Difference between A and AE

Sorry if this has been covered before, I tried searching but wasnt able to come up with much. Besides the obvious, auto shift, what are the main differences? Here are my areas of concern....

1) Maintenance

2) Longevity

3) Weight, although I think I saw the AE is about 20lbs heavier

4) Acceleration, not concerned about it in automatic just manual. Does the Auto tranny slow it down at all?

Once again, sorry if these have been covered. Thanks again for the help.

CAPT-KEVLAR said:

Sorry if this has been covered before, I tried searching but wasnt able to come up with much. Besides the obvious, auto shift, what are the main differences? Here are my areas of concern....

1) Maintenance

2) Longevity

3) Weight, although I think I saw the AE is about 20lbs heavier

4) Acceleration, not concerned about it in automatic just manual. Does the Auto tranny slow it down at all?

Once again, sorry if these have been covered. Thanks again for the help.

Click to expand...

I'll let the AE owners speak up about maintenance, but I haven't heard of any specific problems, other than maybe a dry clutch (which can be solved with a clutch soak)

But the AE does not auto-shift, it merely has an automatic clutch. You still have to shift up and down as needed.

Not to be a ball buster, but if you enter "A vs AE site:fjrforum.com" in Google it comes back with 4790 results. Where did you search? Here are my answers:

1. Only slight difference in maintenance. Air filter is more difficult to get to and there is no clutch lever and res. to deal with. Other than that if you have average mechanical aptitude you can do virtually all your own maintenance.

2. No difference. Properly maintained the FJR has been known to go for a quarter mil.

3. You answered your own question, but all the stats are on the page you should have browsed when you joined here.

4. No difference between models. Just a diffence in how you shift and no feathering like you can do with a clutch.

And there's a hose in the way of the oil fill spot...but it's not so much in the way as to make it impossible to get oil in, just slightly inconvenient.

One is retarded the other isn't. Depends on who you talk to. There has been only one on the forum over the years that had such a terrible experience with problems, that couldn't be fixed by Yamaha, that he dumped it at a loss. It was something in the electrics. That's too low a percentage to worry about imho.

CAPT-KEVLAR said:

Sorry if this has been covered before, I tried searching but wasnt able to come up with much. Besides the obvious, auto shift, what are the main differences? Here are my areas of concern....

1) Maintenance

2) Longevity

3) Weight, although I think I saw the AE is about 20lbs heavier

4) Acceleration, not concerned about it in automatic just manual. Does the Auto tranny slow it down at all?

Once again, sorry if these have been covered. Thanks again for the help.

Click to expand...

To amplify about "automatic", it is NOT an automatic. It only changes gear when the rider requests a gear-change. It then changes using electrical actuators to move the clutch and gear selectors appropriately. The clutch and gearbox are identical to the conventional. It doesn't even adjust the throttle for you during the change, it's up to you what you do with the throttle as it is with a conventional change (although if you are brutal it will slip the clutch for longer than normal and it may reduce engine power by retarding the ignition).

Acceleration is a little worse from stationary, this is because the clutch engagement won't allow the very high RPM necessary for a real drag-race start. I believe the 0-60 times for each are something like 3.7 and 4.0. The AE (or AS as we know it this side of the pond) does have the advantage that you cannot get it wrong, you just open the throttle as far as you want (or dare), the YCC-S will take care of all the clutch engagement. 'Course, there's no clever stuff to stop the rear wheel spinning up on a slippery road, nor to keep the front wheel down. Once rolling there's little difference, a slight disadvantage in the extra weight (20 pounds in say 800 bike and rider), and for me at least an advantage in very quick gear changes. Extremely nice when attacking the twisties.

Intech said:

... there is no clutch ... res. to deal with.

Click to expand...

Not true, the YCC-S system uses hydraulics to operate the clutch system. If it needs bleeding, it's a bitch of a job according to the workshop manual. Hope mine never needs it.

AE biggest advantage: For some price and savings. I saved 2K buying an AE then it grew on me. Never looked back, no regret. If not for $$ I'm sure I would be the owner of an A model.

Some (not me) worry you might have difficulty finding AE specific parts in the not so near future.

So far everybody has forgot the biggest difference between the two!

The colors are different between the A and AE models! Sheesh! Morons!

Also, the AE included heated grips while the A model did not. (A model now includes heated grips as of 2011 model I believe.)

I think the takeoff issue between the A and AE is overstated. While you can't rev the motor at takeoff in the AE, what that accomplishes is little unless you are very adept at controlling a wheelie.

As for shifting, you can shift at full throttle in the AE if you want as the throttle is blipped by the electronic controls. I doubt many A owners can shift as fast manually.

I have had my AE for over 2 years and have no problems whatsoever. Other than the PITA of the air filter removal, which is not very often, I see no other maintenance or reliability issues. But, to each his own I guess.

Forgot. One significant difference is that it is impossible to stall the AE. You can try to move off in 5th if you wish, it won't stall. (Won't accelerate very quickly either )

If you forget to change down to 1st at the lights, you won't be totally embarrassed by a stalled engine. Nor do you have to debate with yourself, "Should I put it in neutral to ease my aching hand and risk being unable to get out of the way of a dozy cager?" Just leave it in 1st for the 5 minutes it takes for the lights to cycle. No, the clutch won't wear out.

I sat in traffic this morning and never had a single thought about my aching clutch hand. Oh right, that's because I don't have a clutch hand anymore! Actually, now that I've got the throttle smoothed out, traffic is a non issue aside from the usual frustration that traffic brings. Being on a motorcycle makes no difference.

Let's see if I'm still saying that when it's 114F outside and the sun is blazing down on me.

Hi Captain - welcome aboard and congratulations on generating the next addition to the NEPRT...

But while this thread is still around, I'll mention that my AE is at 56K with essentially no trouble. One thing I will add that has been discussed in other A vs AE threads, is the fact that although there is no clutch lever, the AE owner learns to use the rear brake to control speed input in low speed turn situations, just as he would feather the clutch in low speed turns on a traditional manual clutch operated bike. You just "feather" the rear brake in it's place. Takes a little practice but becomes second nature fairly quick. Other than that, the minimal differences have been pretty well covered above, quite frankly, because there just aren't that many.

Believe me when I tell u that I dreaded starting this thread as I was sure that all of the topics had been covered. I am obviously no search master.

Intech, it never dawned on me to use google. :sorry:

Thanks to all who have contributed. So there is no manual clutch whatsoever? Seeing as this is going to be my only bike I'm not 100% sure that I can go completely clutchless. I'm gonna go check it out anyways. The next few days I will be in deep thought contemplating my options. Thanks again.

Nope, I can confirm, that even when new on the bike and you panic brake, your left hand will get a big ole handful of air when you go for the clutch lever.

You've probably seen paddle shifters on a car or two. A good example in Indy cars... You have to shift, it will never occur automatically. When you decide to shift at 2000rpm or rev limiter the signal will be sent (1/10 of a second IIRC) and your in the next gear.

The AE has the left hand paddles or left foot standard shifter (5 up).

When you come to a stop... The clutch will disengage at 1300rpm (idle is around 1000). When you are ready to move, twist the throttle and the clutch will re-engage at 1800 rpm.

Adjustment time for me to be 100% free of left hand twitch was approx 2 tanks of gas.

The only time I used the foot shifter was on the way home from the dealer. A little practice with the hand shift and never looked back.

If Yamaha had allowed test rides, as most dealers don't, more AE's would have probably been sold. Have to admit, I also bought mine due to the huge discount, but would buy another right now if the situation arose.

The number one reason I bought mine was the color. That Cerulean Blue Silver just made my jaw drop. The Shifter turned out to be a BIG Cherry on top of the Best Icecream Sundae Ever. I'll never buy another clutched bike again.

Add me to the ranks that bought an AE because of a huge dealer discount. I was really concerned I'd not like the auto clutch. That concern evaporated right away. Now, I think I prefer the auto clutch.

I have an unusual circumstance that has made the AE a godsend. I drive twice a day through a vehicle checkpoint with a long line of traffic. I have to show my face (hence, I use a flip-helmet) and present a badge. With the AE, it eliminates the whole PITA of stopping, putting it in neutral, then doing all the rest. What used to take a solid 25s (with a whole line of cars behind me) is now about a 10s operation with the AE. This has been a huge added benefit of the AE, and should circumstances require, I'd buy another for this reason.

I am about to put my 2006 up for sale, not because I don't like it, but I usually change bikes every 2 years.

I've kept the AE for 4 because I like the clutch so much, in fact I'll really miss it when it's gone.

Maintenance? Perfectly reliable, and one could argue that the clutch would last longer cause you can't thrash it.