runnerhiker

Ted,

I put 30k miles on a 2008 FJR and I now have 4K miles on my 2019 Tracer GT.  If you are riding solo, the Tracer GT is a viable bike, it will work for your intended purpose.  Go and test ride one before you make a decision.

The GT is definitely smaller, lighter, easier to manhandle, and sportier.  The up quick shifter is a great feature you will learn to love while sport riding.  Modern o-ring chains are almost maintenance free, the FJR gets a slight advantage for upkeep with the shaft drive.  The FJR has a slightly longer gas tank range with that huge gas tank, but the GT gets much better mileage (premium gas) and it might only be 20 or 30 miles fewer per tank than the FJR.  The ergonomics of the GT are fairly upright with lots of leg room, maybe even roomier than the FJR.  I didn't like the OEM seat on either bike and purchased aftermarket seat; the biggest problem with the GT seat is that it tilts forward pushing me into the tank: I didn't like that at all.

The OEM bags are the same on both except the GT has smaller lids that reduce capacity a little bit.  Yamaha does not recommend using both the panniers and the tail trunk on the GT, I believe there are people that ignore that advice and do both w/o any known problems, you are on your own on that one.  As you probably already know, the FJR is available with electronically adjustable suspension and the GT is not, that is a non issue for me, your opinion might vary,

I am going to throw another one at you.  I think you should consider the new 2019 Kawasaki Versys 1000 SE LT+.  It pretty much falls in between the FJR and GT in size, weight, and engine displacement.  I bought my GT in August 2018, but if I were buying today, I would ride the Versys and GT back to back and pick the one with the best engine and ergonomics for me.  The GT is a little buzzy and 850cc displacement works quite well, but it is not a 1050cc inline four like the Versys.  The GT is $5k less money but the Versys has comparable features to the $18k FJR ES.

If there is something about the GT and FJR I have not mentioned but you would like to know, just ask.

13 hours ago, Chris Pope said:

He did tell me specifically that the FJ seat would not fit the 2019 Tracer. 

I confirmed this the hard way: I ordered an FJ seat for my 2019 Tracer and it did not fit.  I got a refund but I had to pay to ship it back.

I would be interested in one, if and when they come out with one.

Here is my Tracer seat on an FJ09, you can conclude that the JF09 seat is too long for the Tracer.

9 hours ago, koth442 said:

The GT seat does not fit the '15 tracer.

And I have confirmed that the '15 Tracer seat does not fit the GT.

21 hours ago, runnerhiker said:

RS is better at:

engine power and torque, wind protection, stability at highway speeds, has a shaft drive, larger panniers, TPMS, self cancelling turn signals, 3 year warranty, GPS control at handlebar wheel works very well, quick shifter is up & down, the control buttons layout on the handlebar cluster is excellent (no desire for any design changes).

 

The GT is better at:

$7,000 less although it doesn't have all the features the RS has, I like the TFT instrument better, smoother shifting transmission, it's 95% as good as the RS in anything the RS is better.

 

Not a pro or a con, but the character of the engines are really different.  I like revving the GT engine better than revving the RS when I am riding fast.  And believe it or not, I like running low RPM's on the GT better when I am just plodding along.  And the power of the GT seems about 90% as good as the RS even though it's 105 HP vs 125 HP.

 

Let me know if there is something specific you'd like for me to say more about.

I forgot one important plus for the RS - electronically adjusted suspension.  I can vary the preload and dampening with the press of a button.

5 hours ago, basstodave said:

Thanks for the interesting encapsulation. How tall are you and how do you compare the ergonomics between the two? Lastly if you found an RS used that still had two years of warranty and cost the same as a new GT, but could only buy one, which would you choose? Thanks

I am 5'-10" with a 32" inseam and standard length sleeves on shirts and jackets.  The RS handlebar grips are further forward and lower than the GT, I put 1.5" risers on the RS (and 1" closer to me) and the GT grips are still closer to me for a more straight up riding position.  The pegs on the RS are a little more forward than the GT.  I consider these ergonomics differences minor, basically, in the RS the torso leans forward a few degrees and in the GT it seems the torso is straight up.

The RS is more bike, for the situation you mentioned, I would choose the RS.

1 hour ago, basstodave said:

Runnerhiker, can you briefly compare the pro's and con's between the RS and the GT? Thanks

RS is better at:

engine power and torque, wind protection, stability at highway speeds, has a shaft drive, larger panniers, TPMS, self cancelling turn signals, 3 year warranty, GPS control at handlebar wheel works very well, quick shifter is up & down, the control buttons layout on the handlebar cluster is excellent (no desire for any design changes).

 

The GT is better at:

$7,000 less although it doesn't have all the features the RS has, I like the TFT instrument better, smoother shifting transmission, it's 95% as good as the RS in anything the RS is better.

 

Not a pro or a con, but the character of the engines are really different.  I like revving the GT engine better than revving the RS when I am riding fast.  And believe it or not, I like running low RPM's on the GT better when I am just plodding along.  And the power of the GT seems about 90% as good as the RS even though it's 105 HP vs 125 HP.

 

Let me know if there is something specific you'd like for me to say more about.

11 hours ago, gv550 said:

Looks to be sloped forward, and one piece so not easy to level it.

I am thinking the same way.  I am not getting a seat until I have strong evidence that it does not tilt forward.

17 hours ago, dmanteigas said:

Tyres are awsome, leaning at a different level after switched from D222.

 

It's not a big issue as only when riding on highways I ride over 200kmh. With passenger, never felt any wobble at any speed. Thanks BBB for the clarification. I'll try to spend this front tyre as fast as possible so I can replace by a normal RoadAttack3.

 

Any thoughts on how to adjust suspension for this? Preload, Compression, rebound?

Perplexing indeed.  Get the normal Road Attack 3 now and keep the current RA3GT as a spare.

For US models, the seats on the FJ09 and the new 2019 Tracer 900 GT are not interchangeable.
 
Kathy's Journey bag liners for the FJR fit the Tracer 900 GT bags very well, I can't explain the details since the FJR lids are larger.  I suppose since the main body of the bags are the same, that does the trick.

In addition to my Tracer GT, I also have a BMW R1200 RS (boxer twin), and I have road tested the S1000 XR on several occasions.  I considered the XR when I got RS 3 years ago.  And I rode the XR again when I got the Tracer GT 3 months ago.
 
The XR just doesn't grab me, I don't like it, we don't fit well together.  The BMW features are great, my RS has them all, and they all work very well:  GPS integration, all control buttons on the handlebar are well laid out, and on and on.  The list of good things would be long.  And the XR has all these features.  Except that it doesn't grab me.
 
The cost difference between the BMW's and any other bike is probably justifiable if you put a retail value on any and all features that the BMW's come with.  But quality and finish is not one I would identify as different between a Yamaha and a BMW.  BTW, the BMW's come with a 3 year warranty.
 
 
 

I figured it would be a single seat for rider/passenger.  I might get lucky and they'll make a Smuggler for the GT, in which case, they'll make a single rider seat for the smuggler.

Not yet.  The only products available for the Tracer and Tracer GT are windshield cleaners.

Good.  I am a Corbin fan.  I've had two Corbin seats I liked and one I didn't.  The only one I didn't like was for a BMW GS where they used one seat pan for both the rider and passenger and moved the rider position further back, which I didn't like.  I hope they make just a rider seat for the Tracer!  Or at least, make a rider and passenger separate seats.

i still might have put on softer grips but i assume that it would insulate the heated grips

I have used Grip Puppies on several bikes with heated grips, it does not decrease the effectiveness of the heated grips.  I don't know why, it might be magic, but it works. 
The first bike I tried this on, I installed the Grip Puppies on the right side and not on the left side to see what happened to the heat grips, there was no difference.  And the Grip Puppies are pretty thick foam.
 

My nitpicks, in order of importance to me:
 
1.  the cruise control should work in 3rd gear.
2.  the quick shifter should also work for shifting down.
3.  the thumb wheel should be on the left handlebar, which means other things on the left need to move, I would put the headlight lo/hi where the "mode" is now, and move "mode" to the right.
4.  The seat should be level rather than leaning forward.
5.  I also find the side stand difficult to lower, the footprg tab gets in the way.
 
I find the suspension works fine for me.  And I've gotten used to the windscreen, which bothered me at first but not anymore, I can't explain why, it certainly has not changed.

Like betoney, mine reads 1-2 mph fast, which is very good.  But the odometer reads high by a larger percentage, about 5%, so 200 miles on the GPS will show 210 miles on the odometer (trip meter).

Tex
 
I test rode the Kawasaki H2 SX SE.  I liked everything about it except the riding position.  I thought it was a great bike, and if it had higher position handlebars, I probably would own one now.
 
For the price, you must take a test ride first.  But look out!  Great engine.  Great electronics.

My 900 GT has a small amount of buzzing vibration.  It is not a deal breaker, I rode it before I bought it, noticed it, decided it was OK, and went ahead with the purchase.  No regrets.
 
Like others here, I have had many other bikes with various amounts of vibrations.  Surprisingly, the worst vibrating ones were:  Harley Sporster, Yamaha SR500 single, Honda CB 500 four.  The smoothest I ever had was a BMW K1200 RS with a rubber mounted 4 cylinder.  Everything else in between vibrated to some amount that was ok.
 
I had an FJR ten years ago that buzzed annoyingly at 5000 rpm when new but smoothed out after 10,000 miles.  I hope this 900 GT also gets better with age.

Got my Tracer GT yesterday.