Long Term Review FZ6R

[KenS]

Originally Posted by WANDERER

So, I can still ride this bike from the Bay Area, SF to Oklahoma & back? I wonder ......

I believe I saw some other members post their pics on here where they put saddle bags on and went on a long ride. As long as you take your appropriate breaks, stretch out, so on and so forth, this bike is good, not to mention the great gas mileage. If you're going to tour though, definitely look into a different windscreen, that, and a good seat, will probably make or break it for you. I had my seat custom modified to be more comfy and it's made a huge difference. I changed to the Yamaha DB windscreen, it makes a little difference, but not much for highway riding if you'll do a lot of that.

[dart1963]

Originally Posted by WANDERER

He said it's not a good bike for long distance touring? 'shooooottttt, I was looking at this bike & the Kawasaki Ninja 650 R for that purpose. Any other suggestions......

I'm planning a Saddle Sore 1000 / to be more specific a Lake Michigan 1000

Talk to these riders!.... they've done a bit of riding....

I have a 450 miles trip to OH coming up next month.... and I'm looking forward to it!.... the only thing I dread, and I've looked at the seat pads(thinking I should really get one), is my butt bones... whatever they are called, the two spots where the legs connect, get sore after hours of riding... not unbearable (I've done 8hours trips)... but just sore..... I've learned to not ride on my hands, so my back and arms don't hurt... plus got to stop every once in a while for gas, so that is probably plenty of break to clean bugs of the shield and walk off any soreness.

[Heineken]

Originally Posted by WANDERER

If I was going to do my dream trip on this bike or the 650R, I would think, I'll be riding for about 7 to 10 hrs. with of course stops for gas, food and breaks....I don't want to purchase the bike & later on realize that I got the wrong bike for my intended use or purpose.

I did a Saddle Sore 1000 with another member from here. Clocked 1068 miles in under 24 hours both of us on FZ6R's and I'll probably do it again this year. If you have any questions don't hesitate.

P.S. I really don't have time right now to update my Touring project thread, but when I will, I'll post lots of reviews of add-ons and gear.

[bjs045]

YouTube - FZ6R Re-evaluation

YouTube - FZ6R Re-evaluation

[Spunky99]

Dislikes: I hated the front end dive when entering a corner.
I hated the pogo stick rear shock effect while buried deep in the corner.
The high RPM buzz during freeway cruises.
The corner entry hesitation causing the bike to go wide in the beginning of a corner.
The spongy foot pegs.
The rear paddle fender.

Likes: The wonderful powerband with no drop outs at any RPM.
The look.

Once I swapped out to the Racetech springs and a +1 on the primary sprocket and R6 style pegs the dislikes went away and a new dislikes appeared.
Not enough power on acceleration.
handlebar, lever position functionality.

So I moved the bars forward and tilted them back a tad, put on shorty levers and new grips.
I moved the forks up about 1.2mm to correct the corner hesitation.
Swapped the header and pipe and added a PC V for almost 20% more power.

Now I have the takeoff power I had before (actually a lot more) before I went +1 on the primary sprocket, the engine runs 6 F cooler than before, there won't be any chicken strips or elephants showing after I hit Mulholland Drive again, Freeways are nice and easy on the RPM.
The powerband remained exactly the same as before just more HP all the way through so I retained the best part of the original engine characteristic.
The suspension is way too stiff for most of you but I like having a track bike feel on the street....


So I bought a cheap bike....I made a lot of modifications but the cost was not too bad as I have $300.00 into the exhaust instead of $800.00 for a TBR.
About $1200.00 total including the cam mount, HID, brake lines and pads, etc all total in mod costs.
And I like what I have....I don't want an R6 with a huge drop in power curve at 5500 to 9000 RPM and have to drop gears to get any power. A 1 litre bike is the answer to that but at age 56, do I really need that much of a bike?
I could buy a Honda 1000 RR or a Yamaha R1 for about 14K but I have 1/2 that into a bike that does everything I need it to do.

It's a keeper....

[creggur]

Originally Posted by dart1963

I have a 450 miles trip to OH coming up next month.... and I'm looking forward to it!.... the only thing I dread, and I've looked at the seat pads(thinking I should really get one), is my butt bones... whatever they are called, the two spots where the legs connect, get sore after hours of riding... not unbearable (I've done 8hours trips)... but just sore..... I've learned to not ride on my hands, so my back and arms don't hurt... plus got to stop every once in a while for gas, so that is probably plenty of break to clean bugs of the shield and walk off any soreness.

They're called "sit bones" by bicyclists and a pair of bicycle shorts under your riding pants will help a lot. The padding in the bicycle shorts will help cushion that area and the lycra supports your upper leg muscles to prevent fatigue.

Been doing it for years, at the end of the day wash the shorts out in a sink and they'll be dry and ready to go the next day...

[SAFE-T]

I wouldn't say the GSXR is a "different kind of bike altogether" at all. It's just more focused than the FZ with ergonomics that compliment performance and handling at speed instead of comfort.