New Biker to be

Welcome!

I started on a 500, a bit bigger than the R3. That bike was ok to start on. I ended up owning 2 650s after that, along with a 600. I like the R3 better than the 500 or 650s. The 500 is a great starter, the 650s are ok to start with, not too intimidating. I like the R3 better than both because not only is it a great starter bike, its also a great bike to keep. Its more nimble than the 650, it feels much more fun around the canyons and race track. I still consider myself a "beginner" rider with less than 3 years of experience. I have only done 2 track days, alot of canyons, but I feel there is TONS and TONS of learning to do still. I am not one to just learn to ride to and from work and then call myself "experienced". I guess my version of experienced is when the control riders see you good enough to bump you up into the next group.

I dont see anything wrong with the R3 or the 07 as a starter bike. That said, I just feel the R3 or any small bike for that matter will truly teach you how to ride a sport bike like how a sport bike should be ridden. If you dont want to be doing any sport riding, then consider a cruiser or other, but I will warn you, you are missing out on a great sport. Shifting gears is not even a problem. I dont even know why that is mentioned as far as making the bike easier to ride (we ride bikes, we dont drive them btw lol). Thats something that just happens naturally.

The R3 will commute just fine. I crusie at ~80ish mph on an R3. San Diego traffic. Again there is nothing wrong with either as a starter, but if you truly want to get your skill up at a faster rate, the small bikes are the way to go.

Having started on an mt07 (fz07 for me), and also own an r3, this is very hard question.

First of all, everyone's inherent skill is different. This isn't about learning. If its about learning, you should just buy an r3. What I'm referring to is safety and whatnot. The mt07 doesn't have a progressive throttle and some people say it is snatchy and also you can wheelie accidentally.

Well mt07 was my very first bike and even nearly 2 years with it, I have yet to accidentally wheelie the bike. So people saying the front wheel can easily be lifted, in my mind these people are either trying really hard to lift the wheel or have very dangerous misunderstanding of how to smoothly roll on the throttle. Maybe one of these days I'll try to abruptly jam on the throttle in hopes to lift the wheel. IMO, the mt07 is just like the sv650- the max upper limit of a beginner bike.

I ride the r3 much more dangerously or recklessly because the r3 is more safe and forgiving. I am able to ride it in a way where I'm sure I would get into trouble with my mt07. The r3 is more lenient when it comes to mistakes. I can easily slip the back wheel on the mt07, and have done so accidentally due to the high torque and strong engine breaking. Have not done so on the r3. In other words you will definitely learn much quicker on the r3 than the mt07.

I prefer the r3 when it comes to fun. Its just a more fun bike. People cite torque on the mt07 as fun. I do appreciate the torque, its great but something about the r3 is just a much more fun bike to ride. Maybe its just perception due to how much lighter it is, how much easier it is to lean. Don't know how to explain it.

Now, in your situation, having owned both bikes and use them regularly, for traffic and commuting (and only for traffic commuting), I would prefer the mt07. Mainly because the mt07 has much better low speed handling which is much more appreciated in stop and go traffic and you've got that low end power for instant acceleration. That is pretty much what the mt07 was created for. City traffic riding. Unless you throw in highway commuting, if that is the case, do not get the mt07. Having done 3 hour highway trips on the mt07, it is brutal. The wind blasting you gets tiresome and having no place to rest your chest to tuck in will hurt your back. The max I would want to do on the highway each way is 45 min. Well, you can remedy all this by buying a LARGE windscreen (all the decorative small windscreens are just that- decoration) and/or buying a tank bag that is big enough for your to rest your chest on. But out of the box, the r3 is much better for highway commuting. A nice bonus in cold weather is the r3 keeps your hand a bit warmer due to the fairings pushing wind just above and away your hands while riding.

In general, you can't go wrong either way. My preference in general leans towards the r3 due to it being much more fun to ride in all situations. But if the r3 is your first bike, you will unfortunately experience that need to get something stronger down the road. It is a natural desire, and it can't be helped. If at all possible, it would be great to own 2 bikes. But to be completely honest... I want a 3rd bike.

I rode both of those bikes. ( R3 and FZ-07 )
I am torn between the two. At this point, I don't know which would be better for me. I like the extra power of the 07, but I also like some of the qualities of the R3. Both bikes are very comfortable and easy to ride. Both bikes are fun. Both bikes look cool. So it's a difficult task to choose one of them. The 07 is more expensive. The R3 has less power. For me, it might come down to which one I can get the best deal on. As it is right now... I can't find a good deal on anything! I'm in no hurry to buy, I have a CBR1000RR, which is just about the perfect bike. The only issue I have with the CBR is: sometimes it's just way too much bike for the situation. It's like having an F-22 fighter jet, and all you do is taxi it around the ramp. The CBR wants to FLY! But you can't always let it spread it's wings. This is where a smaller bike would be more practical. Which is why it's nice to have more than one bike!

i have an 07 cbr600 with 57k miles, a couple of ninja 250s for a total of 65k miles, so i think i can do a good comparison with the r3 and fz07...

a friend of mine just got his r3 and he let me ride it to get rid of his chicken strips because he wanted to look cool when others look at his tires...lol...now i live near this road which i consider like a racetrack where i must have ridden for thousands of miles on both my racebikes er i mean my bikes, so how can i refuse the offer, right?...



so i proceeded to rail it through the hairpins at 50 mph...i did not go any faster because the bike aint mine…so i did this for like 30 miles and voila, no more chicken strips...guys and gals, the r3 is obviously as flickable as the 250 but as fast as the 600 in twisty roads...can't go wrong with the handling at this speed but won't be able to keep up in sweeping turns with the 600 with its better suspension...i never took it to town but i am sure it will be a great commuter like the 250...

i was at angeles crest on the 600 a couple of weeks ago...if you are not familiar with this road it is over 40 miles of sweeping curves and technical turns in the mountains near los angeles…anyway I met an English guy on vacation with a rented fz07…he wanted me to show him the crest and he was just in seventh heaven with the road…he was grinning from ear to ear…after about an hour we decided to swap bikes…now the fz07 felt like a bigger grom which I also road tested from another friend…the 07 is more flickable but did not track as well as the 600 with its superior suspension at 70 miles in the turns… all in all the 07 perform very well in the twisties at high speed…it was just when you directly compare it to supersport that it pales…again I did not ride it around town but I am sure it will be a hoot…

so this review is about canyons and twisties and hopefully you can get some use out of it…after all it is about having fun, right?...