03 Colors? (Yes, I've serched first lol)

First I would like to thank all you guys ive learned so much reading countless articles and postings here. Ive got my eyes on 2 gen1 fjr's a 05 blue and a 03 blue .. yea a 03 blue that looks cosmic blue kinda but as i understand it 03's went offered in blue. can anyone tell me what to look for in the vin when I go see her in person to determine if its legit? could she be an import? how would i tell. He isnt the original owner so he hasent a clue he's just selling it to pay for young un's (been there done that). any help or advice is always welcome and again thanks to all that have shared your knowledge its been great reading allot of your threads.

Walter

A blue 03 was repainted from its original silver color or was wrecked and the plastics replaced with the "cosmic blue" chinese replacement plastics. Blue inserts on the disk brakes are non-ABS on the 05, silver is ABS. Seriously, look for FJR fairings on Ebay and you will see what I mean by the aftermarket tupperware.

The 05 sounds to me like a better pick. I don't know why I'd say that though.

The '03, if authentic, has smaller front brakes and seems to have a better map in the ECU that makes it slightly faster. The front turn signals are on stalks. The '05 turn signals are more like a bulge in the sides of the fairing. The '05 may be either early '05 or late '05. The late one was the last of the first gen and has some updated parts. Take a look at the Gen 1 Bin o' Facts for specifics.

Either one will be great if it is in good shape.

I'd be wary of the '03 from your description and more interested to the '05.

Looks for obvious sign of abuse and how the bike has been taken care of. Compare the odo mileage to foot-peg and shifter rubbers and general wear and tear of the bike.

Happy hunting and good luck!

--G

'03 is quicker because it's geared slightly shorter in the middle gear shaft (the shaft driven by the transmission, that has the bevel gear for the drive shaft.)

Slightly smaller brake rotors make the air valve easier to get to!

'05 might have ABS, but if it hasn't been exercised regularly it may not actually work. (Solenoids freeze up just sitting there for years and years.)

A crash bad enough to replace plastic isn't necessarily a bad crash. I lowsided mine in gravel at maybe 12 mph, bike slid and got jammed under the armco. All plastic forward of the seat, including windshield, and one side case were replaced by my insurance, it was ALL scuffed UP and cracked. There was nothing wrong with the bike, though. OTOH, if it tumbled through the weeds after falling at 80 mph I probably wouldn't want it now......

You can tell the year by looking at the VIN's 10th digit. A 1-9 indicates 2001-2009. So if the 10th digit is a 3, it's a 2003. If it's a 5, it's a 2005. Make sense?

If you're not sure, Google images of 2003 FJR. The turn signal stalks are always the dead giveaway to me. Every other year has "flush" signals; although, they're not really flush, just lower profile.

well this is the craigslist link of the one in question. I talked to the guy and I believe he is as much on the up and up as possible but perhaps he dosent know the whole story about it as he isnt the original owner. Im going to look at her hopefully early next week for an initial look over.

Walter said:

well this is the craigslist link of the one in question. I talked to the guy and I believe he is as much on the up and up as possible but perhaps he dosent know the whole story about it as he isnt the original owner. Im going to look at her hopefully early next week for an initial look over.

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Well, that's an 03. I've never seen that shade of blue on any year FJR or any aftermarket fairing kits. Looks like it might have been repainted IMO. Maybe a previous owner just wanted a blue bike *shrugs*.

Oh, and $5600 is a little steep for an 03'. Excellent condition dealer retail on KBB is $4585.

Personally I think the price is too high and the mods too extensive/unknown. I would think a very nice FJR in that year range could be had for less money.

The line, "Its very fast since the Power Commander was added." tells me all I need to know. He is either clueless or dishonest and neither of those things makes me want to buy a motorcycle from him.

It is a repainted 03 and not an importer bike from Europe or Australia.The US 03 fjr is the 01/02 European and Australia fjr.The European/Australia 01/02 are the same with the US 03.The 03/03abs European/Australia like mine never went to USA.You received only the 04/04abs and 05/05abs.The European/AU 03/03abs is the same with the 04/abs 05/abs European/Australia/USA.The only differences between the 03/03abs like mine and the 04/04abs 05/05abs European,Australia,US are:The handlebars and triple clamp are painted in the same silver color as the 03/US is.On the 04/05 European,Australia,US the handlebars and triple clamp are painted in a darker silver color.Also the rims on the 04/05 are painted in a darker silver color similar with the handlebars about.Also the internal ABS rotors they have some small differences between the 03/abs and 04/05 abs.Also the European/Australia models they have an immobilizer on,good,but if you need to replace the ignition switch then you must pay over of $2000 to buy the set with the new ECU!Also the low beam is always on when the engine runs and it haven't a switch to close them.Have a look at this link with the history,models,colours for the European or and AU models.4 pages:

https://www.yamaha-motor.eu/designcafe/en/about-bikes/sport-touring/index.aspx?view=article&id=442654&segment=Sport%20Touring&archive=false&page=1

Here is the original blue European 01/02 - 03 US



Here is mine,except the differences in the colors,only the European/AU 03/03abs has the Yamaha sticker on the side panel.As you see the rims and handlebars are painted in light silver color and not in darker silver like the 04/05 models are.

I have to agree with the others who think that's a lot of money for an '03. It is almost 13 years old. Something about the look of the bike from the front on picture 9 seems wrong to me, but I can't figure out what it is, so maybe it's OK. In any case, an excellent condition '05 should be selling in that price range without the unknown risk about why it was repainted.

Clearly it was repainted blue because that makes it faster. Same as the PCIII.

wfooshee said:

'03 is quicker because it's geared slightly shorter in the middle gear shaft (the shaft driven by the transmission, that has the bevel gear for the drive shaft.)

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Not true, gearing changes occurred in Gen II models in 2006.

And I'd say that '03 isn't worth more than about $3,000~$3,500.

escapefjrtist said:

...
Looks for obvious sign of abuse and how the bike has been taken care of. Compare the odo mileage to foot-peg and shifter rubbers and general wear and tear of the bike.

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I replace my shifter rubber probably once a year. Don't know what I'm doing to chew those things up so quickly. Foot pegs are mostly original though.

My shifter starts leaching black onto my boots after a year or two. I generally chew the outboard footpeg rubber off grinding my boots around every two years. The deterioration is strictly from contact, not exposure.

I'm thinking this guy doesn't know much about the bike. It looks like it has risers installed, but I know GenI bars are different from GenII. It also has bar-ends installed, and I think he would have listed that stuff if he knew what was and was not supposed to be on there.

Take a look, but don't pay $5k sheesh!! That's a different blue. Maybe someone just wanted it to be slower. :fuck:

Don Stanley's bike was painted blue and gray, but was north of 80K miles when he sold it to Bgross. Still a good bike, but we knew the history and the fact that Barry had ridden it to the Reuben Run.

This is a nice looking bike with low miles and some nice accessories. It is a bit over priced and the biggest problem is no history. Close examination can usually reveal clues of past abuse, and in this case everything seems to match up, and I don't see anything that looks aftermarket about the body panels other than color. OEM panels are stamped and dated on the back, but that requires disassembly. At that mileage, there should be service records of a 26K mile valve check. If not, that is a negotiating point. You WILL want to change the CCT on this regardless. If the title is clean and it rides well, it might be worth negotiating on, but it is priced like what I would expect to pay for a 05 ABS.

Bill Lumberg said:

My shifter starts leaching black onto my boots after a year or two.

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Time to get some black motorcycle boots, Yo!

I've always got a kick out of these things you are supposed to wear over your white leather tennis shoes so you don't get marks from the shifter.

If it ain't Red, leave it in the shed!