Shifting Recommendations

[El Toro Joe]

Just don't accidentally shift into reverse.......

The original poster has a 2014, reverse doesn't come out until 2017. Will a reverse gear make it a Gen 4?? Or will it make it a Gen 2 since it now goes backwards?

A reverse gear will make it a Goldwing...JSNS

Bwahahaha...

 

[roger dodger]

Shift happens

Does a bear shift in the woods?

This thread is full of shift!

I like to pre-pressure the lever and shift effortlessly about 4k (easy riding) 6k (medium) and 8k (zippy)!

 

[Uncle Hud]

^^^^^^^ Does that make yours a variable transmission?

 

[Hellrizen]

Thanks for the help. The bike has gotten a lot more fun to ride, still going to play around with it and see what I like best.

 

[Hotboot]

The factory recommended shift points are fine and all, but I feel like I can get more out of the bike. Thanks in advance.

The shift points recommended by the manual are ridiculous.

This. Have the engineers actually tried to shift that low ? It is doing harm to both my engine and fuel economy, not to mention there is no fun with horsepower at 4000 rpm.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Thanks for the help. The bike has gotten a lot more fun to ride, still going to play around with it and see what I like best.

I thought about this thread on my ride in to work this evening. I kind of took it as a joke at first, but I realized you were new to the bike and trying to Do The Right Thing. I would HATE to have to watch the tach and attempt to shift at precise, pre-determined points. As I have become more used to the bike it almost seems to shift itself. I do not divert much of my attention to the shifting process, it just happens when it needs to happen.

My best advice is for you to enjoy your motorcycle in the manner that feels best to YOU. We buy these things to enjoy. Ride it however you enjoy it most.

Good luck with your bike and post a few pics for us from time to time please.

 

[Pterodactyl]

Exactly....... With a little experience a rider should shift base upon input from the bike by sound and feel. The tach has it's uses, but looking at it for every shift would be tedious and overly distracting.

 

[Bill Lumberg]

I....shift...low. Just used to doing it that way. The sound and feel of my bike tell my brain to shift much earlier than is necessary or optimal. I have to consciously make myself shift at higher rpm when enjoying mountain roads, as my toe is always trying to race to get to 5th gear. Just longstanding habits, ingrained from before the FJR. And even I think the shift points in the manual are crazy-san. That must have been with an eye towards mileage or something.

 

[HotRodZilla]

Thanks for the help. The bike has gotten a lot more fun to ride, still going to play around with it and see what I like best.

That right there is your correct answer. Feel it, listen to it, decide how hard or easy you are riding it and do what feels right. Very similar to a good woman!

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Thanks for the help. The bike has gotten a lot more fun to ride, still going to play around with it and see what I like best.

That right there is your correct answer. Feel it, listen to it, decide how hard or easy you are riding it and do what feels right. Very similar to a good woman!

Or a BAD woman. I like them just a little naughty.

In all seriousness, good post. My shifting changes with my mood and my desires at that time.

 

[DiggerDr.]

As already stated, just don't lug it. Baby it some, let her growl some or thrash it. FJR's don't care. Just maintain it and ride. You are the proud owner of a very versatile machine.

 

[El Toro]

The factory recommended shift points are fine and all, but I feel like I can get more out of the bike. Thanks in advance.

The shift points recommended by the manual are ridiculous.

This. Have the engineers actually tried to shift that low ? It is doing harm to both my engine and fuel economy, not to mention there is no fun with horsepower at 4000 rpm.

It ain't the engineers. It's the lawyers.

 

[Pterodactyl]

Yup, just about every corporation, university and business is run by senior management at the discretion of the lawyers.

 

[MrZappo]

It's most likely the lawyers AND the fact that the government makes manufacturers average the fuel mileage ratings of all the bikes in their fleet to see if they "comply" with current efficiency standards (weather possible or not) .

So the manufacturer has to print the (proper shift point) to make it official for the record.

I'm sure the printed shift points correlate to some "best" efficiency test.

It has ZERO to do with how they really expect the bike to be ridden in any real world circumstance.

 

[El Toro]

It's most likely the lawyers AND the fact that the government makes manufacturers average the fuel mileage ratings of all the bikes in their fleet to see if they "comply" with current efficiency standards (weather possible or not) .
So the manufacturer has to print the (proper shift point) to make it official for the record.

I'm sure the printed shift points correlate to some "best" efficiency test.

It has ZERO to do with how they really expect the bike to be ridden in any real world circumstance.

I've never seen CAFE requirements or regulations for motorcycles.

Best performance in the economy area would come about if you ran the bike at the bsfc sweet spot. From what I remember about the shift points in the manual, there are lugging type shift points, and would not be anywhere near the bsfc sweet spot for any operating condition.

So I doubt very much if government regulation has anything to do with this ... and I lay the blame entirely on the lawyers who are focused on CYA instructions that would make it hard to get in trouble due to your right wrist.

Edit: CAFE stands for corporate average fuel economy, and it is specified for the manufacturers of passenger cars and light trucks. The current administration set the goal that we will have a CAFE standard of 54.5 by 2025.

There are no current vehicles that meet this standard.

There are electric vehicles that achieve higher nominal values in the form of MPGe, but the e is the kicker.

The e stands for equivalent. They do a pretty reasonable scientific analysis of the equivalent mpg from the power plant to the in home charging station, but then they divide the whole mess by a factor of .15. The .15 is a term that is included to account for the value of electric vehicles to the society. The effect of diving by .15 is that MPGe figures are about 6 times larger than their honest mpg equivalents. So when you see that the electric car has an MPGe of 120, it's actually more like 20 mpg when reflected back to the power plant where fuel was burned in order to create the electricity that eventually was used to charge the car's battery.

Sigh....

 

[rPGoatBoy]

You're also less likely to futz up the transmission forks & dogs shifting at the owners manual's prescribed points. Makes it easy for them to turn down a warranty claim.

 

[Pterodactyl]

Do you have knowledge of any instance of a warranty claim being denied because of shifting above the "recommended" shift points? They are not prescribed.

 

[DiggerDr.]

Be hard to prove what speed you shifted at......

 

[HotRodZilla]

^^^^^Out of likes, but Digger is correct!

 

[Hotboot]

I get 42+ mpg using the upper rev range while chasing sportbikes. Theory busted.

There is more throttle control at higher RPM's.....dang handy when riding the machine as designed.