Gem rod
New member
Well I've had the Fazer for two months now, and clocked up just over 1000 miles. I thought I would just give a little review.
Mine is the faired version with ABS and I purchased it from new although it was an old 2012 show room model.
The bike came with a touring screen, crash bars, and protective covers. I soon fitted the Yamaha rack and 50 litre top box which was not an easy process as it required some modification to the rear tail plastic. Apart from that and the fact that the barrel lock for the top box had to be ordered separately it has proved to be a very useful accessory.
See pics
http://www.779cc.org/forum/main-lobby-new-member-section/3128-first-ride.html
http://www.779cc.org/forum/fz8-general-discussion/3211-top-box-woes-2.html#post40865
The engine is very responsive. I ran the bike in exactly according to recommendation in the riders manual. It recommended keeping below 5800pm for 600 miles and 6800 for the next 400. That was not a problem since at 6800 rpm the bike is doing around 90mph.
The bike does 100 mph effortlessly at a shade over 7000 rpm. I don't think anyone is going to need more power than that. It's handling is impressive for a non sports bike. With a bit of leaning, the bike can be pushed hard on the corners, and the brakes give excellent feedback.
The bike has the same rear calliper as my 2008 Honda CBF600 but for some reason on the Fazer it is a lot more effective. The fuelling is much better than the Honda which always judders when slowing down and throttling off as if starved of fuel.
The only thing that is not as good as my Honda is the gearbox. I don't like the jolt when I first start up the bike and put it in first gear. Has anyone else noticed that? That doesn't happen with my Honda.
I do like the way that first gear has a high ratio. It means that you do not have to change up immediately after pulling away.
That's the only niggle. I can well imagine that in hot US climates that you will need to be careful with overheating the bike. When I slow down in traffic in the few hot days we have had (25-30 degrees is hot here), the temperature rapidly creeps up. What it is like in temperatures 10 degrees hotter than that I can only guess.
So all in all extremely pleased. I made the right decision not to go for the VFR800. It seemed too complicated and the model seems a little out of date now. The Fazer was much cheaper too and no less powerful. It should also be fairly easy to work on and similar to my CBF600.
A happy rider
Mine is the faired version with ABS and I purchased it from new although it was an old 2012 show room model.
The bike came with a touring screen, crash bars, and protective covers. I soon fitted the Yamaha rack and 50 litre top box which was not an easy process as it required some modification to the rear tail plastic. Apart from that and the fact that the barrel lock for the top box had to be ordered separately it has proved to be a very useful accessory.
See pics
http://www.779cc.org/forum/main-lobby-new-member-section/3128-first-ride.html
http://www.779cc.org/forum/fz8-general-discussion/3211-top-box-woes-2.html#post40865
The engine is very responsive. I ran the bike in exactly according to recommendation in the riders manual. It recommended keeping below 5800pm for 600 miles and 6800 for the next 400. That was not a problem since at 6800 rpm the bike is doing around 90mph.
The bike does 100 mph effortlessly at a shade over 7000 rpm. I don't think anyone is going to need more power than that. It's handling is impressive for a non sports bike. With a bit of leaning, the bike can be pushed hard on the corners, and the brakes give excellent feedback.
The bike has the same rear calliper as my 2008 Honda CBF600 but for some reason on the Fazer it is a lot more effective. The fuelling is much better than the Honda which always judders when slowing down and throttling off as if starved of fuel.
The only thing that is not as good as my Honda is the gearbox. I don't like the jolt when I first start up the bike and put it in first gear. Has anyone else noticed that? That doesn't happen with my Honda.
I do like the way that first gear has a high ratio. It means that you do not have to change up immediately after pulling away.
That's the only niggle. I can well imagine that in hot US climates that you will need to be careful with overheating the bike. When I slow down in traffic in the few hot days we have had (25-30 degrees is hot here), the temperature rapidly creeps up. What it is like in temperatures 10 degrees hotter than that I can only guess.
So all in all extremely pleased. I made the right decision not to go for the VFR800. It seemed too complicated and the model seems a little out of date now. The Fazer was much cheaper too and no less powerful. It should also be fairly easy to work on and similar to my CBF600.
A happy rider
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