What Year To Buy??

[t-binger]

I have been riding a Roadstar 1600 for about 6 years now and want to move to a Royal Star Venture for some more serious Touring. My wife and I have had the Roadstar out to the Black Hills, Yellowstone, Badlands and Montana and it's fine but not a true touring bike and lacks some comforts. I don't like the look of Goldwings and at 6'5" they just don't have enough room for me. I love the look of the Royal Star and it seems roomier.

I seem to recall that some airbox improvements have been made over the years giving a bit more power and torque to the Royal Star. Is there a year that is preferable? Are, say, the '06's and on better than the '99 through 05's?

I figure this is the place to ask.

 

Tom W. Illinois

[Sleeperhawk]

Basically, no difference except for the radio antenna (99 was solid mount) mount and colors.

 

Oh, love the RSV

[hig4s]

I have been riding a Roadstar 1600 for about 6 years now and want to move to a Royal Star Venture for some more serious Touring. My wife and I have had the Roadstar out to the Black Hills, Yellowstone, Badlands and Montana and it's fine but not a true touring bike and lacks some comforts. I don't like the look of Goldwings and at 6'5" they just don't have enough room for me. I love the look of the Royal Star and it seems roomier.

I seem to recall that some airbox improvements have been made over the years giving a bit more power and torque to the Royal Star. Is there a year that is preferable? Are, say, the '06's and on better than the '99 through 05's?

I figure this is the place to ask.

 

Tom W. Illinois

 

 

Other than if you buy an 06 or newer you will automatically get what is left of the 5 year unlimited mileage warranty, there is no real difference. I think the 09s come standard with the CD changer, but not sure.

[GeorgeS]

The carbs were larger, after , I think about 02, but not sure of exact year.

 

The later ones with larger carbs have higher HorsePower. Sombody will chip in with the exact year.

[cdnrider]

I too am a tall guy at 6'3". The RSV is the right size with lots of openness and comfort. The wife loves the rear seat with the wrap around cushion due to the trunk. The only caution I will provide deals with the clutch and crank shaft gears. I had the bike for 6 weeks when a chirping sound started in the clutch. I found the problem on this site and the solution. My dealer will replace the clutch basket, under warranty, once to try and eliminate the sound. After that I am on my own. This problem only occurs on certain bikes. The way the mechanic explained it was the clutch gear and the crank shaft gears are not manufactured together so a miss-match occurs causing the chirping noise. You can believe his story or not. What he also mentioned was that Yamaha fixed this problem on the 2007s by manufacturing the two gears at the same time. I am waiting for the new clutch basket and hope that fixes the noise. Boy is it loud.

[t-binger]

Thanks to all for your advice. My buddy totalled his Valkyrie Interstate and had to buy a RSV because he can't get a Valkyrie Interstate any more. His only complaint is about the power difference so I figured I would look into year differences since I recall some complaints about power even though this engine is capable of much more. Don't know why they don't tap into it. That said, the Roadstar 1600 is no racer either and I don't want to ride at 100 mph, I just want comfortably adequate for the highway.

 

Tom

[similost]

I bought my Roadstar in 03, and have always loved the bike. My wife and I wanted something a little bigger and more comfy for the longer trips, and something that would be a little easier to pull a trailer with. (very few options for a hitch on the roadie, and we didn't want one external to the fender)

 

We looked at wings for a while... Too cramped for me (6') and I didn't like my feet being right under my hips.. Plus, we don't want to be considered Wing Dingers..

 

SO.. we just walked in this past month and bought an 08 venture off the dealer floor...

 

My wife loves it... we never knew we liked music on the ride.. that was a plus we weren't expecting... She loves all the extra room she has on the back of the venture, not to mention the added trunk that will fit all her "take alongs"

 

I had taken the boards off the Roadie, and went to Legand forwards.. I love them, and the highway bar too, but I've found that floorboards sure do give you a lot more movement and places to put your feet compared to the roadie.. LOTS of room... just not much in choices for where and how to put your highway pegs...

 

I'll tell you though.. after all the time you have spent on the roadie, once you get on the interstate in the Venture, you're gonna feel like the engine is wrapped out... (even though it isn't) Compared to the RPMs that the roadie turns, and what the venture turns at 65 or 70... big difference... still trying to get used to that...

 

You're gonna miss the torque of your roadie too... The venture doesn't have much torque at all.. but once you get the engine wound up.. DAMN does it have some HP... Keep the engine wound up and in the power band, and you'll love the power...

 

I'm very happy with my Venture, but it sure isn't a Roadie.. I'm SO glad that my wife taked me into keeping the roadie and not trading it in... I hope to take the roadie out this weekend... I sure do miss riding it... I love all the personality it has... The Venture just don't seem to be an individual like a Twin can be, but it's still a really great bike!

[SilvrT]

I can't comment on what year is better than another but one thing is for sure....

 

The BLACK ones are the BEST !

 

[BigBoyinMS]

I think the main reason anyone complains about the power of any '99-up Venture is because they are shifting too early. If you twist the throttle and let it go... they go! I have an '07 RSV and an '06 1700 Roadie and because they are 2 such different engines I can't say which would win in a race. But they both will go!

[Wanderer]

I have an 09 and it'll blow the doors off Sleeperhawks 08, well it would if it weren't

still in break-in. :sign20:bl

Super bikes, all, I wouldn't have any thing else. I demo'd the

Wing and it just wasn't the bike for me. I'm also 6' and I'm very

comfortable on the RSV as is the wife.

 

What ever year you get, you won't be sorry.

[SilvrT]

I think the main reason anyone complains about the power of any '99-up Venture is because they are shifting too early. If you twist the throttle and let it go... they go! I have an '07 RSV and an '06 1700 Roadie and because they are 2 such different engines I can't say which would win in a race. But they both will go!

 

Any idea how your roadie compares to a 1200cc Sportster in power ... could the roadie take the sporty or?

 

I know my '87 could wax the sporty once I hit 3rd gear and that's riding 2 up. Dunno about how my '06 would do against it.... yet!

[wes0778]

Any idea how your roadie compares to a 1200cc Sportster in power ... could the roadie take the sporty or?

 

I know my '87 could wax the sporty once I hit 3rd gear and that's riding 2 up. Dunno about how my '06 would do against it.... yet!

 

Don't know what size Sportster it was, but he started it, when he reved it up next to me at a stop light, just as I pulled up next to him. My puny powered stock '98 RSTC was pulling away from him when I hit the rev limiter in 2nd gear. It was a 45mph speed zone and I came up on where I needed to turn, so I don't know how it would have turned out in the top gears, but I bet he doesn't pick on one of these Yamaha beasts again...

[Freebird]

I think that the complaints about the lack of power of the Royal Stars were the earlier ones. Yamaha came out with a new one in 2005 that is basically the same drive train as the Royal Star Venture but minus the fairing and etc. The earlier Royal Stars were lacking power and there is a air filter modification that helps a lot and larger carbs help also. The '05 models and later though come with plenty of power, about 98HP just as the RSV.

[similost]

Any idea how your roadie compares to a 1200cc Sportster in power ... could the roadie take the sporty or?

 

I know my '87 could wax the sporty once I hit 3rd gear and that's riding 2 up. Dunno about how my '06 would do against it.... yet!

 

Stock a Sporty will walk on a 1600 roadie. Not sure about the 1700, but it would be close, but I'm gonna put my money on the sportster... Had a friend I ran a few times on a Sportie... The roadie will take it off the line up to third gear, but then the Sportster will blast past it..

 

But then I had done a lot of work to the engine on mine... port matched the heads to a Nemesis intake and cleaned up the head ports a little, added a true ram air cleaner and a FAIC pipe, (Forced Air Induction Collector) jetted it, then added a Revmaster.

 

I've yet to find a sportster that will take my Roadie... Not saying they can't be worked on and do it, but a stock one hasn't touch mine yet.. I've run my roadie against a couple of stock 1700 roadies and took all of them by a pretty fair margin....

Edited May 8, 2009 by similost

[StarFan]

I have been riding a Roadstar 1600 for about 6 years now and want to move to a Royal Star Venture for some more serious Touring. My wife and I have had the Roadstar out to the Black Hills, Yellowstone, Badlands and Montana and it's fine but not a true touring bike and lacks some comforts. I don't like the look of Goldwings and at 6'5" they just don't have enough room for me. I love the look of the Royal Star and it seems roomier.

I seem to recall that some airbox improvements have been made over the years giving a bit more power and torque to the Royal Star. Is there a year that is preferable? Are, say, the '06's and on better than the '99 through 05's?

I figure this is the place to ask.

 

Tom W. Illinois

 

Since you are only thinking about buying a Royal Star Venture with the added touring comfort/Trunk then you have the same power in the Venture from the beginning of production in 1999 to this year. The Royal Star was first produced in 1996 and did not have the trunk and the engine had smaller carburators, different camshaft, weaker valve springs and so forth. It gave around 64 HP compared to 96 HP for the Venture. Here below are the HP facts for the different Royal Star models:

 

Royal Star Tour Classic/Tour Deluxe/Boulevard from 1996 to 2001 - 64 HP. (No Trunk)

Not produced 2002 - 2003 and 2004.

 

Royal Star Tour Deluxe from 2005 to 2009 - 96 HP. (No Trunk)

 

Royal Star Venture from 1999 to 2009 - 96 HP. (With Trunk)