Just thought I'd look...

[networkguy]

So my '13 FJR is now paid off finally, and still loving it. Ive always had a lustful eye on the BMW 1200 RT. So I decided to poke around the BMW forums.

Uh no thanks. It is filled with complaints and problems. Good Lord.

Lust is gone.

 

[Pterodactyl]

"BMW sucks FJR rules" What a helpful post.

 

[BkerChuck]

Sometimes that greener grass is because of the septic tank underneath....

 

[Cav47]

Sometimes that greener grass is because of the septic tank underneath....

That is funny. I shall be using that one in the future

 

[RossKean]

On the other hand, this forum also tends to be filled with complaints and "problems" from time to time. More than the bike itself, I find that some forums (and people) are just more whiney than others. Doesn't just apply to motorcycle forums!

Take your pick from this site (I've heard most of these in the last couple of weeks):

Seats

Head-shake or wobble

Electrical Issues (i.e. spiders)

Windshields

Vibration

Abrupt throttle

Throttle springs

Crappy stock suspension

Soft paint (yes!)

Dash panel access

Sticky brakes

2nd gear reliability

Auto-clutch problems

Battery location

Top heavy

Just plain heavy

My bike has REAL problems. I keep having to add gas and replace tires!

 

[airboss]

That sir, seems to be a common issue with these bikes. The only ones that do not just collect dust.

 

[Uncle Hud]

My bike keeps collecting bug guts. JEEZ! When is Yamaha gonna figure out how to get around that?! I ain't got no time to be washing that thing every other week ....

 

[Hotboot]

I have both, the FJR never gets used. The BMW guys (some) complain a lot and are totally dealer dependent. The low mileage BMW's are waxed and clean, bugs are evil and expensive gear is all the rage.

My RS is awesome, no issues and covered in bugs and rock chips. Ride 'em.

FWIW...the included brakes, equipment, and chassis design with the integration of it all makes moto life great and should be experienced at least once.

 

[Jer]

My bike keeps collecting bug guts. JEEZ! When is Yamaha gonna figure out how to get around that?! I ain't got no time to be washing that thing every other week ....

Hey Uncle Hud, leave it out in Hurricane Matthew, that should get rid of the bug guts.

 

[HotRodZilla]

I never knew what a ****** motorcycle I bought until I came to this Forum. The good thing is, 95% of the stuff people ***** about, and yes, most of it is just whiny bitching, I haven't experienced.

 

[Hotboot]

You would be a great BMW owner Zilla....same thing, different crowd of whiney *****. Ride 'em.

 

[Uncle Hud]

Jer posted: Hey Uncle Hud, leave it out in Hurricane Matthew, that should get rid of the bug guts.

Thanks, but Matthew is bringing Atlanta glorious sunshine and a nice High-pressure system! I'll be out collecting more bug guts both days this weekend.

(PS: Nice riding with you at NAFO!)

 

[Mad German]

I'll chime in here. Yamaha really crapped the bed with the 2008 R1. I had one for about 8 years. It was defective from the start. The damn thing kept wanting to lift the front wheel every time I rode it....

 

[ionbeam]

I was BMW curious at one time. I rented a K1300 and put about 3k miles on it in <10 days. Sure glad I didn't buy one. A couple of years later I rented a K1600GT and put about 3k miles on it in <10 days. Sure glad I didn't buy one. If a person was strongly tempted to make a significant purchase I highly recommend renting one if possible, and longer than a day if possible. While it isn't inexpensive to rent, it can save you from spending a lot more money to buy a bike that you find out too late that you don't really want. <--- Spoken by a person that took part in Yamaha's PDP program where you couldn't see a FJR at a dealership, let alone sit on one or test ride one, then had to put down a $500 nonrefundable deposit and wait 6 months or more for delivery. Plus, there were no forums to read either

As far as reading forums to gauge a bike, reading this Forum would scare me beyond any temptation to own a FJR!!! The FJR story line starts with valve guide issues requiring cylinder head machining, then goes through a series of adjusters, sensors, ignition switches, ECU recalls, Meter Assembly recalls and self immolating wire harnesses. Then continues on with multiple ECU error codes which disable some motorcycle functions and needs a dealer to reset the frequently repeating codes unless you want to buy and learn how to use specific electronics just to clear the errors yourself

 

[Knifemaker]

I think many motorcycle forums experience the same thing, perhaps some more than others. As a moderator for the Kawasaki Vulcan 750 forum it seems many of the new members join to get answers on various issues.

https://www.vn750.com/forum/?nocache=1415490905359

Being a bike that went out of production 10 years ago...and most buying one seem to have gotten non.. or poorly running bikes that sat for awhile unused... it's likely even scarier to read posts there. Problems with the carburetors, the stator, and other electrical abound. (To replace the stator you have to pull the motor....)

Every bike has its own list of faults.

As for the FJR, I had no problems. The bike seemed pretty bullet-proof to me.

My current ride, a 2012 Triumph Bonnevile...seems even more so. Most posts at that forum are on mods the owner wants to do, but I've seen some issues a few have had.

 

[Birdman2010]

On the other hand, this forum also tends to be filled with complaints and "problems" from time to time.<clip>

My bike has REAL problems. I keep having to add gas and replace tires!

I just bought a 2015 FJR a couple of weeks ago. I have two complaints. First, the bike does not have auto cancelling turn signals. Come-on, Yamaha, how hard is it to auto cancel the turn signals? I keep riding around like a dumb-a** with my signals blinking. My second complaint is that I hit 91 mph in third gear getting on the freeway. As I was getting on the freeway, there was a lot of traffic and I saw a perfect hole to the virtually empty carpool lane. I gunned it hard. As I was entering the carpool lane, I looked down and the bike was still in third gear and I was hitting 91 mph. I quickly backed down to 75 and clicked up to fifth gear for better gas mileage. My complaint is that the Sport mode just gives you WAY too much power. It really reminds me of the Ninja 1000 that I used to own. I am concerned that I may get a ticket one of these days (knock on wood). We have too much power in Sport mode. My riding buddy told me to switch it to Touring mode. Nah, I'll leave in in Sport mode for now...

 

[Hudson]

If I had to have only one bike - I'd take a real hard look at the BMW GS. It's a well sorted bike, and it covers the spectrum of capabilities on and off-road..

But if I had a newer FJR paid off (and likely worth $10k at best) and were looking for something new, I'd keep the FJR and spend the extra $10k difference and get something altogether different - either an FZ09, or KTM 690R, or a used naked bike.

For the cost of a new RT, I'd have two paid off bikes that were very different.

 

[bergmen]

Yamaha has kept their collective noses to the grindstone for over 15 years and the result is the near perfect Gen III. They seem to have weeded out all of the niggling faults that have bugged it over the years and, to me, the Gen III (in my case a 2014A) is the finest motorcycle I've owned in over 50 years of riding. My buddy has a 2014 R1200RT and has been through the rear shock recall and cringes a bit when thinking of potential service or repair issues.

Dan

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Just going by me forum experiences, I would be reluctant to let the whining of a few keep me from enjoying any motorcycle I wanted. This forum in particular would turn me away from the FJR completely.

You have to look beneath the surface, read between the lines. How many complaints is the obvious place to start but there are other indicators.

1. How many posts/how many years for the Complainer?

2. How many members total?

3. How many posts/how many years for the average member?

If the bike is a total POS, the total membership numbers will be small. The number of posts and the length of membership time will be small as well. When I see members with thousands of posts and the membership numbers are high overall, I can only conclude the bike is worth having.

YMMV