Monster S4R or 998

Want both but can only have one! 998 is gorgeous, fast and gives me a bad back in an hour. Had a 600 Monster for a while, great bike but lacking in oomph compared to the 998. Will the S4R be the best of both worlds? One more thing....998 will probably prove to be something of an investment over time, not so sure about the Monster though. Which one to choose?????? Any advice much appreciated - thanks

have had same dilema
love sports bikes but for real world not practical u could also look at the s4rs if you want a faster monster as it uses the 998 engine
the s4r has plenty of grunt and i prefer the 996 motors power to that of the 998 as it uses the old long stroke engine
it very usable but i dont find the seat that comfy on a long run
re buying a bike as investment forget it they are meant to be used and not as garage furniture
seems more and more riders turning to bikes like the big monsters in place of sports bikes nowadays
prices of s4r and s4rs have remained steady for last few years and never for sale in large numbers

Had a similar dilemma myself. Wanted to get into track days, so the idea was to sell the S4 and replace it with an ST4S and get a 916 for a track bike.

Just didn't get on with the ST4S and couldn't bring myself to sell the S4. So I sold the ST4S and spent some money improving the S4.

Could have bought an S4R but hate the exhausts and single sider. Money wise it just didn't seen like an upgrade to me, and for a testastretta I was looking at double the money of the S4. Didn't add up.

I'm now in the position where I've used the monster on track and it's a daily too. Went great but im finding it's limitations already and now looking at an extra set of wheel for track tyres, rear sets and so on.

Think I'm just gonna leave it and look for an already sorted track back and leave the S4 for daily duties. It looks great, handles awesome and is fun and comfortable to ride and great for urban use. I doubt a 916/998/996 would be so liveable day to day.

[chris yeatman]

I went from a M750 to a s4r, much more fun on s4r but wen i got it the fueling was all over the place, so put on arrow full system and pc3 set up on a dyno, felt like a different bike after. as for the seat, i have a ducati performance touring seat, stops ur ass from going numb.

Can I ask where you got the seat price etc???

Hi Monstrosix,

I have owned my 996 from new and absolutely love her !
Over the years (12) I have covered about 18,ooo miles which included 3 European tours !!

As I got a little older the extreme seating position is hard on my wrists, back, neck etc

So my dilema was very similar to yours

The answer for me was an S4RS.........
She has a great riding position which I find really comfortable, even on a long run and is probably equal in performance, handling and character to the 996.......... so yes you can have the best of both worlds ...

thanks to all the friendly chaps/chapesses who took the time to try and help me with this dilema. Lots of positive comments on the S4RS, does the S4R have any flaws or is it just a case of more cubes?

Too late - I got the Monster and it`s great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No more sports bikes for me.