Looking for first FJ....few questions for the board

[djinnorcal]

Hello, my name is Darrell, from northern CA..new to the board, and hoping to be new FJ owner soon. I am not new to motorcycling, been riding since I was 8, have done lots of riding and racing, however, I am new to large bores, as I have never owned a scoot larger than 600cc...and that was a single...but, I have always had an eye for these wonderfully designed bikes, so when my gf and I decided we needed a liter bike to do some two-up touring and riding together, I thought...what a perfect mount...So, I have found a few in my area for sale, some pretty clean, and fairly priced....I am wondering a few things...what kind of mileage longevity can I expect from one? I am assuming this is easily a 100k engine if taken care of...but, I would like to get some educated answers, and are there any things I should particularly ask about the bikes when I go look first hand? Any help would be appreciated....

[FJmonkey]

Welcome Darrell, the FJ power plant is very robust. I think one member here has close to 300K on his original engine. With proper maintenance, which is easy to do for even mechanically declined owners, your FJ will provide years of fun and Kookaloooo. Aside from abuse the early years of FJs 84 to 89 (I think) 2nd gear could be an issue. The shift forks can get bent and allow the gear to pop out under load. It pops back in just as fast so it seems like a rev limiter. If you test ride a bike, take it to redline in 2nd gear. My 86 has this issue in 2nd gear only so I shift before 7K. One of these days I will split the cases and fix it. So if the issue is in the higher revs then the bike is still rideable, but you can ask for a reduction in price if the issue was not already disclosed. Leaking clutch slave is also common. Look for missing paint on the lower left side and if still present, cracks in the lower faring below the slave. The salve is easy to rebuild. The suspension when new was crappy, expect to spend some money to upgrade. Randy at www.rpmracingca.com has developed some FJ specific suspension solutions. I have his fork valves in and can say they are fantastic. If you plan to do long rides consider the 90' to 92' models, the engine is rubber mounted and tend to have the smoothest ride. The fairing is larger and has a little more protection from the wind. If you want more towards the sport side then go for the earlier 84' to 87' years. You can't go wrong with any year, even the one with a PINK stripe.

[movenon]

Welcome ! N. Calif has some great riding. As to your questions all the bikes out there have strengths and weakness's. I really need to own 3 or 4 bikes to cover all my perceived desires  
When you say two up, it is this all the time for cross country trips or just on occasion for a 300 miler's ?
Do you do your own maint and service work ?
The FJ with maint. will run as long or longer than any other bike.

The FJ's come in 3 different groups 84-87, 89-90 and 91-93. No 88's in the U.S. anyhow. Each series is a little different. Same basic engine 1100 and 1200 CC.
84-87. More sport than touring. Anti dive front end (most seem to disconnect). Gravity feed fuel and carb's.
89-90. Softer suspension, a little more touring than sport, electric fuel pump and carb's
91-93. More touring than sport, some have ABS, less vibration due to redesign of the engine mounts, fuel pump and carb's.

There a lot more small details that are different, those are only highlights. The anti dive systems seem not to effective. ABS adds a lot of complexity and weight. Tire selection is a bit limited because of the rim size. If you are going to tour a lot then look for a bike with hard bags already with it. You can put them on afterward but they are spendy as with any hard bag system. Soft bags are ok to but having had both I say hard bags are what you want for hard touring.

You have to understand that the FJ's are 20-30 years old. To some degree you are going to get involved with fixing or restoring it. Not to mention that most FJ's have had more than one previous owner and who knows what there skill level was or how it was maintained. Applies to all older bikes. Parts and information is still pretty good. Information and "how to" is in fact great. The bike was produced world wide for 10 years.
For a general look at parts go to http://www.rpmracingca.com/products.asp?cat=39 . Randy is a member here and very helpful. There are many other places for parts also.

The following is just my opinion not based on anything except what I see. Here in the U.S. I would put my high price for an FJ at 3000.00 (and it would have to be cherry, real cherry). An average price seems to be 1500 - 2800. And those will probably require some work. Occasionally you can find a decent running FJ for around 1200.00 but it will most likely need some TLC.  

I would recommend that if you find a bike to locate another member in your area that would be willing to help you check it out. What area do you live in N. Calif. ?

I threw a lot of stuff at you that is mostly my opinion. They are a great bike with lots of power, easy to fix and lots of modifications. The FJ community is outstanding. Lots of reading here on this site that will give you a good overview. Scan through the rally and files section. Also there are lots of pictures in the gallery section. Hope some of this helps some.  
George

[aviationfred]

Welcome to the group. 
I can not add much more to what Mark and George have already said. My 2 cents worth is.... After taking into account all that was said previously. The rest is up too... How much do you want to spend initially?  How good are your mechanic/electrical/troubleshooting skills, and finally, which paint scheme trips your trigger.

Fred

[movenon]

A little change to my post.

"Actually there are 4 different groups of FJ's (in the USA)

1) '84-85 There were several changes from the 84/85 to the 86/87 models, e.g.body work, needle bearings in the swing arm linkages...goofy fuel reserve switch, etc...
2) '86-87
3) '89-90
4) '91-93"

Thanks Pat I only know everything on Mondays and I don't know what day it is, but it's  not Monday 
George

[Harvy]

Welcome to the group Darrell........ yes 100K is just run in mate.........we have a member who's FJ has turned over 300K and has not had the head off yet so there is plenty of life in a well cared for FJ.

FJ folks in your area will for sure help you out when you find the "must have" bike if you ask.

Cheers
Harvy

[Flynt]

northern CA..new to the board, and hoping to be new FJ owner soon.

Welcome Noob (Newb?).  

Where are you in NorCal?  I'm in San Jose and there are some decent ones for sale locally most of the time (although not now) if you're looking?  

I'm riding a '92 with an '86 owner/local buddy and many times with my wife Diane as pillion.  Let me know if you'd like to ride sometime.

Frank

[djinnorcal]

Ok...lets see....I am in Vacaville...so not far from south bay, and appreciate the offers on riding and helping find a bike....Mostly I am looking for the 300 miler day/weekend type trips....and would use it for commute maybe a day or two a week....and yes, I am aware the bike is aging and gonna have to restore some....I am a professional mechanic, worked as a Honda car technician for 23 years before recently moving into another line of work, but still mechanical....and I am also a vintage motocrosser for fun and generally just a fan of older Japanese motorcycles....had 4 RD 350s in my life, currently own a 85 ty 350 trials bike and 82 xt 200 dualsport playbike and my current race bike is a 76 kx 125....so I can keep em going

[aviationfred]

Here are 3 in Yuba City, Modesto and Elk Grove.

http://yubasutter.craigslist.org/mcy/4136379619.html

http://modesto.craigslist.org/mcy/4082979802.html

http://sacramento.craigslist.org/mcy/4095816667.html

Fred

[movenon]

Ok...lets see....I am in Vacaville...so not far from south bay, and appreciate the offers on riding and helping find a bike....Mostly I am looking for the 300 miler day/weekend type trips....and would use it for commute maybe a day or two a week....and yes, I am aware the bike is aging and gonna have to restore some....I am a professional mechanic, worked as a Honda car technician for 23 years before recently moving into another line of work, but still mechanical....and I am also a vintage motocrosser for fun and generally just a fan of older Japanese motorcycles....had 4 RD 350s in my life, currently own a 85 ty 350 trials bike and 82 xt 200 dualsport playbike and my current race bike is a 76 kx 125....so I can keep em going

OK you sound like you are good to go on the maint.. The West Coast Rally this year was in Petaluma. Hopefully there will be another one next spring some where within a few hundred miles.   . It will be the 30th anniversary of the FJ's. Rallys have been in the Hayfork area also. There are a lot of riders in your area. I spent time in and out of Travis. There are a few members over in the Modesto area also, one of them with a very deep knowledge of FJ's..

It's not that the FJ's are a maintenance headache its just the shops lack experience on the the older bikes when it comes to carbs and some of the electrical.

There is a wealth of knowledge here, so much you can become your own expert. One of the nicest things about the FJ that I like is that you can simply get on and ride. A full up touring bike is a bit bulkier and if an FJ is sitting next to it and you need to go for a quick spin you will take the FJ. And she has all the power one needs, lots of TQ. It will pull though gears just fine.

Take your time shopping, good ones come up often. If you find one lets us know. You will probably get all kinds of good information on what to look for.
George

[Flynt]

had 4 RD 350s in my life   

I have a '79 Daytona Special as well...  hoot.

I'll look for it to come back, but there is a very nice one in Willow Glen...  '86 with '89 forks/wheel and some other nice upgrades, but lots of projects left to the new owner.  It was super nice condition wise and he wanted $2,200.  It was on South Bay Craigslist.

I grew up in Vacaville and we come through there very frequently...  swapped the RD onto my trailer in Murillo's parking lot.  Definitely not too far to hook up for a ride around Berryessa or something.

Frank