring.

Initially I was taking it easy (need to scrub in the tyres) so got home and took a pic next to the RS above. Called a mate for a quick ride and the Pirelli S22s have so much grip I soon forgot about scrubbing them in... I dont think they will last long but they are sticky.

Suspension is really nice, very composed over a few undulations that upset the RS, a bit 'sporty' over short choppy bits but fully adjustable and I havent fiddled with anything yet. Chassis and handling is on another level to the old MT09.

Quickshifter and blipper is so fun, really smooth once you get used to it, you need to be on the gas up the box and off the back gas down and it works perfectly. Sounds cool blipping down a couple of gears into the corner, I end up changing gears more that I normally would ha ha.

Front brakes seem good, ABS kicks in way too early on the back brakes.
The seat feels quite hard but nicely shaped, I havent done enough kms to form an opinion yet.

The riding modes; I tried 4 and it feels like an MT07 or something, a lot less power. Mode 2 is great, I thought mode 1 would be snatchy but it wasnt at all, not a huge difference from mode 2, maybe a bit more responsive down low. I didnt try 3, havent tried any different TC modes or really played with the electrics at all.
You can change riding modes on the go if your off the gas.

The display is small but clear, and a lot of the smaller hard to read info is a bit irrelevant when riding. So far Im getting about 6l/100km, at reasonably spirited pace but nothing outrageous.

Not as 'quality' as the RS, plenty of plastic, little things like no angled valve stems, the rear brake lever is like something China put on bikes 20yrs ago, you have to ride the kickstand all the way down, the turning lock is terrible and catches you by surprise and has already caused an embarrassing 'foot dab'.

I have put on a small flyscreen and a radiator cover. Will get a tail tidy and some frame sliders, thats probably it for now.

I have only got a couple hundred km on it so far (work, rain) but initial impressions are OMG this is a weapon.