Electronic vs. Standard Suspension

[betoney]

With the 2024 models becoming available, Yamaha is 4 model years into their electronic suspension on the Tracer. 

I am interested in real-world opinions on actual performance, especially from those who may have previously had a Tracer with upgraded standard (manual) suspension.  What are your thoughts, pro's or con's?  Do you regret it or is it an improvement?

As @Wintersdark has recently mentioned, the MT10SP has the electronic Ohlins suspension which is fully adjustable while the Tracer has 2 settings.  As someone who has always had custom suspension and the ability to adjust to my liking, would the Tracers 2 settings be a limitation or disappointment?  Has anyone had to change springs?

Any and all comments and discussions are welcome.

[johnmark101]

I like the idea of electronic suspension, as long as the rider can make small adjustments within the parameters set up in the system.  I think the new Suzuki GX allows this as well as the Multistrada.  If it is fixed then maybe not so much.

Can't really go wrong with good quality standard suspension. In the end that is what I think I would prefer.  A friend of mine had issues with the Skyhook system on his Multistrada and it kept the front end damping too hard.

Edited December 9, 2023 by johnmark101

[RaYzerman]

I would shy away from electronic suspension unless you are the guy they designed it for..... lighter weight touring rider type.  150-160 lbs. and doesn't push the limits.  The majority of bikes are undersprung, damping adjustments only by a formula they determined was good enough but likely isn't, some higher end bikes the exception.  But, manual suspension gives you the best shot at upgrading it to suit you.  IMHO you don't need to be playing with buttons for every road condition you come across, but some need their toys and will pay extra for them.

Edited December 8, 2023 by RaYzerman

[betoney]

3 hours ago, johnmark101 said:

I like the idea of electronic suspension, as long as the rider can make small adjustments within the parameters set up in the system.  I think the new Suzuki GX allows this as well as the Multistrada.  If it is fixed them maybe not so much.

 

2 hours ago, RaYzerman said:

But, manual suspension gives you the best shot at upgrading it to suit you.  IMHO you don't need to be playing with buttons for every road condition you come across, but some need their toys and will pay extra for them.

I agree, even though I have very nicely set up suspension I will occasionally still make minor tweaks depending on the scenario, especially on the shock.  A click or two +/- can make a big difference in comfort or control depending if I'm on a long highway stretch or in tighter canyon twisties. 

The FJR and Super Tenere models with ES have a few basic settings and then several settings for fine tuning.  I haven't heard a whole lot on the Tracers electronic suspension but I'm just not sure that only 2 generic settings would cover all bases, though without riding the newer Gen 3 I could be completely wrong.

[kingfisher]

FWIW, I've had the '15 FJ 09, a '19 GT 900, and now the  '22 9 GT. The semi active suspension on the 9 GT is significantly better in my opinion.  I'm approaching 20,000 miles on the 9 GT. I've dialed in a little more preload on the rear for my 210 lbs, and am very happy with it as is. YMMV.

[betoney]

3 hours ago, kingfisher said:

FWIW, I've had the '15 FJ 09, a '19 GT 900, and now the  '22 9 GT. The semi active suspension on the 9 GT is significantly better in my opinion.  I'm approaching 20,000 miles on the 9 GT. I've dialed in a little more preload on the rear for my 210 lbs, and am very happy with it as is. YMMV.

Glad to hear that you enjoy the semi-active suspension on the Gen III.  On either of the previous bikes with manual suspension, did you use the oem parts or were they upgraded at all?  At 210lbs did you find enough range of adjustment for preload on the stock shock or is the spring at its limit?

[kingfisher]

All were stock suspension;  the FJ could have used an upgrade, but I never did it. I really don't feel like an upgrade is needed, for me, on the 9 GT. I never have a pillion rider, but with me and a full load for a 9 day trip with side cases and top box on the 9 GT, the stock rear spring with more preload seems adequate. Damping is good. I keep it on the A-2 setting. 

[Ride365]

9 hours ago, RaYzerman said:

I would shy away from electronic suspension unless you are the guy they designed it for..... lighter weight touring rider type.  150-160 lbs. and doesn't push the limits.  The majority of bikes are undersprung, damping adjustments only by a formula they determined was good enough but likely isn't, some higher end bikes the exception.  But, manual suspension gives you the best shot at upgrading it to suit you.  IMHO you don't need to be playing with buttons for every road condition you come across, but some need their toys and will pay extra for them.

Not the Euro bikes like Ducati/Triumph/BMW......their ESA suspensions have heavier springs, but yeah the Japanese spring rates for most they make are too light for bigger American bodies.

[OZVFR]

I can only vouch for ESA bikes I’ve ridden, and have to say BMW and Triumph ESA are bloody awesome. 
Both had superb control and plenty of adjustments via screen. 
BMW in active mode or whatever they call it is outstanding. Go easy and it’s incredibly smooth, crank the throttle and start learning heavily and it’s a track bike. 
No matter what you replace your suspension with, it will be a one trick pony until you manually adjust it. Not the ESA. You can’t beat suspension that adjusts itself every 1000’s of a second. It even self levels when you load it up. 
This is higher end I admit but by far the best thing since sliced bread. 
I think a lot of people comment on this without actually riding one. 
Yamaha ESA might be too soft just like all the other stock Tracers. 
And you can upgrade ESA just as easily as stock. 

Edited December 9, 2023 by OZVFR

[skipperT]

15 hours ago, Ride365 said:

Not the Euro bikes like Ducati/Triumph/BMW......their ESA suspensions have heavier springs, but yeah the Japanese spring rates for most they make are too light for bigger American bodies.

I will add that WP suspension on KTM and Husqvarna, electronic or not, is pretty kick ass. The Austrians definitely got it dialed. 
-Skip

[Ride365]

1 minute ago, skipperT said:

I will add that WP suspension on KTM and Husqvarna, electronic or not, is pretty kick ass. The Austrians definitely got it dialed. 
-Skip

Indeed, my buddy's KTM 790 has amazing stock suspension. Another buddy of mine got a new Africa twin with ESA, and he had to replace all springs for his 220 pound body, now he has a 23 BMW R1250GS adventure with ESA and he say's it is PERFECT right off the assembly line. 

[OZVFR]

On 12/9/2023 at 9:53 AM, Ride365 said:

 the Japanese spring rates for most they make are too light for bigger American bodies.

I’m 74kg and found the stock Tracer suspension way too soft, can’t imagine how a 220lb rider could possibly think that it’s ok. 
The point is that even if you have to respring and revalve the Yam ESA, it will still be cheaper than a whole new quality set on a non ESA bike, and will be much better. 

[RaYzerman]

Depends on the bike..... I don't know how you'd revalve some OEM ESA's, but yes should be able to re-spring easily enough.  I can tell you that just removing the rear shock on an ES FJR is definitely an all day job, so again depends how the OEM integrated it into the bike.  I"d venture to say if you want decent ESA you have to buy a European bike, not an Asian one.

[pilgo]

On 12/7/2023 at 6:48 PM, betoney said:

With the 2024 models becoming available, Yamaha is 4 model years into their electronic suspension on the Tracer. 

I am interested in real-world opinions on actual performance, especially from those who may have previously had a Tracer with upgraded standard (manual) suspension.  What are your thoughts, pro's or con's?  Do you regret it or is it an improvement?

As @Wintersdark has recently mentioned, the MT10SP has the electronic Ohlins suspension which is fully adjustable while the Tracer has 2 settings.  As someone who has always had custom suspension and the ability to adjust to my liking, would the Tracers 2 settings be a limitation or disappointment?  Has anyone had to change springs?

Any and all comments and discussions are welcome.

Sorry to hijack your post , but I'm very keen on upgrading the suspension on my 2015 FJ09 but I'm honestly struggling to find a specialist anywhere near me ( I'd love to find a ride in/ ride out suspension shop ) so I'm thinking I'm going to have to source the upgrades and then find a shop to fit them. Can I ask what upgrades you did on your '15 FJ09 ? 

Thanks in advance 👍

[betoney]

47 minutes ago, pilgo said:

Sorry to hijack your post , but I'm very keen on upgrading the suspension on my 2015 FJ09 but I'm honestly struggling to find a specialist anywhere near me ( I'd love to find a ride in/ ride out suspension shop ) so I'm thinking I'm going to have to source the upgrades and then find a shop to fit them. Can I ask what upgrades you did on your '15 FJ09 ? 

Thanks in advance 👍

I ordered a Penske from Traxxion Dynamics.  I had my forks revalved by a forum vendor that used to be a member here years ago.  The shock is relatively simple to swap yourself, you don't need a shop to do the work, it can be done withing an hour. 

For the forks you have 2 options, getting the oem parts revalved or buying complete replacement cartridges.  A cartridge swap 'should' be something that a bike shop can do if they have a cartridge holder tool as you just remove the old cartridge and install the replacement.  If you were looking at buying a replacement piston kit I would ONLY trust an actual suspension shop to do that modification.

A lot of members here have used KTech with great results. https://www.ktechsuspensionusa.com/part-finder?find=Yamaha_FJ-09_2015