Honda SP1/2 (2000-current)

Recently sold a two stroke (see Blade reviews for explanation)09 Fireblade and bought one of my all time favourite bikes the SP2. Ducatis look sublime but after a ride out i want to come home on a bike and not sat in the cab of an AA vehicle (obviously not all Dukes are like that ;-p). The SP does not mess about, its 40 HP down on my Blade but it is a very fast road machine. Where the Blade was easy the SP is challenging. Where the Blade wanted to wheely the SP just squats down and rockets fwd. Cr8p in 30 mph zones but get to your favourite A-road and life doesnt get much better. Yes I would'nt be able to beat a similar skill level of rider on my 09 Blade but my satisfaction of ownership and the feeling when I push the starter more than makes up for it. Dont be put off by horror fuel stories I rode to North Scotland and back in a weekend and managed 141 miles from a tank (Scotch Corner to LN4. If you are on it you can get the light on before 100 miles but who cares. This bike oozes quality. How many 1999-2000 bikes are worth 3K? Not too many I'll wager.

Had an SP1 for about three years now and wouldn't change it for the world. I've owned a succession of various in line 4's (CBR's etc) and this thing blows them away. Thought long and hard about what I ACTUALLY wanted a bike for and at the end of the day it was for head turning fun. If this is what you're after, then look no further. Believe me, you can get the most jazzed up, tarty looking Blade, R1, GSX etc turn up at a meet and they'll be appreciated - when you role up on an SP1/2 with your blueflames burbling away, everyone starts looking your way. Ride is hard but liveable (I went across France on mine without any issues), fuel economy is pants (the main review states 30mpg - I get closer to 20mpg) and they can be demanding on tricky roads. All in all though, I lurve it and can't wait for the sun to shine!!

i've owned my sp2 for 3 years. love it. at first it was a snatchy sod at low speed, now great after fitting blue flame cans (sorted fulling no end). sounds like the devil with indigestion...love it. handling is great on the twisties, heavy on wrist through town, but hey... if you wanna commuter buy a cbf. looks differant and sounds it too. honda should be updating it but no change for a while now... nowt out there that takes my eye so i'll be sticking with it (no complaints there)

i've owned my sp2 for 3 years. love it. at first it was a snatchy sod at low speed, now great after fitting blue flame cans (sorted fulling no end). sounds like the devil with indigestion...love it. handling is great on the twisties, heavy on wrist through town, but hey... if you wanna commuter buy a cbf. looks differant and sounds it too. honda should be updating it but no change for a while now... nowt out there that takes my eye so i'll be sticking with it (no complaints there)

i've owned my sp2 for 3 years. love it. at first it was a snatchy sod at low speed, now great after fitting blue flame cans (sorted fulling no end). sounds like the devil with indigestion...love it. handling is great on the twisties, heavy on wrist through town, but hey... if you wanna commuter buy a cbf. looks differant and sounds it too. honda should be updating it but no change for a while now... nowt out there that takes my eye so i'll be sticking with it (no complaints there)

i've owned my sp2 for 3 years. love it. at first it was a snatchy sod at low speed, now great after fitting blue flame cans (sorted fulling no end). sounds like the devil with indigestion...love it. handling is great on the twisties, heavy on wrist through town, but hey... if you wanna commuter buy a cbf. looks differant and sounds it too. honda should be updating it but no change for a while now... nowt out there that takes my eye so i'll be sticking with it (no complaints there)

I ve been riding an SP2 for 3 years now and it,s not the fastest ,most powerful , or most compliant handler, but every time the Akrapovic ,s wistle a tune you don,t want any other bike. The harder you ride it the better it works. Only Honda with HRC on the engine. I ve even considered buying a new one from england . Its much more satisfiying rocking up at the cafe on a bike that stands out among the eleventeen Blades and 43 R1s. Besides that it,s never gunna be the old modle is it. It,s THE modle. The best Honda money can buy. What do you really want out of a bike. After all we are only riding on the road and any modern sports bike will more than outperform most of our capabillity,s in road conditions. I hit a bouncing rabbit ( kangaroo) once that tames you down a bit. ( livin the dream in oz, We won the Rugby world cup too did ya hear.

Uncomfortable, poor range? Who cares, this bike was not made for shopping,and the seat is not really for sitting in, it's a track bike and a hoot into the bargain. Hello Honda, are you there? You should have kept on with this bike, it leaves a gaping hole in you product range.

It was the bike that actually drew my attention away from cars! Now, experiencing the dream, the bike hasn't failed to excite. Sure, bike technology has made leaps and bounds since the SP1/2s introduction, but the VTR still brings a smile to my face every time I ride it.

i live in bangkok, 1 of the worst motorbike cities in the world. english roads are silk in comparison, and no-one on the m25 knows what traffic really is! my past is gsxr and r1, and never liked twins. got sp1, 8yrs old now, never honda serviced! first few weeks, missed my gixxer so much, but as i got to 'feel' this bike more and more, it made more and more sense and i have to admit that this bike rocks!! i ride it like a currier in downtown traffic, then hit speeds of 150mph+ on open roads bumpy like the alps! this bike is mint, excellent quality - nothing even minor wrong with it. amazing shocks, and it loves to fly. nothing has unsettled this bike and i've put it through hell (serious headcase speed-freak!). still miss the noise and all roundedness of the gixxer (750), but the gixxer is so easy to ride (fast), a novice can get a lot out of it. this bike requires relationship-building with owner, and rewards with miles of smiles. there is so much power low down, yet still goes balistic higher up, especially in 3rd and 4th at near full rpm. i just can't describe the attachement with this bike? special in undescribable ways. whoever owns one of these and rides it "with respect" is missing the point. this bike just wants to prove to you that it is even better than you imagine! its not a nutter like the king, but it has in it more than you know, and the more you know and push it, the more it continues to surprise with its invincible capabilities. nearly 2 years and i am still getting surprises with this bike. i will go back to a gixxer soon as speed is the thrill, but there is no other bike that is 8 years old that can rival this bike, and if i can't afford to keep 2 bikes, i will always miss this bike and the amazments it just kep dishing out to me. serious respect to honda! press reviews make me think i should be a tt rider! what are these people talking about? twitchy throttle, heavy, hard to launch, choppy ride, etc? i think they must be 8stone stick-men in touch with their feminine side or lazy by nature? i'm 6ft, 15stone and nothing about this bike is negative for me, not even the low seat height. very comfy, usable and totally solid. the more you learn about this bikem, the more it shocks and the more every single detail makes complete sense. a living classic! QUESTION - IS GASSOHOL 95 OR 91 OK TO USE? (ok, 1 negative which is forgiving, fuel economy - i get more from my pickup than this bike! lol)