Posted: 6/30/2026 6:47:41 PM EDT
| Taking the MSF course next month and trying to decide on a first bike. While neither are my dream bike, I have found both a Svartpilen 401 and Z400 for a pretty good price. Any thoughts on which would be a better bike to put some time on? No plans on extended highway miles, mostly just cruising nearby twisties on the weekends. |
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I'd lean toward the Z400 just because it's more likely to be trouble free. I was on the fence about starting with a Z400/Ninja 400 due to how cheap and seemingly trouble free they are, but then I found a dual sport I was looking for. The 401 is a reskinned KTM Duke 390, so maybe consider those and look at potential issues with them. The KTM 390 Enduro/SMCR are also similar bikes and some of the kinks people are encountering with them made me shy away from buying a new one. I'd look for ABS. |
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There are a lot of people with new 390 Enduros who don't have issues, so it could just be things getting overblown on the internet. It was enough to make me look for a Honda/Yamaha/Suzuki though. If I thought I was going to keep it, I'd get the one I really wanted and deal with any issues, most are nothing major. If I thought I was going to upgrade in short order, I'd think more about resale and not having to fix crap for a year or two. |
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Z400 because Sugomi styling. Pic related; ZH2 big brother Attached File |
| I own a few vintage Husqvarna dirt bikes. I have been interested in the Svartpillen as a street bike for quite some time. I just haven't been able to pull the trigger. They are an odd duck. I haven't heard anything necessarily bad about them but I just don't know if I want to go down niche motorcycle road again. I'll probably end up with a KLR 650 for half the price and twice the performance. I still sort of want the Husky though. |
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Originally Posted By burkian: Taking the MSF course next month and trying to decide on a first bike. While neither are my dream bike, I have found both a Svartpilen 401 and Z400 for a pretty good price. Any thoughts on which would be a better bike to put some time on? No plans on extended highway miles, mostly just cruising nearby twisties on the weekends. Between the two I'd likely lean towards the Z400, but as far as I know the KTM/Husky 400s weren't what was giving them problems. For other 400ish sized bikes...MT03 would be one. If you like the classic look Triumph makes 4 or so bikes with their 400cc motor...Speed, Thruxton, Scrambler, Tracker, etc.... If you're willing to step it up in capacity a little you open quite a few doors and can keep it under 100HP. MT07, SV650, Trident 660, Speed twin 900, etc...they'll be a bit bigger without being huge and have enough power to where it won't scare you to ride on the interstate for short periods...IMO 100 HP is where things start to get a little serious, but I think you'd be fine in the 65-85HP range for a first bike. |
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The Z400 is a very capable bike and just a smart choice for a street bike if you’re looking for a lot of fun but not necessarily “high performance”. They’re reliable, easy to maintain, easy to ride, and fairly quick for a 400-class naked bike. You can expect a top speed of about 105-110, quick launches, nimble handling, and exceptional fuel range. I ride daily with a chick who has a new Z400 and I’ve been nothing but impressed with her bike. It’s a perfect bike for zipping around town, but we also did a 450 mile round trip on the interstate a couple weeks ago and it handled it without batting an eye. Then there’s me, on an unhinged psychopath of a tuned FTR 1200, short shifting so she still feels fast… 
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The Z400 will be easier to support, the Svartpilen will be the nicer bike you are prouder to own. |
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| This all depends on your ability. That said the one biggest mistake I see over and over again. Is buying to small of a bike. Most will buy a small under powered bike. Quickly get bored with it and try to resell right away. Getting nearly run over in traffic cause your bike won't run higher speeds. Being a drag with your group having a small bike. |
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Originally Posted By Chipper44mag: This all depends on your ability. That said the one biggest mistake I see over and over again. Is buying to small of a bike. Most will buy a small under powered bike. Quickly get bored with it and try to resell right away. Getting nearly run over in traffic cause your bike won't run higher speeds. Being a drag with your group having a small bike. Your info is outdated. The Kawasaki Z400 will do 115-120 mph and does 0-60 in under 5 seconds. Smaller displacement bikes today are not like the ones from years ago. |
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Originally Posted By Chipper44mag: This all depends on your ability. That said the one biggest mistake I see over and over again. Is buying to small of a bike. Most will buy a small under powered bike. Quickly get bored with it and try to resell right away. Getting nearly run over in traffic cause your bike won't run higher speeds. Being a drag with your group having a small bike. You're either very talented or very lucky. |
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Originally Posted By burkian: Taking the MSF course next month and trying to decide on a first bike. While neither are my dream bike, I have found both a Svartpilen 401 and Z400 for a pretty good price. Any thoughts on which would be a better bike to put some time on? No plans on extended highway miles, mostly just cruising nearby twisties on the weekends. Wait until the MSF and try the different bikes. That being said, the Svartpilen 401 (which is really just a KTM 390 with some fancy decoration) isn't a terrible bike at all. It'll do decent speeds, it's fast enough, etc.. The only real potential issues are KTM's quality assurance on their cheap bikes made in India (or is it China?), and the question of KTM's future as a company. The Kawasaki would likely be a safer bet. Originally Posted By Chipper44mag: This all depends on your ability. That said the one biggest mistake I see over and over again. Is buying to small of a bike. Most will buy a small under powered bike. Quickly get bored with it and try to resell right away. Getting nearly run over in traffic cause your bike won't run higher speeds. Being a drag with your group having a small bike. FWIW, my buddy rides a KTM 390, essentially the same bike as the SV401, and we do 80+mph on the highway all the time. I've been with him when he's gone over 100, but getting from 80 to 100 definitely takes him a while. As to day-to-day traffic, it'll easily pull away from most cars, excluding real muscle cars or actual sports cars. |
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Originally Posted By Emoto: Your info is outdated. The Kawasaki Z400 will do 115-120 mph and does 0-60 in under 5 seconds. Smaller displacement bikes today are not like the ones from years ago. Originally Posted By Emoto: Originally Posted By Chipper44mag: This all depends on your ability. That said the one biggest mistake I see over and over again. Is buying to small of a bike. Most will buy a small under powered bike. Quickly get bored with it and try to resell right away. Getting nearly run over in traffic cause your bike won't run higher speeds. Being a drag with your group having a small bike. Your info is outdated. The Kawasaki Z400 will do 115-120 mph and does 0-60 in under 5 seconds. Smaller displacement bikes today are not like the ones from years ago. Yeah, neither of those 400s will have issues being overran by traffic, or holding people up on group rides if you know what youre doing. I'm looking to upgrade from my CRF300 after less than a year. All the good places to ride it are an hour away. By the end of the ride, I just want to hop on the freeway to make the trip back shorter. It only runs ~72 comfortably and accelerates painfully slow above 55. Not ideal when the limit is 70 and a lot of traffic is going 75-80. |