Tire Wear?

[FJRoss]

How's this for one of the worst examples of a non-fun worn out tire?


Center stripe is down to the steel belts and the edges are almost pristine!! On the right roads, it would be good for another 3000 miles or more!

Good reason for it, however. It was the product of a 3500 mile (each way) fly-and-ride to pick up a new-to-me 2011 FJR with something like 36,000 miles on it. The purchase included a small trailer that I expect I will use for some camping trips. Great beer carrier!

The horribly flat-spotted center was a function of a very long (mostly slab) ride from central British Columbia to New Brunswick (Canada). The ride across the prairies involved over 1000 miles of straight, flat roads with 30 MPH cross winds the entire distance. With the trailer acting as a sail that pushed constantly on the rear of the bike (plus the trailer tongue weight), I expect that the lateral "slippage" resulted in an effective skid mark from Medicine Hat Alberta to Winnipeg Manitoba!!! (Also worst fuel mileage I have experienced with an FJR in 200,000 miles - 31 mpg. Got 42 mpg on subsequent days without crosswinds.)

All worth it in the end. Got a fantastic deal on a meticulously maintained and superbly farkled bike (and trailer), enjoyed a cross continent ride and had an opportunity to visit with my daughter, son-in-law and new (9 month old) grandson in Winnipeg on the way home.

Obligatory bike picture:


With trailer:


And with grandson trying it out:


In addition, a big thanks to Bungie who provided some advice to me about Northern Ontario dealers for a possible emergency tire change as I was sitting in a hotel in Marquette MI wondering if I was going to have enough rubber left to make it the remaining 1400 miles to home! (thanks again)

[Redfish]

I don't see pictures.

I am very happy to hear that you have a new to you FJR, I was wondering if you were going to ride that '07 to the 1 million mile mark. Congratulations on the "new" FJR.

[wheatonFJR]

I see the photos, including the cute grandson.

[FJRoss]

I don't see pictures.

I am very happy to hear that you have a new to you FJR, I was wondering if you were going to ride that '07 to the 1 million mile mark. Congratulations on the "new" FJR.

Pictures are posted on Flickr - I haven't run into problems with that site before.

Edit: I was sort of hoping to get the '07 to the 200,000 mile mark but will likely remain 10,000 miles or so short of that mark.

[bungie4]

Nice find Ross. This is why I nearly always have a decent set of take off's kicking around. It just so happened that the dump had a no-fee weekend and I chucked my current set last weekend. That tire would've got you home with far less drama. Glad you made it home without a visit from the FlatDemon.

[FJRoss]

I also always have a few take-offs sitting around (taking up space). I generally get to the point where I realize that I am unlikely to use them and toss all but one set to save for an emergency - i.e. non-repairable flat. I have been known to put a sketchy tire back on to finish out a riding season...

[raYzerman]

Congrats, Ross. You stole that one, jeez. What's happening with the stuff you left behind, out of curiosity?

[FJRoss]

Congrats, Ross. You stole that one, jeez. What's happening with the stuff you left behind, out of curiosity?

The only thing I left behind was the motorcycle lift table that the seller offered as part of the package. The cost to crate (or palletize) the 400+ lb. unit plus shipping across the continent from rural British Columbia very closely compared to the cost of a new one. Under the circumstances, I told him to just sell it and I didn't ask for anything to compensate me for the value. It would have been nice to have but hardly worth it (although it was in like-new condition).

[Redfish]

Now I see pictures! I really like the FJR in silver, it just looks classy. Sort of a BMW on steroids look.

You also seem to have a Russel seat and a Smuggler. Also you have Pop's favorite Cee Bailey shield. Very Nice.

Can you tell us how this bike compares to your '07? I know the fuel mapping, the throttle body pulley and the ABS were all upgraded or changed on the later Gen2 bikes. How is this bike to you?

[FJRoss]

Now I see pictures! I really like the FJR in silver, it just looks classy. Sort of a BMW on steroids look.

You also seem to have a Russel seat and a Smuggler. Also you have Pop's favorite Cee Bailey shield. Very Nice.

Can you tell us how this bike compares to your '07? I know the fuel mapping, the throttle body pulley and the ABS were all upgraded or changed on the later Gen2 bikes. How is this bike to you?

You also seem to have a Russell seat and a Smuggler.

...and Clearwater "Ericas" and Clearwater "Glendas" and Traxxion AK-20 front forks and Penske 8983 rear shock and Staintune exhaust and reflective bag trim and reflective side trim and Hyperlight brake/signal LED and Techspec snakeskin tank pads and Garauld luggage rack +stiffy kit and Cox radiator guard and Fenda Extenda and Fuzeblock and Piaa horns and frame sliders and bar risers and trailer hitch and Throttlemeister bar ends etc... As I said, it was an EXTREMELY well farkled bike that was very well cared for by the owner.

Overall, I LOVE it. Looks fantastic in the sun and is lacking most of the 200,000 miles of "patina" acquired by the '07.

As for the fueling, I pretty much got used to the snatchy on-off '07 but this is undeniably smoother. My '07 had a Power Commander on it when I bought it (with only 12,000 miles on it) but I ended out removing it after less than a year because of the hit on fuel mileage.

For some reason, there is almost NO first gear "ker-chunk" starting off on the '11. Previous owner has been using Rotella T6, just as I did in the '07. The '07 "ker-chunk" is greater but not as bad as many I have heard.

No difference apparent in the braking but haven't had to rely on the ABS yet. I am being very cautious at this point. Very small amount of paint rash on the left bag and frame slider where the original owner had a zero speed drop but otherwise it looks new - even close-up.

Other than reduced ass pain due to the Russell, when riding on the highway I sometimes have to look down to see which bike I am riding. Very little difference in feel until you get into rough pavement or twistier roads (haven't done much of that yet). It really is 95%+ the same as the '07 but with a lot more stuff on it.

Power is decidedly better than the older bike but the engine is much fresher. Not sure if there is something there that needs to be investigated or not? Any degradation of '07 performance has been very gradual. Might try throttle body and fuel injector cleaning. Don't think I want to do a compression and leakdown test because I probably don't want to know the results. Still no oil consumption and no difficulty starting.

Funny, I never really intended to get another FJR at this stage. I was planning on doing a little work on the '07 and keep it going as long as possible and getting a dual sport (Wee-Strom maybe) for the "roads less travelled". When this one came up, plans changed, at least for now. Hope to sell the '07 locally although I will be a little sad to see it go.

[raYzerman]

The fuel mapping after '09 pretty much is the best it can get, reduce throttle freeplay to near zero and you're good. I thought the '10 I rode was good. You can put a PC V on it if you like, you were probably using one of the smoothness maps on the '07 so lost mileage. Stock map would have been fine.

[FJRoss]

The fuel mapping after '09 pretty much is the best it can get, reduce throttle freeplay to near zero and you're good. I thought the '10 I rode was good. You can put a PC V on it if you like, you were probably using one of the smoothness maps on the '07 so lost mileage. Stock map would have been fine.

Absolutely no need to do anything with the '11 with regarding fuel management, IMHO. Very smooth and fuel mileage MAY be a bit better than the '07 - can't say for sure yet.

With respect to the '07, I'll leave it up to the new owner but will give them the PCIII that I removed - not providing a PCV. The original owner of the '07 had it set up to try to maximize power - PC III, and he apparently believed that a K&N filter and Leo Vince pipes would help a lot. He had it "Dyno-tuned" and I think the settings hurt mileage quite a bit for (maybe) a couple of horsepower. I think compromise conditions can be set up to help the abrupt throttle and a G2 throttle tube with the modified cam will help linearize the response if they have issues.

Any thought on the (apparent) loss of power with the '07? Still not 100% sure if real or imagined but seems to have less grunt than the newer bike according to my carefully calibrated butt dyno. I mentioned throttle body filth and possibly dirty injectors although the TB crud probably has no effect much beyond idle RPM. No real evidence of compression loss but certainly possible - anything else occur to you? As I mentioned, it starts easily, idles smoothly and burns no oil. Would be nice to have it running as well as possible for the next owner but I am not going to spend a bunch of money on it.

A bit of thread drift going on but its at least a bit related to the questions on differences between model years.

[raYzerman]

Given the mileage difference, I suppose there might be a tad less juice in the '07, but again, the fuel mapping is different as well. No smokey, good to go, just clean it up, do the usual maintenance (oil, plugs, clean and shine) so new owner doesn't have to think about much.

[Brodie]

Just can’t get used to seeing a silver Gen2 FJR with that antiquated worthless appendage hanging off the front of the left handlebar.

Brodie

[Hppants]

Your grandson is a sharp looking kid - like the hat.

Have a buddy that had an '11 - agree, that color when cleaned up, is a looker.

As you are aware, you got a fantastic buy, Ross. To farkle that bike up they way you got it, including the trailer, would cost darn near what you paid for the entire rig and maybe more.

Are you looking at adding any other accessories?

When the '14 came out, I went bonkers bat shit over the red and hoped that it would be my very first brand new motorcycle. It was, and 6000 miles later, I totaled it. I replaced it with a similar bike with only 1400 miles on it, and even though it was only 6 months later, I was able to buy that bike (still my current one) for $3,500.00 less than what I paid for the new one.

I guess ya never know, but I think I'm done with the "new bike" thing. It's just so much more expensive.

[LKLD]

Congrats on the "new" bike, it looks pristine!

[FJRoss]

Congrats on the "new" bike, it looks pristine!

In superb condition!! Very pleased with it.

[FJRoss]

Are you looking at adding any other accessories?

I have been trying to think about what I might do on the bike - not much for sure.
Bigfoot kickstand pad maybe. Voltmeter - with heated gear and all the extra lighting etc., I might want to keep an eye on power management.

I may keep my Givi SR357 rack and V-46 top box from the '07. They can't be used with the Smuggler but I might swap them out for camping trips if I choose not to use the trailer. (Will see how long it takes to replace the standard tail piece and Gaurald rack with the Givi.) I would paint the inset on the Givi to match, of course. For camping, I like having the top box and the passenger seat to hold my (large) dry bag with camping gear. The SR357 rack is good as an anchor to strap the dry bag. Trailer would be great for a trip where I am setting up a base to do day rides but not my preference to drag through the mountains going from one site to another.

I agree that while its pretty cool to have an absolutely NEW bike (or other vehicle), it is hard to justify; especially if you can come across some great deals and bikes in immaculate condition. I take pretty good care of my stuff but my last bike didn't look this good at 40,000 miles or so!

[bill lumberg]

I would be banned if any of you knew how early I’ve changed tires. A lot of times. I used to run them to cord, but I’ve drifted into the habit of changing them early, always some excuse. Big trip coming up. Atlanta commuting. Always something.

[FJRoss]

I would be banned if any of you knew how early I’ve changed tires. A lot of times. I used to run them to cord, but I’ve drifted into the habit of changing them early, always some excuse. Big trip coming up. Atlanta commuting. Always something.

Wasn't much choice unless I wanted to lose a day on the way home from picking up the bike. Even a few hours would have resulted in another night on the road. I thought that I would make it when I looked at the tire in Ottawa the night before the last leg home.

Sold the Givi rack and top box to a reasonably local FJR rider with an '07 but bought Niehart's color-matched one. I figure I can swap out the stock rack for the Givi in maybe 10-15 minutes. Prefer this setup to the Smuggler for camping trips if I am not using the trailer.