StealthAu

If it is due for a service, does it need changing?

You may thing so, until doing it and end up scraping over speed bumps. Stock springs were too soft for me, effectively resulting in the bike sitting an inch lower than designed with me on it. Walking speed over speed bumps, the exhaust would touch. A hair lower and it'd be the sump.

Check out other bikes, as others have said. Lowering the GT isn't a great option, they don't have a great deal of ground clearance to begin with.

It is the second of January mate. I work in sales, doesn't matter what industry, no one in on their A game today.

Matris have an option with remote preload too. Worth a look.

There are benefits to be had. Yamaha have to comply with stringent emissions laws, where as tuners do not. While improvements have been made over the previous generation, it can be smoother out more so. The ride by wire throttle can be ironed out to improve control. To determine if you want a tune, ride and see if there are things you don't like. For me, the low-mid range where it is in closed loop, it doesn't bother me. It could be improved, but this alone wouldn't motivate me to do so, where as on other bikes it has been the main motivation. What I do want to change, is the throttle delay. Taking off from a stop in A mode it is noticeable, as well as when giving it a handful anywhere in the rev range. A lot of people go with canned maps. This refers to generic tunes, mail the ecu in situation. I'd recommenced avoiding this where possible. You are better off taking your bike to a specialist and having them tune YOUR bike for YOU. Woolich Racing have a great interface for tuning our bikes and they are down your end of QLD. Have a chat with them, they are very informative and will be able to point you in the right direction should it be seen as beneficial to you.

I have cold start issues now and then. Results from short rides with a cold engine. What I said, works for me in these situations. I get what you are saying though, on other bikes with ride by wire in the same situation required manual opening of the throttle valves.

Not holding it at 1/4. open it a crack, hit the crank and if it doesn't fire, roll it on. What I was implying is that it will typically fire before the throttle is at 1/4 open. Not saying to stop at 1/4 if it doesn't fire, just minimise the time on the starter. There will be a note in the owners manual referencing not to run the starter extensively. Typically it'll say 8-10 seconds, I say 5 erring on the side of caution. I've bought cheap bikes in past where the plugs fowling inevitably ended with seized startors. I'm sure it takes a lot of abuse to get there, still, play it safe.

You're trying to help mate, but suggesting cranking it for 10-20 seconds isn't a great idea. They aren't designed to be engaged for that long, they generate a lot of heat. Problems can occur as a result. Best to keep it under 5 second blasts with 5 seconds or so in between to dissipate heat. If it doesn't fire basically instantly with a little throttle, gently roll the throttle open while holding the starter. This is a process that'll take a couple seconds, throttle will be less than 1/4 open before it fires. If it doesn't fire up with this method within 5 seconds, turn it off for 5 seconds and try again. If it still doesn't fire up, trailer to the shop.

If it is turning over but not firing, open the throttle a little while trying to start it.

I think that was the TFC version, the ones above are the production version which follow.

There are no issues mate. Some of the stock mounting hardware is removed to fit the madstrad. It is quite secure when fitted. High speeds, no issue.

That is quite a shitty Ducati experience. Unfortunately, the dealers play a big part in stuff like this, some are good to deal with, others not. Same with any brand. Did you drop or crash the bike? If not, there is no reason why it should not have been covered.

The BMW styling does seem to take some ques from the Yamaha. Saying the Multistrada is copying the Tracer might be a bit of a stretch. Ducati created this market some 15 years ago. The Yamaha is the cheaper option, and it shows. Budget brakes, budget suspensions, electronics, etc. It is a good bike for the price point, one of the reasons I bought it. Though, a higher priced version with brembo brakes, ohlins suspension and a more refined electronics package would be appealing.

That little filling tube thing is pretty cool. My other three bikes do not have this, filling them up I need to squeeze the trigger gently, a little too much and fuel splashes out. With the GT, stick the nozzle in past the plate a couple inches, fill at max flow rate for most of the tank and drizzle in the rest. It is a quicker process. Thought it was odd the first fill up, but realised the advantage of having it pretty quickly.

I weigh 220lb. With stock suspension setup as best as possible, I was bottoming out the forks and shock frequently. I never took a passenger on stock suspension, was bad enough riding it on my own. I've since upgraded the springs, front and rear. I can now ride as aggressively as I like with complete confidence in the bike. I've taken passengers, had the bike loaded up to 420lb without an issue. I upped the preload front and rear to suit and it handled fine, even under hard acceleration and braking. For yourself, at 300lb, I'd suggest if you purchase one of these, upgrade springs before even riding it. I wouldn't be too concerned with the max capacity rating, I would think this figure relates to the stock suspension more so than the chassis. Still, at your size, I would think there are probably going to be other bikes that would be a better choice.

At times I do. Pillions rave about comfort, though I hate having them on this bike. The passenger pegs are too close to mine, my feet end up much further forward than I like. I usually take my cruiser if I'm taking a passenger. The peg positioning on the GT is a shame, as with the hydraulic preload on the shock, it is much more convenient in setting up for passengers.

That seems a little excessive for sag. Was it set as such to get the seat lower, easier for you to get your feet on the ground, or is there another reason they set it there? What was the sag the set on the front?

It will fit, same travel. Though, not worth getting one. They have remote preload, but are otherwise as equally shit to what you have.

If you are adjusting one, adjust them all.

I'm not a fan of electronic controlled throttles and the delays programmed into them. This is least noticeable in A mode, so that is what I use. It is still noticeable though, I'll have to get it tuned one day if I keep it long enough. In rain, or stop go traffic, I retain A mode and adjust throttle input to suit via my right hand. With the 200+hp sport bikes out today, I understand the need for throttle delays and riding modes. The implementation on an 850cc triple seems unnecessary.

I like quick shift. Not a determining factor in buying a bike, but it is nice to have it. Auto blip is pretty gimmicky, if it had it I'd probably use it, but it is still gimmicky. I own 4 bikes, the GT being the only one with ABS. Though, I've ridden older bikes with ABS and current ones with more refined systems. While the system on the GT is better than earlier iterations of 2 wheeled ABS, there are other bikes manufactured in the last 5 years that are miles ahead. When coming to a hard stop, it'll kick in well before it is necessary, increasing braking distance in an emergency stop. Probably, not by much, but I would like to be able to dial it down, or turn it off. On dirt roads, I feel a lack of control as a result of the fixed abs system, not being able to lock up the rear wheel is a hindrance on dirt. It isn't a huge gripe, but there are better systems.

I wouldn't consider multi-level abs and traction control as gimmicks. abs on the GT is excessively intrusive and cannot be turned off. Both traction control settings are overly excessive. At least this can be turned off. I think a lot of people would welcome improvements on these systems.

You can get correct slack on a centre stand, side stand or sitting on the bike. Required numbers between all three will vary, but anything can be used as your reference point, as long as you know what it equates to. As mentioned before, engineering requirement is 1 to 3% slack at tightest point. Tightest point is with centre of front sprocket, swingarm pivot and rear sprocket all in a straight line. 1 to 3% of distance between centre of sprockets.

You can go wrong. 35mm freeplay on the centrestand provides 1% freeplay at it's tightest point in suspension travel. this is less than 7mm. I wouldn't recommend tighter than factory specifications. You'll chew through chains quicker and risk breaking them.