05-20-2015, 11:55 AM
(05-15-2015, 04:03 AM)dUh!_imp Wrote: In 2013 I was on my way to purchase a new motorcycle and I couldn’t wait. I had not owned a motorcycle since 2004 so I had been contemplating buying one for a few years. I would go to the dealership: look, touch, and yes, even smell everything about them. I finally made up my mind – I was going to buy one. Turning into the dealership, I sat in the center lane waiting for traffic to clear – I could see the Bonneville just behind the glass doors. It was just a matter of minutes till all the pesky traffic clears. Quick glance at the clock and it’s still early in the day, and something comes over me. Check the traffic behind me and the road is clear, time to get rolling and just go see what the Yamaha, Honda; Kawasaki dealer has just a few blocks away. Go check out the inferior bikes before I ride away on my new Triumph. I’m not budging! Even if the bike on the floor doesn’t have all the options I’m looking for, I’m ordering what I want. I have waited long enough; its time and those Bonneville’s are what I’m looking for.
Pull into the Honda section first and basically kick the door in. Can’t believe I’m wasting my time ….
There it sits.
As soon as my eyes adjust from the summer sun, to the dim lit dealer … there it is. I look at it in disbelief. What is this thing in front of me … 1100 what? About that time a salesman greets me. I shake his hand but don’t break eye contact off this CB1100 sitting just inside the door. There may have been other bikes in the dealership ... I honestly don’t know … who cares. If there was a buy one get one free sign, I didn’t see it. All I saw was the CB1100. I walk around to the driver’s side of the bike. There is was. My eyes caught it instantly. A huge scratch on the tank just by the seat. A brand new bike that already has a scratch … a scratch I didn’t put on it, and I don’t have to worry about scratching my new bike. I look at the salesman – “I’ll take this one”. Nothing else mattered. I knew nothing about it, and it didn’t bother me one bit.
I have not regretted it since. When 2014 came around and there was talk of changes being made to the 2014, I was a little worried. What do I not like about the 2013: 6th gear would be nice. Power, more power. What if the new bike has a substantial increase in power? If it is up on HP I may be in trouble. Depreciation … do not care about depreciation when it comes to more power. Honda certainly read all the reviews of the first initial releases in the US. How many reports shot the bike down for being low on power compared to ____ or in a group of _____? A lot to almost all. My credit was lucky. Only a few subtle changes were made that didn’t really sway me to change up. If there had been a bump in more power – would I have switched?
Thinking back in Kawasaki history they did make the ZRX1100 and ZRX1200 for a few years. That bike had more power, and it did last a few years longer, but it never really caught on either.
Would more power have changed the public’s view on the CB1100? How was the older 1970’s CB in terms of performance? I’m a bit young to know these things, but my perception of history goes as – The CB was a top predator on the streets; until the KZ came along. How does the new CB1100 stand up? We all have our own answer to that.
I am not trying to start a debate over how capable the CB1100 is. I just know the mass general public sees things differently than I, and the CB1100 falls short. Looking back at Kawasaki, would more power have really made a difference in the CB1100 popularity?
I love the bike, for all that it is, and I don’t care about all that it isn’t. I accept it, scratch n all.
A last and final funny thought. Society typically claims they want something a little different. Something that stands out from the crowd. In walks a CB1100, and it is picked apart for not being more like____ or more like ____ doesn’t have the same power as _____. Here in Indianapolis there are 2 bikes running around. Harley Davidson, and the Hayabusa. I know there are variations to the different Harleys, but to my untrained eye – it’s a Harley. Hayabusa ; during our bike nights there are at least 8 Hayabusa sitting around for every one of something else. So does the CB1100 blend in and conform? No – it is different in so many ways and again, it’s criticized for being a little different.
I always get a kick out of the comments section that accompany the online motorcycle reviews. Inevitably, it seems that at least half of the comments are something along the lines of "if only this bike had 50 more horsepower and cost a few thousand dollars less I'd be all over it". Or "if only that bike were 100 pounds lighter with better brakes and suspension for a few thousand dollars less, it would be sitting in my garage right now". With some folks, you just can't win.
When I first laid eyes on the production version of the CB1100 I was ecstatic. The only item from the prototype that I really wish had made it to production was the sweeping 4 into 1 exhaust system that was so very reminiscent of the CB400F. But Honda did a real nice job with the headers on the production model giving the bike it's own look so it wasn't all that upsetting.
What was upsetting however was the fact that this bike wasn't being released in the States. That was a tough pill to swallow. However, once Honda started dropping hints that they were going to bring the bike over here, in my mind I began convincing myself that I was going to own a CB1100 at some point. Once the photos started to show up on the web illustrating the version of the bike Honda planned to release over here I became slightly obsessed. Finally, I placed my deposit on a CB1100 the very day that it was announced that the bike was actually going to be headed for our shores. Then I just had to wait just a slight bit longer for the dealer to actually learn about the bike so that they could officially order one for me. LOL
I've never found myself wishing for more horsepower although more would be fine I'm sure. I've never felt like I overpaid for the bike, although I wouldn't have minded paying less. It's been such an enjoyable bike to own, there's no way I would trade taking ownership of one of the first CB1100s to arrive in this country for a better deal. In all honesty, I wouldn't mind if the CB1100 were a bit lighter in weight. But obviously I can live with it the way it is and have been doing so quite happily.
In the end, I look at all of those comments from guys complaining about this, that, or the other whenever a new bike is announced and I feel incredibly fortunate to own a bike that I'm so happy with.