Advice on purchase of 2016 ST 1300

It is a PA, so it is limited to 120mph, which should help limit the possibility of the "pan weave". I have touched 120mph twice, and rarely cross 100. It does start to feel light in triple digits, but I have never experienced pan weave or instability. You do get buffeted behind semi-trucks, but no worse than anything else I have ridden. I generally have my windshield half way up and no top box.

To echo everyone else. If you are at all interested in this type of bike, that is a heck of a price. I would change tires, fluids and probably the secondary master cylinder just for peace of mind. Ride it for a few months and if you decide it is not for you, post it for sale on here and pass on the deal.

The real issue is you will love it, and then you will start tweaking everything slightly to get "just perfect". That is where the real money comes in. :roflmao:

Ryan
 
jfheath said:
I’ve never had it, but I’ve only taken it up to 100 once on the German motorways. Things happen far too quickly for me at that speed!

Top box and airflow can be an issue. But not at legal speeds.
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This has been my experience as well. I think I might have kissed 120 (according to GPS) for a few moments while three of us passed a truck that didn't want to let us do so. We sped up he sped up. We sped up and left him.

No top box for me. I did strap a bit o' kit to the rack but it wasn't nearly the height of a topbox. Legal speeds us where I spend most of my time.
 
I've said this before - but its always worth repeating. The issue is not the top box as such, it is the fact that any solid lump in a fast airflow will result in dirty air eddying behind the solid lump. You are the solid lump - no offense intended. The air whips around your back from one side and then the other - you don't feel it unless you have a very loose jacket on. But your top box gets the brunt of this and it gets battered from side to side. The Honda top box is designed to move laterally on its fixings to cushion some of this effect. But the best ways to get rid of it are either remove the top box or fit a pillion. Riding two up with a top box it doesn't happen - the air cannot eddy behind you becasue there are three solid lumps, all in a neat line. The slipstream cannot start to break up into eddies until it has gone past the top box. It is no longer your problem.

It also becomes less of a problem the more you ride. Big gust of wind from the side - always a bit un-nerving - but the natural instinct is to grip the bars which prevents the bike from self correcting. It has two massive gyroscopes spinning under the mudguards - they want to go back to where they were. Gripping the bars prevents them from doing so. I suppose it is like standing on a sailboard, and then suddenly they do. The ST1300 is a big bike with a big surface area. It catches the wind and you get used to not having that gripped reaction to it. A bit like me at the moment desperately trying to unlearn the natural countersteer correction on my new-to-me trike. I'm getting there but its taking time.

I saw an extremely low mileage ST1300 the other day £6000. I wanted to buy it - but there was a reason for buying the Spyder - and I just have to go through the processes - most of which we have all done - learning to walk, ride a bike, skateboard, ski, bike and sidecar, rock climb, canoe, sailboard, big solo bike, big faired bike in cross winds, walk again, trike, mobility scooter ! You get the idea. I was trying to find something to put in between those last two. Oh dear !!

And the bow wave created by big trucks ? Ride out 'wide' (ie on the outside of your lane) and as you get level with the cab gently countersteer towards the centre of your lane. If the bow wave hits you - you are already leaning into it - so you end up going straight ahead. If not, no problem you just straighten up so that you don't cut him up.
 
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omidathari said:
Hi folks,
There is a 2016 ST1300 for sale that was supposed to be a police bike but it was never fully commisioned as a police bike and it sat in the dealership for a long time. It has under 10 miles on it and the fellow says he will take $4000 (started at $6500). What do you guys think about this bike. I have no experience with these bikes and would really like to get some insight. What I have heard is they are great bikes but too much heat from the engine, weird master cyclinder on the brake caliper, and possible high speed wobble.
Thanks very much in advance.
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I think it's easy to be seduced by low mileage. These are touring bikes designed to go many thousands of miles with very little engine maintenance.

Tires, fluids, seals, battery etc. are subject to degradation just because of age and this bike is 10 years old and not even whole.

If you don't mind working on it, it's probably a good price. My own 2010 ST1300 has over 80K miles and runs like new, but I've lost the desire to do any wrenching on... and I know its history (I bought it new). If I were looking at this bike, I would want it whole with new tires, fluids, etc. and a decent warranty.
 
omidathari said:
Well I decided to go ahead and get it. I'll post again when I have it in the garage. Thanks fellows. It'll be fun to sort it out.
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Good for you. Someone was selling a pre 2010 bike in the For Sale section for $7500. It had aftermarket shocks, brakes, steering head bearings but your bike to be is virtually BRAAND NEW! Just to put your purchase in perspective.
 
Here it is
 

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Congrats.

I had the plastic off my 1300 for maintenance, pretty much like yours sits now. While doing the work I put a couple thousand miles on it before putting the plastic back on. Without the plastic you will feel a lot more heat but it rides fine otherwise. Oddly, without the plastic, strangers, that clearly were not bikers, commented on what a good looking bike it is.

Anyway, point being you can ride is some before putting all the plastic on.
 
Thanks to all you guys. I'm going to start looking into all the things I may need and make a list. All the plastic seems to be there, albeit they are not painted. The only thing I dont see yet is the front turnsignal assemblies ( the mirror covers with the light integrated)
The oil looks clear so I think the milage of 2 miles is more than likely correct.
I'll clean it up and see if we can get it going. Cheers
 
These might help:
 

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omidathari said:
Here it is
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Ya done good! It's a beauty. There were a lot of these ST1300PAs released by Honda to the general public near the end of production. Maybe Honda just wanted them gone. Maybe police agencies just weren't buying them anymore. I don't know. But they were going for around $9K-$10K. So $4K and a tiny bit of sweat equity is a STeal!

Along with a metallic (?) green not available in the US (I think) white is the beSTeST color for the ST.
 
omidathari said:
All the plastic seems to be there, albeit they are not painted.
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Could you expand on that? Your year PA and earlier were all white IIRC. Later the last model year or two the color was black and white. You could have some bits painted for B&W look. But the all white is a perfect color for the ST.

If the Lone Ranger could have traded Silver in for an ST –nit would have been all white. Of course the B&W version would make his mask pop.
 
omidathari said:
I am not a very experienced rider... What makes this bike special?
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I'm probably repeating some things that have already been pointed out. But as you say you're not very experienced you need to be aware that the acceleration curve is subtle compared to a dedicated sport bike. When you twist the grip the bike accelerates very smoothy and before you know it what feels like 40mph is actually 70. There's not the punch in the chest or suicide grip (the bike accelerating as it slides out from under you) to warn you of excessive speed. Going too hot into a turn or traffic could spoil your day. Check your speed often (always a sound idea) and keep it low till you get acclimated. When I first got mine the windshield and otherwise quiet engine had me doing 90 in short order.

The bike is tall for some people, Some of those people have no problem though. It's top heavy at slow speed especially with a full tank. At anything other than single digit speed it gets pretty nimble pretty quickly. Putting on the center stand can be a bear especially with a full tank and low tires. The factory recommends 42/42psi and that will help you put the bike up.

The engine is neigh bulletproof with just basic maintenance. You'll be able to put a lot of miles on it before it's even broken in.

Get copies of the keys made immediately! The factory keys are subject to breaking if something gets a little jammed up. If you got a little metal tag with a number on it hang on to that. It can help you get keys made. Or do it while the keys are new.

You might get at least three copies made. One for the bike. One as a spare with you or hidden on the bike. Though I've never heard of anyone losing the key while out and about. LOL And one at home as a spare.

Lots of hints and kinks here. Just ask. But get some Getting to Know you Miles under your belt once all the street prep is sorted.
 
ST Gui said:
Get copies of the keys made immediately! The factory keys are subject to breaking if something gets a little jammed up. If you got a little metal tag with a number on it hang on to that. It can help you get keys made. Or do it while the keys are new.

You might get at least three copies made. One for the bike. One as a spare with you or hidden on the bike. Though I've never heard of anyone losing the key while out and about. LOL And one at home as a spare.
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Expanding on that, a lot of us have keys made to keep in the panniers as well as the left side pocket. Convenient, but not absolutely necessary unless you need to jump start the bike.
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