Looking to buy an FJ09, some question.

[megamold]

So i wanted to ask these questions here since i would rather get the answers from actual owners instead of a salesman or a reviewer.
 
so next year i will be able to upgrade from my fz 07 ( great motorcycle but mismatched for my 6"2'frame) a week ago my upgrade was clear, my dream motorcycle a triumph street triple r.
So 2 days ago i got a FJ 09 as a courtesy bike and it left a great impression on me.
 
Today i had a test drive on a street triple r and honestly i was slightly dissapointed. Never meet your heroes i geuss...
 
So i did have some questions about the FJ i would like a straight answer to.
 
-i really like to be a bit more bent forward on a bike, keeps the pressure of my back and makes me feel more commited to the turn. I heard the bar risers can be rotated, how much affect does this actually have and does anyone use it in this way?the foot peg placement seems to beg for this setup.
 
-how well does it actually do in the twisties? Since thats what i use the bike for 95% of the time. Commute is only 2 miles and freeway to the twisty stuff is about 1,5 hours. I don't go round scraping my knee but spirited is my middle name.
 
-is it normal for the bike to have serious vibration above 5000 rpm? Or was this demo bike just seriously abused? Rubberized footpegs are one of the first mods but the vibration seemed a bit exessive.
 
-does the bike have a hard wired gps plug like the 07 does? Basically a plug in the body work that powers up when turning on the ignition. Don't really want to use the cigarette lighter plug for my gps.
 
- and dear god tell me i won't be the only one riding this bike in full leathers :-D
 
Thank you in advance for the help and sorry about the long post :-D
keep the rubber side down!

[ULEWZ]

This bike is fantastic in the twisties, even stock. I ride it almost as fast as my old R1, that is how much I like it. It can be harsh over sharp edged bumps, and will feel loose up front going 100 mph or faster, but these things can all be fixed. If you are tall, think aftermarket windscreen. If you like to mod, this bike can be transformed to the perfect bike.
Yes, it has a 12 volt outlet for a gps. Yes it has great range, about 200 miles on a fillup. It can carry luggage if you want, but that is extra. There is a speed limiter at 117/118mph, but that can be fixed with an ECU flash. The seat may seem hard at first, but can be used for miles without much discomfort and I am picky (I upgraded anyhow due to a group buy). Traction control that can be turned off if you want to be a hooligan. ABS, and a fairing for wind protection. Also an ambient temp gage, heated grips option controllable through the dash, and very comfortable ergos. Plus you can tour on this thing. I ride in leathers in the summer and a full Teiz suit in the winter. My bar risers are rotated. Helps, but not much. Some complain of a vibration, but others like me do not feel anything. On the fwy there should be no buzz. Higher in the rpm range you may feel something, but not too bad.

[root]

So i wanted to ask these questions here since i would rather get the answers from actual owners instead of a salesman or a reviewer.  
so next year i will be able to upgrade from my fz 07 ( great motorcycle but mismatched for my 6"2'frame) a week ago my upgrade was clear, my dream motorcycle a triumph street triple r.
So 2 days ago i got a FJ 09 as a courtesy bike and it left a great impression on me.
 
Today i had a test drive on a street triple r and honestly i was slightly dissapointed. Never meet your heroes i geuss...
 
So i did have some questions about the FJ i would like a straight answer to.
 
-i really like to be a bit more bent forward on a bike, keeps the pressure of my back and makes me feel more commited to the turn. I heard the bar risers can be rotated, how much affect does this actually have and does anyone use it in this way?the foot peg placement seems to beg for this setup.
 
-how well does it actually do in the twisties? Since thats what i use the bike for 95% of the time. Commute is only 2 miles and freeway to the twisty stuff is about 1,5 hours. I don't go round scraping my knee but spirited is my middle name.
 
-is it normal for the bike to have serious vibration above 5000 rpm? Or was this demo bike just seriously abused? Rubberized footpegs are one of the first mods but the vibration seemed a bit exessive.
 
-does the bike have a hard wired gps plug like the 07 does? Basically a plug in the body work that powers up when turning on the ignition. Don't really want to use the cigarette lighter plug for my gps.
 
- and dear god tell me i won't be the only one riding this bike in full leathers :-D
 
Thank you in advance for the help and sorry about the long post :-D
keep the rubber side down!

 
 
- Handle bars can be rotated. I think the manual said 10mm. I did flip them forward for the same reasons you mentioned. It makes a small difference. Nothing significant. I could use a tad more myself but I've gotten used to where they are now and am ok with it. I sit in a very neutral position. I'm 6'1" for reference.
 
- twistys, If I were you I'd wait till someone other than from northern Indiana answer. It tears up the long straights between corn fields like no ones business. Just kidding. Handling, it is the easiest bike I've ever ridden, feels like it's on rails. But I'd still get opinions of others on this.
 
- vibration, the triple does vibrate under hard acceleration, especially above 5k rpm. She's just showing her excitement. There's slight vibration at cruising speed, 60-80mph, but nothing to out of whack. I hardly notice at this point.
 
- plug, there is a wire ran to the front that's meant to plug a second cigarette lighter plug into that mounts on the right side. Nothing stopping you from using that plug as your dedicated GPS plug and skipping the optional plug.
 
- Full Leathers? I ride 90% of the time in an armored leather jacket, and sometimes with leather pants. I've even got full gauntlet gloves with Kevlar lining and metal plates. Also have full MC boots with shin guards and toe sliders. Does that count?

[toast]

The triple grumbles a bit if you accelerate hard in a high gear from around 4-5000rpm but I wouldn't call it a vibration. I'm coming from a non rubber mounted 600cc thumper though.
 
The handling is excellent btw.

[Trambo]

Compared to the old K.L.R. this thing's smooth as silk. LOL Talk about vibes. Only a H-D would shake ya more.
 
I also wear a Spartan 2-piece leather race suit when I take her on more "spirited" rides. Due to current temps in the 500-600 degree range I'm riding in mesh sport gear.
 
Seat position IMO is great. I'm 6'1" and like the seating. I just spent a week in Deal's Gap and rode it like I stole it. Yeh, you need to lean forward to get "on the bars" to hustle it around the Dragon, but the compromise is worth it when you pull a 2-300 mile day down and don't need a shoulder/back massage when done.

[db5304]

I haven't tried moving the bars forward but have thought about it for longer rides to get behind the windscreen.  The pegs aren't pushed back and up like a supersport, but I think you have so much room to lean up toward the tank if you really want to lay on it, it wouldn't matter.  I've leaned forward a bit and even rested a bit on a tank bag and the pegs don't make my legs feel uncomfortable at that position. 
 
How far up in the revs did you get and still feel the vibrations?  Honestly I only really feel it like others have said between 4500-5k rpm.  It is very noticeable there in certain gears, other than that nothing compared to my ninja 250 revved up on the highway.  My FZ6R was pretty smooth however, but that was an inline 4 6000 that didn't pull anywhere near this thing, so I think it was inherently smooth.

[dbezerkeley]

I've ridden 2 weekends on mine now,  bought it to be a lightweight sports-tourer.  With this much experience in mind  I'd say a key consideration is whether or not you want to sit upright on a lighter bike like this one, or if you prefer more of a forward lean on a bike that weighs more, has better wind protection,  and is more stable at higher speeds.  The upright position makes it more comfortable, (although I do have to dis Yamaha for (to me) the super-uncomfortable seat, a gel pad was my first purchase), but you are much more impacted by wind, i was crossing the San Mateo bridge in high winds Sunday and it was hard work . Combine that with the 462 lbs wet which is not very heavy for the open road, so you need to decide if  fast touring is fast enough vs very high speed touring (100mph+) where you might want a FJR.
 
But what you get in exchange is an incredible powerful engine and a fun lightweight bike that can still cruise comfortably at sane speeds.  It's a hard bike to categorize, I'd say it feels more  like a large super motard than anything else.
 
 
 

[megamold]

wow so many replies overnight thanks for all the help guys!
 
dont really have a problem with the speed limiter or lightness above 100mph since i rarely go that fast ( lose my license instantly at that speed ) but will get the ecu flash eventually anyway.
only place i can really go that fast is the autobahn in germany but i rarely go there except when driving to the nurburgring.
and i actually love the fact that its only marginally heavier then my MT07, it might be a problem on the highway but even when i do some "touring" i tend to avoid highways like the plague. i take the backroads for the nice views, quaint little towns and hidden twisties.
 
and now that i think of it, during the test ride i rarely got out of 3rd gear and i was kicking her hard so that might be the cause for the vibration. putting rubberized footpegs and grip puppies on will probably do wonders.
 
does anyone know if the optional cigarette plug is wired to the ignition? does it cut power when the ignition is off? if so i'd probably use that, thanks for the tip.
 
i'm more interested in the sport side of this sports tourer so i will most likely put a small sport screen on there, i dont mind buffeting as long as there is no deafening turbulence around the helmet im a happy camper.
 
that video actually perfectly put into words the feeling i had riding the street triple VS the FJ ( and even the tiger XrX ) the street triple feels very surgical but the more sporty bikes do seem to require alot of work to get them to do what you want, and if you slightly mess up it feels likes the bike resents you for it.
im geussing the combination of wider bars and higher center of gravity give you more leverage and make you feel more confident and in control ( as the guy said, sports bikes sometimes seem hard to control because of the amount of hard input required ) so a more forgiving bike might be better for a new-ish rider like me ( 1year on a cbr125r 1 year on an mt07 )
these more sporty touring bikes seem to almost want to fall into the turns, encouraging you to lean some more and get on the gas some more. it just felt like riding an energetic little puppy that just wants to please you and have as much fun as possible. lean me more! more ! more ! faster! faster ! wheeeeeelieeees !!!
 
however its a shame that the hard bags ( with that fantastic inconspicuous mounting system ) are not available in the EU. i'll most likely go for the sw-motech ones where most of the mounting hardware can be removed and only a small bracket on the passenger pegs remain.
 
Edit : has anyone fitted a cruise control to the bike? If so which one?

[root]

does anyone know if the optional cigarette plug is wired to the ignition? does it cut power when the ignition is off? if so i'd probably use that, thanks for the tip.
 

I'm pretty sure it does cut off with the ignition.

 
i'm more interested in the sport side of this sports tourer so i will most likely put a small sport screen on there, i dont mind buffeting as long as there is no deafening turbulence around the helmet im a happy camper.
 

There's a few options that can be found on the forum for sport screens. Ermax makes one and Cal Sci makes one as well. There's been some people that have done home-make ones as well.  The ride really is not bad with no windshield as well.  Just looks like something is missing up front.

 
these more sporty touring bikes seem to almost want to fall into the turns, encouraging you to lean some more and get on the gas some more. it just felt like riding an energetic little puppy that just wants to please you and have as much fun as possible. lean me more! more ! more ! faster! faster ! wheeeeeelieeees !!!

That's one thing I love about this bike. It wants to go faster and turn in is a breeze. On the flip side, I've not pushed it to its limits yet. My limits are much more reserved that the bikes limits are so I haven't gotten in too much trouble yet.  TCS keeps the wheelies in check for me, but that can be turned off if you fancy.

 
however its a shame that the hard bags ( with that fantastic inconspicuous mounting system ) are not available in the EU. i'll most likely go for the sw-motech ones where most of the mounting hardware can be removed and only a small bracket on the passenger pegs remain.
 

 
Can you not import the bags? I thought I saw someone over there bought from yocracing.com. They don't sell the Yamaha top case here in the states, but I'm planning to just get it shipped from Canada. The FJR bags fit the stock mounting points as well if those are easier to source and you like them. You would still need to get the lower mounts.
 

 
 
Edit : has anyone fitted a cruise control to the bike? If so which one?

Several are using GoCruise which is basically just a throttle lock that fits nicely on the FJ. BobTheBuilder was working on installing an electronic cruise control. I've not seen if he has completed his install or not. I'm very intrigued about that, but it looks like a more complicated install. Also, there's rumblings of cruise getting added, maybe sometime, to the ECU flash by Nels. That would be my preferred method, if it were available.  That would be the biggest selling point for me to get my ECU flashed.  All the smoothing would be bonus for me.  I'm pretty well used to the throttle response as is.

[xpress]

-i really like to be a bit more bent forward on a bike, keeps the pressure of my back and makes me feel more commited to the turn. I heard the bar risers can be rotated, how much affect does this actually have and does anyone use it in this way?the foot peg placement seems to beg for this setup.

 
 
I had my bars both forward and back and it didn't seem to make much difference to me. I have mine set back though since I commute on mine and prefer the comfort. 
 

-how well does it actually do in the twisties? Since thats what i use the bike for 95% of the time. Commute is only 2 miles and freeway to the twisty stuff is about 1,5 hours. I don't go round scraping my knee but spirited is my middle name.

 
 
You will be deeply impressed. It's a sport bike that sits upright. I routinely have mine on its side, scraping the peg feelers (which I need to remove).
 

-is it normal for the bike to have serious vibration above 5000 rpm? Or was this demo bike just seriously abused? Rubberized footpegs are one of the first mods but the vibration seemed a bit exessive.

 
 
Mine has some vibes around 4-5500. I like it because it gives me an idea of what speed I'm going without having to glance at the speedo. It's not bad though, supposedly a reflash will rid the bike of most of the vibes. 
 

-does the bike have a hard wired gps plug like the 07 does? Basically a plug in the body work that powers up when turning on the ignition. Don't really want to use the cigarette lighter plug for my gps.

 
 
Yes it has a 12v output plug somewhere. I haven't bothered to find it.  
 

- and dear god tell me i won't be the only one riding this bike in full leathers :-D

 
 
I don't ride in full leather, I do wear a jacket, pants, and boots though.
 
It's an awesome bike. You'll love it.
 

[trench]

I'm pretty sure it does cut off with the ignition.

 
Yes, I used my 12V last night and confirmed that it is connected to the ignition circuit.  It does not power devices with the bike off.

[megamold]

yeah i wont be getting bags when i buy the bike, more something for down the line really. dont feel like spending all that much neither since its not really neccesary for me personally. i have a tiny tail/tank bag that fits pretty much everything i really need on my day trips.
 
actually how would that ECU flash by Nels work? buy it from him and take it to my garage?
 
and would you guys says the akrapovic exhaust that comes as standard is worth the money? since its pretty damn expensive.
 
any recomendations on crash protection? the OEM sliders seem kinda flimsy and the engine does stick out quite a lot.
 
sorry for all the questions guys, i'm just being super apprehensive about the next bike i buy since it will be the last one i buy for quite some time. and i geuss i'm still a little sad that my dream bike didnt really tickle me in the right places

[root]

 
actually how would that ECU flash by Nels work? buy it from him and take it to my garage?

 
You take off the ECU, ship it to him and he ships it back within a day of receiving it.
 

and would you guys says the akrapovic exhaust that comes as standard is worth the money? since its pretty damn expensive.

 
 
 

 
any recomendations on crash protection? the OEM sliders seem kinda flimsy and the engine does stick out quite a lot.

 
There's quite a few options available already. Really depends on what's your style. The bars give it a more adventure look. The frame sliders give it a more sport bike look. You can really go either way and it still looks good on the bike IMHO. It just accentuates the different characteristics of the bike. Avoid the Yamaha branded crash protection. I've heard they are cheaply built and not worth the money. That's the only Yamaha accessory.
 

 
sorry for all the questions guys, i'm just being super apprehensive about the next bike i buy since it will be the last one i buy for quite some time. and i geuss i'm still a little sad that my dream bike didn't really tickle me in the right places

 
I don't want to know where you need to be tickled, but no harm in doing your research. A similar thing happened with me. I spent a year and a half researching the v strom 650 and bought the FJ-09 only a few months after it was released. I really wanted the 650 Versys, but my wife wasn't comfortable on it. The v strom was my backup plan but the FJ blows both of them away if you ask me. Read through what's already on this forum. Utilize the search if you're looking for something specific. There's a ton of information on what people like and don't like about this bike on this site. Some of it can seem buried under what seems like unrelated topics too. That's the nature of discussions.

[megamold]

sorry for all the questions guys, i'm just being super apprehensive about the next bike i buy since it will be the last one i buy for quite some time. and i geuss i'm still a little sad that my dream bike didn't really tickle me in the right places

I don't want to know where you need to be tickled, but no harm in doing your research. A similar thing happened with me. I spent a year and a half researching the v strom 650 and bought the FJ-09 only a few months after it was released. I really wanted the 650 Versys, but my wife wasn't comfortable on it. The v strom was my backup plan but the FJ blows both of them away if you ask me. Read through what's already on this forum. Utilize the search if you're looking for something specific. There's a ton of information on what people like and don't like about this bike on this site. Some of it can seem buried under what seems like unrelated topics too. That's the nature of discussions.

well my happy place ofcourse , just like everyone else well the street triple was something ive been lusting after for 4 years, heard fantastic things about it on all counts.
when i finally got to ride it i was giddy like a little boy but that faded fast. i was scrunched up knees nearly touching nipples, steering was super precise but felt heavy and tiring to ride, and the bike just didnt "feel" as fast.
 
but my god what a fantastic noise that thing makes, especially with the quickshifter. no doubt in my mind the best noise ive ever heard.
 
then the dealer pretty much screwed himself by giving me the keys to a tiger XrX and i couldnt help but thinking how much more fun i was having on that compared to the street triple and how the FJ felt more alive and sporty than the XrX by a long shot.
 
in any case i consider doing the research part of the fun and ive been reading loads of stuff on here during my breaks, so far i have not found anything i could really fault it for. almost seems to good to be true really.

[fanowater]

I just recently bought the FJ-09 and am in the process of replacing the suspension. But I will say on smoother roads you can get a decent set up with the stock equipment that will allow you to shred at a pretty good clip. Just hope you don't encounter any sharp edged bumps mid corner. The bike has way to much compression damping front and rear.
Where I live, smooth roads are rare, so I need more compliance.
 
I love triples! I own two currently and have had 4 in total. My Daytona 675 sounds pretty darn amazing as the needle swings past 10k, but I'd have to say hearing a 4V Ducati accelerating out of a corner is the best sound in motorcycling.
 
Was looking at getting the Xrx myself, but since I have no interest in dirt I didn't want the 19 inch front wheel, the heavier flywheel or the longer wheelbase. The FJ is much sportier in general.
 
I wear black two piece leathers, btw.