General Dislikes

[Rider]

That's a very backwards way to choose a motorcycle!
Yup, the FJR is a real POS. A number of people have been saying that the BMWs are flawless, you may want to look in that direction.

What is missed is that each of these things are disliked by only some of the riders and in the grander scale of things these are just tiny, easily fixed things.

I don't quite understand the vendetta, but perhaps you have a better approach? When I researched my shadow, I must have done it fass orward, and look where that got me! Yeah, I bought all the great things people told me about it. I did not want another round of that kind of lip service, and besides misery loves company. It's taken me 6 years to recover and I will not have enough time to recover again.

Price has been the biggest obstacle, but I am also considering if the bike will just feel too big and bulky. I know there is only one good way to find out, but there is likely a reason for such suspicion. It looks like a very large bike. A large heavy bike, like the fully dressed Goldwings, are not at all appealing to me. I don't want a bike like that, even if all the bloat is covered up with sporty looking plastic fairings. These kinds of bikes remind me of a big Cadillac SUV, especially when I see a 200+ # fully dressed rider with the trunk (that's the guy that used to race his cafe XS650 up on the twisties talking).

However, the weight is not much more than my shadow (577 vs. 582). Those are heavy bikes? I guess I'll have to experience the top heavyness. My dad mentioned something about that being a problem on his Venture. Another surprise to me is that the wheelbase is also shorter on the FJR. That would seem to make it more maneuverable than what I have (oh yeah, that top heavy thing).

Anyway, once I determine whether or not I'll even like this style of bike, then we can nit over why the BMW is better. I won't do that though because I will not even consider paying for one of those. And I already canned the ST when I was looking at my Shadow.

 

[Twigg]

Vendetta? Misery loves company?

Okay, when you are sat at the side of HWY 50 in Nevada, at 2.00am with a broken final drive or UJ, then you will know "misery"

That said, most here have a great deal of time and respect for the German product, and are disappointed at the recent spate of quality control issues. Yamaha, by contrast, seem to suffer few issues like this, and they can be compared to Honda in that regard.

The best advice anyone can give you is simply to go ride the bikes and buy the one that suits you the best. Even were I to attempt to describe the things I don't like about the FJR (and it would be a fairly short list), they would be MY dislikes, and many would be features that others appreciate.

For example ... I have a 33" inseam and I find the FJR to be a little cramped. It's not a major concern, but if my legs were 2" shorter, that "fault" would be a virtue.

Did I make my point?

 

[ionbeam]

...I was wondering what generally puts people off of an FJR? Does it seem too big, tall, hard to ride?...

I gave you a serious list of everything people don't like. Every one of the things I listed have been complained about, sometimes quite often. Some items are enough of a nuisance that they even have aftermarket 'fixes' for them which usually provides improvements rather than fixing problems. What is missing is scale. On a scale of 1 (bad) to 10 (perfect) almost all the dislikes are 2 or smaller. If you ask people what they like the most, things will be 7 or greater.

The bike is too heavy, too tall: Mary Ellen and Iris are less than 5'8 (by a lot) and less than 140 lbs (by a lot) yet they ride FJRs with ease and with a bit of care at walking/parking speed.

Torque: Yes. Without buying a bike specifically for torque like a V-Max or B-King or a dedicated sport bike there are few with a lot more pulling power. The FJR is close to everything with 4 cylinders.

HP: Yes. Without buying a bike specifically for HP the FJR is close to everything with 4 cylinders.

Heat, vibration, engine buzz, air flow: In '05 I went for a ride with a friend on his new '05 B4. I had previously told him that my '04 wasn't hot, didn't vibrate or buzz and the air flow was great. He bitched groused that his bike was a vibrating oven. So, we swapped bikes. After <5 minutes he pulled over and jumped off my cool, buzz free bike and said he HAD TO TRADE BACK RIGHT NOW because my '04 bike was frying him and buzzing him worse than his '05. The take-away is that these things are very individual perceptions. You have to find out these things yourself.

Good questions tend to get good answers.

 

[Rider]

...I was wondering what generally puts people off of an FJR? Does it seem too big, tall, hard to ride?...

I gave you a serious list of...

Good questions tend to get good answers.

Good questions? You don't have to be soft on me. If you think my questions just plain suck, just say they plain suck. That phrase was intended to do what, exactly? Inspire me to write better questions? Thanks for the suggestion, but I am within my capabilities. I can only do what I can do and these are the best questions I am capable of writing. (this is the vendetta comment explained for Twigg, but I don't live here so maybe that is just normal?). The details you provided are very specific, not general. Are you trying to say that GENERALLY what puts people off of an FJR is the OEM seat, really??? Is there even one person that ditched the FJR completely just because of the OEM seat? I do not believe that the OEM seat GENERALLY steers anyone away from any bike, generally. There may be a few exceptions in people or just a silly seat, but GENERALLY people that do not like the stock OEM seat just buy an aftermaket seat, they don't generally run away from the bike. I was happy with my OEM seat, it's the best seat I've ever had. I've read that it is a very poor seat and many people buy an aftermarket. I didn't see the need. I expect the FJR seat will not be an issue for me.

I'm going to say that most people are turned off of sport bikes, wait! Maybe that is why my question sucked, because I asked about the FJR and not about sport touring bikes... anyway a general complaint (to me) that seems to generally drive people away from sport bikes is their cramped riding position, because that is extreme and not easily changed. That is why I do not look at sport bikes, because risers, forwards, or whatever subtle changes that can be made are not substantive enough to make any real impact on the issue.

I am well aware that I will need to hash out my own personal dislikes (or likes) over the nuances, but I feel a fine group of people that live in FJR land have more experience with people that have experienced FJRs and will have picked up on trends from those that have ditched their bike for something else and why, or at least have heard a lot of opinions on it. Once I determine what GENERALLY puts people OFF of the bike entirely or has driven them away, then I will be AWARE of something that I was not aware of before, or had not thought of, and THAT will give me something more to consider. Something as trivial as not being able to stand up on the foot pegs. If I had known that, I might have still drank the koolaid...but who knows? What kind of question would have surfaced such an important detail?

I've already read all the great things about FJR. Oh, one thing I read is that the gen1/2 rear spring is too weak for larger riders, especially for 2-up. Now, the one guy that made that comment compared it to the gen3 spring. That probably means that either spring will the absolute best spring I've ever sprung. I'm sure it will be better than my shocks on my Shadow. This is probably not a general complaint.

Going to the dealer or finding a bike I can ride is nice and all, but it takes several hundred miles to really get a feel anyway. I am glad I found out about the massive heat issue on the gen1/2 bikes though. There is an 05 in the paper that has a heat blanket. I bet that just overheats the engine instead?

 

[Twigg]

There is an 05 in the paper that has a heat blanket. I bet that just overheats the engine instead?

... and you would be wrong

I'm not sure we are going to be able to help you much.

You asked for "general dislikes" ... Well you got a straightforward answer ... Generally, folk dislike the stock seat. It may well be that we dislike the OEM seat on most bikes, and that riders regularly replace them, but that is not what you asked.

On a more ... er ... general note ... Asking questions, then going into battle with folk who spend their time giving you detailed answers is not the way to win friends and influence people on an internet forum. So a piece of advice that has stood me in good stead for many years:

Take what you need, help where you can, and ignore the rest

 

[Rider]

Did I make my point?

I don't know if you made your point, but it feels like you are making mine. I'm surprised to hear you say the FJR is a bit cramped for you. If you are of average size, then the bike would be generally cramped for the average rider. I'm tall, so that is a concern I will verify when I sit on the bike. It gave me something to think about. I will also check out the seat height, I bet I can flat foot it though...

I took my riding test on a CX500 that had a full size fairing. I hated the fairing because I could not see the front wheel at all, and that made the cone test a challenge. I also did not like going over the golden gate bridge with it because it was like a sail. I'm sure the FJR fairing is nothing like that.

I'm also surprised to hear of peg scraping, but I already have that issue. I bet it's not so bad on the FJR.

 

[Twigg]

Size, age, fitness, distance riding .... those and more are all factors that determine whether or not you will feel cramped. Some guys much taller than me ride the FJR and are comfortable.

 

[Ignacio]

Rider,

I've seen enough in your 11 posts to suggest you don't buy an FJR and go find something else. When I hear you say things like "massive heat issue", other similar hyperbole, sparsely populated profile, and debate posts with pillars of our community like ionbeam--I wonder out loud if you'll be ultimately be happy with any FJR. And food for thought.

Hoping posts 12 and after aim towards the FJR-is-more-than-half-full end of the spectrum.

Good luck.

 

[The Ber]

Twigg, not sure how tall you are - but I bet super tall with a name like Twigg ;-). I'm 6 foot 2 and am plenty comfortable on my 2005 FJR. I had a bigger bike, 2006 Honda VTX 1800, which I could stretch out on, and the FJR is so much more comfortable in many ways...

 

[Rider]

frankly, Twigg, ionbeam had a bad attitude from his first post here and set out to badger me throughout. But blood is thicker than water so go ahead and make me the bad guy. I appreciate your advice, give some to your brother too.

I was happy to ignore until it became clear who was going to dominate the discussion and with what.

Sorry guys, I just feel like poking back when I get poked. I think that's fair. Of course, this could be like a frat club and I'm not part of the group until the hazing?

 

[Ignacio]

frankly, ionbeam had a bad attitude from his first post and set out to badger me throughout.

I don't know whether to chuckle, shake my head, pretend its Friday, and/or start treating you like a troll.

Whatever dude...

Good luck making the journey from noise to signal.

 

[Rider]

Not sure that a FJR forum is the place to look for 'off putting' comments on a motorcycle we love to ride, and participate in a forum celebrating it.

Yeah, I really understand where you are coming from. That is not my question. I am not seeking off-putting comments, but,

"Hi All, I'm still considering an FJR, but I was wondering what generally puts people off of an FJR? Does it seem too big, tall, hard to ride?"

I was not expecting whatever some of you think I am asking. Not asking about your specific dislikes or for this to be a pound on FJR thread, or comparing to anything else.

Sorry if you think this is a bass ackwards way of asking about a bike.

 

[Rider]

That's a very backwards way to choose a motorcycle!
What we don't like, OK -- we don't like:

OEM seats

OEM windshield

OEM handlebar position

engine heat

it's heavy

it's top heavy

throttle control

headlights and lack of conspicuousness lighting

brake lights don't strobe

front fender does not extend down far enough

no radiator guard

no OEM heated grips except on the Gen III

lack of throttle lock/cruise control except on the Gen III

insufficient storage capacity, often needs a trunk

no passenger back rest

no highway pegs

the stock exhaust

the PAIR plumbing

the front suspension

the rear suspension

the OEM tires

no OEM frame sliders installed

OEM paint colors

throttle body synch is off

superfluous badges, stickers and reflectors

no obvious good choice for oil

no obvious good choice for tires

no obvious good choice for spark plugs

no obvious good choice for batteries

Yup, the FJR is a real POS. A number of people have been saying that the BMWs are flawless, you may want to look in that direction.

What is missed is that each of these things are disliked by only some of the riders and in the grander scale of things these are just tiny, easily fixed things.

This is not a very inviting first response from a claimed pillar of this community. Sorry I don't see it the same way.

 

[BigOgre]

Sorry if you think this is a bass ackwards way of asking about a bike.

Nah, I just think it's a bass ackwards way of talking to people. Generally speaking of course.

 

[Rider]

Sorry if you think this is a bass ackwards way of asking about a bike.

Nah, I just think it's a bass ackwards way of talking to people. Generally speaking of course.

Those were ionbeams words. I was just reusing them. I thought my question was quite civil. You really think that?

you guys are circling your carts now. Thanks. I feel really bad and upset. I already screwed up and bought the wrong bike. Just trying to avoid the same mistake.

"Hi All, I'm still considering an FJR, but I was wondering what generally puts people off of an FJR? Does it seem too big, tall, hard to ride?"

That was my question. Thank to all those that tried to help and give me advice.

 

[Bounce]

This is not a very inviting first response from a claimed pillar of this community. Sorry I don't see it the same way.

It wasn't his first. I was his 7,857 post. Chill. Count to 10, avoid trying to bait those you disagree with and try forming your posts more positively. It might go a longer way toward learning what it is you seem to be trying to find out.

 

[ionbeam]

Sorry. No more posts. Hope it turns out well for ya.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Taking a very deep breath here...

Rider. You have stepped into the living room of a group of people who LOVE their motorcycles and asked them to focus on the negative aspects of that bike. They tried to give you fair and honest answers. You took offense when initially no offense was intended. You seem to be looking for negatives both about the bike and the folks on this forum. Try looking at the positives. I will help you.

Ionbeam gave you an honest list of the things that people complain about. You picked up on the fact that the items listed are fairly trivial and easy to fix. That was the whole point. We don't have any issues with the FJR that would prevent us from buying/riding/owning one. We chose the FJR because there were no real "serious" issues.

Ionbeam is one of the smartest, most useful and most respected members of this forum. None of us took any negativity from his post. You did and that frankly says more about you than it does about us.

Since I have now worked myself up and my restraint is slipping...

I quote you here, Rider:

"I took my riding test on a CX500 that had a full size fairing. I hated the fairing because I could not see the front wheel at all, and that made the cone test a challenge."

I think that sentence tells all we need to know about you. If you are looking at the front wheel while riding, if you are looking at the front wheel doing the cone test, you are not ready for a grown up bike like the FJR. You need to take a good riding school before you get on something like an FJR. Maybe you can also work on being polite and saying "Thank you" when someone tries to help you while you are at it.

 

[Bustanut joker]

I almost feel bad for not jumping in on this when it started.. I mean, if he though Alan was rude?

 

[wheatonFJR]

Rider,

Thanks for helping us to get to know you better. Now where is that button...ah, here it is. <click>

Ahhhh, much better.