few big multis are. There are the usual mapping options but I have spent every ride, other than the first, in Sport mode. There’ s nothing wrong at all with the softer options but with an absence of bad manners in the responsive mode, I don’ t feel the need to soften it. Sure, in the rain, I am more than happy to flick through the modes to get a little help on our road surfaces, but otherwise, it is awesome in the Sport selection. I have read comments contra to my experience from other countries but the bike I had, using the fuel we get, I didn’ t have any issue with snatchiness at initial throttle openings off the bottom at all. Speaking of throttle response, the SX turns into an executive jet on demand. No doubt it is fast, it just does it with so little fuss. No big holes or spikes in power delivery, just a deceptively rapid change in the time it takes to reach that speck on the horizon. More midrange than its racy cousin, the ZX-10, and sure, terminal velocity isn’ t as stratospheric at the top-end either, but when you want to get all sporty, it is in no way lacking in the engine department. It’ s SPORTS-tourer, not just sports-tourer. And then there is the torque delivery. Road riding tends to lean more heavily on torque curves than on an outright pissing contest about which bike makes more absolute horsepower and a theoretical top-speed in an environment that simply doesn’ t exist here in NZ, even on a track. We don’ t have a Nürburgring or anything resembling one( it would be great to have one though …). Yes, the new 1100cc( 1099 really) version might be six ponies at peak down on the previous model but the increase in torque and the 1000rpm lower rev ceiling means, in the real world, you wouldn’ t know it. In fact, it actually feels more nuggetty, not thinner. So there you go – it’ s a case of perception at odds with reality.
TWISTY BITS The riding position is less racy than some of its namesake Ninjas, in fact it is a comfortable compromise that lets you eat miles with ease but the seat design still lets you get that sportsbike seat movement and leverage. If you ride the SX like a full-blown sportsbike,
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