I'm 23 and used to ride back when I was 16-18 and a lot of offroad

I'm 23 and used to ride back when I was 16-18 and a lot of offroad.

I really want to get myself another bike and my budget was $3800. (I have more but don't want to really spend it).

I went to the dealer and the recommended a street racer and not a sport bike. Bike will be used for mostly joyrides by myself and with the gf on the back.

The look of the bike is really important to me, I want something aggressive/sporty.

The dealer wanted to sell me a 2017 Kawasaki Z650 (In the picture) I test drove the bike and it does feel good and I really enjoy the street racer class.

What else would you guys recommend? Taking into consideration that I would prefer second hand, and budget is roughly $3800. (The Kawasaki Z650 new is $8000 :/)

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Try to find a dealer with some older stock. Still new, just like '16 or '15 models. That's where you get savings but still be the first owner.

I personally go for cruiser styles and I'm looking at a new, yet old, Bolt (950cc) that retailed 7k in 2016, newer model retails 8.5k, but now the new yet old '16 model tails 5k and change.

Kawasaki is trying to push those Z's now I think, some dealers have specials going where you get money off plus a jacket or something. Wouldn't hurt to look around first.

Definitely don't think you'll get anything down to below 4k though.. not unless you get something below 500cc

Yea the dealer has said that if i purchase the z650 new from them they will give me a store voucher for gear at $270. But I think I could push that a bit higher. But ideally I want a second hand good condition bike.

Probably depends where you are. Around me those are either like 450cc racers that some idiot with a permit bought (and certainly dropped, but won't tell you) that they're selling because they bit off more than they could chew, or Harley's babied until the guy's wife makes him sell it (around fucking 11k).

Only guarantee is used from a good dealer but then those prices are inflated..

Maybe if you know a friend who's selling theirs? People trade up often enough.

Avoid a dealership if you can. That money you spend at the dealership will not hold the same value the minute you ride that bike off of the lot.

Go for Craigslist. But inspect the heck out of that bike you look at. With a Craigslist person at least you can haggle for a lower price.

Very true

I ride a Kawasaki ER6n, 2012 model, didn't like it at first but it has grown on me, would recomend it as they can be damn fun but are also really cheap to run/easy to fix/maintain too. Parts are plentiful and don't cost the earth.

Best bit? You can get ER6n or ER6f's in good condition for fairly cheap (in the uk anyway, not sure about elsewhere).

Can't go wrong with a used Suzuki SV650.
You should be able to find one at that price.

I had an SV1000 and it was boring as hell. Not a fun bike at all. I had previously been running a 1250 Suzuki Bandit, that bike was just so good to ride. Even though the SV was lighter and quicker, it just didn't deliver the smiles I was looking for. I sold it and ended up with an ER6. At first it felt a bit gutless but once you get your head around it, it's actually a really fun machine. +1 for the ER6!

No jokes I JUST found an amazing 2016 ER-6N for sale with 8000km. Seller is asking $5380. This seems fair but will see if I can get him to go a bit lower.

How is the power on your bike? Is there more than enough? Does the front wheel lift at all/dangerous? Finally, what speed have you taken it to? How does it handle in traffic or at high speed. Thanks!!

This is the bike I just found

It's not a burner, it's not going to run away with you. Best I can describe it was as a very happy, forgiving little bike that was extremely friendly to ride. I used mine over some pretty varied terrain and it did everything fine. Suspension feels a little cheap, it's a budget bike and you can tell once you push it. Cornering is fine though, it handled solidly, you can just feel the edge on it.
Power is wide, at lower revs it's as docile as a 250 and you have to go looking for the power to find it. Work the bike through the revs and it takes off, pulls well enough but never felt like it could run away with me. I had to downsize from the litre class bikes when I had a kid and couldn't take the risk of killing myself any longer. The ER was a solid compromise for me, still fun to ride and didn't feel dangerous.

thats the one I have written into my budget whenever I start saving for a bike. It sounded PERFECT because it's easy to handle for beginners (if you're careful on the throttle) Yet you can grow into it and really let it loose once you're comfortable with it. Unlike other "beginner" bikes that leave you wanting a bit more oomf.

Thanks for the indepth reply. I'm 23 but definitly not reckless thats the reason I don't really want a sports bike or a liter bike. The ER seems like the perfect compromise then. Thanks again! Now time to decide..

Don't do it man . In the age of cellphones it's not it but when you get rear ended you will die or worse be paralyzed .

I hit a financial pot hole and had to sell my two bikes back then(FJR1300 and Triumph Speed Four) to get by, but it left me enough money to snag an ex demo 2012 ER6n in good condition, had it a year with dauly use, not a single fault.

I hated it at first, couldn't put my finger on why but I've finally grown to love it, as you said, at first it felt a bit gutless but I think I was being too soft with it, never had a parallel twin bike before.

Now i'm looking to improve on it and repaint it, love the bike to bits!

I use it for my daily commute to work, its my only transport, bike felt like it handled wierdly to me at first, but I was spoiled by my previous Triumphs handling, took a while to get used to the ER6n for me.

Had it a year now and love it, its got plenty of usable power, I'm a sensible/safe rider but have had the odd "fuck the speed limit" moment when nobody is about etc and had 110mph out of it but I live in windy rainy england, but it didn't struggle to get to that speed either, could prob get the wheel up easy enough on it.

Traffic, it handles great, the bike is quite narrow, in the UK you get a lot of cunts try to move over and stop you filtering, but this thing is so narrow that you can still squeeze by and laugh to yourself.

Only thing i'd fault is the suspension, could be better, but again, I was spoiled by the Speed Four I had which had some very fancy suspension on it.

Good bikes, sensible, but with enough power to have some fun, have had a few "two up" runs with a work colleague and it handled them fine too.

Only pic I have of mine, taken after I just got back from collecting it.

Good description there, whenever i'm in the daily bike threads on /o/ always felt a bit alone with my ER6n, nice to bump into somebody else that has one and appreciates what it can do too.

Surprised how good it is on fuel too, I ride in a fair bit of standard daily rush hour traffic, and even then i'm getting about 54mpg.

My advice, go for an ER6n, you'll love it.

I ride a 2014 street triple I bought used for around 4k. Its great and hasnt let me down. Tho triumph parts are expensive and repair shops on them aren't as common as the jap bikes. Its got a nice power band for the streets and is comfortable. The only thing I hate are the headlights.

That sounds amazing, you and the other posters in the forum have now convinced me to go ahead and get myself a ER6n. Thank you guys so much! If I can find a good second hand one it means I don't need to fork out the full price for a new one. So excited now! Any last minute bits of advice? (I'm actually from South Africa) Mum is british :D

Yes the headlights REALLY put me off the bike!

Your bike look epic! If I get one it will be the white edition :D

I recently hit a financial pothole myself and had to sell my ER6. I was really sad to see it go. I'm into adventure motorcycles and spent a lot of time chatting in forums about this bike vs the Versys. To me it seemed like a very versatile all-rounder but the ER has the better tune on the engine, for my taste.
Luckily I still have my BMW so I'm not totally bikeless. She was off the road for years and now I've got the financial kick up the arse to get her back.

I'm from the UK but in Cambodia now. Not heard of or seen the Z650 before but it seems like it has the same engine as the ER in it.
The ER is pretty common here since they're built in Thailand (but don't let that put you off, build quality is fine) and they do well on the shitty roads.
Back in the UK my Dad had an Er6n when the first came out, it actually scared him and was a bit more than he could comfortably handle but a young guy who's not stupid should be fine. Kawasaki marketted it as 'Your first big bike' and that's exactly what it is.
Have fun. Ride safe!

You won't regret it! Suspension is the weakest part of the bike but the Versys suspension is better and (almost) a straight swap, depending on year. The rear swingarm is quite sought after, the super-twin racers picked up on iy as it's a better unit so think about that as an upgrade. I found mine a little bit wheezy and I think it would benefit a lot from a de-catted aftermarket exhaust and an airbox mod. I couldn't do that here, the dust and sand would have eaten her alive from the inside out but in a less dusty climate I'd have done a K&N and modified the intake at least. The other problem I had was flash-floods. In Cambodia the rain comes hard and often there's deep puddles so the underslung exhaust was an issue. It does keep the weight low and that can is heavy as fuck.
Get on the forums, there are loads where you can get lots of solid advice about upgrades and mods. These machines evolved from the GPZ500 (Had one of them out here and it kick-started my love of sportsbikes.) They've been popular for racing fro years so there are tons of really good options and information out there. Get a black one. Black ones are better.

Sounds great, the one I am looking at is completely stock standard with only 8000km. It is white but I don't mind that, if I ever want a change I can always get it wrapped.

With regards to the mods I think I might put on exhaust after a bit of time, depending on the price. Which forums do you usually use to discuss stuff about the bike?

I live in South Africa so some of the roads aren't the best but we don't have flash floods at least. Again thanks for all the insight!

>built in Thailand (but don't let that put you off, build quality is fine)

I only noticed this myself a few weeks back when I was giving the bike a really good clean, was quite surprised as you wouldn't know it to look at it, its so well made.

Same here in regards to the Z650, I've yet to see one in person though it does seem like a more "angry" looking ER6n I guess.

Think Kawasaki were on to a winner with these bikes.

Not done anything drastic to mine yet other than removing the airbox snorkles, seemed to give the bike a little better response...toying with the Versys swingarm and a new full exhaust system, just putting it off at the moment as I've never really "upgraded" a bike before, only rebuilt, my Speed Four was a sorry state but I spent a year (and way too much money) rebuilding it to pristine condition, really miss that bike.

I'm actually on the fence right now about an aftermarket exhaust, been browsing for the last couple of hours trying to talk myself in and out of it!

How much are you looking at to put an aftermarket exhaust? Would it improve the performance or hinder it? I suppose you would put one on mainly for the more sporty sound?

My beloved Speed Four after I'd finished with it almost, new paintjob as the final touches.

...and then the day it got sold and seeing the pic up on the local dealers page...sold to a guy that looks like a cross between Steven Spielberg and George Miller!

I'd be hoping for a slight bit of performance but wouldn't expect too much, ultimately I'd just be happy to change the sound of the bike, the stock exhaust sound is ok, but just want something different.

Here you go.
Get a 3-4 years back, dirt cheap. And you can go in dirt with it and WAY more comfortable than those stupid "Sport bike" "Street racer" name it the way you want.

Bump

had a zx600 08' until my life fell into pieces because of drug use.