Gonna Test Ride an FJR...

Finally found an FJR that I can test ride. It's at a dealer and it appears to be reasonably priced according to what the market is asking for them.

It's a fairly low-miles 2008 model. I didn't test it today because a) I'm still a week out on having the money and B) I knew that if I test rode it I might try and get around the money thing anyway. I was smart - wore shorts and a t-shirt and drove my car there instead of riding my bike with all my gear. : -)

But I will ride it within the next few days. Since I probably won't be able to do as thorough an inspection as I'd like, and I've never ridden an FJR before, what should I be looking for on that test ride? I'm an experienced rider, just not with this bike. It's going to make sounds and vibes that are probably normal, and I'm just not familiar with them. So what should stand out as an anomaly, or what should I feel for being out of whack or hidden?

Thanks in advance.

Before you test ride check the tire pressure don't take the word of the salesman F-39 R-42 low tire pressure will affect handling, look for the scratches from being droped, it may have slight vibration @ 4k RPM, ask if all the recalls have been done, ignition switch, wire harness, etc.

The turbine-like whine is normal, as is the rocket-like acceleration. FJRs are slightly top-heavy. The suspension is probably not set up for you, so if possible, get the shop tech to make appropriate adjustments based on your weight.

Enjoy

Check the tires close. If they are dated (say more than 3 years old), cupped in any way, or any tire except a Michelin PR2 or PR3, then the turn in will not be quite as crisp.

On cold start, you should hear no unusual rattles in the engine.

There is a "whine" that apears in the neighborhood of 3,000 rpm, this is normal and is coming from the straight cut counterbalancer gears.

Have a peek at the brake/clutch fluid. The DOT4 should be clear - if not, plan on a flush. Come to thing of it, plan on it anyway.

Examine the rear wheel for what we call "splooge". Any splatter of what looks like grease or oil indicates that your rear pumpkin needs a re-seal. It ain't the end of the world, but mine surfaced at a very low mileage (way less than 10K) so be aware of it.

Not sure what kind of bike experience you have, but this is a bonified litre sport touring bike. The torque curve is flat and strong. She should pull hard in any gear from 3,000 all the way to the redline. She will feel a tad heavy below 25 mph, epecially in the parking lot. But above that, she will respond well to your command, and she will encourage you to push your limits. Her wind protection is incredible, and this motor will have you going a lot faster than you think. I went from a 425-ish pound honda nighthawk 750 to the FJR. On the 3rd time I rode it, I crashed because I thought I was a lot better rider than I was (and am). Not preaching, but please be aware of things.

If you could tell us the mileage, and post a few pictures from all angles, we might offer more. Good luck.

Thanks!

It's an '08, around 6k miles. That actually made me worry - low mileage against that age makes me worry about seals and things drying out and not being properly used - engines like to be run in terms of their longevity. Still - it's a Yamaha - the motors are bulletproof, generally, right?

There were only two things that stood out to me on the initial inspection. First - there are some scuffs on the bags and one of the mirrors. The bag scuffs are normal - I've never seen a used bike with hard luggage that didn't have them. The second was the fact that it needs a new rear tire. The front looked good, but the rear doesn't have a lot of life left. That tells me that the rear is probably original and the bike didn't see a lot of twisty riding. No telltale scrapes anywhere else, but the second inspection will be much closer. If it gets down to negotiation, I will work a new rear tire into the deal at least.

I will likely need to lower the pegs some. Jury is still out on the seat and probably will be for a while.

The liners weren't in the bags. Were those included in 2008?

Good advice about the pumpkin. I'll check that out. Since the bike has likely been cleaned, detailed, is there any other way for me to verify a final drive issue?

Friends of mine that have Speed Triples, Multistradas, FZ1000's, 1200RT's & Hardleys have ridden my bike & they generally think of the FJR as too smooth, too quiet, too heavy, too big, too precise & almost boring. They generally don't realize how fast they're going until I point it out to them. When I ask them what they think about the way the FJR corners, they respond with accolades. Expect a fast initial tip-in then the bike will settle & she'll carry through the corner predictably, with stability & exceptionally well. .

Enjoy, good luck & let us know what you think.

Cheers,

Ed

Nice. I just looked at an '09 with 3K miles on it at a dealer here. I've still got the itch for a brand-spankin' new one though. Will be a few more months.

Sometimes the splooge on the rear wheel can be from overfilling the rear with too much oil. Seen it three times with 68K miles on my bike. So don't worry to much if you see anything. It is extremely rare for an FJR to have final drive issues. I don't believe you mentioned a price. Might help us to know so you are not getting screwed over. Are the sidebags and mirror scratched? If so it has most likely has been dropped a couple of times since you said it was on both sides. Not the end of the world. You can get scuff marks from swinging your leg over the bike but it doesn't sound like what you are describing. The shoe scuff marks would be on the top side of the hard bags. I would also work a deal to get the oil changed and rear end fluid. With only 6K miles it may have never been done by the original owner.

Dave

I'll repeat above message . Tire pressure is very important to the way these bikes handle. My first ride on an FJR was shocking. It felt like a truck I mean a dump truck with flat tires and no power steering. I asked the owner to check the pressure when I got back and the dumb shit argued with me that the tires were just put on and his guys always put the right amount of air in them. Guess what, 22 in the front 24 in the rear.

Don't panic about the god awful sounding "Clunk" putting it into first from neutral. We all hear it and it's been there since day one. It's normal. Well.... It's Yamaha normal. You will fall in love with this bike in 15 minutes. Enjoy!

The throttle may be a bit touchy for a new rider other than that I love mine, as said above watch your speed or you'll be doing

90 without a thought.

majicmaker said:

Don't panic about the god awful sounding "Clunk" putting it into first from neutral. We all hear it and it's been there since day one. It's normal. Well.... It's Yamaha normal. You will fall in love with this bike in 15 minutes. Enjoy!

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If that "Clunk" on the FJR bothers you, do NOT ride a Harley. That shift from neutral to 1st sounds like a minor car crash!

Glad you pointed it out though, I have come to regard it as "normal" and since my ST1300 does it almost as badly, I guess it is normal.

All the above advice has been good and I will only add this: When you lean it over into a turn and start applying throttle, be careful. The torque curve is strong. The motor will pull hard even in top gear and you will be accelerating faster than you realize. My first ride on an FJR was to deliver Dad's to his house from the dealer. He had not even seen it yet. I almost totaled the thing because I was running out of lean angle and could not let off.

Take a lemon on test ride. Suck on it before you get back from your test ride. Otherwise when the dealer sees that big smile on your face he will know that you are hooked and there goes any bartering.

Best regards

Surly

I am used to stump-pulling torque and top heavy manners so that's ok.

The mirror scuff is one side - think it was a garage incident.

My Tger has an agricultural clunk going into first, too. They didn't fix that until the tranny on the tiger 800 and the Explorer.

Man. I'm psyched. Wife greenlighted the acquisition so I just gotta make the numbers work.

Bike is listed in the nominal range for its age and mileage. It's a fair price.

I am used to stump-pulling torque and top heavy manners so that's ok.

The mirror scuff is one side - think it was a garage incident.

My Tger has an agricultural clunk going into first, too. They didn't fix that until the tranny on the tiger 800 and the Explorer.

Man. I'm psyched. Wife greenlighted the acquisition so I just gotta make the numbers work.

Bike is listed in the nominal range for its age and mileage. It's a fair price.

killbilly said:

That actually made me worry - low mileage against that age makes me worry about seals and things drying out and not being properly used - engines like to be run in terms of their longevity. Still - it's a Yamaha - the motors are bulletproof, generally, right? There were only two things that stood out to me on the initial inspection. First - there are some scuffs on the bags and one of the mirrors. The bag scuffs are normal - I've never seen a used bike with hard luggage that didn't have them. The second was the fact that it needs a new rear tire. The front looked good, but the rear doesn't have a lot of life left. That tells me that the rear is probably original and the bike didn't see a lot of twisty riding. No telltale scrapes anywhere else, but the second inspection will be much closer. If it gets down to negotiation, I will work a new rear tire into the deal at least. I will likely need to lower the pegs some. Jury is still out on the seat and probably will be for a while. The liners weren't in the bags. Were those included in 2008? Good advice about the pumpkin. I'll check that out. Since the bike has likely been cleaned, detailed, is there any other way for me to verify a final drive issue?

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Seems like nobody answered your question here.

Seals and things drying out: you have nothing to worry about. And yes, their engines are generally bulletproof.

Scuffs on the bags and mirrors: Obviously, the bike's been down. However, it's very common with these bikes. They are heavy and they will get away from you in the parking lot if you're clumsy, and many guys drop 'em. How deep are the scratches? We talking scuffs or deep gouges here? Check the engine cases as they sometimes get scuffed up as well. Not a deal breaker, but pannier (side case) repair is typically over a hundred bucks per. There's a guy on this website that'll give you a great price and a great job as well. Just ask the forum if you're interested. You're right on you guess about the tires. They're probably original. 7k is pretty normal for the factory rear tire. The wear on them will cause the bike to require a little more push to initiate a turn... due to the flat center section, but since you know what to expect, it shouldn't be much of a factor.

Liners: yes the bike came with them, they're about 60-80 bucks used on this forum... when they pop up occasionally. Check the cost of new ones for negotiating.

Pumpkin: don't worry about it too much. A little oil splooge is the worst problem it will have, but has more than likely been wiped off when they cleaned it. All you can do is look at it carefully. The bike's miles should make any pumpkin maintenance simply precautionary. FJR's have bulletproof pumpkins as well.

Advice:

Look carefully for evidence that the bike has been apart. Check for all the plastic rivets to be in place... for example, up under the side covers and in the center of the fairing just in front of the handlebars. Those little rascals are pricey and several were missing when I bought mine used. It was 6 years old with 3800 miles when I bought it... a similar issue to yours. I've had no problems associated with the low miles.

A minor item: listen for clunking when you first hit the front brakes. FJR's occasionally have a odd clunking sound that you can often times feel in the handlebars as well. Sometimes this is remedied by servicing the steering head bearings, other times it a variety of causes. Not real common, and not a deal breaker, but something to listen for.

We do need to know what they're asking for the bike. You may indeed be paying too much. Maybe I didn't read carefully enough, but is it all stock?

Gary

darksider #44

If you give the throttle a little blip while holding in the clutch before engaging 1st gear, it will almost eliminate the clunk.

DO NOT judge the handling with these tires, even with the proper amount of air. If that rear is original with 6K on it, it is toast and will handle poorly even with the proper amount of air. I came from cruisers before I got my first 08, and did not corner aggressively for the first 3000 miles, and the front tire was trashed by then. I thought I bought a POS until I took the advise of the forum on tire pressures and put on new tires. Now I can tell by the handling if the pressure is low by a couple pounds.

I doubt that the bike has been "detailed". They probably just threw a wash at it and put a for sale sign on it. Check where the drive shaft comes out of the motor for excessive oil/grease. Some is probably normal, and on a bike with this few miles on it, it shouldn't be an issue.

Good luck!

I'll try to be circumspect about the tires; can't do anything about them on the test ride. The turbine whine is fine; I'm used to that.

I also posted on my phone but not sure it's here; I think the mirror scuff is a garage incident and not a drop. Even if it was dropped, I'm not worried about it. Those things happen. What I'm interested in is documented maintenance, recalls and drivetrain stuff.

Is an amount of snatchiness normal from the throttle?

killbilly said:

What I'm interested in is documented maintenance, recalls and drivetrain stuff. Is an amount of snatchiness normal from the throttle?

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Be concerned with what you've detailed and it'll be fine. FJRs are generally a very bulletproof platform with minimal issues. Since it's an FI bike, there is an inherent amount of off / on abruptness in the throttle. It's pretty well sorted out in the '08 and newer bikes though.

Listen to the bike when you take it for a test ride...you'll know if it's a good one.

Good luck!

--G

No one else touched on it, so I will....during your test drive, after you've got a few miles into it and in a nice safe place with plenty of open road and light traffic. try an aggressive 1-2 shift. Lotta throttle through first, followed by a lotta throttle into and through second.

You're checking to see if the 2nd gear "dogs" are in good shape and the bike doesn't try to "pop" out of gear.

Many moons ago, when I was first shopping an FJR, I test-rode a 2003 that just refused to stay in 2nd gear under a heavy right hand. I'm SO glad I passed on that sucker....tranny repairs are a PITA on an FJR.