I'm using Street Twin to work from Gombak ->KLCC-> Bukit Bintang everyday, the bike is not that big but definitely bigger than kapchai or 250cc scooter. cilok is fine but you need to be patient and realise that you are not riding kapchai so you dont go for every gap. If you think the gap is not big enough just wait and let smaller bike passed you, eventually it will open up and you can move. I ride the same route with my Nmax and found the difference in commuting time is probably 1-2 mins max.

Yes, some are giving bad names to big bikers. Ride accordingly


Street Twin - nice ride. High low end torque.

Yup I like the Street Twin almost straight riding position and also high torque definitely a plus when commuting in a city.

The only thing is the heat is noticeable especially if you stuck in a jam or at a long traffic light. I think all these high cc bike had this problem as they are not designed to be ridden very slow in the traffic.

How to handle the weight...if the rider skinny..

Time to bulk up and workout, no pain no gain

Balance bro.

i ride my heavy ass bike (a 2005 zx6r) with a surgically repaired hand and a broken shoulder. just need to be mindful when riding. its stable when ure moving but gets a bit sketchy if u move very slowly or when ure in a stop. if i park front first i need to manually push or pull that bike from the parking spot, align it and then get on the bike. oh and make sure u wear something comfortable and easy to move also. a skinny jeans (example) would limited ur moves and can throw ur balance off.

Correct, experienced rode fz150i which only about 125kg..feel uncomfort during parking and reverse manually... i cant imagine those to handle more than 250kg.. looks smart and perfect when ride.. just cant imagine if unstable situation happened.. and what should i do..

Once you get the hang of it, then its everyday stuff..

Rid big bike to commute, as you go along, analyse the road ahead or parking space ahead, if you gut feeling (instinct) tells you that cant park or can't fit the gap during ciloking time.. it probably right...

That is why you see big bike almost always reverse parked or against a slope. With little push the gravity will help the bike roll down. And the most important thing, no need to pull back your heavy bike out of parking.

Hi TS. When it comes to big bikes in traffic, the type of bike makes a big difference. I ride to and back from work every day through some of Penang island's busiest roads (still nothing compared to KL jams though). Currently riding an er6n and NC700X.

The er6n is physically small and I removed the handlebar ends and fitted bar end mirrors instead. So it's almost 2 inches narrower than stock, and the bars are lower and narrower than an EX5's. I can actually cilok through gaps that kapchais can't pass. The bike also has more steering angle than my old Ninja 250, which helps a lot when you have to make tight turns with the bike upright. It's also quite stable at low speed so crawling along feels fine instead of scary.

The NC700X is very stable and has good low-speed handling and balance but it's also just physically larger, taller and wider (at the handlebars) compared to the er6n. So its a bit more challenging riding through traffic on it. Since most of my riding is commuting I've been taking the er6n more and more and am going to put the NC700X up for sale as a result.

I wouldn't want to commute on a Versys or BMW GS (too tall and top-heavy for me) or a full-on sportbike (not enough steering lock) but others manage it fine.

Like other posters have mentioned, riding big bikes in traffic requires a different set of expectations and a lot more patience; since you can't really use the bike's power and its size and weight is a disadvantage. But it definitely gets easier with time and experience.

Many years back when I started riding big bikes...few times where I had to get strangers to help me push my bike out from a parking spot. Lol.

Now I'm more aware of the slope. Will reverse in if needed.

It's all about getting used to the bike. Be familiar with it.

I ride z1000 with side boxes every day to work.
No issues when lane filtering through traffic jam with the kapchais. 99% of the time I'm able to pass through even through narrow space in between two cars without putting the foot down. At times some bikers will give me a thumbs up. Lol.

What I learn is that we must master on balancing the bike straight at low speed, even when the bike is almost at complete stop. With this skill and confidence, every day ride through the traffic jam is no issues.

That's badass man. How wide are your side boxes? Personally I don't dare to commute with side boxes; always need the handlebars to be the widest part xD

Yeah slow speed practice is super important with bigger bikes. Personally I like to treat traffic jams as an opportunity to practice slow speed control; sometimes get a nice sense of accomplishment after pulling off some especially smooth moves haha. But if it's really too tight to cilok; its no big deal and you just have to wait...there's always the next ride.

is tht yours @ mudah today? red frm pg?

does the nc hv the engine braking feel like the er6?
example shutting gas @ 2nd / 3rd gear the bike will lunge heavily forward..

My side boxes aren't that big and wide as those adventure bikes..it's just 23L Shad. The width is about the same as the handle bars. Since I only lane filter during traffic jam and don't cilok cilok between lanes.....it's fine

Yes, if the gap gets to small, I'll just ride behind the cars in traffic jam. Just follow the car. No issues.

Yup that's the one Yea the NC has engine braking, but less than my er6n. The thing I noticed is that the NC's power delivery and acceleration is very smooth, so the engine braking when you shut the throttle too fast feels really abrupt in comparison. Whereas er6n acceleration and engine braking both feel "similar" to each other, if you get what I mean (not sure how to describe it further )

mad respect. i am damn pussy in filtering. paranoid about scratching cars. lol...

Having fear is a good thing because it is one of the thing that keep you safe when riding.

Need to practive more, the gap between cars in Klang valley when during Jam in avearge still have space for bike to move in between, different if you need to go through jam in Penang George town for example since its sidemirror to sidemirror wide...

Was commuting using an aircooled Murica cruiser (the one that will cook your balls when stuck on traffic) before with side panniers to KLCC and back then changed to boxer engine powered bike.. but now downgrade to a scooter (For commuting purposes) after I found out cost replacing clutch of liquid cooled boxer engine expensive as f!$$! hahaha...

So not about the bike width when it comes to traffic jam, but more to conserve my clutchplates..