Older versus newer street bikes

[FJ Flyer]

I'm a big fan of molded earplugs.... i have a very shallow ear canal which causes issues with over the counter plugs.

My audiologist said inside a person's ear is as unique to them as fingerprints.


on topic we fixed a waterpump from a FJR at a FJ rally... poor design if you ask me.... the good news is this particluar failure turned out to be field repairable (by a group of FJ owners no less) but a bad failure point to be trusting in the middle of a long trip nonetheless.

I wonder if Chris P is still running that repaired pump?

KOokaloo!

Frank,
Yep, still have the repaired pump installed.  I have a box with new seals, etc. on the workbench, but haven't seen a need to touch the pump, again.  From what I can tell on the FJR Forum, its a fairly rare occurrence, though not unheard of.

I've found the FJR to be almost as easy as the FJ to work on.  Whereas, I've seen reports that the new Connie 14 is a nightmare.  You have to remove frame rails just to change sparkplugs, with an 8K mile change interval, at that.

The FJR, like the FJ, can be a fast bike, almost completely dependent upon the skills of the rider.  Pop the side cases off and it can go pretty well (though not necessarily in my hands).

I think the FJR evolved the concept of the FJ.  A bike you can ride all day but still hold its own in the twisties.  The original FJ1100 was a 'superbike', but the '93 FJ1200 was more of a sport tourer. 

[jscgdunn]

So here is my take on this:
Attribute:
Cost to Acquire: FJ wins. For what you pay it is very difficult to find better value.  At this point many are well cared for.  A pretty big advantage is that the young guys who are hard on bikes are more interested in the race replicas.

Easy to work on cost to service: This is a key advantage.

Air Cooled: Related to the point above, now water works to break down. Or in our case freeze.

Parts Availability Power Train: As old bikes go the FJ is hard to beat due to Legends racing and the XJR.  It is even rumored that some people actually make a living exclusively selling parts and maintaining for these 20-30 year old bikes.

Parts Availability Plastic: Not so great.  Finding out that this is the single most expensive thing to keep in good shape on these bikes.      

Parts Availability Frame/Etc: Not as bad as plastic but getting rare.

Power/Torque:  Not sure what I would do with more...other than win the bragging contest...   

Ride Comfort: Rates a B+ with me.  I am sure a $20,000 bike could be better with power windshield, heated seats, cruise control, stereo...wait...it's starting to sound like my Caddy.

Easy to Modify/Improve:  Biggest weaknesses seem to be the suspension and wheels/tires.   That is why GIXXERS, R6's and R1's were invented and sold to young people who tend to fall down after only a few thousand miles.  Besides I understand that updating all this stuff is a cure for moditis.

Looks: Well, the FJ is a still great looking bike.

Reliability: Tough to beat.

The ideal bike: Fj1200 powerplant, modern suspension (say R1, R6) and wheels, tires front and back.

[The General]

on topic we fixed a waterpump from a FJR at a FJ rally... poor design if you ask me

Frank,
Yep, still have the repaired pump installed. 
The FJR, like the FJ, can be a fast bike, almost completely dependent upon the skills of the rider.  Pop the side cases off and it can go pretty well (though not necessarily in my hands).

I think the FJR evolved the concept of the FJ.  A bike you can ride all day but still hold its own in the twisties.  The original FJ1100 was a 'superbike', but the '93 FJ1200 was more of a sport tourer. 

Yeah, I don`t mind the "Replicas", just think the original is better. (Replica`s are like a Youth club for Lions & Rotarians) 

[Vsekvsek]

Hmmm- seems like I struck a nerve with this thread?
I just love my fj and was curious if spending a ton of money on something new was all that. Sounds like maybe not necessarily so.