FJR 1300 Gen1 Fairing Removal

[Scottieman]

Hi Folks, I’ve just bought a low mileage 2001 FJR1300 1st Generation. It’s in excellent condition and drives very well.

however I want to check and grease the head bearings also change the fork oil. 

I cannot find a detailed pull down instruction on the fairing removal. Can anybody help?...Thanks.

 

[RossKean]

Not sure about a Gen I but I think you should be able to do that stuff without fairing removal...

Try this link:

 

[Scottieman]

Thanks Ross great info. I’ll look and see what can be done without removing the fairing. It will be much easier if I don’t have to remove the fairing That’s for sure.

 

[rbentnail]

Yeah, those two things can be done without removing plastics but do yourself a favor and remove the wind screen.  The first time you bump your eyebrow on the edge you'll thank me.

 

[RossKean]

For the head bearings and forks, you can safely support the bike on the header pipes without damage with the bike on the center stand.  I use a piece of plywood on a scissor jack.  You can put some weight on the pillion seat to reduce the load on the pipes if you want but it really isn't necessary.  Do you have the appropriate torque wrench adaptor for the steering head?

I agree with rbentnail about the windscreen!!!

Also, cover the tank with something to prevent damage in case of a dropped tool!

Might be a good time to do some other routine maintenance.  Clutch and front/rear brake hydraulic flush.  Remove and clean/lube the brake/clutch levers as well as rear brake pivot and shifter linkage + pivot.  Make sure you do the brass bushing in the clutch lever.  When was your last valve clearance check?  (Do coolant and spark plugs at the same time and a throttle body synchronization after buttoning it back up.)  Has the cam chain tensioner (CCT) been changed on this bike?  If it is original (without blue or green dot), get it replaced sooner rather than later.

Enjoy!!

 

[Scottieman]

Ross thanks........I wanted to drop the triple tree sufficiently to view/grease the bottom steering bearing but unsure whether it would be possible without removing the fairing. I have already used the tool to tighten the head bearing nut but did not make much difference I have considered tightening it more to reduce the speed of fall. The tyres are Pirelli Gran Turismo Angel GT , fitted 6 months ago,  back and front. I’ll try increasing the tyre pressure to 2.8.  No idea about the chain .......I would have to see how to do that ......plugs are fairly new the coolant has been changed in the last 6 months. Throttle body has not been checked but on my list to do....however sounds ok with smooth acceleration and rock solid on the tach at idle. 

 

[Scottieman]

Additional info.....bikes just completed 25,000 miles since first being registered Nov 2002.  No timing chain slap. Everything seems good.

 

[Scottieman]

The only problem I had was starting it after leaving the bike in my garage on the side stand for 3 weeks. 

Bike with a new battery is on a trickle charge 24/7. Anyway one day refused to start..so opened throttle full and cranked over fir what seemed like 3 minutes or more.....nearly to the point of draining the charge in the battery.....it finally fired......never been a problem since. 

New fuel was in the tank. No idea what caused it. 

 

[RossKean]

You can do that without removing the fairing.

Read this...

https://www.fjr-tips.org/maint/shb/shb.html

You are about due for a valve clearance check and should get it done reasonably soon - clearances are rarely off for the first change but it would be good to get a baseline.   Don't wait for symptoms before changing the cam chain tensioner - do it when you do the valve clearance check.  If the CCT fails and the cam chain skips more than a couple of teeth, you can destroy the motor.  There is a detailed article on changing the CCT on this site somewhere.  I will have a look if you can't find it.

Regarding the starting difficulty, this is fairly common if the bike is shut off after not being allowed to come fully up to temperature.  It is generally accepted that this is due to flooding and the usual cure is to crank with wide open throttle.  Fully charged battery, crank 15 seconds or so and if it doesn't start, give it a rest to cool the starter and go again.  It has happened a few times to me.

Edit to add on the link for the CCT change

https://www.fjrforum.com/topic/136891-lessons-learned-on-changing-the-cct/?tab=comments#comment-846482

 

[mcatrophy]

The only problem I had was starting it after leaving the bike in my garage on the side stand for 3 weeks. 

Bike with a new battery is on a trickle charge 24/7. Anyway one day refused to start..so opened throttle full and cranked over fir what seemed like 3 minutes or more.....nearly to the point of draining the charge in the battery.....it finally fired......never been a problem since. 

New fuel was in the tank. No idea what caused it. 

Usually caused by starting the engine, then stopping it before it's warm. Next time you come to start it, it may be flooded. Doesn't happen every time, but a well-known characteristic of the FJR. 

 

[Scottieman]

Thank you for the info....appreciated

 

[wfooshee]

The cold shutoff issue is a Gen-II problem, fixed with recalls I think.

As stated before, the head bearing should be sufficiently accessible with the fairing in place, but should you come to a point of removing the fairing, I have a thread for Gen-I fairing removal linked in my sig line. I've even fixed the picture links over time as the site upgrades.

 

[mcatrophy]

The cold shutoff issue is a Gen-II problem, fixed with recalls I think.
...

 I have known it happen on my 2014. I do try not to test for it.

 

[RossKean]

As far as I know,  there is no recall that addresses this on Gen II.

 

[Scottieman]

Many thanks to Mcatrophy and to one and all for the help and advice given....it’s very much appreciated.