2022 MT09SP

[treedoc_imp]

"Beauty is beholden to the age of the eye" as they say

I would never claim its a pretty bike, but I really like the way it looks... a big improvement over the old one.

Nothing will compare to the look of my CB though, every time I get off it I look back at it, IMO its the best looking bike around.

But its time for a change, cant ride the same bike forever... I've had singles, twins and a four but never owned a triple.

The MT09SP is reasonable value here in NZ, $17300. Only $1200 more than the base model, and you get good suspension, cruise control and some cosmetic bling.

The Z900RS SE is $6K more.. Duke 890R is $4K more, Monster is $3k more..

I considered the KTM but was iffy about reliability. Haven't ridden one but they are supposed to be a blast.

The Kawi has no quickshifter, less power, 25kg heavier, and I wanted a change from 4cyl, I have ridden the non-rs Z900 and it was a good bike.

I have ridden a couple of Ducatis and they weren't my cup of tea, just wanted to be rung out all the time! Lumpy in low revs.

The Street Triple RS is $21,500, I haven't ridden one but I sat on one at the dealer and it felt small for me, from the reviews I had sort of already picked the Yamaha over it so I didn't test ride it.

I have ridden the old MT09 and the engine was awesome, the new model is supposed to be a big improvement so I'm taking a punt without a test ride, I couldn't get one anywhere.

August seems so far away right now ha ha.

[peterbaron]

Would be glad to hear report about your triple, when you get it.
Bikes are not cheap in NZ.

[GoldOxide_imp]

Yeah treedoc - KTM do seem to have the reputation of being a blast to ride, but there is an abundance of posts of reliability issues and higher frequency of maintenance. Japanese models still seem to have the run/reliability edge.

[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.

[Tev62]

Congrats treedoc, it looks the business in the photograph. Well you purchased the SP version so I'm going to guess you know exactly what you are doing but at the risk of teaching granny to suck eggs, I would encourage you, right from the off, to set the rear preload to your liking or if you are just a regular weight leave as is for now and then find out the bikes range of damping. Go minimum front and rear, take it for a spin and then maximum front and rear for another spin. Each adjustment would take 60 seconds. Now you know what you have to play with and what types of rides the bike is capable of delivering depending on your mood. I will always kick myself for not doing that on previous bikes when I was younger.

[GoldOxide_imp]

That looks like quite the pocket rocket treedoc.

I reckon you holding onto the ol' CB?

[Cormanus]

Congratulations treedoc!

[The Gecko_imp]

Still a Tic-Tac compared to the CB1100, but I reckon that is not the point in the eyes of the beholder.

You're such a laugh riot, GO !

"Beauty is beholden to the age of the eye" as they say

I would never claim its a pretty bike, but I really like the way it looks... a big improvement over the old one.

Nothing will compare to the look of my CB though, every time I get off it I look back at it, IMO its the best looking bike around.

But its time for a change, cant ride the same bike forever... I've had singles, twins and a four but never owned a triple.

The MT09SP is reasonable value here in NZ, $17300. Only $1200 more than the base model, and you get good suspension, cruise control and some cosmetic bling.

The Z900RS SE is $6K more.. Duke 890R is $4K more, Monster is $3k more..

I considered the KTM but was iffy about reliability. Haven't ridden one but they are supposed to be a blast.

The Kawi has no quickshifter, less power, 25kg heavier, and I wanted a change from 4cyl, I have ridden the non-rs Z900 and it was a good bike.

I have ridden a couple of Ducatis and they weren't my cup of tea, just wanted to be rung out all the time! Lumpy in low revs.

The Street Triple RS is $21,500, I haven't ridden one but I sat on one at the dealer and it felt small for me, from the reviews I had sort of already picked the Yamaha over it so I didn't test ride it.

I have ridden the old MT09 and the engine was awesome, the new model is supposed to be a big improvement so I'm taking a punt without a test ride, I couldn't get one anywhere.

August seems so far away right now ha ha.

Not sure that you're right, I've been riding a CB500 Four for almost 25 years, ONE CAN ride one good bike for A LONG TIME, no ?

[Cormanus]

I think you’re right about riding bikes for a long time, Gecko, but there seem to be motorcycle folks who change their bikes faster than I change socks.

[GoldOxide_imp]

Still a Tic-Tac compared to the CB1100, but I reckon that is not the point in the eyes of the beholder.

You're such a laugh riot, GO !

"Beauty is beholden to the age of the eye" as they say

I would never claim its a pretty bike, but I really like the way it looks... a big improvement over the old one.

Nothing will compare to the look of my CB though, every time I get off it I look back at it, IMO its the best looking bike around.

But its time for a change, cant ride the same bike forever... I've had singles, twins and a four but never owned a triple.

The MT09SP is reasonable value here in NZ, $17300. Only $1200 more than the base model, and you get good suspension, cruise control and some cosmetic bling.

The Z900RS SE is $6K more.. Duke 890R is $4K more, Monster is $3k more..

I considered the KTM but was iffy about reliability. Haven't ridden one but they are supposed to be a blast.

The Kawi has no quickshifter, less power, 25kg heavier, and I wanted a change from 4cyl, I have ridden the non-rs Z900 and it was a good bike.

I have ridden a couple of Ducatis and they weren't my cup of tea, just wanted to be rung out all the time! Lumpy in low revs.

The Street Triple RS is $21,500, I haven't ridden one but I sat on one at the dealer and it felt small for me, from the reviews I had sort of already picked the Yamaha over it so I didn't test ride it.

I have ridden the old MT09 and the engine was awesome, the new model is supposed to be a big improvement so I'm taking a punt without a test ride, I couldn't get one anywhere.

August seems so far away right now ha ha.

Not sure that you're right, I've been riding a CB500 Four for almost 25 years, ONE CAN ride one good bike for A LONG TIME, no ?

You're such a laugh riot, GO !
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