Today I took the ZEPHYR 550 out for about 250 kilometers of cruising for the first time.
The more I ride it, the more I fall in love with certain aspects while also discovering things I’d like to improve.
Without exaggeration, the 550 really does run well.
Since it’s an extension of the 400, it’s incredibly easy to ride in terms of both class and weight.
Even though it was hot today, I really felt that motorcycles are just the best.
Let’s ride the Aqua Line and head to Chiba!
I’ve never really liked the Tomei Expressway and Odawara-Atsugi Road to Hakone for some reason.
I don’t have the energy anymore to go the old way via the Third Keihin, Yokohama Shindo, and Shonan Bypass in a chaotic manner.
I think traffic jams and lane splitting just tire me out too much.
So I took the Zephyr 550 on the Aqua Line for the first time.
I made lunch my destination.
I found something about “top three” things online last night and went to check it out.
It opens at 11, but there were already many customers and more kept coming.
It’s amazing that a business like this can succeed in such a remote location.
Personally, I didn’t quite understand the ramen.
I think I might just not be that into ramen in general.
Next time I’d like to try the seafood options.
There’s a farm beyond that, so I went to check it out…
I couldn’t see any cows or horses at all.
Maybe they were closed that day… The weather was bad too, so I started feeling a bit disappointed.
Wow!! There were so many large mushrooms growing – what a surprise!
The Parasol Mushroom is a poisonous fungus of the Agaricaceae family containing toxic compounds such as molybdophilicin and steroids. If accidentally consumed, it causes severe gastrointestinal symptoms including chills, headaches, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and sometimes bloody stools. Symptoms typically appear within tens of minutes to several hours, but can also appear much later, so it’s important to be careful as you might not realize the mushroom was the cause.
That’s what it says! I don’t think anyone would eat it, but please be careful.
Even though I claim to be a leather jacket person, it was too hot so I was riding with it wrapped around my waist,
but doing something so careless could mean dropping it, so I decided to secure it to the seat instead.
In the end I rode back the whole way in a long-sleeve T-shirt.
The area around the observation deck had unexpectedly become a cat zone.
Their coats and skin looked quite good and they seemed healthy.
They were slim but seemed to get treats pretty often.
They were incredibly used to people.
In the end, I’m the type who ends up going to Starbucks wherever I go.
The ramen wasn’t nearly enough, so I ordered donuts and some kind of savory pastry.
I’m not sure what it was, but I had accumulated E-tickets and got 700 yen off.
I always think that mobile ordering is faster than waiting in line at the counter.
If everyone does it, the benefit diminishes, so please use it in moderation.
There are things I’m dissatisfied with, from small to large.
I always keep a cargo strap and carabiner for securing luggage.
They’re incredibly convenient when you need to quickly secure something and move.
I always use the carabiner to prevent the tank bag from coming loose.
If you secure the leather jacket with a belt so the whole seat comes off together,
it’s convenient for hooking the helmet.
After riding around today and experiencing various things, I noticed areas I’d like to improve:
- The position of the stock steps isn’t to my liking.
- The shift engagement is extremely poor.
- The rubber on the shift lever tip is slippery.
- The seat shape is the worst.
- The hub damper is too loose.
The engine’s feel, speed sensation, and acceleration are extremely excellent – it gives the impression of being necessary and sufficient.
That said, on the highway it’s constantly running at 7000-8000 RPM,
but the engine doesn’t seem to be struggling.
In fact, it pulls beautifully at higher RPMs and feels really good.
With a 10,000 RPM redline it doesn’t rev that high, but I really like this RPM range.
If a bike revs too high, you end up constantly revving it and it gets a bit tiring.
Don’t you ever feel that way?
I really do love around a 10,000 RPM redline.
I’ll measure the fuel economy later, but it seems surprisingly good.
The small displacement means the engine doesn’t get too hot, which is also great.
For example, if I were riding an oil-cooled Inazuma 1200 in weather like this, it would be unbearably hot.
Even stuck in traffic, it just stays pleasantly warm.
Since it doesn’t get excessively hot, you don’t get physically tired.
Also, since it’s basically the size of a 400, the footrest and handling are extremely good.
My feet touch down so much that my knees bend comfortably – it’s very comfortable.
When asked what top speed it can reach, it obviously can’t match a liter bike.
But depending on who you’re riding with, I think it has enough performance that you won’t be too inconvenienced.
Bigger bikes are getting hard to ride. You want a bike with good footrest.
But you also want the ability to overtake on the highway and that momentary top speed.
The 550 seems to have that necessary and sufficient performance.
Though since it’s not a current model, while the vehicle price is cheap,
maintenance and customization costs will definitely add up, but it’s a really fun air-cooled multi.
I’m not pushing it on anyone, but if you’re interested, why not enjoy the remaining time with it?
The article was not found.
