[KaptinOrsum]

Morning/Evening/Afternoon,

I'm due to pick up my grey XSR700 today around 10:00AM GMT from Ian Bell Yamaha near Newcastle.

I'm trading in my 2015 MT-125 ABS that I've had since June. Getting a brilliant trade in price along with astounding service and sales from the guys at Ian Bell.

I'll try and get a ride and review up on YouTube so we have a good non-journalist view on how the bike rides, feels, sounds and behaves.

If anyone wants any details, videos, pictures, measurements etc don't hesitate to give me a shout.

I may be one of the first private owners out there :grin2:

First observations, whilst sat on the XSR in the dealership ....

Seat width does push my little 5'8" body/bum out, the seat is much wider than that on my MT-125. Feels different but more relaxed.

I'm 12 stone wet, however I was able to lean the bike over about 45 degrees before I got a point where I thought I'd drop it. Much to the shock of Ronnie in the dealership. "don't worry, remember, if I drop it I buy it!" [as we were getting the paperwork signed]

Lovely finish, the brushed grey looks brilliant in the flesh.

I cannot tell you how excited I am, a 35 year old man who's woke up at 2am, mainly due to the kids being ill and having a killer sore throat, but I think it just might be a little bit related to the XSR.

 

[robodene]

Did you order the radiator shrouds as an extra?

 

[Traffic]

congrats man, pics when possible...

 

[KaptinOrsum]

I've not purchased anything for the bike yet, 100% standard.

Just picked it up, allowed this guy to do a quick test ride (with 7 miles on the clock!) ....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey3-b5JIk9o

...and then did my Xmas running around on it, rain, hail, sleet, wind and all other lovely North East weather.

100 miles on the clock so far. Loving it.

I'll get some proper snaps when I get a chance in the sun, if it ever shows up again.

Here's some quick snaps I took.:grin2:

Ian Bell still have one more silver/grey in ready to go for Xmas.

http://www.ianbellmotorcycles.com/

 

[KaptinOrsum]

No idea why the pictures are incorrectly rotated. sorry.

 

[robodene]

Pictures ok for me. Video tells me it lost nothing in the transfer from MT-07 to 'retro'. Lovely. Have a great time with it.

 

[Crabsticks]

Nice, your pics make the silver look better than the publicity shots did.

Santa brought mine this morning.

Absolutly fantastic bike. My face hurts from smiling so much.

One nitpik complaint though, I find the gauge is in a rather awkward position that makes glancing at the speed and revs a pain, would of preferred it a couple more inches towards the front/away from the rider.

Sorry, I'm a poor photographer, so these really don't do the bike justice.

And if we're plugging dealers; cmcbikes.com were simply amazing.

 

[robodene]

Pics and the bike look good to me. Green's my preference too. Perhaps you could shift the panel? It's a common complaint of the 07 but I have got used to it.

 

[YamahaFan]

Your XSR700 is missing a red nose

 

[Tourin]

Lol, great video review! If it's easy to learnt to ride, would you say that the XSR700 is a good starter bike?



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[KaptinOrsum]

I've gone from riding a Yamaha MT-125 for 6 months. Covering over 3,000, from May this year until late Nov when I passed my full test. So this is actually my first 'big' bike. I'm a 35 year old father of two who's been driving high power V8's and modified force induced Japanese cars since I was 17. I got good road knowledge as I used to drive over 1,000 miles a week.

So I've come to riding/biking later on in life than most. However being short and thin I probably have the built of most teenagers so I can supply a fairly good view of whether it would be a good starter.

It's lightweight, allowing easy switch backs in traffic. Easy to manhandle while parking and has a brilliant turning circle. Give excellent mpg so allows you to rack up the miles quickly without worrying about costs doing so. Insurance isn't bad either.

You can easily find the biting point of the clutch and pull away without it snatching. Lovely to ride in 2nd or 3rd in town and happily sits at 70mph in 6th without making you feel like you're a gear too high.

It burbles, cackles, grumbles and vibrates just enough with the standard pipe on to impress and make you smile. However I can still start up at 6am without waking the kids or making my neighbours hate me.

I'm comparing it to all the other bikes I've ride whilst learning. Honda Grom (MSX125), Honda NC750S and X. Honda CB500, Kawasaki ER6N and ER6F. Yamaha XJ6.

I love the twin cylinder engines. Not whistley like a triple or too smooth like an inline four. I love classic looks more than modern. Hence getting the XSR and not the MT-07. I love the extra power the XSR900 would bring, however I've known of several riders who've gone from an MT-09 back to an -07 as they're wanting better MPG, didn't like the fly-by-wire throttle and also caught themselves out a few times with the monumental levels of torque from the triple.

I've snatched the throttle a few times and gunned it hard in the XSR700, the worst I've had is a slight front wheel lift (1-2") and nothing more. I think with more power I may have chucked the bike into a house or field.

It'll serve me very well and it'll do what I need of it for the foreseeable. Reliably, smoothly, without undue shock or surprise.

 

[Crabsticks]

If it's easy to learnt to ride, would you say that the XSR700 is a good starter bike?

I passed my test this November. Before that I'd only been riding an Old Yamaha RS100 leisurely on weekends in summer.
Can't really add anymore info than what Kaptin has said.

The real test will be the coming months as I will be commuting daily no matter the weather on it and making long trips on the weekends.

 

[Ribs]

I had a brief chat with you and your mate over his youtube video. Can't wait to get my one, I was sold on it from the start but the video was the extra push to commit.