6+ months in, parts, upgrades, and a broken quickshifter

[GeeAndTea]

Hi folks.

So i've had my 2018 900gt (in matt blue) since about July of last year. I've put about 6000 miles on it (99% of which is commuting to work).

Positives:

• Extremely reliable bike
• Excellent stock seat
• Impressive suspension for the price segment
• Consistently getting about 60mpg average
• Very easy to ride.
• Power modes and traction settings are a blessing in the British winter.
• Lights are damn good! I do a lot of dark twisty country roads this time of year, and i don't feel any real need for extra spots as the high-beam is enough.
• Love the inclusion of such adjustable suspension! I've since tweaked it to my wants and needs, and it's a big improvement.

Annoyances (not quite negatives)

• The scroll wheel is absolute trash
• Too many functions stuffed in behind that wheel
• Heated grips would be much easier to control via the normal Yamaha solution of having the control on the left grip
• That stock screen had to go. The MRA Vario is worlds better!
• Traction control is a little intrusive (even on 1)
• Stock mirrors are cheap crap
• Somehow i have warped my front brake discs.
• That fuel indicator.....

Addons and parts

• MRA Vario screen
• R&G axle sliders back and front
• Givi engine bars
• R&G tank traction pads
• MT09 swingarm plate mount and fender
• Front fender extender
• R&G bar ends
• Seat slope mod (based on existing, but shipping is crazy, so i improvised a little)
• R&G Radiator guard
• Fender extender rear
• Beak
• Some basic ebay levers for now
• R&G kickstand shoe
• Highsider mirrors
• Rear shock guard flap (self made)
• R&G headlight protectors (which fell off)
• R&G passenger peg deletes
• Lots and lots of nuts, bolts, fittings..and more to do!

Dealer options:

• Acrapovic exhaust system (which i discovered does not allow fitting of the large guard i had bought...)
• Yamaha LED indicators and running lights

Problems
Just the one, really. The QuickShifter has stopped working. According to the manual if the QS is faulty, the indicator on the dash will turn off and the unit will be disabled. But the indicator on the dash is still on. The QS and gear shifter have no signs of any damage. I've yet to have time to pop the tank to check the connector block.

I wouldn't mind too much as a QS is a nice luxury to have, but it is just a luxury. The problem is that when accelerating and getting over 5k revs and i change up a gear (with clutch, because the QS doesn't work) the engine seems to cut out as if the QS is trying to shift, but out of sync. It's odd. No errors when plugging the bike into the diagnostics kit at work.

Overall
VERY happy with the bike. Quality is far beyond the price. I just wish that winter would finish already so that i can have a clean bike for more than 24 hours....

And of course; the mandatory picture. From late summer and before the MRA screen. And the last time it was really clean. Come spring; I'll spend a couple days or so pulling it slightly apart and giving it a full pampering, and then i'll post current and very clean pics.

[ZigMerid]

4 hours ago, GeeAndTea said:

Addons and parts

Thanks for the update, @GeeAndTea

I almost wonder whether it'd be worth it to try and rank the mods people make to see which are the most popular. For example screen replacements seem pretty common as best as I can tell. I don't suppose this forum has some sort of survey capability does it? It might be a nice way to summarise the hive-mind.

On a related question.

4 hours ago, GeeAndTea said:

Acrapovic exhaust system

I know people get this because it sounds better, looks better and reduces weight. But does it affect performance? And if so, does Mr Yamaha do an ECU mod to accomodate it?

Finally, I presume this exhaust does not impeded the use of the standard panniers?

Edited January 30, 2022 by ZigMerid

[GeeAndTea]

It came with the can, i wouldn't have bothered if it was my money. I'd have been fine with the stock can and then fitting the sump guard i wanted (givi).

It's not a loud system, but for performance? I honestly do not know. But they 100% work with the standard panniers.. .granted i use them just once to take them home, and will no doubt use them a second time when i come to sell it in a couple years.

 

[Skidood]

Re: your QS, I am willing to bet the problem is simply a bad switch on the shift lever.  Like, what else could it really be??

 

[GeeAndTea]

15 hours ago, Skidood said:

Re: your QS, I am willing to bet the problem is simply a bad switch on the shift lever.  Like, what else could it really be??

 

Quite probably! I've just now been reading and researching, and my aftermarket levers might be the issue. Will put stock levers on and test.

[flyfifer]

What did you material did you make the rear shock flap from ?

[GeeAndTea]

Just some nitrile rubber, but anything similar should work. I Also used a strip of alumunium on the back of it to clamp the rubber properly.

[GeeAndTea]

Not the best photo, but the current state of the bike. And i do mean state... Commuting through dirty country roads is a challenge...

[flyfifer]

Stimulated by this thread I ordered a front Fender Extender and a pair of Handguard Extenders from Pyramid Plastics.

Much to my surprise they were delivered today, Monday, having been ordered the preceeding Friday. Excellent.

Fitting the handguard extension on the throttle side is trickier than the clutch side - so would suggest clutch side first to refine your technique.

The front fender brake pipe clips have double ratchet devices to lock them together. Get a good light on the task and a small flat blade screwdriver to dislodge the ratchets to get the brake pipes detached from the fender. You still need to get the clips off the fender to let it go through the forks to get it off the bike for cleaning and fitting the Fenda extender.

My extender and OEM fender are clamped together in a nice warm place to get the adhesive pads fully stuck to both bits.

Edited February 7, 2022 by flyfifer

[flyfifer]

On 2/6/2022 at 1:29 PM, GeeAndTea said:

some nitrile rubber

What thickness did you use ?

I have knocked up a template/sketch for a clone of a well known product - conveniently some sizes are provided on the marketing info.

Edited February 7, 2022 by flyfifer

[flyfifer]

Firstly, I guess I owe G&T an apology for hijacking his thread with lots of dtl about the FendaExtender ! To finish that off, it took me less than the proverbial 10mins to refit the front fender and brake pipes this morning.

Back to GnT's list -

• The scroll wheel is absolute trash. -----++++Agree wholeheartedly.
• Too many functions stuffed in behind that wheel.----- ++++Ditto.
• Heated grips would be much easier to control via the normal Yamaha solution of having the control on the left grip.---- +++++ Absolutely wholeheartedly. If it gets cold you just want to flick one switch.
• That stock screen had to go.The MRA Vario is worlds better! ------I put a cheapie extender on and it does make a huge difference.
• Traction control is a little intrusive (even on 1). ------Never had an issue there.
• Stock mirrors are cheap crap.----- I find them OK.
• Somehow i have warped my front brake discs. --No comment !
• That fuel indicator...... ---+++Agree wholeheartedly. The mental turmoil coming up to 170uk miles is awfull. Do I refuel asap or try for the extra 20miles past the near petrol station  ?Drives me to distraction, particularly when my riding buddy has 240mile capability ! (Particularly when I think I could get 230miles to dry!).

 

 

 

Edited February 8, 2022 by flyfifer

[GeeAndTea]

I really don't know how my front discs have become warped. I don't use a disclock for that exact reason. I run a D-lock through both wheels (linked with a chain) and they don't put pressure on the discs or wheels in any meaningful way. I've checked both front calipers and they're totally fine. Alignment is correct, no uneven wear on the pads etc... Pistons move correctly, and are lubricated.

They're not quite bad enough to fail an MOT, but they're definitely an advisory. I plan to replace them this year with a set of EBC discs (the non-wavy kind) or maybe a set of straight used discs.

As for my QS issue; Not the levers. Next step is to check/clean/lube the switch, and also look at the QS connector under the tank. If none of that helps: Well, i sure as shit am not spending almost £100 for a new switch.

[pilninggas]

17 hours ago, GeeAndTea said:

I really don't know how my front discs have become warped. I don't use a disclock for that exact reason. I run a D-lock through both wheels (linked with a chain) and they don't put pressure on the discs or wheels in any meaningful way. I've checked both front calipers and they're totally fine. Alignment is correct, no uneven wear on the pads etc... Pistons move correctly, and are lubricated.

They're not quite bad enough to fail an MOT, but they're definitely an advisory. I plan to replace them this year with a set of EBC discs (the non-wavy kind) or maybe a set of straight used discs.

As for my QS issue; Not the levers. Next step is to check/clean/lube the switch, and also look at the QS connector under the tank. If none of that helps: Well, i sure as shit am not spending almost £100 for a new switch.

Ham-fisted tyre change?

[GeeAndTea]

Nope.  The rim is perfectly fine. It came with factory tyres which i changed myself on a tyre machine.

[Paddy01]

On 2/10/2022 at 6:22 PM, GeeAndTea said:

Nope.  The rim is perfectly fine. It came with factory tyres which i changed myself on a tyre machine.

It happened within the first 3000 miles on my 2018 GT. Yamaha replaced them under warranty (don’t know what the cost was). I think it was crappy quality control on a particular batch and I’ve seen, through regular reading of this forum, that it’s pretty rare. So I’m afraid GeeAndTea that you’re just unlucky to get a bad one.