Its been a while since I have acquired fizzy( well,that’s how I would like to address her ), so I think its time to finally put-up review and share the amazing ownership experience I had so far.

Before getting into details about fizzy, I would like to add a note on my biking background

HISTORY:

It was in june 2010,when i started serious biking and acquired Kawasaki ninja 250r, there were hardly any options in the quatre-litre segment(cbr was still a rumor then) , more over with ninja it was love at first sight, so dint take much time to decide on ninja and after 20,000 kms & 2 years later I can confidently say that it was the one of the best decision I have ever made. Have done couple of inter-state rides,endurance rides(BB2500 and SS1600) and many weekend rides,it always lived upto my expectations.

But as the time progressed my greed for power has also increased proportionately,so was having thoughts about selling it. But everytime I rode her I just dint feel like selling it and was left in a dilemma whether it’s a good decision or not,Finally bit the bullet and sold it to a friend of mine(ensuring that she is in safe hands).All this happenend in a hurry and I preffered it that way so that I wont get second thougts again

P.S : I would have never sold, if I were in a position to take care and maintain 2 bikes, however that isn’t possible in my case, so had to let it go with a heavy heart

All this happened at the end of 2013

Options considered :

note : I am a fan of Inline-4 machines for the way they deliver power smoothness they have, reliability (compared to ducati..etc) and finally they noise they make , so I might be little biased here

when I was looking for upgrade I was open for all the options that are available then

1. Kawasaki ninja 650 :

Undoubtedly this was the first option I have considered especially when it was launched with Very good price and more-over one of my friend Ram(tbhp id:kingofmyworld) acquired, so it was easy to have a quick TD and returned with mixed feelings, reason for this being the sound the bike is making is so similar to my250 albeit a little deeper and riding stance is way too relaxed for me. Some how it just dint strike the right cord for me

No doubt that its powerful, it handled well and easily one of the most practical and VFM bike available in the market right now. It can handle most of the roads we generally encounter while touring, powerful enough to give company to other SBK’s except for those really straight-stretches where one can give fully open the throttle. IF not for the similar sound,ultra-relaxed riding postion and of-course “the greed” for more power there isn’t a single reason why one should look beyond ninja 650.

2. Hyosung gt650 : one ride on it was enough for me to decide that I am never going to get it

3. R1/CBR/gixxer : though I was very much tempted to pick super-sport(who wouldn’t),decided against it for couple of reason. One being knowing the kind of riding I do, the supersport riding postion isn’t any good for it. Of course there are people who have ridden across states with these, but somehow I decided against the idea. But ya sometime later in future there might be one among them giving company to my “fizzy”

4. Suzuki bandit : somehow dint like the idea of myself on bandit, so gave it skip. But this is the by far best I4 motor available in our country which can take you from kanyakumari-khardungala without breaking sweat

So finally I narrowed down my options to Japanese,Inline-4,1000cc and a naked machine. I have two options available which are full-filling this criteria. HONDA CB-1000 and YAMAHA FZ1, this will be the biggest dilemma for anyone who is in market with a similar criteria.

But let me tell you, these are two different machines. CB is more mature in the way it delivers power,equipped with ABS and technologically have little edge over FZ1.

FZ1 on a different not is more aggressive in the way it delivers the power,wilder and not to mention the extra horses(~25) it has compared to FZ and more-over I liked the looks of fz1 more which is a completely personal preference. Here I was leaving about the price factor which is again in favour with FZ1. Hence it was an easier choice.

SO FINALLY IT IS YAMAHA FZ-1.

Initially I was keen on on getting a new one, but just looked at the used options just to make it more VFM. After coming across couple of shady-deals and unrealistic prices, I decided to go for a new one. It was then I came across this particular FZ1(fizzy as I would like to call her) through couple of friends of mine, very well maintained and kitted up with accessories that are carefully chosen and reasonable price. So it dint take much time to proceed with deal. Couple of negotiations here and there and finally we were on the way to Mumbai, that is where the bike was located.

Now coming to the details on the bike:

MAKE : Yamaha
model : FZ1
year : 2011

After-market additions when I bought the bike :
* brembo brake kit(master cylinder,reservoir,lever and mirror mounts)
* hel steel braided lines for front n back
* ligh-tech clutch lever
*givi windshield
*gel seat
*dynojet power commander 5
*dynojet autotune
*G.P.R deeptone CF exhaust
*K&N air and oil filter
*ligh-tech frame sliders
*spool sliders
along with this two more things which are not fixed on the bike :
* handle bar risers
* chrome rear view mirrors
and almost a brand new set of tyres.

This is how it came to Hyderabad from Mumbai and after couple of detailing sessios( thanks to the rains), I decided to add couple of things which I have ordered for the bike.

These are the things which I have put-on the bike:
* 46 rossi tank pad
was a fan of rossi,so ya it’s the obvious choice.Have ordered this from planetdsg.com
* PIAA head lamp bulbs
I felt the stocking lighting to be little in-adequate and not so interested in going HID for obvious reasons, so ordered these bulbs. Though a bit expensive, these by far the best bulbs I have used
* fender eliminator with led indicators
who wouldn’t like to flaunt the fat tyre
* Replaced the spark plugs with NGK iridium spark plugs during the regular service
* RD moto fork and swing arm protectors. Ordered these from BACHOO MOTORS

Enough of show, now let me speak about riding it. Couple of rides which I have done till now.

**** MUMBAI - HYDERBAD:

I decided against transporting the bike from mumbai to hyderabad and hence decided to ride it from mumbai to hyderabad.Had visited lonavala in between.
Roads were all good till sholapur,after that till hyderabad it was night-mare.
was very easy on throttle as this was my first day with FZ.
highlight of the trip was i got a mileage of 18-20kmpl consistently(this was the highest i got in fz till date :P)

**** HYDERABAD – SRISAILAM – HYDERBAD:

Did this ride as the dams were open at srisailam then,it was a round trip of around 500kms.
Been there with couple of friends

**** regular weekend breakfast rides to Kamareddi for that yummu natukodi pulusu( chicken dish) which they serve for breakfast and to jadcherla for some nice idlies/dosa’s and to suryapet.
A ride to these three places means a round trip of 200-240 kms.

**** Ride to Anantgiri hills
This is very shortish ride,hardly 100 kms one way,but thats to our own hyderabadi explorer RAVI VARMA. He shows us new places every time we go there

**** couple of rides to my home-town which is 150 kms away from Hyderabad.

**** HORSLEy HILLS :
This is around 1100 ams round trip from hyderabad.
been there with couple of friends and had a good weekend

In all I have managed to put-on nearly 6000 kms in this brief period of ownership. Cant wait to do a proper Interstate ride.

RIDING EXPERIENCE SO FAR :
Since I have done decent number of kilometres, here are my observations

*Power : In simple words it is MAD/WILD/AGGRESSIVE.
Its is basically a high-revving engine which shows its true nature only in high-mid RPM’s. But thanks to the PC5 and AUTO-TUNE it is now making power from as low as 4000 RPM all the way till red-line. The kind of power she has demands high-level of respect, a simple blip in the throttle is what all you need to put the tarmac on fire.
It does “accidental” power-wheelies under full throttle even in third gear, I guess this can give you rough idea about the mad acceleration she has.

*Handling : you can feel the weight of bike especially in low city-crawling speeds. But once you gain speeds, the weight hardly bothers you. Now coming to cornering, I would like to keep it simple by saying that she loves corners but not as much as super-sport would do.Needless to mention,like everyother super-bike a simple blip/non-linear throttle in the corner is enough to make you kiss the ground. So you to know the limitations before pushing the bike

*Sound : This is personal choice again, everyone like a particular type of sound. For any Inline-4 lover, it is pure music to ears and its loud enough to catch attention of the people/cars/trucks on highway.

There are hardly any vibrations even when the engine is red-lining(not that I do it regularly).

RIDING GEAR :

HELMET :
1. HJC RPHA10 BEN SPIES MONSTER ENERGY REPLICA
2. AGV k3 Rossi 5 continents replica

RIDING SUIT :
1. RST RAZOR leather 2-peice suit
2. RST RAZOR textile jacket

GLOVES :
1. RST RAZOR full leather gloves

KNEE-GUARDS :
1. A* bionic knee guards.

BOOTS :
1.SIDI ST AIR

I would like to finish my “longish” post to here.
P.S : I used to follow the FZ1 thread here and must admit that its quite informative and that’s to all the people who has made contribution to that thread.
**This is my first ever ownership report I am writing.so do bear with longish posts

Now time for some pics :

The key to happiness :



Random pics from the rides :

Srisailam:










ANANTHAGIRI HILLS :







BREAK-FAST RIDES :







FEW RANDOM SHOTS :







will upload few more pics from the ride to horsley hills as and when i find time.

Regards,
harsha​