The 1300 has plenty of power for two up riding. As far as the price difference, if both bikes are brand new, that's kind of a toss up. If you are planning on keeping the bike for a long time then buying the 04 you'll have $500 to spend on some extras and the year difference won't matter so much. If you will only keep it a year or so then probably the 05 makes more sense. Just remember that's just MHO.