SilveradoCA

I've heard of some station pumps requiring a Zip code be entered in order to process the transaction. Apparently (I haven't confirmed this, but lots of Canadians on the ADV Rider forum swear by it,) if you enter the three numbers from your canuck postal code, followed by 00, it will work. So for T9K 0N3 I would enter 90300.

The chip (visible chip on the surface of the card) cannot be read at any distance, it is a contact conduction chip. RFID (also known as NFC), the "tap&go" technology is what can be read at a distance, though it is a short one. Some cards have both, some not.

Your idea is way too complicated. How about a life-sized hand cut out of coroplast, mounted on a spring so it waves like a bobblehead doll, mounted on the left side of the fairing? You get a wave! and YOU get a wave! EVERYBODY gets a WAVE!!!!! (Your choice of 5 colours, "Peace Sign" and "Hang Loose" gesture, add $2, S&H not included.)

It's just amazing what kind of horrible things happen at 81MPH. As for the max payload, well... I'm only about a buck-seventy-five, and my gear wouldn't ever weigh more than about 60 lbs, but honestly if I ever found myself with a woman over 130, she'd better come with her own bike. Maybe that's why I've been single for so long?

I didn't see it mentioned, but in BC it is (or was) mandatory under provincial law to pay at the pump; a station attendant got killed trying to stop a vehicle that drove away without paying, and so in classic Canadian fashion, somebody thought another knee-jerk law was the answer. Is it true though that chip & pin isn't widespread in the US? It's absolutely ubiquitous here (and in the Western European countries I've visited). I don't remember the last time I actually used the mag stripe on any of my cards.

The more metallic black is called Raven, and unless I'm mistaken, it is a colour that Yamaha has been using for years on their professional drums. That's a classy connection, if you ask me; almost like the piano black details found in some high-end luxury cars.

I'm still shopping for a GenII RSV. I'm looking at all examples from 2000 to 2013 depending on pricing, but I've noticed something in this search. Black 'Midnight' editions are like ants on the ground, while other colours are seemingly rare. Granted, these bikes aren't very common: I can presently find about 120 for sale in all of Canada. My preferences in order are the dark silver over black (2013?), blue over black (2007?) and red over black (2009?), followed by the black Midnight, then the others. What's been your experience? Do you see WAY more black-on-black RSV's than any other? Were colours different South of 49° than what we got in Canada? It would be interesting to see a breakdown of sales by year/colour, if such a thing were available.

It seems like there are few choices in car tires to fit the Gen II RSV. Has anyone changed their rear wheel to a different size in order to have more options in this regard?

It's got Ford Fairlane written all over it.

Right you are cowpuc. Kawi bikes have almost always left me totally flat; when I bought my '01 Road Star, I test drove the Vulcan and the best response I could muster was 'meh...". However, that dash and those driving lights are almost pure 1st Gen Mustang, right down to the font on the gauges. Gorgeous. As to the V4, again I agree. Had Yammy wedged the new iteration of the VMax mill into the SV bikes, they would have completely destroyed all comers in the power department. As to my screen name, the CA is for Canada in this case, not California sadly.

When the Gen II RSV was released in '99, the thing that made my breath catch in my throat was the obvious similarity to classic, stately automobiles of the late 1940's and early 1950's in the lines and details of the bike - Studebaker, Nash, DeSoto, and Tucker 48 et al. I think that with the Stratoliner, Yamaha looked back further, but drank too much pre-WWII art deco hooch and lost the signal a little, though they are very nicely finished motorcycles. Now with the new SV Eluder and Transcontinental, Yamaha's designers have clearly channelled the 1960's, but in the same modern design language we see in today's modern muscle cars from the Big 3 - Camaro, Challenger and Mustang. I happen to think that they missed an opportunity here, in choosing a V-twin over the V4, the latter echoing much more the character of a souped V8 motor than the former does any automotive engine I can think of. I happen to love this common thread, having grown up with a greaser gearhead of a father, who build and raced stock cars and street rods in the '60's. The Italians seem adept at honouring Ferrari and Lamborghini with lovely details on their bikes from time to time, Ducati in particular. Aside from that, can you think of any other motorcycles that really evoke a particular element of car culture?

Yesterday was the first day that the snow finally melted away up here, except for some deeper spots in the shade. That includes a few days last week when we got a little rain. For reference, it was -28°C here on Good Friday... After 14 winters up here, I've had it for good. I'm moving to where the oldest grandmothers don't remember the rivers freezing, and I'm never coming back. Probably to southern BC or Vancouver Island. It's a shame it's so tough for a Canadian to move to the US.