OzSTOC
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: spanner on February 14, 2014, 12:19:05 PM
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Is there any benefit in getting a ex police bike?
What are the major differences in a ex police bike compared to a civilian bike?
How can you tell if its an ex police bike?
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Ah Grass Hopper excellent questions...
Police bikes are good (I have one so may be biased)
Differences:
For a start, unless repainted, they are white.
Right grip has a different switch cluster.
Speedo is calibrated in 2K increments, and is pretty darned accurate depending on tyres.
There is a cluster of wires in a bundle under the rear seat that was used for the electronic packages.
At a set speed, police bikes are faster.. (IE, If you sit on 100ks, and your mates are on 100ks, you will pull away from them)
Power and top speed wise, no difference.
Major advantage, is that the guy next to you will probably get pinged first, especialy if you have a fluoro vest. Also, cars on the freeway dont try to kill you quite as often.
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Major advantage, is that the guy next to you will probably get pinged first, especialy if you have a fluoro vest. Also, cars on the freeway dont try to kill you quite as often.
If nothing else this is a good reason .... :cop
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I'd steer clear of them if it was me.
After spending 20 yrs on them I can say with confidence that most don't lead a happy life. They're dropped several times and subject to all types of accident damage. They're ridden hard, lots of high speed work and heavy braking, up and down gutters, median strips and where ever they need to go. Also, used in all weather conditions.
Most NSW HWP bikes are shared, so there's no pride of ownership. They get washed regularly with high pressure cleaners and any chemical bath that'll get them clean quickly before knock off. The high mileage bikes feel their age, suspension is usually on the way out as well.
The only kind thing I can say is that they're serviced regularly.
If you know the history of the bike, you can pick up some good ones but go forward with caution otherwise.
Cheers,
Tony
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My bike is agood bike, only damage was a scraped tip over cover. In WA, they were a personal bike, so were looked after quite well.
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I thought the police STs had bar risers fitted to them, is that correct?
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I believe they do, and a matching cover, The bars needed to be raised to to the switch block I think
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The ST1300s also had a strengthening/mounting bar fitted to the tip over bars, you have to remove the cover to see them. This prevents you from installing the MCL H'way pegs without modofication.
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If you have an EX Police bike, just email MCL and tell them you have an EX Police bike, and they will send you the different base plates to use, no modification. I'm lead to believe they utilise the holes/welded nuts (for siren) that are already within the tip over bar to secure the base plate of the MCL Highway Pegs/Blades system.
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I have the best of both worlds.......I have a ST1300 police version, but my bike had never been in service, I purchased it brand new with zero kls on the clock, my bike has the police switches as mentioned by Brock, and also came with raised bars and wind/knee deflectors already fitted. Oh, and it's definitely faster than red ones, and blue ones, and silver ones, and black ones! Ha! :grin
:rd13 :blu13 :slvr13 :blk13 ------------------------ :wht13
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Bike safety is a big concern of mine and if you have seen my bike you will know how serious I am.
Motorcycle riders have a statistically greater risk of being involved in an accident than other road users.
In 2012 in Victoria alone motorbikes made up only 4% of the total number of vehicles on the road yet 15% of all fatalities. That's not even considering the non fatal accidents.
A short trip through any capital city will demonstrate the lack of attention and observation many car drivers have and "near misses" are common. Anything riders can do to improve their viability on the road is a plus I believe that white bike are the most visible and that is why I ride one. The fact that the general public's perception that all white bikes are police bikes is fine by me. It certainly makes them think twice before pulling out in front of me and in fact most pull over to let me pass.
In QLD Police bike can be shared or assigned. Visual inspection of the bike will usually indicate whether it was loved or abused. Mine only had 20,000 kms when auctioned and it was pretty close to immaculate. Now 100,000 kms on I have no regrets. However like Brock, I too could be biased.
I guess the other, not mentioned difference is a solo seat and half the rego costs as a result.
Regards
A.
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not mentioned difference is a solo seat and half the rego costs as a result.
I think that only applies to Qld, definitely not the case in WA
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I owned a police CB750 back in the late 70's and my only regret was the smaller than standard engine sprocket, by one tooth I think. This gave it a lot of get up and go, but was very busy at highway speeds. This was not cheap or easy to fix (when trying to raise a young family), but this wouldn't be a problem on an ST (or Beemer, or....).
I had no issues. The single seat was very comfortable +++. It was used mainly as a commuter and had a noticeably different road presence from a civilian bike. That has to be a plus.
One possible down side is, and I am very happy to be corrected, that the 1100's the police used didn't have ABS, so if you want ABS, you need to go civilian. May be the same with the early 1300's, but I don't know.
My civilian ST1100AX now has a (modified) police seat and cowl to qualify for the cheap rego here in sunny (and presently dry!) Queensland. This saves several hundred a year (not sure of exact figure, but I did work it out when deciding to sacrifice the pillion) and will pay for itself in about 18 months when considering the cost of the new compliance plate. This is a reversible change in case I decide to (wash your mouth out with soapy water, Carl, dirty words!) sell the bike.
My contribution, for what it is worth.
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I certainly have no complaints about my ex police ST1100. It had about 130k on the clock when I bought it 7 years ago, now got 183k and no major hassles that wouldn't be expected with an 18yo bike.
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:wht11 :wht11 :hatwave :runyay
Winston66
well for my money , here is my thoughts on the matter.
I am lucky in that I now have two ST1300's with which to indulge myself.
One is a 2003 without ABS and the fixed screen, at purchase 2 years ago was 105,000 Klm Call this No.1
The other is a 2006 P model with the ABS and the electric windscreen and has 91,000 Klm. on the speedo. Call this No.2
The differences between them that are apparent to me are as follows.
I feel that No2 has several advantages and if you were to compare the different models and restrict the comparasion to the same year,you would find that bike No2 in my case would have as extra stuff the following.
1 Handle bar risers fitted as standard , in order for the extra switches to clear the tank when on full lock
2 I believe that the front suspension has different rate springs fitted, It seems somewhat softer and consequently more comfortable to me.
3 The height of the rear suspension appears to be a little lower than the 2003 model the best measurement that I can get is about 2 and one half Cm. less .
4 It is fitted with a single seat ,and has no rear , (passenger) foot pegs.
5 There is a kit available to modify the seat to a dual set up if required.
6 There are extra electrical options available via the Police style switch and extra stuff (relays , connectors etc.) in the wiring loom under the rear pod.
If you want to figure it out and use that stuff.
7 Most important, for me anyway, is the P model does not have that overly complicated HISS ignition system which I figure is a total overkill, and can and will only cause anyone one who has the misfortune to loose or mislay their keys an extreme amount of grief and an exorbitant amount of expense to rectify.
8 The tip over bars have extra plates and fastening points attached.
9 My P model has an extra key operated ignition isolater switch added , ( I still have to figure out how it is supposed to work)
10 The speedometer is calibrated at 2 Klm. increments and is correct at its stated speed.
11 it also was fitted with the optional rubber Faring kit.
12 You might be lucky and get the operational log book that details the daily usage etc. of the bike.
13 I get the impression hat the rear suspension is better (slightly more comfortable) than the 2003 model , but this might be because I am running a Kumho 205 section car tire on the 2003 bike. There is no noticeable difference in stability at speed on the older bike.
14 the P model motor seems a little quieter and perhaps a little smoother than the 2003 bike, but essentially there is nothing to choose between them, I am unbiased and happy to ride either of them.
15 This P model has an inbuilt speed limiter incorporated in he ECU of a maximum of 120 MPH. or in our language at a rough calculation of approx. 200 Kilometers per hour, ( that should be fast enough ). Don't you think?
I do stress here that my comparisons are based on two different years of manufacture of what is essentially the same motorcycle and I can only reiterate that I would be happy with either machine.
I purchased the 2006 P model because it was there and was available at a very reasonable price, also as I have mentioned it had the following features that I felt were an advantage if I was to virtually trade up.
1 The ABS system
2 The uncomplicated Ignition system.
3 The electrical adjustable windscreen.
4 The much sort after Police light mounting brackets for mounting those extra running or driving lights.
I do not know if any of this will be of any help , but a you asked the question I thought that I would give you some of my thoughts on the matter.
hope that it helps ,
Cheers , Winston66, Northampton , Western Australia.
:think1 :rd13 :hatwave
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but a you asked the question I thought that I would give you some of my thoughts on the matter.
:think1 :rd13 :hatwave
Wow Winston, That is a fantastic and unbiased comparison. It is great info and indeed does help my jumbled thoughts.
Many thanks for your time and effort in compiling that .
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When I brought my bike it was already fitted with the duel seat, the only obvious thing about it being a police bike was that it was white and fitted with police switching, other than that it looked the same (slightly better cause it was white) as any other ST1300 :grin
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I'd steer clear of them if it was me.
Hear. hear :thumb...look for an ABS variant, if or no other reason the brakes are better, 3 piston calipers compared with the 2 on Police versions (1100), and I know the ABS, if ever activated can prevent a crash :hatwave
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I have ABS fitted on mine! :thumbsup
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The ST1100Ps had the same suspension as civilian versions, except the front forks were off the early ABS bikes, not the civilian bikes. This only matters when getting aftermarket springs.
Mine was never in police service, but was an NRMA bike in Sydney, and I suspect had a crash of some sort as there were bolts and screws missing which probably meant parts were replaced. At 215,000kms only normal servicing and replacement bits needed, still the original clutch.
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I have a 2000 ST1100P which never reached Police service and wasn't sold until 2002. Double seat and rear footpegs, has the Police switch block on the throttle side handle bar and the additional wire loom under the seat. Fitted with driving lights on the Police brackets under the mirror mounts. I bought her at 124,000 km and she's at 131,000 km now.
In the ST1100P, all bikes had the 40 Amp alternator right from the start to handle the extra load of radios and lights, whereas the civilian bikes had a 28 Amp alternator up until 1996 when the 40 Amp alternator was fitted universally across both ST1100P and civilian bikes.
But the big advantage is that people see a white ST and think, "#*+t, it's a cop!" and you see the front of their car dip as they brake. I wear a black suit and white helmet, and sometimes when I'm feeling frisky I throw on a yellow Hi-viz just to shake up the local populace. One of the salesmen down at the local Suzuki shop says he still thinks I'm the Police when he sees me around town. Being visible can't hurt!
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I drove a white common-door for a little while for work which had amber flashing roof lights ..... was funny seing people braking hard when they came round a corner a wee bit fast and saw the car and hit the skids.
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I can understand their surprise :wink1
I drove a white common-door for a little while for work which had amber flashing roof lights ..... was funny seing people braking hard when they came round a corner a wee bit fast and saw the car and hit the skids.
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When the cruise control runs away on me on the open road, every car coming from 2 km down to 200 metres looks like it's got a roof bar and lights. Guilt is really annoying because I lose quite a few kays every hour to that illusion.