03 rotor upgrade?

[FJRPierre]

The (04) brakes are almost a magnitude of order superior to the '03 brakes (320mm rotors, versus the '03's undersized 298mm rotors), and the non-ABS allows for the hassle-free, relatively inexpensive (yet critical) upgrade to stainless steel lines up front.

Has anyone "simply" upgraded a 03 to a 04 rotor? (yes I used gunmds search engine but nothing...) I have the CL pads & braided lines but wondering if there is an inexpensive OEM upgrade path or if aftermarket rotors are the only/better answer....

 

[Ignacio]

Actually, it's covered in the FJR Model Comparison Matrix that's linked in the FAQ.

It's not just the rotors, but the bosses for the calipers on the forks with the changed offset.

Unless you can cast your own fork tubes....you're looking at fairly expensive new or harder-to-find used '04/'05 forks as part of that project as well.

 

[Canadian FJR]

Hello Pierre,

Last winter I removed my rotors and had them glass beaded before installing new pads. Do it, you will be very impressed. I thought about going with wave rotors but decided against it.

Canadian FJR

 

[wheatonFJR]

I'm jes curious how many '03 owners out there feel like they have sub-par brake performance?

 

[FJRay]

I'm jes curious how many '03 owners out there feel like they have sub-par brake performance?

I have no complaints with the 03 brakes. I did go to the SS lines for a better feel and I tried EBC pads but I think I like the stock pads better. Just one more opinion.

 

[RiderCoach Lar]

I'm jes curious how many '03 owners out there feel like they have sub-par brake performance?

Never had any concerns with the brakes on my '03. Were they the best I have ever used or better than my '06? No. But they were definitely NOT sub-par, either. I never had my '03 at a track day and I never had to do a panic stop from more than like 50 MPH, so I'm really speaking from more practical street-riding standpoint. YMMV.

 

[FJRPierre]

I'm jes curious how many '03 owners out there feel like they have sub-par brake performance?

Reason I asked is that I had one of my kids 96YZF1000 out for a run and he had my 03FJR/75k km out (two up). At the end I remarked how awesome I thought his brakes were, and he chimed in and opined how mine really sucked, even considering he was 2up and heavier bike. He felt that they did not progressively grip harder the more he pressed on the lever... not mushy but no grip. Glazed something pads/rotors?. The pads prob have 30+k km on them though they measure ok. Scott I have to look at the glass beading process although if I recall you don't use your brakes at all, do you?

(My one experience with my FJR at the track is when I came out very fast on first long stretch and not knowing exactly what to expect brakewise, I put on the binders rather hard, rather early for the upcoming turn, and surprised the riders following me quite badly as I decellerated radically, well before the normal first braking point. Not too many riders followed me closely after that turn

 

[Bike Effects]

I'll put my '03 brakes up against any FJR. A firmer lever on the '03 due to the master cylinder. Of course my Galfer lines and Wave rotors don't hurt either.

 

[Warchild]

Since I am one of the very few folks who went from a 2004-ABS back to a 2003 standard, I'm in a position to lend some insight into this issue.

It is not so much an issue that the 2003 brakes "suck", or the like, rather, they are simply an inappropriate size for a particular usage. To wit: when riding 2 up, heavily loaded, and riding 8/10's or above.

I personally know of two instances where people (couples) have actually been hurt bad from crashing on their 2003 FJR when riding in a way that basically meets the above criteria. One was in Europe (a famous thread on the English forum back in 2003), and the other happened at WFO-3 back in 2004. In the 2004 incident, they where not too heavily loaded, but it was two-up, and certainly was aggressive riding, IIRC.

Suspect there have been a number of additional un-reported cases, too. Speculation here, mind you.

The 2003 calipers were sourced directly off the 2002 YZF-R1, and used 298mm rotors. They were among the very best mono-block calipers at the time, and their performance simply outstanding on that 397-lb sportbike.

It's was quite a different tune on a 600-lb (wet) sport-touring machine. On top of that, add another 300+ lbs of 2 people with riding gear, and another 80-100 pounds of cargo between hard bags, tank bag and topcase... there is no way the 298mm configuration is going to perform the same when trying to bring 1000+ lbs of machinery down from high speed. No way, no how.

Now, all that having been said... I, too, have had ZERO problems bringing my 2003 FJR down from some pretty dag-gone HIGH SPEED situations. But I rarely ride 2-up, and the bike is no longer my LD platform, so I don't carry a ton of weight on it. And like BikeEffects, I have Galfer lines and rotors, which have made a substantial improvement in feel and feedback.

To answer the original question.... no, you can not upgrade your 2003 FJR's brakes to the current 320mm rotors without installing 2004 or later forks, as you need to offset the caliper mount an additional 11mm to account for the larger rotor diameter.

 

[slapnpop]

The next logical question is: Are the 03 calipers truely comaptible with the '04-5 fork legs? I know everyone says the fork legs needs to be changed, but has ANYONE gone through the trouble? Are the caliper part numbers the same? I'll see what I can find.

 

[radman]

Seeing FJR pieces more and more on Fleabay, including fork tubes/legs. Keep an eye out, and you can upgrade fairly cheaply, in the 2-300 dollar range. Calipers/pads are the same as 04 and 05 non-ABS.

 

[Bounce]

I'm jes curious how many '03 owners out there feel like they have sub-par brake performance?

not me. i was always under the impression that they increased the diameter to help offset the impact that abs has on stopping distances.