First FJR - center of Connecticut

[phlaug]

Hi,

So I wasn't in the market for an FJR. I demoed one forever ago at Americade in Lake George when they were brand new and thought they were fine, but not enough to motivate me to sell my Concours at the time. I've had a lot of bikes in the ensuing two decades, but the FJR never worked into the mix.

Over the past year I've been trying to sell my 1990 Honda GoldWing with Cal. Sidecar Company Friendship III sidecar. In the last two weeks I finally started heavily pushing "open to trades". You can see where this is going. This afternoon, a 2013 FJR plus some cash was exchanged for my rig.

So now here's the question: am I going to keep it?

Here's my current fleet:
2012 Aprilia RSV4, for track only
2007 Suzuki GSXR for street and occasional track use
2007 Honda Fury, which gets far and away the most use.

My wife really likes the Fury. I have a Corbin King & Queen saddle which is super comfortable and she feels great with the high back rest. But it is sorely lacking in storage and so we've done no longer trips with it. (We have trailered it on a couple trips, but I prefer to ride.)

The FJR I got does not have a top box. The two saddle bags offer more space than the Fury, but not a boat load. So that's decision point one: do I invest in expanding its storage, or move on.

(You might ask why would I do the swap if I wasn't going to keep the FJR? 1) Any motorcycle would take up tons less space in the garage than the sidecar, so it's a step in the right direction. 2) The pool of buyers for any bike is going to be larger than the pool of buyers for a sidecar -- I was fatigued of the effort trying to sell the hack.)

I took it on about a 50 mile run this afternoon and enjoy the grunt of it. Rear suspension seems garbage, but I'm sure that's not indicative of a properly-operating FJR, so I'll be scouring the forum on that topic soon enough. Rear brake is super weak. Again, I'm sure that's not how Yamaha made it.

I love the adjustable windscreen.

I love that the dash says "See you next time" when you shut it off.

If anyone wants to convince me why I should keep it, or just tell me other cool things that might not be immediately obvious, that would be great. Owner manual did not come with it. Hopefully there's a link to those in there?

Anyway, looking forward to learning from this forum and trying to figure out how long the FJR will be in my life.

Thanks,
Phlaug

 

[escapefjrtist]

Welcome from metro Seattle and congrats (?) on the new (to you) '13.

Can't tell you if you'll like the FJR or not, kinda depends on what type of riding you enjoy. Top box is easy fix, many options to choose from.

Rear brake is linked to RH front caliper. Bleed the rear circuit (RH front first) then rear caliper, and you'll get a firm pedal. Might take a couple times to get the bubbles out! My '15 needs to be done annually to keep a firm pedal.

Depending on miles, the rear shock could be getting tired. Where is dampening set? Hard or soft spring setting? I have Penske shocks on my FJR & Tenere. Love the performance Penske's offer and with a few special tools, are owner rebuildable.

What's great about an FJR? It does a lot of things really well, with proper suspenders handles better than it ought to, hauls the freaking mail and puts a smile on my face every time I ride it. YMMV!

Good luck!

~G

 

[HilltownDave]

Welcome from eastern PA!

I agree it depends what kind of riding you enjoy as to whether or not you’ll like the FJR. I tell everybody who asks what an FJR is that it’s basically “a comfortable crotch rocket with storage.” That suits me quite well since deep down I am not a “cruiser” kinda guy. I’m more like an adventure bike guy who likes to go REALLY fast …so I’ve had to cross the occasional creek to keep up with my adventure bike friend, lol!

Anyway…
As for yours, a top box might be an essential upgrade if you’re looking for more space. However, I just bought a 2014 with a rack mounted luggage system made by Ventura. Soft bags, one larger than the other which can be used one OR the other or BOTH zippered together on a proprietary rack (part of which is removable when not in use). I’ve not actually used it yet so I’ll refrain from trying to offer an intelligent opinion of it but I’m thinking once I cross that threshold into properly touring with my sport tourer, it’ll prove its value over the top box I have on my 2007. For what it’s worth, though, my lunch box won’t fit through the smallish opening of the Ventura bag even though it boasts more cubic space than the Givi top box which swallows it right up with SOME room to spare. Oh well.

Stick around - and give the bike a chance. There are much smarter people than I around this forum who can help you make the most of your FJR.

 

[phlaug]

Welcome from metro Seattle and congrats (?) on the new (to you) '13.

Can't tell you if you'll like the FJR or not, kinda depends on what type of riding you enjoy. Top box is easy fix, many options to choose from.

Rear brake is linked to RH front caliper. Bleed the rear circuit (RH front first) then rear caliper, and you'll get a firm pedal. Might take a couple times to get the bubbles out! My '15 needs to be done annually to keep a firm pedal.

Depending on miles, the rear shock could be getting tired. Where is dampening set? Hard or soft spring setting? I have Penske shocks on my FJR & Tenere. Love the performance Penske's offer and with a few special tools, are owner rebuildable.

What's great about an FJR? It does a lot of things really well, with proper suspenders handles better than it ought to, hauls the freaking mail and puts a smile on my face every time I ride it. YMMV!

Good luck!

~G

Thank you, G. The GoldWing I just sold had that same linked rear/front brake system -- I appreciate the heads up on that. Dampening is set to Hard, which as a spirited ride I would want. I imagine it's just tired altogether.

Great to hear your FJR continues to put a smile on your face -- that is a good sign!

 

[phlaug]

Welcome from eastern PA!

I agree it depends what kind of riding you enjoy as to whether or not you’ll like the FJR. I tell everybody who asks what an FJR is that it’s basically “a comfortable crotch rocket with storage.” That suits me quite well since deep down I am not a “cruiser” kinda guy. I’m more like an adventure bike guy who likes to go REALLY fast …so I’ve had to cross the occasional creek to keep up with my adventure bike friend, lol!

Anyway…
As for yours, a top box might be an essential upgrade if you’re looking for more space. However, I just bought a 2014 with a rack mounted luggage system made by Ventura. Soft bags, one larger than the other which can be used one OR the other or BOTH zippered together on a proprietary rack (part of which is removable when not in use). I’ve not actually used it yet so I’ll refrain from trying to offer an intelligent opinion of it but I’m thinking once I cross that threshold into properly touring with my sport tourer, it’ll prove its value over the top box I have on my 2007. For what it’s worth, though, my lunch box won’t fit through the smallish opening of the Ventura bag even though it boasts more cubic space than the Givi top box which swallows it right up with SOME room to spare. Oh well.

Stick around - and give the bike a chance. There are much smarter people than I around this forum who can help you make the most of your FJR.

Thank you, Dave. I appreciate the insight. Do you have handy a link to the Ventura system you're describing. Or perhaps a pic or two of your bike with the set up in play?

I should have mentioned the bike has the Sargent World Sport Performance seats, but is missing the passenger backrest. So I'm thinking of buying the backrest first to start, as my daughter who rode with me didn't like it very much without a backrest. I know the Givi top box could also have padding for a type of backrest (that's what my Kawasaki Concours had), but I don't want to jump to that just yet, as I do like the sportier look with nothing in the rear for most uses short of the overnight trip.

Thanks again!

 

[fastpappy]

Welcome from the Big Apple and congrats on your new ride. Enjoy!

 

[HilltownDave]

Thank you, Dave. I appreciate the insight. Do you have handy a link to the Ventura system you're describing. Or perhaps a pic or two of your bike with the set up in play?

I should have mentioned the bike has the Sargent World Sport Performance seats, but is missing the passenger backrest. So I'm thinking of buying the backrest first to start, as my daughter who rode with me didn't like it very much without a backrest. I know the Givi top box could also have padding for a type of backrest (that's what my Kawasaki Concours had), but I don't want to jump to that just yet, as I do like the sportier look with nothing in the rear for most uses short of the overnight trip.

Thanks again!

Here is a review worth reading but be advised; a comment on another review I found mentioned that although the bags come with a cover, they did not keep the contents at the bottom dry.

https://www.canyonchasers.net/2006/03/ventura-luggage-rack-system/
I’ll post some pics here shortly…

 

[phlaug]

Here is a review worth reading but be advised; a comment on another review I found mentioned that although the bags come with a cover, they did not keep the contents at the bottom dry.

https://www.canyonchasers.net/2006/03/ventura-luggage-rack-system/
I’ll post some pics here shortly…

Thank you, appreciate the article!

 

[phlaug]

the bike has the Sargent World Sport Performance seats, but is missing the passenger backrest.

Any one on here have one of these passenger backrests? And can their passenger give it a thumbs up or down?

I was a little surprised by the $200+ price. I'm happy to get it so that my passengers will be happy, if my passengers will be happy....

(If they won't, I'd be more inclined to get a big top box with a padded bit for their back...

 

[HilltownDave]

First pic shows system “inactive.”
Second one switched to “ready” to accept bag(s).
(That shelf does flip forward or aft but in the forward position the bag itself would make contact with the pretty painted surface)
The rest of the pics should be fairly self-explanatory.
Feel free to pm me if you have additional questions

 

[phlaug]

Thank you, sir!

 

[Mossyrocks13k]

Welcome from Colchester. I had a 2007 FJR that I sold with 118K miles on it. Replaced the rear shock at 46k with the Gen 3 and put another 60 on that one. How many miles on the '13?

 

[BigOgre]

(If they won't, I'd be more inclined to get a big top box with a padded bit for their back...

If it comes to this something to keep in mind; more than a few found the pads on the top boxes to be more uncomfortable than not having them. Your pillions might have more room and sit straighter without and a good back protector in their jackets might provide the needed padding for comfort. Just a thought.

 

[phlaug]

Welcome from Colchester. I had a 2007 FJR that I sold with 118K miles on it. Replaced the rear shock at 46k with the Gen 3 and put another 60 on that one. How many miles on the '13?

29000 miles, which is why I was surprised at the feel of the rear

 

[phlaug]

If it comes to this something to keep in mind; more than a few found the pads on the top boxes to be more uncomfortable than not having them. Your pillions might have more room and sit straighter without and a good back protector in their jackets might provide the needed padding for comfort. Just a thought.

Appreciate that. Yes, understand it has to be the right type of top box and pad to be beneficial.

(Would be the best if my wife would just get her motorcycle license. LOL)

 

[Pete-o]

Welcome from Southwick, MA. I rode BMW's for the last 15 years. The FJR takes some getting used to.... I had my OEM shock rebuilt by Race Tech. They were fantastic to work with, and the pricing was right. $850 with future rebuilds about half, after the first time.