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Hello all, I'm seriously thinking of buying a Falco and haven't really read any negative reviews about them. I love the look of the Tuono but naked biking is not for me anymore, that's why I sold my Z1000 recently. I really wanted a BMW K1200S but the prices are a bit high for me at the moment. So my questions are, what are the main things to look out for when buying, do they provide good weather protection, are the prices likely to completely bomb as they aren't made anymore and are they comfortable as the seat doesn't look to have much padding on it?

Thank you in advance and look forward to your comments.

Hi Alky! Welcome to Aprilia RiderSite (and all the other bits of RiderSite as well)

Dont personally ride one, but im sure you'll find that the added interest of late in the Falco (These guys seem to sell the model to people so well.. no really.. as well as decent reviews and position in the Ride polls, etc) may see the prices going up. Theyre pretty sought after at the moment!

Things to look out for?

Check whether it's been dropped off it's stand or has had the stand modded by it's previous owner is the one that springs to mind for me. It's quite a common occurrence as the standard stand...doesnt...

The lads'll be along shortly with the full lowdown on everything Falco.. Oh and if youre going to buy one, make sure a. the wife is understanding and b. you have a large reserve of cash to mod the bike with.. trust me.. when this lot start, well........

Hi and welcome.

Yeah, BUY (well, what did you expect me to say)

Things to look out for - well we can probably give you a long list .... but to be honest they are very reliable and the things we mention are either quite minor or infrequent problems.

Actual problems (opposed to things we'd improve) include:
Leaking clutch slave seals
Wrong headlight fitted to some of the newer ones (see thread on this)
Sprag clutch can go if not well treated - but that would be fairly obvious.
Starter relay is a weak point and can contribute to the sprag problem. Replacing the relay is cheap and easy - not a worry.
Some of the early ones had a problem with the sidestand switch - plastic peg would snap. Later ones have a metal peg.
You may notice a pulsing through the front brakes - many put this down to warped disks .... but it seldom is. Often it can be fixed by cleaning up the "buttons" on the semi-floating disks. Other times it's because of uneven pad deposition on the disks because the pads and or disks have not been bedded in properly.
The rear brake may not be that effective .... cos they aren't that effective
Sometimes there is a problem with the pneumatic slipper clutch. You'll soon notice if that's not working.
Clutches have been known to slip - early ones are more prone. Clutches that have been run on semi-synth do not like to be run in fully synth oil.
Keeping the battery charged can be difficult on some - there is a wiring mod that some swear by (I've not done it)
They did make some in yellow - they are best avoided on grounds of good taste (incoming ......)

Don't worry if the clutch fluid is black .... it's a feature - they all go like that and it doesn't cause a problem.

Also check it's been derestricted - if it hasn't, it's no big deal - just a 10 min job.
If it still has Metzler MEZ3 tyres on it then change them - they are awful - no really they are - I'm not exagerating. If you test ride one with these tyres you will not be experiencing what a Falco is like to ride.
The OEM sidestand is rubbish - we have a number of good mods for this
The rear shock is possibly bearable under some circumstances but is better replaced with something more befitting the rest of the bike ...

That's enough for now .... hope you find a goodun and we see you on it soon

Hi Alkydale,

Nothing to add to D-Riders comprehensive list.

It was the name that caught my eye, in my bad old days, BC (before children) I was often called that.

Alkydale ....What year is the bike ? ....I own an early Falco and like d-rider says there are some issues but I think his comprehensive list may put you off !!

Falco's are great bikes

But the list mentions faults that SOME bikes have had ...not every bike has had a fault, my Falco has had one fault in it's 8 year 13,000 mile life ...the clutch slave seals, this was repaired with an aftermarket cylinder.

I replaced the shocker and seat as a personal choice (early seats are fekkin hard!)

In general ...9 out of 10

Pretty much the same as above

Did I mention I have one up for sale with:

Replacement shock

Replacement sidestand

Replacement clutch slave cylinder

?

Full description and piccies available in the classified bit

in 3yrs i've had one problem, the kill switch acting up. allthough andy's list is acurate your not going to suffer all those faults.genuinly the bikes are well looked after.i find mine just as comfy as my old vfr,so i'd say go and buy and as you get used to the bike your grin will get wider and wider.

Well thank you for your input so far guys, much appreciated.

I am actually thinking of buying the Falco currently on eBay, which has only done 2500 miles, you've probably all seen it, what do you think?

Don't want to sound soft BUT, how much protection does the fairing give you?

you get plenty of protection even with the standard screen, which i think looks best. if you weigh up the pro's and con's your getting a lot of bike for your money and the build quallity is up there with the best.

I'll have had mine 4 years this summer, it's a 2001 brought secondhand off eBay. It's the most reliable bike I've ever had and I've had lots of, and still own a Honda. Only fault in almost 4 years and nearly 20K miles has been a rear brake light switch, but that's to be expected as I ride all year round and it gets gummed up with crap, so should have cleaned it more often. Andy has been very honest in his list, but please don't expect to see all those faults!
I rate mine as the best bike I've ever owned in 40 plus years riding bikes as well as the most reliable.
The seat is a bit hard and does not look comfortable but it seems to suit my rear end pretty well .
My old CBR1000F has a really soft comfy seat, when you first sit on it but after 120 miles or so it gets a bit more uncomfortable, and you sort of need to get comfotable again when you get back on again.
The Falco feels hard at first but if anything seems to get better as you ride it.
If unhappy you can get a gell cover or even a replacement seat, but try it first and see if it suits you as standard.
As for wind protection, I have problems with naked bikes at my age, as the windblast hitting my shoulders sets my Arthritis off and gets very uncomfortable. The wind protection on the Falco is not as good as the old CBR thou, which is probably very similar to the BMW you considered, but I never find it a problem, just a bit less cover around the hands.
I have a double bubble fitted, and think it helps and looks better, others don't like the looks as much and prefer the standard, which has a bit of a double bubble and a flip up anyway, so also works quite well, so you may be surprised.
I find the Falco to be comfortable enough for me, I'm a 5'9" old fart with more of a gut than I should have.
Only time my wrists get a bit tired is when in busy traffic, soon as you get some wind on your chest it's fine, but again some younger than me have fitted variobars.
Will be much better than any race rep comfort wise whatever size/shape you are.
It's a great bike and as fast as most things, except the very latest litre bikes, on normal roads. I've never seen a bad write up, the best one was probably the one in Bike Magazine by Mike Armitage, think there is a copy somewhere on here, if not I'll see if I can find a copy and let you have it. He rated it very highly and probably the most underated bike of all time.
Buy it, you'll love it, it's different and has bags of character, although will take a little while to aclimatise to after a Jap IL4 or similar.
Can't get eBay here at work but if it's the bike I think I saw it looks good and with just 2500 miles on the clock it should be a great buy and thousands cheaper than the BM.
Prices are lower than you might expect but still seem to hold up well.
Go for it!

Okamoto it's a March 05 with 2300 miles on the clock, it's on eBay. Howard, thank you for that and I too am 'ageing' well nearly 45 so comfort rather than out and out speed is important. Fastasfcuk, you are obviously very happy with yours!

The more feedback I get the more I am tempted to go buy it and the more I look at it the better it looks!!!!!

My experience is 2 Falcos for a total of 5 years and 20,000 miles. In that time I have had no problems with either bike, other than ones of my own making. Like most bikes, they do not like being crashed.

I paid £2500 one year ago for a 2002 with 3300 miles on it. I thought that was a bargain. The one you talk of sounds even better. Go for it. Just make sure you like V Twins. An acquired taste, not for some.

no omplaints with mine had it 1.6 years now ,fitted a new mpl slave , clutch is slightly lighter now ,got a new side stand (still to fi it ) no problems apart from a dead battery ,

btw welcome ,get your credit card out for the mods

Ease up lads. I think he's been assimilated.

Well, after all the great feedback what else could I do? Put a bid in on the Falco and hoping we can do a deal. With a bit of luck I can soon post on here as an owner!!!

Thanks guys