Can't decide between Yamaha V Star 1100 or Suzuki Boulevard C50

I live in New York city and looking for a bike I could use for everyday riding mostly, something that I would have no issue maneuvering around here. I just want a bike that will be good for riding around the city and will have enough power for me to hit the throttle to catch the light or get away from a bad driver quickly.  I've ridden the Yamaha V Star 1100 before and its a great bike, very comfortable, but I felt there wasn't enough power. I haven't ridden the Suzuki c50 yet but love the way it looks and will try it soon.

Can someone help me out and give me the heads up whether the Suzuki has that little extra power kick that I'm looking for? It's also 300 cc's less engine so I'm guessing it will have even less power than the Yamaha, is that right?

Also, after looking around on this site both bikes seem to be more for beginners or guys looking to get back into riding. I'm leaning towards the C50, will I get bored of it due to lack of power? I've been riding for 5 years but this will be my first cruiser.

Appreciate the help and input guys.  

Prof,
I can tell you why you think when you lift up the tailpipe, you don't see kahonies. The 1100cc bike has power at fairly high revs. The C50 has a little more at the low end, but, in a duel, the 1100 is gonna smoke the c50.
No offense to the C50 crowd, it's just the 1100 produces power at higher rpms, like a sportbike, so, performance is going to do the same thing. High rpms = high acceleration.

If you are going to get torque, ignore the exhaust. That generates HP. Changing the input side changes torque, at least on a carb'd bike. I haven't tried mods on any FI bikes.  

Yes that helps a little thank you.  

I bought a V Star 1100 two months ago and love it. The deciding factor for me was the fit. At 5'7" the C50 and even the V Star 950 wasn't as comfortable. I found it was a little more of a stretch to the shifter and brake. I spent weeks just going back and forth between bikes. I would sit on them for 5 - 10 minutes at a time picturing driving down a country road. I would reach for the brake or shifter, put my feet down then back up. I think I drove the salesmen crazy. I also tried Honda and Kawasaki.  It wasn't long for the V Star to call me back. I've had both smaller and bigger bikes and find the 1100 has all I need. I honestly believe that when you sit on the right bike you will know it.

I hope this helps.  

ProfC, I also ride a V Star 1100. I'm 6'1", go around 250 and have no problem with the power. When I hit the gas, it goes and goes well! I can merge into highway traffic and be doing about 55 in seems like about 5-6 seconds from a standstill. When I hit it like that, I'm surprised to see that I'm shifting into 3rd at about 50-ish mph. It's got plenty of get-up-and-go. Mine is a '99, has Shogun Ripsaw pipes with the baffles in bag in my garage, and Kuryakin jets in the carb (they're a little bigger than stock jets and feed a little more juice at the price of some mpg).

The only drawback to an 1100 is that you have to remove the pipes to do an oil filter change unless you have an oil filter relocation kit installed.

In doing some research, I've read and been told that the V Star 950, which is belt driven and has EFI, is less expensive to get into, gets better mpg and matches the 1100 on the power curve (a Yamaha salesman told me the belt gives it 5 hp at the rear wheel).

That said, regardless of what I'd get for a second bike, I'd try to hold onto the 1100. My brother-in-law rides a Roadstar 1700 Silverado and said he just feels badass on my 1100 (he's ridden it a couple of times).

I've also heard lots of good things about the V Star 1300 if you doubt the power of the 1100 but don't know how maneuverable it would be around The City. My 1100 is pretty nimble and I can do a U-y in the street in front of my house.

Like the others, I hope this helps.

Whatever you end up with, ride safe, watch out for cagers on cell phones, and thank The Man Upstairs for every safe ride.  

I've got to chime in for the c50t.  I've had no problems with it in 2 years and don't know anyone who has had any problems with it.  I get about 50 mpg and commute regularly with it.  I took it on one long trip from California to Zion and Bryce in Utah this summer and was fully loaded.  It didn't keep up as well as I would have liked at 75 to 80 mph in Utah.  Again, I was fully loaded (with stuff tied on top of other stuff) and weigh over 200 pounds.  I was riding about 500 miles a day until I got to where I wanted to be with stock everything.

The c50t has about the same power curves as a 1100 but is liquid cooled.  I've had to scrape the ice off the bike in the winter and have commuted with it in 116 degrees and again have had no problems and have always parked it on the street.

Take a look at how many people are asking about fixing their yamahas, and then go to volusia riders .com and ask around about the repair history.

I think the bike is good for what I'm doing now, but it does not have the zip I would like to enter onto those California freeways.  The best bikes for that are the sportsbikes.  They fly through the traffic.  I don't think that the 1100 has the zip either, but I don't know for sure.  I'm comparing both bikes to the 600 sport bikes, the bmw 1200, and even the gold wing.  Harleys have great pick up too...

With all that...  The 1100 is a great bike and you can't go wrong with either bike.  I would strongly suggest a used bike because there are so many people out there selling their bikes off now.  Either bike should be capable of 100,000 miles if properly maintained so I wouldn't worry too much about the mileage.

Good luck and have fun.  

You know...I just read your post a little closer.  Are you seriously only looking at the bike for commuting?  If that is the case, then look at the suzuki burgman 400.  It has better gas mileage and has a lot more storage.  Any bike should give you the pick up in and around NYC that you need.  You should be fine on the highways in and around the city as well.

I'm not sure if lane splitting is legal in NY or NYC, but you may want to consider if either bike rides a little skinnier than the other so you can move in and around lanes.  

Other bikes I would look at would be the Harley roadster, The V-strom, and Kawasaki Versys (sp?).

Take care,  

Topazdog has a good suggestion there. If you're going to be scootin' around The City, maybe a scooter would serve you better. Look at our European friends, where scooters are everywhere around the cities. They certainly are nimble enough for the more confined spaces. Of course, if you'll be using it for getting out of The City on weekends, a scooter might not be the thing. There certainly are plenty of scooters that can fill your need...the Burgman 400 topazdog mentions, there's also a 600, T Max from Yamaha, Silverwing from Honda, others with sufficient get-up-and-go.

Good luck...  

Both are quality bike I would lean toward to Suzuki myself but Im bias, a mate of mine rides an 1100 V-Star he loves it very nice bike from the tyres up, but if your looking toward a higher CC mid range cruiser have a look at the Suzuki M90 the 1500cc little brother to the M109R very nice bike has good power & handles great.
Saying that it's a buyers maket at the moment & a lot of great cruisers right across the range on sale shop around  
MY RIDE: 2009 Pearl Black  Suzuki Boulevard M109R (VZR1800K9)
MODS: Cobra Dragster pipes/ K&N High flow air filters/ K&N High flow oil filter/ Dunlop E3 250 rear/ Chrome Grill