Why are so many 2015’s for sale??

[WIrider]

I’ve been looking at fj09’s for about year but have yet to pull the trigger on one.  Nearly all fjs I’ve seen advertised over the past year are 2015’s, is there a reason for this?  At any given time I can find a dozen fj09’s for sale on Facebook and Craigslist but they are to a fault ALL 2015’s, is there some problem emerging with the fj09 from 2015?

[fddriver2]

68,000+ miles. Runs like a top. 

[miweber929]

1 hour ago, WIrider said:

I’ve been looking at fj09’s for about year but have yet to pull the trigger on one.  Nearly all fjs I’ve seen advertised over the past year are 2015’s, is there a reason for this?  At any given time I can find a dozen fj09’s for sale on Facebook and Craigslist but they are to a fault ALL 2015’s, is there some problem emerging with the fj09 from 2015?

Just a guess here but ‘15 was the first year made and a ton were made so a ton were sold because it was a very popular bike when introduced. It’s now ‘23, soon to be ‘24, and I think a lot of the owners are finally now moving on to other bikes after a long stay in the garage. If you’re specifically looking FJ-09 that’s what you’ll see since the name was “changed” to Tracer in ‘18 to match the world sold units. 
 

Lots of members still have their well setup ‘15 and have no intentions of selling them so I’d say they are a solid mount still once you get a flash and setup suspension for you. 

Edited September 18, 2023 by miweber929
Clarity

[bwringer]

2015 owner here... yep, it's a perfectly skookum bike if cared for reasonably well. Evaluate it and the previous owner(s) as you would any other eight year old bike.

And if the previous owner(s) added many of the same farkles you would want, this can be a great shortcut to the "ideal" bike for you. Dang near every one has had an ECU flash by now and the cam chain tensioner updated, many have suspension updates, quite a few have Givi or Yamaha luggage, changed windshields, etc. and so on.

As noted above, it sold well the first year; a sport-tourer with such comfy ergonomics along with light weight and the stellar CP3 triple was something of a revolution at the time. So there are plenty out there.

 

The other factor is that in 2021 the assorted improvements in the new models piled up to the point that a lot more original owners have made the leap forward in the past year or two. Mama Yama FINALLY added cruise control, and that alone (plus the many other changes and improvements in this generation of the tracer) tipped quite a few over the edge.

The 2024 is also a significant update, but a little less compelling than the 2021 generation. It does have quite a few updates to the suspension, electronics and rider aids. Some riders will value these, some won't want the added complexity and expense.

Throughout, the CP3 engine always was and remains an absolute jewel. 

Edited September 18, 2023 by bwringer

[dazzler24]

10 hours ago, miweber929 said:

Just a guess here but ‘15 was the first year made and a ton were made so a ton were sold because it was a very popular bike when introduced. It’s now ‘23, soon to be ‘24, and I think a lot of the owners are finally now moving on to other bikes after a long stay in the garage. If you’re specifically looking FJ-09 that’s what you’ll see since the name was “changed” to Tracer in ‘18 to match the world sold units. 
 

Lots of members still have their well setup ‘15 and have no intentions of selling them so I’d say they are a solid mount still once you get a flash and setup suspension for you. 

 

9 hours ago, bwringer said:

2015 owner here... yep, it's a perfectly skookum bike if cared for reasonably well. Evaluate it and the previous owner(s) as you would any other eight year old bike.

And if the previous owner(s) added many of the same farkles you would want, this can be a great shortcut to the "ideal" bike for you. Dang near every one has had an ECU flash by now and the cam chain tensioner updated, many have suspension updates, quite a few have Givi or Yamaha luggage, changed windshields, etc. and so on.

As noted above, it sold well the first year; a sport-tourer with such comfy ergonomics along with light weight and the stellar CP3 triple was something of a revolution at the time. So there are plenty out there.

 

The other factor is that in 2021 the assorted improvements in the new models piled up to the point that a lot more original owners have made the leap forward in the past year or two. Mama Yama FINALLY added cruise control, and that alone (plus the many other changes and improvements in this generation of the tracer) tipped quite a few over the edge.

The 2024 is also a significant update, but a little less compelling than the 2021 generation. It does have quite a few updates to the suspension, electronics and rider aids. Some riders will value these, some won't want the added complexity and expense.

Throughout, the CP3 engine always was and remains an absolute jewel. 

I was going to add my 2 cents worth as a long term 2015 owner but really, it's what these guys said. 👆

And if there's so many now on the market, you're sure to get one at the right price. 🙂

 

[rwrmilton]

Most likely the updates. I'm perfectly happy with my '15, but I"m also looking at a '24. The '15 will stay. I have it set up so well as a corner destroying weekend tourer and commuter. The '24 would fill the slot of long distance mile eater. The newer bike is more stable, has more tech by a long shot, etc. All the kinks are worked out over the '15. I do feel like my '15 after some sorting seems to handle more sharply than the '23 I rode. It is however also far more twitchy. 

[2and3cylinders]

RWR

If you have an aftermarket shock that has adjustable length, shorten it a bit and maybe reduce the preload a touch to slow down turn-in and enhance stability.

And increase front preload, rebound and compression, if you've added the latter, proportionally to restore balance.

[2and3cylinders]

After a saddle, screen, flash, suspension, brakes and bars, a McCruise really brings the 15 ~ 17 pretty darn close to even the 21~23 IMO, yet still remains the Bad Boy that unfortunately has been distilled out of the Gen 3 and even the Gen 2.

[WIrider]

21 hours ago, bwringer said:

2015 owner here... yep, it's a perfectly skookum bike if cared for reasonably well. Evaluate it and the previous owner(s) as you would any other eight year old bike.

And if the previous owner(s) added many of the same farkles you would want, this can be a great shortcut to the "ideal" bike for you. Dang near every one has had an ECU flash by now and the cam chain tensioner updated, many have suspension updates, quite a few have Givi or Yamaha luggage, changed windshields, etc. and so on.

As noted above, it sold well the first year; a sport-tourer with such comfy ergonomics along with light weight and the stellar CP3 triple was something of a revolution at the time. So there are plenty out there.

 

The other factor is that in 2021 the assorted improvements in the new models piled up to the point that a lot more original owners have made the leap forward in the past year or two. Mama Yama FINALLY added cruise control, and that alone (plus the many other changes and improvements in this generation of the tracer) tipped quite a few over the edge.

The 2024 is also a significant update, but a little less compelling than the 2021 generation. It does have quite a few updates to the suspension, electronics and rider aids. Some riders will value these, some won't want the added complexity and expense.

Throughout, the CP3 engine always was and remains an absolute jewel. 

What issues are there with the stock cam chain tensioner? What updates are out there?

[bwringer]

The original automatic cam chain tensioner was known to fail and in several cases trashed the engine. If you were paying attention, it would get noisy before failing.

There was a limited recall and an updated part, but the updated tensioner was also prone to failure.

Many of us installed a manual tensioner from APE. There are knockoffs of this much cheaper; it's a very simple part, but I dunno... I'd rather have one made by an established manufacturer, so I bought and installed the APE part. After 20,000 miles, I recently took the timing chain cover off to check, and it's still exactly where I left it; no perceptible wear. So this is a good long-term solution.

 

Anyway, I am not clear on if and when Yamaha got around to fixing the tensioner for real (poke around for more info on the CP3 tensioner on the FZ/FJ/Niken/Tracer engines). I do feel like I haven't seen any reports of problems with the cam chain tensioner in the last few years. Perhaps someone can fill in the blanks here, and maybe Yamaha finally got it right and a current tensioner is a good solution as well.

Any 2015-17 you find for sale is fairly likely to be wearing an updated or manual tensioner already.

Then again, some owners just ride without fooling around on the internet, or just don't believe anything they read, so there are certainly some bikes out there still wearing the original tensioner. I bought my FJ-09 with close to 21,000 miles on it, and the original owner had never heard of such a thing. Fortunately, the original tensioner was still working just fine.

Edited September 19, 2023 by bwringer

[bwringer]

 

7 hours ago, 2and3cylinders said:

After a saddle, screen, flash, suspension, brakes and bars, a McCruise really brings the 15 ~ 17 pretty darn close to even the 21~23 IMO, yet still remains the Bad Boy that unfortunately has been distilled out of the Gen 3 and even the Gen 2.

What "bad boy-ness" has been distilled out of the later generations?

I know the longer swingarm slows handling a bit; I've ridden a later model and I was a little surprised that the difference was immediately perceptible. I do much prefer the slightly quicker handling of the original.

As far as I could tell, the engine is the same. There are some enhanced electronic nannies in the later models.

[Ride365]

Nothing sterile or tamed down on my 20 model, that's for damn sure. The biggest improvements with the arrival of the GT, was better suspension and a bit longer swingarm for stability, of course throttle by wire with CC, quickshifter, and factory heated grips. I am still not won over with the latest edition, sure love all the tech and refinements, but just cannot get past the looks. 🤡It may overall be the best sport touring machine out there now and particular for the price, I feel Yamaha hit a grand slam with it. Now if they would only do a total overhaul on the Super Tenere, so much potential for that machine. 

[2and3cylinders]

2 hours ago, bwringer said:

 

What "bad boy-ness" has been distilled out of the later generations?

I know the longer swingarm slows handling a bit; I've ridden a later model and I was a little surprised that the difference was immediately perceptible. I do much prefer the slightly quicker handling of the original.

As far as I could tell, the engine is the same. There are some enhanced electronic nannies in the later models.

Hey buddy, cuz we're Bad Boyz and like it quik!

The later longer swing arm and TC settings nannied it down.

Who even needs TC on a 103 hp 60 fp 470# ripper?!

Frankly, if my bod hadn't let me down I'd still be humping my VTR and only using my FJ for longer distance STg.

Which is why CC and my other mods were made.

I didn't know you got yours with twenty on it

How many do you have now

One of these days we gotta meet up and compare notes.

Probably not this year cause Ive got a hip problem that's gotten a lot worse.

And so it goes

https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/211032/origin-of-and-so-it-goes-quote-in-science-fiction

[betoney]

6 hours ago, bwringer said:

 

What "bad boy-ness" has been distilled out of the later generations?

I know the longer swingarm slows handling a bit; I've ridden a later model and I was a little surprised that the difference was immediately perceptible. I do much prefer the slightly quicker handling of the original.

As far as I could tell, the engine is the same. There are some enhanced electronic nannies in the later models.

When the bike was completely revised in ‘21, the new motor got a slightly heavier crankshaft with more rotating mass, effectively the same as when we used to use flywheel weights on 2 strokes to tame “the hit”. 

[piotrek]

7 hours ago, bwringer said:

As far as I could tell, the engine is the same. There are some enhanced electronic nannies in the later models.

The latest iteration of the CP3 had a bump in displacement, to 889cc from 847cc.

7 hours ago, bwringer said:

What "bad boy-ness" has been distilled out of the later generations?

Hmm... crappy fueling, crappy suspension etc... ya know, all the "bad-boy" stuff. 😏