I rode my ZRX12..for about 3 hours today and then came home and rode my ZR7 for awhile. Made an interesting discovery, which I will confirm tomorrow. Had both bikes on the driveway, checking oil, etc. Then cranked up the Rex and rode it down my neighborhood street (no helmet, slow ride) turned it smoothly in the cul de sac at west end of street and rode to east end of street and turned it around on the narrow end of pavement (about 16 feet, I'm not sure of residential street width), but a piece of cake, nice and easy, no scary moments. Did exactly the same thing on the ZR, and just skimmed the front lawn of the house I was turning around in front of. Tried it again, same result. Didn't feel as confident either. As big as the Rex looks, it handles great in tight situations. I'll try it again by riding the ZR first and then the Rex. My point is, the ZRX handles much better than you think from looking at it. Tom
PS: Any other rexers noticed the steering difference?
I have noticed that my bike takes a little more acreage to turn around than most of the guys I ride with....... but I think my sisters H-D takes the "Big Rig Award for Consumption of Parking Lot Area" to turn it around..... I also think you'll find the ZRX more nimble because there's alot more weight down lower than the ZR-7......
Yup Tom, your right. Low speed maneuvering is actually easier on the ZRX. Not sure but I think the wheel base on the ZR7 is longer than the ZRX. I think at any speed the ZRX handles a little better. The one thing the ZR7 has is rock solid stability. The ZR7 feels very planted at any speed.
Take the ZRX for a 3-hour ride then test them both on the cul-de-sac - was that a fair comparison? :laugh:
Would agree the ZR-7 would feel a little top heavy make low speed turns a little tougher (wider arc).
Out riding today and saw this way-raked out chopper doing a 180 turn in a parking lot... looked like he was going to take 4-5 car lengths. It looked cool but has to be a real pain riding around town on something like that.:laugh:
I think ya got me on that one Bert!! But, I am amazed at what the ZRX can do in comparison to the ZR-7. I'm gonna ride the ZR a little longer to confirm my opinion, but I think the ZRX does in fact handle better in tight situations. I'm now in the 6,000 rpm part of the break in period for the rex. I "tested" the bike a little today by "grabbing a hand full of throttle" from 2nd to 3rd and the front wheel did come up rather easily, not much for me, I backed off. But for the future, OH YEA!! The ZR7 is really fun to ride after getting off the Rex -- I just wished I could keep the ZR7. Tom
We have all writen about how infrequently we see another ZR-7. This weekend I saw 3 ZRX's.
I was camping with the family up on the Blue Ridge Parkway. After dark these 2 bikes come pulling through and go set up camp. You can tell from the sound that they are "sport-bikes" but too dark to identify. Got up in the morning and checked them out. A new Black ZRX and a Ninja. Nice!
Then on the way home I round this corner and see 2 Green ZRX's sitting side by side with "For Sale" signs on them.