Had a test ride on the Speed 400 today and have to say, I'm very impressed. It is not a small bike despite the engine capacity and at 175 kg it's a doddle to trundle about in the car park/garage.
I was amazed at the willingness of the engine, great acceleration, nicely spaced 6-speed gearing (apart from 1st which seemed just there to get you off the line). Very tractable and plenty of torque. A bit buzzy over 70-ish although I don't think it's designed for motorways. Didn't want to be too brutal with the engine as the demo had only 200 miles on it but I guess it can only get better with mileage. Highly flickable on B roads and corners on rails, an absolute hoot. Suspenders seemed fine for my 14.5 stone and seat was comfy for my 6' 1" frame although I was only out for 45 minutes.
Brakes were pretty sharp and hauled her up PDQ from 60-ish. Instrumentation clear with a big analogue speedo although the digital tacho was a bit titchy. Finish overall was impressive, no idea how they managed that with a retail price of a fiver under 5 grand.
Only drawback is that the dealer is now taking orders for a May 2024 delivery, he says they're flying out the door.
Hmmmmm, this will require some thought (or maybe not)