MZ MASTIFF 660 (1998 - 2006) Review

Year: 2006

Annual servicing cost: £100

FUN with a capital F. Wanted something for a ride out on sunny Sundays that was light to move around, simple to work on, no electronic gizmo's, fairly tall seat height as i am 6 ft 3 and fun. Didn't want a rocket ship but something that would keep pace with modern traffic but still had acceleration when required, but not so that keeping hold of your licence was nigh on impossible. The Mastiff does all this and more, massive grin every time i put my helmet on, as i know i am going to have fun but not scare myself silly, The thing corners like its on rails, amazing levels of corner angles can be achieved, easy to run rings round modern stuff on the twisty roads, granted they will fly past you on the straights but anyone can go fast in a straight line. KTM super-moto fun for half the price and as its a Yamaha 660 engine parts are available not that its ever broken down on me. Don,t be put off my the MZ badge its a hoot to ride.

Buying experience: Bought private for under £2K with 16K miles on it.

Handling on this thing is sublime and the deceptively punchy engine gets you from A to B quicker than any bike I've ridden. I'm talking in the real world here with potholes, rain and traffic, the places my ZX9R faltered. Having been a courier years ago this is the first bike that leaves me grinning from ear to ear in over a decade. It ranks right up there with the RG500, TDR250 and my race tuned ZX9R C1 in the lunacy stakes, as its harmless commuting often turns into bad boy behaviour when the 2nd carb kicks in. The point is its usable and forgiving, as it soaks up speedbumps and ignores our crappy road surfaces, I swear its just as good in the wet too. Switches are problem as are the Grimeca brakes which are a pain to bleed, just get some Brembo master cylinders an life becomes perfect. Parts are hard to get as no proper dealers exist but I always get what I need off ebay or Grahams of Taunton within a day or two. R1 brakes fit straight on as does an R1 front end. Dont do over 50 miles on a motorway or you will regret it, the Mastiff simply isnt made for that but you will ride A and B roads like never before or as long as you can keep your licence. £75/year insurance(Im 42)and 60mpg (turn the idle speed down) and whose laughing at MZ now? Certainly not the guys in your mirrors!

Needed a replacment for my get to work bike a humble c90, as car drivers apeared to be useing me for a slow moving target !also have a bandit 12 for touring etc>looked at the specs/prices of this type of bike-mastiff wins hands down.it,s not a wheelie merchant,but off the line it really flys cheep to run insure and handles very well.Put another way ,look at an xt660 of same year then add wp shock etc to cost.the important thing is its FUN !!! try one and see.