I have read on the MV website, that the new 2003 F4-S will have 137hp at the crank. I notice alot of talk about the F4 being down on power. This 137hp figure seems to be as good as a '02 Yamaha R-1, and nobody complains about the R-1 being a slug. Also, the 2003 F4-SPR is rated at 146hp at the crank. This is in the neighborhood of the '02 Suzuki GSXR-1000. Why is everybody so down on the MV power? It seems that it is in the same category as the Japanese liter bikes. And it is only a 750. The hp at the rear wheel of an SPR should be around 130hp, and I have seen rear wheel dyno results of GSXR-1000 at only 131. Has the MV power problem been solved by this new 2003 model?

-- Tom Lyons (twlyons@juno.com), February 10, 2003

Answers

The easy answer is NO,go and ride them back to back- the MV has about 54lbs/ft of torque and a R1 or a GSXR 1000 have about 75lbs/ft-now if you make things easy--The torque is what you feel,or how much work the engine is doing,and HP is the rate at which it delivers this work

-- mike tilston (mike@tilston00.fsnet.co.uk), February 10, 2003.

i think you're both right. i think the MV has a bad rep for being down on power as a result of the early models, which only put about 115 hp to the ground. its easier to remember the past than to look at the present, and a stock F4 now puts more like 130+ to the ground. for a 750, that is a very impressive number. of course, mike is right too. torque = work and hp = rate at which torque is produced. liter bikes have bigger pistons and therefore (generally) create more rotational force and higher torque. i think what tom was really trying to say is that the new F4 is more than a match for any other 750, which is really just the gixxer at this time :)

-- Frank Tavani (ftav4444@yahoo.com), February 10, 2003.

Thanks, guys. I'll bet that if you rode the MV like a 600, and kept it on the powerband, it would give a very close run to those liter bikes. Especially the new SPR at 146hp. And if I read the website correctly, an addition of the race header and RG3 exhaust/chip gives an additional 8hp at the rear wheel.That makes it over 154hp at the crank and over 140hp at the rear wheel. That should be enough to hang in there against just about anything, if you ride it right. I'm getting my money together for an '03 SPR right now. I can't wait to ride it.

-- Tom Lyons (twlyons@juno.com), February 10, 2003.

I would say that MV never really had a power problem but was initially a victim of bad timing. The 124hp MV was introduced when Susuki released its "123rear wheel hp" GSXR. Accordingly, the press was very quick to point that out and it's the stigma that's stuck with the MV.

The 2002 MV models onward have 137hp and the Senna/SPR version have 145 crank hp. At this point, I'd say a regular F4S is about as power as a 2002 GSXR750 in respects to torque and horse power (about mid 50s in torque and around 120ish in rwhp). However, comparing a 750 and a 1000cc is not fair, since 1000c have much more torque than 750s.

In comparing a 2002 F4S and a 2002 GSXR 750, I'd be willing to say the GSXR will still accelerate faster, as it weights about 50lbs less than the MV. Assuming the riders are the same weight of course.

In comparing a 2002 F4S and a 2002 R1, the MV would really need to be in the right gear and right rpm to compensate for the R1's greater and flater torque band.

Perhaps the bigger issue is that the MV torque curve seems to be set much higher. With the MV, you really need to rev it past 6K rpm and it doesn't really shine until after 10K. However, this is more if my opinion as the only 750, four cyclinder comparision I can make is with a '96 ZX7R (all other bikes I've had were v-twin or 1000cc 4s). Perhaps someone who's driven a GSXR750 can confirm?

-- Allan Gibbs (Phoenix, Arizona) (agibbs996@aol.com), February 10, 2003.

And then theres the extra 30 kg.................... BUT i do beleive i would get from a to b quicker on the MV because i do not have to think `i wonder how much i can give it out of this corner before it highsides` AND you really do need to ride a R1 before you die!!

-- mike tilston (mike@tilston00.fsnet.co.uk), February 10, 2003.

First, I just bought an '00 with the "illegal" RG3 pipes and chip. I'm guessing I have around 125 hp to the ground. Maybe 60 peak torque. MAYBE. Anyway, I'm just writing to say I have a love affair with my MV that I think will never fade, no matter what new bikes come out. Regardless of performance, I'd much rather have my F4 than any Suzuki, Honda, Ducati, etc., and I've recently owned a 748S and a F4i. HOWEVER, all this engine discussion aside, the MV's biggest problem is weight. At about 446 pounds dry, it's a bit heavier than the 748 was, and much heavier than the F4i (which was around 396 dry as I recall). Even scarier is that the new R6 due out next month will probably put about 110-115 hp to ground with a comparable illegal exhaust / chip and about 47-52 ft-lbs of torque -- essentially not much less than my beloved MV. BUT, Yamaha claims they have a 355 lb dry weight due to new vacuum assisted casting processes, and, in looking at the pics, I believe that number isn't greatly exaggerated. That's almost a 100 pounds lighter than our MV's -- wet or dry. That is a delta that's hard to dismiss.

Still, I'd much rather have my MV than a new R6. MUCH rather.

-- Frank Tavani (ftav4444@yahoo.com), February 10, 2003.

The new 749s has 103hp and weighs 199kg and every journo is raving about it...go figure....it's not always about power to weight.

This new 749, like the MV, is all about being able to extract ALL the performance the bike has to offer....that's the beauty of the MV..... It allows you to do this... When you truely take the bike to it's higher performance levels, you realize how good it is....no matter what friggin claimed hp and weight it's supposedly got.

Ride the bike how it was intended..it comes alive, and you realize what you paid for.

Pete Hughes.

-- Pete Hughes (hueyhuey@ozemail.com.au), February 10, 2003.

Short answer: No. (A quick check of MV's US website(s) show HP and torque specs for the 2002 and 2003 F4S are identical. Perhaps its the fact that HP is quoted as "100,7 Kw" in some places and "137 CV" in others.) The desire for a small improvement in mid-range torque aside, I'm not sure there is a "power problem" that needs solving. Of course, if they could fix their spare parts inventory problems in 2003, now THAT would be a big deal! Just my 2-cents worth.

-- dm (i8foie@msn.com), February 11, 2003.

What you've paid for is a beautiful bike with a lot of exclusivity. In terms of chassis / handling -- many of the dimensions (wheelbase, rake, trail) and suspension components aren't really very much different from a Gixxer. No matter how fast you ride the thing, you aren't going to really prove what you paid for or much material difference in track time / performance. Actually, every track report I've seen shows our F4s handling somewhat worse/slower than comparable Jap bikes. The new R6, being almost 30% lighter and with comparable thrust, will further exacerbate the situation.

As I said before, I didn't buy the bike because of numbers, I bought it because of what my heart told me to do and I don't want anything else. However, to act like our bikes take on a supernatural quality at speed on a track is inaccurate and somewhat absurd.

-- Frank Tavani (ftav4444@yahoo.com), February 13, 2003.

I just found out that the SPR has it's 146hp only with the RG3 installed, and therefore has somewhat less in stock form with normal mufflers. Probably around 141. If you add the racing header and RG3 to the standard F4S, you probably are around the same 146 as the SPR. It makes me wonder if there is really any improvement to be had with the SPR's engine changes.

-- Tom Lyons (twlyons@juno.com), February 14, 2003.

Interesting. A few week ago, my local dealer said the SPR and the F4S were essentially the same engine-wise. He said this after having a conversation with someone in Cagiva USA. He also mentioned the SPR and Senna basically got the stronger engines of the lot.

At that time, I didn't really believe him. However, if a stock SPR with out the RG3 is really around 140hp...... Hmmmm.

-- Allan Gibbs (Phoenix, Arizona) (agibbs996@aol.com), February 14, 2003.

Hi Yall, I have an article from SuperBike Mag that has a comparision of the Senna, 998R and Benelli. http://photos.yahoo.com/ray1617 Quite interesting considering the displacement difference. It is sometimes hard to compare bikes of different sizes like a Gixxer 1000 to a MV 750. However most of the time it comes down to the rider as the variable that makes the difference. I do think that the MV does let riders explore more of their abilities because of the handling and balance the of bike. I read a couple of reports on the MV and all said that this is the best handling motorcycle they have ever rode. I do find the engine to be a revving maniac. I always find myself hitting the rev limiter because the power keeps going. This is really a bike that is so much fun to ride that it does not matte that it may a 1/2 second slower in the quarter mile than other big bore bikes. The MV is still evolving and I do think one day when the finances get settled, the engineers will build one that will set the world on their heel. You know that most of us who bought a MV...bought for its sheer presence. It is THEE BIKE to own! By the way the dyno on the photo page is my stock 2002 F4S. See Ya

-- Ray Lorente EastBay, Calif (ray1617@yahoo.com), February 14, 2003.

Yippee, I've been on the MV and I must say what a great bike. There's just no denying it..I too would take it over the Ducati, Honda, Suzuki etc..having said that, I purchased the 2003 R1 and I have to be like the guy on the Hyundai commercial and tell everyone about it. I have never been on a bike that almost delivers handling just by "willing" it. This bike is so easy to handle that it almost takes the work away from the rider. It's a good deal heavier than the gixxer but only prior to lifting the kickstand..After that, the gixxer seems like your carrying your wife over the threshold 5 years after you marry her.! Sorry gals.

-- Chris Wilson (Lordoftheearring@hotmail.com), March 29, 2003.

Is there any official test with the 2003 F4 against GSXR 750? I think the gixxer is too faster...

-- Rogerio Rolim (rogerio.rolim@netdados.com.br), July 20, 2003.