A Trick of the Tail

Being back down to one bike was, in a way, refreshing.  There was less expense, in that I was just buying stuff for one bike, and you can only ride one at a time, anyway.  That saved me from feeling guilty when I chose to ride my Bonneville instead of its garage mate.

Also, having one bike really made me realize how well my Bonneville fits my needs.  I can tour on it, I can commute on it and I can play in the canyons with it.  That's a wonderful bit of versatility.

Bliss was interrupted quite quickly, though, when I returned to my bike after work one day and found a Suzuki V-Strom laying on top of it.  It was time to find a commuter.

Luckily, the Strom had only cracked the plastic front fender and lightly scuffed the right muffler.  The majority of the scuffs came out with some metal polish and I had to order a new fender.  I picked one up from eBay, which made that the third front fender I've put on the bike.

Much searching on Craigslist commenced after this debacle and that was an experience in itself.  I set myself a low budget since the bike would be used for my commute (eight miles, round trip) and nothing more.  Also, the bike would more than likely be Japanese, though I did get tempted by a Triumph Tiger Cub but good sense intervened quickly on that one and thank God it did.

Each bike I looked at was crap in one way or another.  I wasn't expecting much in my price range but there really was some crap out there.  One bike caught my eye, however.

It was something I'd wanted for years but never got around to owning, mostly because they're hard to find in decent condition.  Many of them were crashed and destroyed.  The ones that were crashed and salvaged were made into street fighters or ruined in various other ways.  This one was all there, though, even if it was rough around the edges.

What I bought was a 1987 Yamaha FZR1000 Genesis.

Yes, I know that's not a commuter.  Much like when I was looking for a lightweight motard and ending up buying a 500 lb Moto Guzzi, I went looking for a commuter and bought an '80s super bike.  Let the face-palming begin.

Like I said, the bike was all there but rough.  The plastics were heavily scratched but not broken and it wouldn't rev beyond 5k but it ran well enough to get me home.  Once at home, I began to dig into its problems.

It seems that the passage of time made the intake boots that connect the air box and the carbs had swelled.  The boots were replaced by Uni pod filters jammed into the air box.  This allowed the bike to run enough to get around but it was crazy lean in the higher RPM ranges.

Luckily, Yamaha still makes the intake boots, so with a new set, some new spark plugs and a new fuel filter, the bike runs like a champ.  It fires up easily and will pull hard to it's 11,000 RPM redline.

The only other issue I had to deal with was a burned out turn signal bulb.  That's it.  Sure, the rear tire leaks a bit and the bike could use a chain and sprocket set but, honestly, it's a solid bike and I paid next to nothing for it.  I consider that a win.

Oh, and did I mention how fast it is?  It's fast.  Very fast.  Spooky fast, in fact.

The '87 and '88 models had the 20 valve Genesis engine that was 989cc and made 135 hp.  In '89, the engine was punched out to 1003cc and the EXUP valve was added to the exhaust.  All FZR1000 models had a five-speed gearbox.

Getting back to the fast bit, it's fast.  The bike just pulls so hard in every gear that you'd swear the engine is bigger than it is.  Even at highway speeds in fifth, a slight twist of the wrist is all that's needed to find yourself at 80 or 90 mph.  Contemporary tests had the bike blitzing the quarter in 10.7 seconds.  That's only a few tenths slower than a 2014 R1.  Not bad for a 27-year-old bike.

Even with the aluminum Deltabox frame, the bike's a hefty 500 lbs.  It hides its weight well, though, because it's all situated very low in the chassis.  The engine sits forward 45°, which allows the carbs to lay flat and direct the fuel and air mixture straight to the three intake valves.  This also means the air box sits where the fuel should be.  Yamaha then put the fuel down and behind the engine where the carbs traditionally went.  Add in the aluminum frame spars and you have a bike that feels light even when it isn't.

The fuel tank holds about five gallons and I was expecting the bike to feel very top heavy like the other inline fours I've ridden and owned.  Even my Triumph Tiger, which had a huge tank sitting on a tall three-cylinder engine, felt really heavy even though it wasn't.  The FZR doesn't feel like that at all.  In fact, it feels like a BMW flat twin in that all the weight is carried very low.  You expect to have to heave it off the stand but you don't.

On the road it's a bit of an animal.  It has a four-into-one Vance and Hines exhaust that's very loud and it has a racing shifter, so that means it's down to upshift and up to downshift.  Yeah, that's fun when you're coming to a stop.  What I end up doing is pulling in the clutch, applying the brakes and going "wait, which way is it again?"  I hope to have it figured out before I find myself in the back seat of a minivan next to some kid eating ice cream.  If I do find myself in that situation, I hope the kid will at least share.

In the twisties it's sublime.  Getting my Guzzi to turn was a wrestling match, one I usually lost.  That bike was work but the FZR isn't.  A bit of countersteer is all that's needed and the bike just attacks the bends.  It makes me curious to see how good modern super bikes are. 

I've always had a soft spot for '80s superbikes but I never thought about buying one because I expected them to be awful.  I like the Lamborghini Countach a lot but I wouldn't buy one because I know I would be disappointed by it.  I must say, I'm surprised by this Yamaha.  I expected it to be rough and hard to ride but it really isn't. 

Once you get used to the riding position and the shifter, it's as easy to ride as any normal bike.  Even the acceleration isn't that scary as long as you don't grab a handful on a busy street.  Also, the engine's quite happy to dawdle around town or scream up to redline.

So I'm having quite a bit of fun with my classic super bike.  Sometimes, you get what you pay for.  Other times, you get more.  I'd like to think I got quite a bit more.

As for that commuter, well, let's just say it's on the list of bikes I'll eventually own.  It's on there somewhere around the motard and a Laverda Jota but ahead of a Honda Goldwing.  I'm not old or fat enough for that yet.