Cruza Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 I owned a Star 650 for over two years while I did my L and P plates and added about 15 000 km's to the clock. I was continually looking at what I'd like to upgrade to and it took me ages to decide, but eventually upgraded to the Star 950 after sitting on 100's of bikes. I wanted something a bit bigger.....but didn't want a monster, both because of the increased cost of insurance and registration, increased fuel cost.....and the intimidation factor. I am delighted with the Star 950! The things I didn't like about the 650 were; it needed another gear, the shaft whine that really irritated me, cleaning the spokes all the time, it bottomed out on bumps (wife always rides pillion these days so it was a real problem), it was underpowered for two up, my wife was a bit cramped on the pillion and we had to stop frequently to stretch the legs. The Star 950 has sorted all these issues and is an absolute pleasure! (I must say that I immediately bought a Mustang rider and pillion seat and Cobra sissy bar from the States, I didn't like the original seats and my wife really didn't like the pillion seat) The increase in power over the 650 is massive, what a pleasure to be able to pull ahead of traffic, or overtake without any effort. I was worried that from 650 to 950 I wouldn't notice enough of an increase.....but I'm more than satisfied with the response and power of the bigger bike. I find the gearing and gearbox to be perfect, the engine runs much slower than the 650 and I'm never looking for another gear, in fact I keep realizing that I've still got an extra one! Because the engine is running so much slower at speed, there isn't as much vibration or noise on the open road. We use helmet to helmet bluetooth.....with the 650 we always had a lot of background noise from the engine.....with the 950 it's noticeably quieter and more pleasant in our ears. We used to feel as if we were flying if we got up to 100 k's....but now 100 feels great. The belt drive is silent and efficient. The suspension is excellent, providing a smooth ride over bumps, even with the pillion passenger. The pillion seat and footpegs are significantly better spaced, we can now head out for a four-hour ride, only stopping once or twice and my wife's legs and joints are comfortable. She initially didn't think there was much more distance between the seat and the footpegs....but after a few hours riding it's very obvious because she isn't desperate for a stop. With a happy and comfortable pillion passenger.....riding just got way more fun for everyone. The fuel economy has surprised me, offering an improvement on the 650, I used to get about 25 km's to a litre, but have achieved 28 km's to a litre on the 950. The cornering clearance seems to me to be similar to the 650, I've scraped a few times, but not excessively. It's maybe got a little less clearance than the 650, but not hugely different. The engine sound is so much better.....my neighbour immediately knew I'd changed bikes just by hearing it running and came out to see......he said he loved the new engine sound.....so do I. At slow speed the engine is definately more noticeable than the 650, I notice people looking around to see me before I get to them, with the 650 that didn't often happen. I've still got the factory silencer fitted. At high speed the engine sounds so much better on the 950, more of a slow-rumble and not the frantic high-revving noise of the 650. Control during cornering has become so much better......I wouldn't have believed it.....but I feel so much more in control on bends with the 950 than I ever did on the 650. I'm not sure of all the reasons why, but cornering is just much more sure. Probably a combination of better suspension and power more available, but it's impressive. I find that if I notice a pothole or something nasty on a corner, it's far more effortless to change track. It's not that there is very much difference in age or wear......the 650 was a 2007 that I bought with 3500 k's on the clock (sold with 18500), the 950 is late 2008 with just over 4000 k's on the clock. I've therefore put it down to better design and capacity. I love the fact that I no longer have what seems like thousands of spokes to clean, the great looking alloy rims are a pleasure! I also like the fact that the tyres are tubeless....allowing me the possibility of fixing a flat on the side of the road with a rubber bung.....if the offender is just a nail or screw. I love the updated styling of the bike and have had lots of comments from strangers......complementing it's looks. The Mustang rider and pillion seats are fantastic, I bought the Touring, two-piece vintage seats. I also bought the cobra mini sissy bar, the cobra luggage rack and a Mustang 9 inch wide sissy bar pad. I find that the new seat gives me fantastic back support, so very much better than the original seat, the slightly extra width of the pillion seat is very welcome to the wife and the wide sissy-bar pad is also very comfortable for her. I haven't had a luggage rack before and it's great to be able to just strap something on in a few moments and be off. Cleaning the bike is easier.....less chrome than the 650, so it doesn't take long to shine up the few shiny bits and give the impression it's clean. All in all I just wish I'd changed sooner.........I love the Star 950 and would recommend it to anyone who is looking for an upgrade on the 650 Star......but doesn't want to go too big. You'll have far more power.....without any more difficulty in controlling the bike at slow or high speed. My wife had grown very attached to the 650 and was very sorry to see it go.......but after a few rides on the 950 she's very happy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator drewpy Posted January 20, 2013 Moderator Share Posted January 20, 2013 good review, but you ain't got one until we see a photo of it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackhat250 Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 Very detailed info" will help future buyers, The term Star is dragstar i take it, or midnight star ? as he says get some piccy"s up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruza Posted January 21, 2013 Author Share Posted January 21, 2013 I tried and tried to get a picture posted.....but have given up.....but I did manage to get a recent picture into my profile. I was out on the Putty Road near Sydney on the weekend with my wife...my enthusiastic riding partner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttaskmaster Posted January 21, 2013 Share Posted January 21, 2013 The term Star is dragstar i take it, or midnight star ? Both. 650 = Dragstar 950 = Midnight Star Interesting review... I may try a Midgie out one day, if ever they become cheap enough and I have some cash lying around! I do feel they're pretty much two different classes of bike though, or at least at the extreme opposite ends of the mid-size Cruiser bracket. The 650 was never really, honestly, truly meant for all-out 2-up touring, although with the correct set-up it can do very nicely. It's probably starting to show it's age though, especially as the 1100 is only marginally better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruza Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 I've had the 950 V Star (Midnight Star) for about four months now and probably done about 2000 km's. I still love it. I have to update my original comment on the 950 scraping round corners. My impression now, after the milage I've done is that the 950 does scrape on corners more easily than the 650. I haven't ever scraped out on the open road, but I tend to scrape when taking 90 degree corners in the suburbs and I take the corner on a bit of a tight radius. Other than that, still love the bike! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rock n ride Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 This is just what I needed to hear,I've been riding my 650 classic for nearly ten years and have been looking to upgrade to the 950 midnight ,thanks for a helpful review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samaels Posted May 19, 2013 Share Posted May 19, 2013 i have both xvs650 and xvs950 ,,, and as i always said ,,, 650 cc is like 6,5 inch penis ,,, seems ok and work well enough, but nothing to brag about ))) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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