My New FJR

[Geezer]

WOW. Picked up my '05 FJR non-ABS on Saturday morning. Did I already say WOW? I put about 400 miles on it tooling around the back roads near home.

This is my first faired bike and my first water cooled bike. I haven't ridden anything newer than my '83 Maxim so I expect that a lot of the stuff that impresses me is due to the technology and may be present on other models, but I like what I got.

I'll start with the bad stuff to get it out of the way:

The bike gets hot. The best riding position for me was up tight against the tank with my legs against the sides of the tank, but the tank got warm after a while and I had to move back. We had a 90 degree day on Sunday and that is about as hot as it gets where I live. I found myself moving around on the saddle to get some airflow around my legs. This will be a real positive thing in October but for now it is a negative.

I found myself reaching for 6th gear several times. My Maxim only has 5 and I do the same thing on that bike. The shift throw seems long between gears. It may be the foot position and I'll look to see if there is an adjustment on the linkage to move the lever up or down some. That might help. ALso, My foot went pasedd the shift lever a couple of times. I mean the toe piece on the lever is shorter than what I'm used to. All of these are minor and I'm sure I'll get used to them as I put a few more miles on it.

And the good stuff:

The bike is comfortable. The seta is firm and I see why some of you buy after market seats but this one is OK and I'll probably stick with the stock seat.

The mirrors seem OK to me also. It is a long reach to adjust them compared to the handle bar monuted ones but I got used to that.

At first it was dfisconcerting to look down at the instruments and have them stationary when the bars turned. (Again, my first fairing.) It took me a while to get used to that but I like the layout of the panel and the information center is very nice.

It kept whispering in my ear 'faster, go faster....' but I held back because of the break-in period. I thought about doing the Motorman break-in but chickened out and decided to go with the traditional break-in as suggested in the manual.

I got the Mez tires. They work very well for me so far. I will probably switch to Avons when I need tires but I won't switch them out before wearing them down pretty good.

The bike wants to lean. I surprised myself when my boot dragged on a curve where I was not pushing it at all. I ordered a set of R&G sliders today.

I especially liked the turn signal switch. The part where you push the button in to cancel is very nice. Wish I thought of that 20 years ago.

There is more, but I need to get some work done today so I'll leave it for now.

 

[BlueWing]

LOL! Yes, it seems that many of us are looking for that 6th gear. I have only had the bike for two weeks so I look for it on almost every ride. Enjoy!!

 

[lomaxcm]

I think I will move the 6th gear from my BMW over to the FJR. The Beemer sure does not need it. Can you say OVERDRIVE? In 6th it indicates 95 mph at 2600 RPM. :beee: Sorry.

Ride safe.

Marc

 

[OrangevaleFJR]

I think I will move the 6th gear from my BMW over to the FJR. The Beemer sure does not need it. Can you say OVERDRIVE? In 6th it indicates 95 mph at 2600 RPM. :beee: Sorry.
Ride safe.

Marc

I checked out your site lomax and I want to thank you for the Geneva Basin pictures. I grew up skiing there every weekend with my family. We would pack 7 of us in a 1971 white BMW 2002 and drive on up. I was 3 when I first went skiing there, and didn't stop skiing there until I was in the USAF and moved away. A lot of great memories came back because of your pictures.

 

[jbay]

Whenever I hit 150 mph I to am looking for 6th gear. I can live without it .

 

[spine60]

I just wish there was a 6th gear to cut down on vibes at 80mph. :beee:

 

[FJRocha]

Lately I find miself riding down the road in third or fourth gear. I seem to forget the higher gears... Apparently, the thrust in which I trust, encourages me to enjoy the jet engine sound from below :devilsmiley:

 

[Vulcan]

I would rather have a gear position indicator than a 6th gear.....My old bike had it and I am gotten rather used to it. I'm sure that after a while I will be able to quickly determine what gear I am in from looking at the tach and speedo.

 

[zorkler]

6th gear come on guys whats next 7th. gear zero buzzing at 80 run that speed on the hwys when i can

 

[Flylooper]

I just picked up an '04 a couple of days ago and posted the following to my Concours Owners Group friends.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FJR1300 vs. Concours

Are you laughing at the header of this post? Well, don't! If you think our ancient bikes cannot hold a candle to an ultra-modern, high tech, state-of-the-art Yamaha FJR1300, you are wrong, wrong, WRONG!

I just picked a new-to-me '04 Feejer up the day before yesterday. I love it. It had only 3800 miles on it. My "test ride" consisted of a 503 mile jaunt up the coast from San Clemente, CA to San Mateo, CA. (after the money changed hands, of course.)

Ride:

Feejer is smooth. Even though it's lighter and (I think) has a shorter wheel base, I think it's just as smooth as my Connie. When you hit a bump, though, it isn't as bone jarring as the Connie is. But the Connie offers much better wind and rain protection with that out-of-sight fairing. And even though the motor on both bikes is a stressed frame member, the Feejer is buzzless.

Motor/Tranny:

Well, here there is no comparison. The FJR has 145 hp at the crank, compared to 108 on Connie. You can go from 70 to over 110 mph in less than 4 seconds (as I did!) In TOP gear no less. This bike is a veritable rocket, pure and simple. It is injected and extremely quiet throughout the band. It has an ECU which controls all aspects of the engine. No low rpm buck. No shims/needle valves/carb tweaks needed. It is also a much cleaner engine. This is where the Feejer obviously shines.

It also has a low maintenence engine, requiring a valve check (shim under bucket) only every 26,000 miles. I think if you keep the fluids fresh and up to snuff, there isn't a hell of a lot to do to it.

The tranny is a stacked fiver. I didn't even try to find out how fast you can go in 1st, but it's way, way higher than the Connie in 1st. 2nd gear is total "adios amigo!" Absolutely unreal acceleration which continues into 3rd and beyond. Unlike Connie, you don't need to shift all the time to get max power out of it.

Ergos:

I sit up as straight on the Feejer as I do on the Connie. No risers needed, either. For me, this is a good thing. Because I am old and weak and no longer a kid! (But still as good looking as ever!) My arms, hands and upper body were very happy with the Feejer's riding position. I was riding on a dealer optioned Corbin saddle, which was much firmer than the much loved Russell Day-Long on my Connie, but my derriere was happy throughout the non-stop ride. I had sort of presumed I would have a Russell made for the Feejer but I may not make the switch at all.

Handling:

The Feejer has a lower center of gravity and thus gives me a more comfortable feeling about throwing it around. It's just a different feeling while on top of it. On the other hand, Connie will take a turn as well as anything in it's category. It's just a question of getting used to it and being a good enough rider to know what's going on. I am neither, with only three years of riding behind me. Brakes on the Feejer are much, much better. And if you get the ABS model, you can't skid on them. But it's a $1500 option. There's no question that they are more responsive to the grip than Connie's. 320mm rotors on Feejer compared to 300mm on the later model Connie. Feejer has fully adjustable mono-shock and fork springs, both for compression and rebound.

Design:

The Feejer is the latest and greatest in motorcycle design. But...and some important "buts": Connie has two locking glove boxes. The ('04 and later only) FJR1300 has only one tiny one, which cannot be locked. Connie has these big, rectangular saddle bags which are larger than the FJR's and shaped as they are so that they will accept more "stuff." Also, they are far, far easier to open and close on Connie. The Feejer bag has four tongue and groove points which must be properly joined in order to close. Also the latches are not as easy to deal with as the ones on the Connie. They require an ignition key to open and close.

There are no points on which to hook a bungee cord on the Feejer. (I will need to purchase some Bungie Buddies and install them myself.)

The fairing, as mentioned, is more protective of the rider for both wind and, I'm sure, rain.

A nice touch with the Feejer is the electric windshield, which goes up and down, like a Beemer's, so you can impress your friends. (Actually, I found myself leaving mine fully raised on my ride, and I know I need a longer shield since I am 6'3" and stick out like a flagstick on a putting green.) Connie has better directional light visibility from the rear, placing its lights on stalks. The Feejer's are integrated into the rear tailight assembly. Looks nice, but not as functional, IMHO.

In looking at the Owner's Manual, I noted that 3 different kinds of fasteners are used in buttoning the fairing on to the subframe of the Feejer, compared to only one type on the Connie. On the other hand, how often does one have to remove the fairing on this low maintenence motor? BTW, oil changes are a snap. Nothing to remove other than the spin-on oil filter on the Feejer. No bottom pan removal needed.

Heat:

The Feejer is at least as hot on the lower body as the Connie. It is the biggest complaint people seem to register with them. This is because the catalytic converter is right under the rider's feet and they need high heat (650 deg. F I'm told) to function correctly. The Feejer's exhaust is a four-into-one-into-two setup up to accommodate the C.C./ 02 sensor, etc. etc. On my ride I hit everything from 90 degree temps to mid 60's temps and didn't find the heat oppressive at all. But it was definitely noticeable.

Instrumentation:

Feejer is analog on tach and speedo. Engine guages, gas tank, and odometers are on a LCD panel. For quick scanning I prefer the all-analog instruments on the Connie. For "cuteness" Feejer wins. For functionality, Connie wins. Also, with direct sunlight on the directional indicators, I think the Connie's are somewhat more visible than the Feejer's

Summary:

The Feejer is more "sport" than "tour." I can see that any farkling I do will involve making it more of a tour bike. Connie, by comparison, is more "tour" than "sport." It comes stock with alot of little things that one needs to go on a long, multi-day ride.

The Feejer is simply more responsive to the throttle, quieter, and smoother than the Connie's Ninja motor at all speeds. It will take me to wherever I want to go effortlessly and comfortably. It is a Porsche to the Connie's Firebird. Fit and finish are excellent in all areas.

But all this comes with a $4,000 premium in cost, even in used bikes. Worth it? I thought so. But whatever your particular bent, there's no question that the Connie is still as viable a motorcycle as it ever was. You can see a picture of my new ride in my Webshots album. (https://community.webshots.com/user/flylooper)

 

[Bearly Flying]

Good write up Looper, A Buddy of mine has the Connie, we have switched back and forth a couple times, I would have to agree the Connie is a pretty good bike for the money..... But I like kicking his ASS!!!!!....

 

[roadrash]

FlyLooper, This is one of the best unbiased reviews I have read in a long time. Nice Work.