Hey, I even love pedal bikes. I have 4 of them.

 

A GS550 would probably be a good race with equal riders. Both are capable of breaking into 12s bone stock. ~50hp at a little under 500lbs vs ~60hp at a bit over 500 lbs.

 

No. The GS550 would smoke a Sportster.

 

I dont see how... they both have similar power to weight and run similar 1/4 mile times. Maybe in the twistys depending on what sporty model. XR would likely have no problem in any catagory vs an old GS550.

 

It's a shame that it's still slower than most new bikes.

 

It doesnt really have any bikes its its class to compare to. Sport bikes?? Definetly not cruisers. So by MOST new bikes i assume you include crotch rockets, if so thats correct. Really who cares though.. Its not intended to race along side them.

 

where do you find out the standing 1/4 mile times for these stock bikes ? , id like to make a mental note of which one i can beat .....lol... (its a funny thread) , guy wants a cruiser to be faster than a sports bike , does he think cos its a sportster nightster its going to be like a sports bike , lol , had a nice ride home this morning at 2 am , no fog , warm n dry , did over a 100 mph on the motor way without to much trouble , 70 - 80 mph round the country lanes , the nightster is fast enough , you cannot do the top end for long (no fairing) and it is capable of going faster than my **** will allow on the bendy stuff , so alls good , if anyone can ride these un faired naked 1200,s ***** out over any distance then your a better man than me , its fast enough , looks cool and sounds cool , be happy for what it is , its better than you think , im feeling good tonight , off to bed now, good night all ,sleep well & ride safe (3.25 am here )

 

It was definitely designed as a "sport bike", from the swing arm, to the foot pegs, the exhaust, brakes, and the suspension. If the XR1200 is not intended to be a "sport bike", then what is it intended to be? If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck....you get it. Looks like a sport bike to me, and sadly the only sport bike it could stand against would be a Ninja 250 and maybe a 500, but it would be close.

Don't get me wrong, I love the look of the XR1200, and the Sportster in general. However it is what it is, all show and no go. Even the Sportster is supposed to be somewhat sporty, and it was but that was 40 to 50 years ago. I love my XL1200S, but I have no delusions about what it really is and it's performance.

 

Nah, the XR1200 is more like a Ducati Monster and other naked bikes. It was never intended to compete with the true sportbikes. I guess it's a question of how we define "sportbike". The XR1200 is a sporty bike, but no race replica.

 

You can find some numbers on Motorcyclist Online and Sportrider. Anything 600cc and up, with an inline four, is a 10 sec bike in the right hands, which means you need a hell of a Harley to compete. If it's a V-twin it's significantly slower. For example an SV650 makes about 75hp compared to 120hp (cank numbers) for the 600cc inline fours.