Curious how many may have bought their FJ new. If so you're an old fart like me, it was a while back and that was great day. I was brought up on bikes, like most Dad had us dirt riding as kids. We didn't have much dough. First bike I rode was my dads 1951 Matchless. Stripped down for the dirt. He bought it one year old from his brother who had put 50K miles on it in one year as delivery dude. Plus he toured Mexico with my uncle who rode his new triumph. I have the pictures from that trip, very cool. All these guys are gone now. By the way read "The Original Wild Ones (Tales of The Booze Fighters Motorcycle Club)" by Bill Hayes. About guys that came back from ww2 and were ready to have some fun. My dad is mentioned and my uncles are in the group pictures of bikes lined up on a street in Hollister California. A fun read for bikers. The stories are true, some I heard before reading the book.
We started riding about the same time the Japanese two strokes came out, Bull Tacos etc...You remember. Good times. High school I was riding a Yamaha 250 enduro. Too many funny stories and close calls. Then bought my uncles 650 Yamaha. A few years later a buddies Kawasaki 1000 (faaaaaast bike). I was married to high school sweetheart (still am) but no kids making a little money, and bought what I thought was the best bike in the world... a 1986 FJ. I almost could not believe I had that bike. I remember so clearly the day I rode it home and when I almost droped it when I came to a stop in my driveway and lost my balance, saved it though. Rode it everyday, week ends me and my buddy rode religiously. 50K miles later I had what turned out o be minor issue with the bike and let it sit for 12 fucking years. Kids, work, bills got the better of me. But never let that bike get away (even though I had some pressure at to do so. When I moved it came with me. Anyway I've really been getting my Kookaloo (first time I have said that) again. This group has helped a lot.
Sorry for the long story, had couple of screwdrivers on an empty stomach and feeling pretty good right now.
Ride your bike this week end!
Mike
Mike,
Thanks for sharing a great story. Really makes me appreciate the strength of devotion in this group. My car is sorta like that, bought it when I was 15 and kept it. It needs a little love now but the FJ is taking all my time, money, and energy!
There are a few of us. I'm pretty sure Pat is the original owner of his '84.
I can still remember that cold day in March of 1985 that I rode my '85 FJ home from the dealer. Still looks showroom fresh, in fact there's a coat of wax waiting to be buffed off right now.
Added a '93 in 2000. I guess I have an appreciation for older vehicles. Still driving my '96 Avenger to work every day.
The two comments I here most:
"Hey, an FJ! My dad used to have one of those!"
and
"I used to have an FJ. I should have never sold it."
DavidR.
nothing wrong with getting your kookaloo on again..... and for sure nothing wrong with saying "kookaloo!"
12 YEARS off the bike?
you deserve to say it as much as you want!
Here... i'll say it with you....and very LOUDLY!
. KOOKALOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! :good2:
if it was new to me does that count? :blum2: :rofl2:
I didn't buy mine new but I definately got the better end of the deal. I even traded my '82 Honda Silverwing GL500 w/ 23,000 miles on it, leaking gas tank, needing back brakes and a kill switch for my '90 FJ w/ 13,000 miles on it. My FJ is not the prettiest bike in town but she runs like a champ!! It took all I had not to bust out laughing when the guy agreed to the trade.
yes i get the comments like " honest reliable bike that one" or i know someone who used to have one of those.... work with a bloke who drag races a ( ahem) Honda 750/4 so we get chattin bout older bikes....i can appreciate the new shinys but they have no appeal... they may go fast but is it me or since the ducati 916 came out do all bikes now have that angular pointy twin headlight look? had to chuckle the other day was in frasers (BASTARDS!!) motorcycles the other day and the salesman was talking to my mate so i wandered over and sales guy says" you loooking for a new bike yada yada yada" to which i replies no. they all look the same all pointy and r1 clones . o he says what do you like... i says a kawasaki 750 H4. o yes he says great bike cant beat em for a classic.... i made it up. they dont exist. idiot. never trust a bike salesman i guess. im not old enough to really know that much about older bikes i only started riding when i was 27, always had the passion even if it was a 1980 DT 175 that wouldnt pull 6th, but im learning and i like a bike that lets you know... no... we WONT be doing that thank you. i love eccentricities. to the point that i will not even let my best mates ride it for fear they will drop it.
I bought one new. It isn't the one I'm riding now, but it's close enough.....
My friend John (a.k.a. The Beer Scientist) rode an XS400 in college, and his dad had a brand-new '84 FJ600 and matching '84 FJ1100 in his garage. I sat on both. My feeling about the FJ1100 would later be summed up by Will Smith in the movie "Independence Day," when he tries the alien fighter ship - "Man, I GOT to get me one of THESE!"
A couple of summers later, I was out to dinner with a girlfriend and we walked by a parked early-gen FJ1200. I remember telling her, "THAT's the bike I'm eventually going to get."
There were other contenders by the time I got a "real" job in 1990. Suzuki had just improved the Katana 1100 with better suspension, leaving the 1989 bikes as leftovers, and the ZX-11 did the same thing to the ZX-10. I could have gotten a faster more-modern '89 Katana or ZX-10 ("the fastest motorcycle you could buy" the previous year) for the same leftover-1989 price. However, the dealer also had a Midnight Blue Metallic leftover '89 FJ1200 parked between the ZX-10's. I asked, "Would you sell the FJ for the same price?" and he said "Sure." I wrote a deposit check for a hundred bucks and said, "I'll take the FJ. I'll be back with half the money next month, and the rest the month after that."
I took the bike home on a Friday in June 1990, and by the next Wednesday it was back at the dealer for the 600 mile service. (Which they didn't do properly, because they didn't have the valve tool to swap shims - which was the same reason I didn't do it myself.) After watching the service tech ding my fuel tank against my triple-clamp, I decided "I'm ordering a shop manual and doing all this stuff myself - these guys are incompetent."
I put 5,000 miles on it that summer, then went out of town for six months and parked it in my apartment living room.
I put about 4,000 miles on it the following summer before it was stolen from in front of my apartment, on my birthday. To this day, when I see an '89 FJ1200 that's either Midnight Blue Metallic or repainted, I want to check the VIN to see if it's #1241.
Meanwhile, John's father had found his way to a new white and silver '89 himself, but had decided to sell off some motorcycles to fund a sailboat. I took a brief spin on his bike (1,500 miles, still the OEM tires) and wrote him a check on the spot. That's the bike I have now.
It'll probably turn 95,000 miles on Monday; I'm taking the day off work and going riding with my teenage son who will be aboard the Ninja 250. The Ninja will probably get sold to fund something else, but I'll always have the FJ1200.
I feel the same way about the car I bought the following winter, a '91 Miata that has 305,000 miles on it.
Cool stories. To reply..."12 years off the bike". Can't really explain it. Rode everyday from 16 to 42 years old (plus off-road with family before I could ride the street). When I thought I had a major engine problem I just did not give it priority. $ and raising family is my excuse, and time passes too quickly.
Comments I get are "what kind of bike is that?" For instance the young bartender at the joint Mark and I hung out at in Bouquet Canyon a couple of weeks ago. When I told her she replied "hey the year I was born". Give me another beer. I went to Yamaha dealer last year and the salesman did not know what an FJ was. (No not an FJR)
A few weeks ago a FJR rider I came across on Glendora Mountain Road was really excited about seeing my bike. Took pictures and asked if he could sit on it. Atop the bike he says "this is the shits man". (Good thing I think.)
"If it was new to me does that count?" It all good bro. You made a good choice.
Yeah getting the Kookaloo back. My skills are not what they use to be. But that's OK
Mike
I'm in this small group too. August 20, 1989 I sold my old shit (GS1100E Hotrod) & bought some good hardware, my Silver '89. The GS had more ponies (maybe because of the bore kit, cam timing, Kerker pipe, 8 hours of dyno time ...). But the Suzook had more horsepower than crank could stand. I bought it with a twisted crank, rode it for 6-8K, ruined the cases. It sat for a year until I found a donor motor to fix it & sell it.
Unfortunately I also had to move my KR BumbleBee RZ350 to finance the FJ, but I've never looked back. The RZ, but it was fun to ~ 110, then done. And forget about 2 up.
I wish the FJ could do 3rd gear wheelstands like the GS or RZ could, but I think that could still happen. Time for more Kookaloo!
no new ones, but i do have 2, does that count?
Hey Mike, Here's my story:
I bought my FJ1100 (47M-000303) in May of '84. I was debating over the Honda VFR500/750 or this new fangled Yamaha FJ1100 I've been reading about....I'm glad I decided to wait for the FJ. The Honda's were nice but in no way did they have the grunt of the FJ.
So after anxiously following the development of this new Yamaha, at that time the flagship of the Yamaha line, I located a new FJ in Costa Mesa at Champion Motorcycles. I called them, drove down in my Ranchero, rode the bike and instantly fell in love.
Without my wife knowing, I financed it (at $4900) and came back to Palm Desert.
The big problem was that I could not bring the bike home, no way, no how, SWMBO would have made me sleep in the garage. My solution: Phil, my friend at work, lived just down the street, so I kept my new FJ at his house.
I would make up all kinds of excuses to go over to Phil's house so I could don my Simpson full face helmet with tinted visor and ride my new beauty. This lasted about 4 months, I was running out of excuses.
Pat: "Honey, I've got to go over to Phil's and help him with his sprinklers..."
Jann: " You just did that last week"
Pat: "Oh yea, but it's something new...."
Jann: "Whatever..."
One time Jann drove by Phil's house, saw my car parked out front, went up to Phil's front door and asked if her husband was there. Phil's wife (bless her heart) said, "No, sorry you just missed him, he went down to the store to get the paint." Jann replied," I thought he was working on your sprinklers...??"
Things were getting frosty at home. I would leave for 3 or 4 hours, come back with bloodshot eyes and matted sweaty hair. My wife was convinced that I was having an affair.
Looking back, in a way I was, just not the way she thought.
One night it all came to a head.
Laying in bed together Jann turned to me and asked "Pat, are you seeing anyone?"
I thought, oh shit, here it comes, how can I play this?
I said, "Yes"
Jann: whimper..."Whats she like..?"
Pat: "She's Japanese"
Jann: sob,whimper..."Do you love her...?"
Pat: "Kind of, in a way, she's a lot of fun to be on..."
Jann: (tears are flowing now) "Fun to be on? What's her name?"
Pat: (big swallow) "Yamaha"
Jann: stony silence, no more tears leaking (how can they do that so fast?) "But, but, that's a name of a motorcycle..."
Pat: "Yea honey, I've been meaning to tell you for some time now, I bought a new motorcycle. I know that we don't have the money so I was afraid to tell you. I've kept the bike over a Phil's house and that's were I go when I want to ride".
Jann: "Yea, right." Rolls over and goes to sleep, no doubt in disbelief, yet relieved
The next morning, bright and early, Jann said, "Take me over to Phil's house and show me this motorcycle, right now."
So I do. I show her the bike, the registration card and my helmet. She checks out my story with Phil's wife.
Jann smiles, "Ok honey, you can bring her home..."
Jann and I have been together for 36 years now, she's a keeper.
Since that day, Jann has referred to my bike as "Pat's Mistress" I don't mind, kinda in a way, it's true.
Cheers!
Great story Pat,
My wife calls my fj "the mistress" as well.
I didn't by mine new, in fact I didn't buy her, my wife did. So not only does she know my mistress in the garage she paid for her hmmm...Seems to be a common thing to have a mistress in the garage.
Pat,
that was well played....and she is definitely a keeper. :good2:
i broke up with a girlfriend because she said i would rather ride my motorcycle than be with her..... and i agreed! SEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYA!
Hey all,
I haven't been here for awhile and thought I would check in. Great stories about buying the FJ new and its repercussions. My wife and I purchased a 85 FJ 1100 new as an overstock, build out of the crate for us, in the Spring of '86. We had the misguided idea that one of us would pilot and the other would be pillion, taking turns. As this is a group of fellow pilots, you can guess how that turned out.............. The next spring, we purchased Benita (the wife) an overstock sales floor model 86 FZ 750. Much better plan. I still love riding them as they are my daily go-to bikes when the weather is nice. Benita still rides, but would rather pedal than throttle most days.
As for a "mistress", I have a little Italian model that seems to fit that bill. The Yamahas are more like best of friends.
____________
The Fleet...
08 848
86 FZ 750
85 FJ 1100
Quote from: racerman_27410 on March 10, 2010, 02:06:57 PM
Pat,
that was well played....and she is definitely a keeper. :good2:
i broke up with a girlfriend because she said i would rather ride my motorcycle than be with her..... and i agreed! SEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYA!
:rofl2:
Hey Pat,
Cool story. My buddy has been through similar scenrio many times over the last 30 years of riding. He had a serious crash last August, just getting back on his feet (V Max rider). Now he is shopping for another one. Wife says it over if he buys another bike. He knows she won't...its chance he willing to take.
Mike
Quote from: kensea on March 10, 2010, 02:40:35 PM
As for a "mistress", I have a little Italian model that seems to fit that bill. The Yamahas are more like best of friends.
Italian model: Sexy and temperamental, the stuff of a tumultuous affair. I can't say it'll end well though.
I had to laugh as I read some of the stories. I bought an '86 FJ1200 and had bought her sight unseen had only seen pictures several weeks before the dealer was expecting delivery. Paid 5400.00 dollars for her and waiting those 3 weeks for it to come in were hell! When it did finally arrive it was everything and more that I had dreamed and hoped it would be.
Put 10,000 miles on it the first 3 1/2 months I owned it. The way I rode back in those days tires and brakes and oil changes were killing me. 2000 miles was about the best I could get out of a rear tire, no burnouts at all but if I put more standard rubber rather than the softer compounds the old girl would just spin the rubber off coming off the corners rather than hook up better with the softer compounds so if all I could get was 2000 miles per tire anyway might as well put the tires on that hooked up the best right?
Needless to say I have some of the best sportbike types of roads in the country all around me and haulin that heavy girl down entering in the corners was costing me a set of front brake pads about once a month as well.
I also experienced marriage difficulties because of the Fj, granted it was my fault because I was gone on it ALL the time if I was not working and finally my wife gave me the ultimatum either the bike went or she did! Well I did miss her at times but the Fj kept me occupied just fine!
Finally got the bug about a year later and sold the Fj to one of my good friends and riding buddies and decided it was time for a new FZR 1000 and once that bike had been tricked out totally different world. Over the years I have had everything from Virago's, v-maxes, R1's, Venture touring bikes, dualsports you name it. But even throughout the years the FJ had always had a sweet spot and although it is excellent at actually nothing it is durn good doing well in a lot of directions all at the same time and as a general overall streetbike was always my favorite bike out of all of the bikes I had owned.
So about 3 1/2 years ago I sold my R1 and sold my Venture and bought another '86 FJ1200 that only had 10,000 miles on her and had been kept inside her whole life. These days I have slowed downed in my riding pace drastically (Main reason I did not keep the R1!) and ride the old girl at a much more mellow pace than years ago and I can honestly say that it still brings a smile to my face just like it did years ago! Granted she is a pig as far as handling, acceleration and stopping compared to the R1 and she is not as comfy as the Venture with the electronic cruise and 6 disc CD player on the interstate but she is more comfy by a long shot than the R1 and handles and accelerates lightyears above the Venture, she is just the PERFECT all around streetbike!
I bought my '93 new in '96, delivered on the Ides of March. First thing I did was put on my helmet, fire up the bike, pull in the clutch, and put it in gear... and almost dropped it when it lurched forward. The clutch was stuck; no way to ride it. The dealer came back, took the bike, and brought it back the next day, and I finally got to ride it.
That was the first of many more mechanical problems with the FJ. I know they have a reputation for being rock solid reliable, but I figure mine was built on a Friday before a long weekend. And then it sat at a dealer for a few years before I got it.
I suspect the problems were my FJ's way of bonding with me: all the work I've had to do to it made us close. And then I went a bit nuts with all the mods. Now, it's my unique FJ. Can't imagine ever getting rid of it.
I'm the only owner, and aside from some test rides, my butt has been the only one on the seat. We'll probably ride into the sunset together.
Well I didn't by my current '92 FJ1200 new, but I loaned my dad the money for a down payment on his new FJ1100 in 1984 – does that count?
He didn't want my mom to know what he was up to, and couldn't take the money out of the account without her knowing. It sure put me in a tough position as a 19 year old (who happened to have a bought a brand new 1983 Kawasaki GPz 750 months earlier). It's not surprising that my parents didn't make it much longer after that.
I remember marveling over how wide the back tire was. It was wider than the tires on my mom's Mercury Lynx. Who could've predicted that that was just the beginning!
As payment for the loan, I got to ride the FJ a couple of times. It was much faster than my 750, but I didn't much care for the 16" front wheel or the anti-dive, both of which were corrected on my '92 model.
When it came time for my dad to sell his '84 about 10 years ago, he chose not to tell me or my brother so that we wouldn't fight over who had first dibs (I did).
Last year, while BS'ing with one of the guys at work, I found out that he had a '92 that he'd parked due to leaky fork seals. He was a new father of two young children, and the bike had to go. Most of us have been there (my '83 GPz went on the chopping block, now replaced with an '84 model), but this time I was on the other end...with cash in hand! :good2:
Summer of 1984. Fresh out of college and working in Duncan, OK. It had been a year since I sold my 1980 GS1100E and I had the itch bad. I was pouring over all the magazine tests of the superbikes of that era and every magazine agreed the new Yamaha FJ1100 was the tits. Each night after I'd get off work at 11pm I'd press my nose up against the window of the Yamaha dealer and drool over the new silver/red '84 FJ1100 they had on display. One night I was actaully pulled over by a police officer who thought I was casing the dealership...I explained to him I was just looking at my dream bike...nuff said, he understood. I was a 24 year old man on a mission. Somehow I managed to round up the $4,900 and bought that FJ1100. Rode the wheels off it! Mounted some soft luggage and headed from OK to the west coast and up to northern CA. I eventually put a V&H 4 into 1 on it when the stock pipes rusted out and sold it in 1987 when oh no, Yamaha came out with the all new FZR1000.
Comfort took a backseat to arm stretching acceleration and razar sharp handling...and no doubt the FZR1000 was the best. Oh no. In 1989 Yamaha totally revamped the FZR and in 1989 I just had to buy the newest FZR1000 - a red/wht/blue beauty that to this day rivals the FJ11, in my mind, as one of the prettiest J-model sport bikes made. I kept that '89 FZR longer than any previous bike I had owned. Oh no. In 1998 Yamaha pulled a fast one on me. The all new YZF-R1. Holy crap an honest to God racebike for the street. Okay I'll trade the FZR in on that! The owner of the Yamaha dealership even told me before we wrapped up the deal, "Go ahead and take the R1 for a ride and make sure IT'S WHAT YOU WANT." Oh I was in wheelie heaven that day and there began the gradual back breaking trend - '98 R1, '02 GSX-R1000, '06 ZX-10R Ninja...then wait! 2006 I walk into my local dealership and what do I see? A like-new 1985 red/wht FJ1100 - 15,000 miles for $2,500 (pocket change, right?!) I take a test ride to make sure everything works and oh the memories! Bam, done, I buy it on the spot. So now I'm 46 years old and riding a near-replica of the bike I bought 22 years earlier. At the time in addition to the FJ11 I also owned an '04 Suzuki Marauder cruiser and the ZX-10R Ninja. I sold both of those and rode the FJ11 exclusively for 2 years. In 2008 I realized if the FJ11 is good, surely the more modern FJ1200 would be good-er. So began my year long search for the finest '89-'93 FJ1200 I could afford. In Fall of 2008 I located the bike - a 1993 FJ1200 with 12,000 miles, totally stock and included a few farkles. I drove from IA to OH to check it out and trailered it home. I sold the '85 FJ11 to a good fella out in SC and have been riding in bliss for the last 2 years.
Oh no.
A few months ago a genius friend of mine suggested I test ride the "modern equivolent" of an FJ12...a Kawasaki Concours14. Test rode a pre-owned '09 C14 and ohhhhh so comfy... what a cool adjustable windshield...steam roller grunt from that beast of a motor...only $8,000? Okay, I bought it. So now I'm switching off between the C14 and the ole' FJ12. See BIKES FOR SALE if you want in on the action!
Great stories guys!
I bought my current and only FJ new. I was looking at a Kawasaki Zephyr 1200 but got a better deal on the FJ. It's a 90' model year that sat on the dealer floor for a while. I bought it new in 93'. Nobody but me has ridden it. I'm glad I made the choice to go with the FJ.
It is now a salvage title as I wrecked it back in 2000' and resurrected it with the money from the insurance. (I wasn't going to give up on an old friend.)
A couple of years ago the gas tank collapsed due to a faulty tank vent which forced me to buy a used tank off of eBay of a different color. I gradually collected all matching body work off eBay and now it is Yamaha black/blue.
BEFORE:
(http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx68/ThumbusterMoto/RandomMotopics.jpg)
What can happen to a near empty tank not properly vented after a ride on a hot day.
(http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx68/ThumbusterMoto/FJ1200GasTank001.jpg)
AFTER:
(http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx68/ThumbusterMoto/RandomMotopics012.jpg)
Really? Excuse me while I go remove my tank vent. Yowza! The awesome power of atmospheric pressure.
Doug
wow, was something sitting on the tank ? like a tank bag. :shok:
gotta go check my vent now as well.
Quote from: Mark Olson on July 07, 2010, 12:59:00 PM
wow, was something sitting on the tank ? like a tank bag. :shok:
No, nothing. I got back home late one afternoon after a short ride after work on a hot summer day. The engine was hot and the tank was less than a quarter full. I got up the next morning, went out into the cool garage my jaw dropped. Hard to believe I know.
Back in 84 I, like many of you, read Cycle World and Rider and MCN (Motorcycle Consumer News) When I opened the issue that had spy pictures of the FJ1100 I was hooked and done. By the time they got the first review published I was fit to be tied. Here I was this 17 year old High school student riding a 79 KZ650 with my buddies who were on GS1150E and a Yamaha XS Eleven. They killed me on the Friday night drags from Sonic to the car wash. But all of us ate up the hot rod cars of course. I was almost a daily visitor to the local Yamaha dealer. I'd sit there on the FJ dreaming of the rides we would soon be on as I was saving every penny for a down payment. I had 700 dollars saved and figured with my next pay check I would head down and live the dream!!!!!!!! That week a buddy of mine got his brothers YZ490 given to him but couldn't get it running so he came got me. After sitting down for 3 hours cleaning and adjusting I got that beast fired up and running. Well we lived on the edge of town and a new housing development was going up right next to us. they had the street curbs and alleys in but only a couple frames started so I clicked it in gear and ripped down an empty ally down 1.2 a mile and turned around to head back when I saw the lights flashing. I turned off the bike and got ready to listen to the nice mans scolding and get the bike back to my buddies garage, right? No way, this young Mexican cop jumps out screaming and holding his hip like he was going to draw on me. By the time he was done writing tickets I had 5 No helmet under 18 (no license on me) no registration , no insurance and exhibition of speed (wheelies). All totaled up to just over 500.00 is fines and gone were my dreams of a new 1984 FJ1100. I swore sooner or later I'd have my mint FJ1100 and was on the hunt. In 1989 in Germany I bought a brand new 1990 ZX-7 and rode the crap out of it. Fantastic machine but still not my dream FJ. In 2001 a buddy who knew I was looking for a like new FJ called me up and told me an older guy had a FJ in his garage and wanted it gone. When I went to see it I was disappointed it wasn't an 84 but it rather a 1991 with just over 8K miles on it. A guy had bought it and dumped it in a parking lot, replaced the lower fairing and traded it in on a boat. My friends buddy owned the shop and put the bike in his garage for 10 years. It was covered in inches of dust and had a half tank of fuel in it. I asked him what he wanted for it and he said $1600.00 and it's yours. I was back with a buddy and trailer within the hour and did the deal. Got it home washed and waxed her cleaned the carbs and she was ready to run. She was everything I'd dreamed the FJ would be and more. But also that next week a low mile 84 came up for auction in Milwaukee. it had 24K on it and after speaking with the guy on the phone I was set on winning it. It wasn't mint but was close enough for me and with a mint 91 in my garage I could refurbish this one to like new amd not miss a moment of riding. With me here? lol. I won the bike bought a one way ticket to Wisconsin and rode her home. Here it was 2001 and I was finally living my dream of me and my 84 FJ1100 riding across America I rode thru tornado warnings, down pours and sunshine just having the time of my life!!!! I even swung by my child hood town and rode to the Yamaha dealer and my old neighbor hood and High school Friday night strip.
AHHH Life is grand but I can't imagine how much better it would have been had I gotten my baby new back in 1984.
This past month July of 2010 I bid and bought my 2nd 1984 FJ1100 of Ebay it was in better condition and closer to new than my other one. I got it in Colorado Springs and rode it back to Phoenix with a mile wide smile on my face. My garage looks great with 3 FJ's and my ZX-7 sitting beside my "obtainable" dream car my Corvette. I have been blessed but I will still continue to look and who knows maybe one day I'll find that showroom perfect specimen. I'd also like to find that punk ass cop, It would be worth the few nights in jail.
Its fun to read stories from you other FJ fanatics, It makes me feel less abnormal than I one felt. :rofl:
:drinks:
I started with an 85 FJ 1100 at Boulder Yamaha that I believe was $4200 new. Sold it to purchase a 66 Hi-Po Mustang for $7K (now worth $35K). About 2 years later, got the bug again, back to Boulder Yamaha and puchased a new (in the box) 86 FJ 1200 in 1989 for $4500, I believe. I have had several great bikes since those fond memories in the mid to late 80's, however I have now gone back to an FJ. I found a one owner, 14K miles, dark blue 89 that is showroom. It's really great being back.
But you kept the stang- right??