my Portuguese lady '84 FJ 1100

[vitorino]

hi, y'all

just opening this topic to keep a log of the journey of my '84 Yamaha FJ 1100 (36Y) that I recently acquired

I found out she's not 100% Portuguese, as she's been imported from The Netherlands (a mechanic told me no FJ 1100s were ever sold new in Portugal - only the later FJ 1200s)... but for me she has all the virtues of a Portuguese lady: classy, sexy, loving yet sometimes moody :-)

it's my 6th bike and my 2nd Yamaha after the '01 XJ600 Diversion S

I wanted to return to motorcycles after some years without owning one (yet I kept renting them on vacation) and got tired of renting; so splashed some dough into getting one (originally wanted a BMW K100/K1100 but they're super-expensive in Portugal) so by mere coincidence got this one instead

the FJ 1100 lives down in sunny Portugal; while I'm stuck in cloudy and rainy Ireland working to keep her happy €€€ :-) ... and we only meet from time to time... being last August only my second time with her... sparks and fireworks flew! :-)

when I met her the first time she was all smiles and kisses... when I met her the second time she was moody and got me working my butt off to take her out... she probbaly was angry I left her alone for 2 months :-)

I then took her up for a nice ride in North + Center coastal Portugal... and she glowed with joy, yet sometimes b_tching... I think she wants it rougher, but I don't feel comfortable yet (I ride like a grandpa and shift like a grandma, lol...)... I told her I want to go slow with things... not sure she's on the same page :-)

metaphors aside, I'll try posting more straight forward information next

thanks for all your help and tips for this newbie to FJs!

regards

[Pat Conlon]

She will be happier if you keep non ethanol fuel in her.

[Millietant]

One of the great things about a FJ is that it's  just as Happy shifting like a grandma and riding like a grandpa, as it is blasting through long sweeping bends like a youngster.

Top gear is good for basically 30mph to 150mph if you're not in a rush to get there, so shifting gear almost becomes an option once you're out of town 

It sounds like you're off to a pretty good start with your 36 year old Dutch lady....perhaps over the coming years you can have her naturalised as a true Portuguese !

[vitorino]

so I got her in June.2020 on my last day of vacation, so after the formalities were over I only got time to do a short 200 metre test-ride (post-purchase) before I had to quickly store and lock it in my Inlaw's garage (battery disconnected + bike under canvas and locked with a big chain); and then I had to go away :-(



then back in Ireland I insured it (cheap "classic bike" insurance) and bought some goodies, like 2 modular helmets, 2 full jackets and 2 pairs of gloves for me and my wife, a tank bag, a battery charger and a chain lock

when the time came after 2 months, in August.2020 I went back to Portugal for my vacation and things got "interesting"

I first connected the battery to the battery charger I had bought, so left it overnight charging

the morning after I took the battery to the bike and installed it

"freshen" up the bike and cleaned her up a little bit

went to the local gas station (in my car) and bought 5 Litres of gas; went back to the bike and poured it to the FJ tank

start button: starter noise but no "explosion"/no start

again, again, again... nothing

tried to push-start her in the garage with the help of my Father In Law... but the FJ is too heavy and we're too weak :-) so the momentum wasn't enough

then since I didn't want to start taking things apart (because of no knowledge and no tools) I got in my car and went to the 1st mechanic I found

he then came back with his van and took the FJ away

fast-forward: the FJ was ready to be picked up... root-cause: 2 burned out spark plugs, hence no flame... mechanic installed 4 new spark plugs anyway, to start "fresh"... bit expensive with all included (including his van recovery service) @ € 55/$65

then I rode it in the streets and roads... and she smiled with joy (me too)



1st gear is very short, always "asking" for a 2nd
and since the neutral feels like a gear I sometimes think I put it in 2nd but in reality it's in neutral (newbie stuff)
2nd is long
3rd is long
4th is short and vibrates the bike a lot, so it's always "asking" for a 5th
5th is long... haven't gone to its "end" yet, but I always find myself searching for a 6th, don't know why

my trips were short to medium... she always rode well and started all the time... I was also getting used to it, as the riding position is way different from my ex-BMW K100 RT... my wrists and left hand suffered a bit

what I did feel is the idle sometimes being irregular and below 1 000 rpm

the left exhaust pipe rattles a little... it's ok

the bike vibrates when riding it... it's ok

the tires (hard Metzeleres) gives me trust issues... fortunately I didn't/won't ride in rain or wet surfaces... otherwise I think the "ballerina" inside my FJ 1100 would come out and start dancing, especially the rear

the seat is okish... but my wife complained a lot with sore thighs and groins on long trips... my only physical complaints were my wrists and left hand, as per above... also, when braking on a downhill, my wife pushes against my back, which squashes my "huevos" to the tank... but that's bike life :-)

the brakes are just "slowers"... perhaps it's like that from OEM, being single pistons... but next time I replace the pads I'll see if the braking is improved

then I went on a long coastal road + freeway + city trip with my wife... around 250 km/155 miles

I had forgotten about the simple pleasure of filtering and not getting stuck behind traffic :-)

the FJ 1100 wants more and more and more... it's a bit addicting to rev it and taking it to speed... but I controlled myself and was always abiding-ish by the speed limits

but whenever I needed I just opened the throttle and she responded well with more than enough power... it's a pleasure just overtaking effortlessly... albeit with vibrations and loud engine noise, even in 5th gear... and as per above, I keep searching for a non-existent 6th gear...

the top speed I achieved was 130 kph/81 mph on the highway (speed limit = 120 kph/75 mph)... I don't know how the bike handles beyond that (better not to find out with my wife on the bike)

sometimes the bike makes a short whinning noise coming from what appears from the tank... you guys told me it might be the speedometer howl... I'll try checking that next time



on slow speeds and city traffic the bike surprisingly handles like a scooter... even with the tank bag and my wife on the bike, making very slow turns is easy... although not as smooth like my ex-BMW K100 RT with the cardan shaft

then I went to the beach bar to meet our nephews... +/- 1h there with the bike parked

after that, I went to the bike to start it... nogo... starter made the usual starting sound... but once again no "explosion"/didn't start :-(

there were no battery cables around to try to jump-start it... I then tried to push-start it with the help of my nephew... but once again due to its weight there wasn't enough momentum to start it in 2nd gear :-(

weighing all my options... and due to the fact it was getting dark soon... and being at the beach I had to declare defeat and called the free tow-truck that's part of my insurance

at the same time I asked my nephew to search online for a nearby mechanic

1h later the tow-truck arrived, me + the driver pushed the FJ 1100 to the flatbed and then drove to the mechanic, around 4 km/2.49 miles away (the mechanic didn't have a van to come pick up the bike)



the mechanic is "Fredo", in his 50s, and owns a small independent shop... rides a Yamaha FZR 1000 and has plenty of vintage bikes there... he was due to close his shop at 20h/8pm... I arrived at 20:18h/8:18pm... but he was cool about it

we took the FJ 1100 from the tow-truck and he asked me to call him back the next day

at the same time, my wife was on the free Uber (also part of my insurance) and picked me up from the mechanic

me and the wife stayed overnight in my Inlaw's

next day I called the mechanic and he said he took the gas tank off and inspected it but didn't find any issue with it... to come pick the bike up

when I got there he said the bike didn't have any issue and the only thing he did was charging the battery... after which the bike started immediately, even after several tries and after he took the bike for a spin

he also said 3 things:

1-he already knew this bike, as the previous owner left it there to replace the fork seals
2-the battery (VMF with maintenance/holes to fill with destilled water) is "dodgy" in his words... so suggested I replaced it with a proper high-quality battery instead
3-the bike has an irregular idle, which means the carburators need a good deep cleaning and tuning with the machine

I then asked him how much I owed him... he said "not a single Euro" :-O

I insisted and took some Euro notes from my wallet... but he refused and said he didn't do anything to the bike, so it would be unfair to take money from me... that he only charged the battery

I thought these kind of honest people/mechanics didn't exist anymore... but I sure was glad I was wrong... he not only seems like a very knowledgeable mechacnic but also very honest and straight forward no-nonsense, no-bullsh_t kind of guy

I thanked him to the eternity and promised I'd be back for some maintenance in the future

I then rode more km/miles and the bike always behaved well

but one time when I left the bike parked and the steering locked (key all the way to the left) I noticed the rear lights (2 bulbs) were on

I scratched my head thinking it was a fault... but then after checking the lights button was off I got to play with the key and found there's an actual extra key position to the very left of the steering lock, that if you leave it in that position the rear lights stay on

I then rewind my head to the tow-truck episode and realised I must have inadvertently left the bike for that 1h at the beach bar with the rear lights on... and the battery being already "dodgy" as it is it drained the whole "juice" from it... that's why when I got to the bike it didn't start because the battery didn't have enough power to start the engine

no one told me about that extra key position! :-S

I then took extra caution not to leave the rear lights on; and sometimes not even locking the steering

then after my vacation was over I once again disconnected the battery from the bike, filled her up to the top, chain-locked it, put the canvas over it, made sure both tires stayed without weight on them, and tied everything up in my Inlaw's garage... all set up for the coming Winter/hiatus

things to do next time:

- go to the mechanic to clean + tune the carbs
- replace the battery with a proper one
- replace oil + filters

I don't want to leave my FJ 1100 too long in the mechanic, as my time in Portugal is always very limited... and I want to ride the FJ as much as I can, hence why I bought it... but maintenance is needed

the FJ 1100 has a lot of potential and made me smile... I feel so rejuvenated with it!

and as much as I dread it, there's a lot of heads turning when I pass with my FJ 1100... :-)

I now expect to only come back to the bike in early to mid 2021... let's see if she's angry with me for leaving her "abandoned" that long

regards

[ribbert]

Top gear is good for basically 30mph to 150mph if you're not in a rush to get there, so shifting gear almost becomes an option once you're out of town 

I ride long days, whether it's day rides or trip days, they are always long and by the end of them I'm often tired and lazy. Most country towns have 50kph speed limits, so I slow to 50, roll through the town then accelerate out the other side without changing out of top gear. As Dean said, they pull smooth and strong from 50kph (30mph) in top, and on my bike that's even with slightly higher gearing. Very few bikes have that sort of range.

A year ago today I put in 1000km day to Troyskies manshed day, arriving just in time for pre dinner drinks 12 hours after departure. Unfortunately, this year the borders are closed because of the virus. Not only can't I leave the State, I can't leave the city without a permit.

Ho hum, bike's getting squared off tyres from going no further than the supermarket and the bottle shop (grog shop) what a waste of $500 worth of high performance tyres!  I have missed an entire riding season due to this bloody virus as Summer is just around the corner.

Let's all hope the politicians can see beyond their own survival, medical science gets a lucky break, and we can consign this whole virus episode to the history books.

Noel

[Waiex191]

Excellent writeup.  I've owned an FJ1200 for over 30 years and I'm still trying to find 6th gear, like every time I ride it. 

[TRoy]

Oh yes! thanks for sharing.She's got the kind of legs I like... feet on one end, ass on the other 

[vitorino]

ribbert: I feel you, we either have to just wait it out or do a Mad Max and breach the enclosure; so far in Portugal everything is "wide open" so you can free travel anywhere you want (enclosures were only applied back in March/April)

Waiex191: good thing it's just not me then :-) ... but there really should have been a 6th gear in the FJ I think

here's a mugshot of the culprit that made me call the tow-truck... it's now in death row waiting for the execution day :-)



regards

[Millietant]

Just swap your sprocket sizes to 18T on the front and 38T on the rear when they're worn out and you won't keep looking for 6th gear any more.

The engine can pull that gearing with no problems at all and it makes the bike much more relaxed on the faster highways.

Every bike I've had since 1976 has had the "parking light" position on the ignition - if only your rear light was operating it's likely that the small parking light bulb in your headlight has blown. It's in the bottom of the headlight shell in a rubber holder that just pulls out and pushes in easily to replace the bulb - if you have small girl-hands like me 

[vitorino]

Millietant: searching my brain hard drive for old files :-) I now remember that ignition key position in other bikes... but not sure if it was at the very left (after) of the steering lock position or before

regardless, I think it's a bad design since you can easily lock the steering and inadvertently put the key in that "extra" position and leaving the bike parked, without realizing your parking lights are on (on my "episode" it was broad day light with strong sunlight by the beach which makes it difficult to see; moreover, I wasn't even looking for that due to my ignorance)

I just wonder how long can you leave your bike with those parking lights on (with a proper top-quality battery) until the battery goes flat... 4h? 6h? a whole night? :-D

but now since I know the "trick" I'll be careful next time... another handy thing is to buy and always carry myself some battery cables, just in case... no need to wait 1h for the tow-truck, even if it's free

I also forgot to say something as per my riding experience on the FJ 1100: on the highway at cruise speed (speed limit 120 kph/75 mph) and due to the OEM windshield being kind of low, the coming wind always tries to rip the helmet from my head, so I have to resort to either lower my speed or duck... and I'm not even a tall guy at 1.70 m/5"7'... could use a taller windshield.... maybe those clip-on extra tiny windshields "a la GoldWing" :-)

regards

[Waiex191]

I had a battery die on me once, and was able to bump start the FJ.  I was a lot younger then.  

I am pretty happy with the stock gearing even if I'm always looking for sixth gear.  At 85 indicated on the highway I'm showing about 5000 RPM.  My son on his V30 Magna is pulling over 7000 RPM!  Ironically that little bike does have a six speed transmission but on some of the hills whilst into the wind he had to downshift to fifth to maintain that speed.

[fj1289]

It's surprising to most to find out there is a larger spread between 1st and 5th gears on the FJ than there is between 1st and 6th gears on a Hayabusa!  They have an "extra gear" - but it is used more as a close-ratio gear box than as an over-drive.

Then again, for enough $$ I'm sure Robinson Industries would make you some billet gears - maybe new 4th and 5th gear sets to "spread out" 3rd, 4th, and 5th a bit, or just add some gear to 5th - use 4th around town and highway cruise in 5th. 

[Pat Conlon]

FJ electrical 101:
If your battery is low (headlight dim) you can bump start....if your battery is dead (no headlight) don't bother.
You need a minimum voltage in your battery to fire the coils.

Get thee an Owner's Handbook, a lot of good stuff is inside, down load it for free:
http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=3483.0

[Waiex191]

Get thee an Owner's Handbook, a lot of good stuff is inside, down load it for free:
http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=3483.0

It looks like they only have FJR 1300 manuals there now.  They must have run out of the older ones.

I should still have my original '89 manual - I'll have to look.

[vitorino]

Pat Conlon: thanks for your tips

Waiex191: thanks - I managed to get an '85 FJ 1100 N (1st edition/November.1984, in English + Spanish) PDF manual off the "interweb" :-)

it'll be my reader's digest

regards