Advice on 851s
 

I'm looking for any advice on buying an 851. e.g. what to look for , what to look out for, do's and don'ts, pro's and con's. What are spares like to get ? What money to pay etc
Any advice welcome really. thanks

Tim

get a 888 or 851SP1,2 or 3!I have had 851's and 888's and you really notice the difference those 37cc's make.Any particular model you looking at?

:puzzled:
Hi Jasper - I want a useable, affordable model that I can use on the road and track - which do you recommend?

Tim

What do you consider to be affordable?It depends if you are Bill Gates,an MD or Joe Bloggs with wife and two kids(like me!).This will certainly affect your choice as will whether you want a more exclusive version or not.

I'm thinking in the region of 5 to £6k. I'm more road than track biassed and typicaly do 6k miles a year - so anything that is not going to break the bank ( I'm not Bill Gates).

Blimey Tim..that will buy you a very tidy motor !

To be different you could go for a tidy 851SP3 (thats assuming you can find one - think Forza Italia might still have one), but if your ridings road biased why not look around for a tidy 888 strada and spend a couple of grand doing some saucy mods to it ?

Good luck
Nat

Having had several of the 851/888 flavour bikes, and still with a T8 ,I think your're best bet would be to go for an 888 strada in as best original condition as possible, 851 strada's are good, but the T8's have some refined items.
Decent SP's versions of either model wil be a tad more expensive, and prices are not dropping either.


ta ta
robin

[Edited on 28-7-2005 by Red SPS]

Hi Tim

Go for the 888 Strada if you're going to be doing mainly road riding. The SP is a fantastic riding experience, but not as practical a bike. The engine/gearing combination is more suited to the track really - it needs much more clutch slip to move off from a standstill, and its top gear is actually lower than the Strada's, so its engine feels more hurried on the motorway. Moreover, the mid range grunt of the Strada (with race cans fitted) makes for a more relaxing ride. So too does the slow steering and relative stability. (Its cold start 'choke' device is a bonus too!)

The SP is always snarling and wanting to race through the revs, and it's extremely quick steering by comparison. It feels a much lighter, more 'flighty' bike, and it's much less civilised.

Steve

What makes an SP feel noticably lighter and more flighty than a Strada? I have always thought that an SP is basically a Strada with better suspension and a higher spec motor, and not a lot more.

The character of the engines makes a big difference.My SP5 is really a pig below 3000,happier above 6000 and prefers to be in the 8000+range.This alters the whole riding experience.The Sp's are not as "relaxed" as the stradas.Depends what you want,but i wouldn't swap mine for the world.