Reliability and owner satisfaction

[Spazdog]

Originally Posted By: Robenstein
Originally Posted By: Yagenta13
Seems like the Germans have fallen off pace across the board for quite some time. I wonder what changed.


Two things probably...the Germans have a habit of over complicating their engineering. Then they decided it might be a good idea to outsource their production of critical components to certain countries that do not exactly have a great reputation for consistent quality.


Yep

Longcin and Kymco make some of BMW Motorrad's engines.

Kymco has a very good track record for reliability - in some aspects they have exceeded their Japanese competitors - but the C-series scooters have not had a good record. Maybe they are overcomplicated their engineering.

 

[Franklim]

Got a problem with my brand new Yamaha 2009 FZ1S too. Battery will go flat if parked 2 or more days. Send back to the agent , but they told me nothing is wrong with my bike. Sold it after 15 months and bought a new Suzuki GSX1250FA. No problem at all for the past 45 months . [censored] Yamaha.... suck big time...

 

[BusyLittleShop]

Originally Posted By: Franklim
Got a problem with my brand new Yamaha 2009 FZ1S too. Battery will go flat if parked 2 or more days.


Motorcycle troubleshooting is a form of problem solving... It is a
logical search for the source of a problem so that it can be solved...
it ain't about jumping to 10 conclusions at once... always eliminate
the battery first... because you find that 90% of the time it proves
to be the weakest link of your bike... and so much depends on correct
voltage that it's pays to have your battery tended to a charger at all
times...

Start with the battery for it's the weakest link in the whole system... To
determine the condition of an Maintenance Free battery give it a
refreshing charge... wait 30 minutes... measure terminal voltage...

12.8 or higher is a good battery...
12.0 to 12.8 is a insufficient charge... recharge...
12.0 or lower... battery unserviceable...

 

[Robenstein]

Sounds like the Yamaha had a parasitic drain somewhere.

 

[Analyzer]

Definitely agree with BusyLittleShop. Any car or motorcycles electrical system can be difficult to diagnose properly; but the battery has the tendency to be the issue/weak link within many electrical issues. There's many people in the 100K mile club with both Gen 1 & 2 FZ1's, but the Suzuki you went for is also a very nice bike (tons lof low/mid-range torque!

.

P.S: Awesome photo of BusyLittleShop and his Mr. RC45, love the sound and feel of those V4's.

Originally Posted By: BusyLittleShop
Originally Posted By: Franklim
Got a problem with my brand new Yamaha 2009 FZ1S too. Battery will go flat if parked 2 or more days.


Motorcycle troubleshooting is a form of problem solving... It is a
logical search for the source of a problem so that it can be solved...
it ain't about jumping to 10 conclusions at once... always eliminate
the battery first... because you find that 90% of the time it proves
to be the weakest link of your bike... and so much depends on correct
voltage that it's pays to have your battery tended to a charger at all
times...

Start with the battery for it's the weakest link in the whole system... To
determine the condition of an Maintenance Free battery give it a
refreshing charge... wait 30 minutes... measure terminal voltage...

12.8 or higher is a good battery...
12.0 to 12.8 is a insufficient charge... recharge...
12.0 or lower... battery unserviceable...

 

[Franklim]

Originally Posted By: BusyLittleShop
Originally Posted By: Franklim
Got a problem with my brand new Yamaha 2009 FZ1S too. Battery will go flat if parked 2 or more days.


Motorcycle troubleshooting is a form of problem solving... It is a
logical search for the source of a problem so that it can be solved...
it ain't about jumping to 10 conclusions at once... always eliminate
the battery first... because you find that 90% of the time it proves
to be the weakest link of your bike... and so much depends on correct
voltage that it's pays to have your battery tended to a charger at all
times...

Start with the battery for it's the weakest link in the whole system... To
determine the condition of an Maintenance Free battery give it a
refreshing charge... wait 30 minutes... measure terminal voltage...

12.8 or higher is a good battery...
12.0 to 12.8 is a insufficient charge... recharge...
12.0 or lower... battery unserviceable...


I owned that bike (brand new 2009 Yamaha FZ1s ) for 15 months and I had changed 4 new battery and a new rectifier. Went to the authorised agent in Singapore , they did a load test but cannot find any problem with my bike.Must be a lemon bike or what....

 

[FastGame]

I still have "owner satisfaction" but the "Reliability" of my 81 Kawasaki KZ 1000 is starting to fade after all these years. Thought the 4 yr old battery was bad so I got a new one and no go...guess the charging system is getting Yamaha disease

Should be a cheap fix, I hope.

 

[ricky66]

I've got a few Japanese built bikes, all dead reliable apart from botched work from previous owners except my 2003 Yamaha XJR1300 which I've had since new.

I've covered over half a million kilometres on various BMW's. The more complex they get, the more little bits go wrong....they are robust, but they do wear out. Its just a machine.

Yamaha sparks are the most reliable out there. Anyone that's been around bikes knows of the Honda and Suzuki reg/rectifier and stator issues of the past 20 years. I bought a really nice little CBR600F2 a couple of years ago, first mod, electrosport reg / rect. even though the stock original was still working fine....

My 2004 HiLux (a dual cab Tacoma equivalent in this part of the world) is the last of the Japanese built examples. Dead reliable with the legendary 5VZFE 3.4 L V6. I've seen lots of reports of build quality issues with the newer models which are now built in Thailand for the Pacific region consumers. Make of that what you will.....

Just my opinion from my own experiences

Cheers, and good luck,

Ricky

 

[Robenstein]

Originally Posted By: FastGame
I still have "owner satisfaction" but the "Reliability" of my 81 Kawasaki KZ 1000 is starting to fade after all these years. Thought the 4 yr old battery was bad so I got a new one and no go...guess the charging system is getting Yamaha disease

Should be a cheap fix, I hope.


70's and 80's UJM bikes and charging woes go hand in hand. However when you look at some of the competition from England that used Lucas electrics, the UJM bikes were dead reliable in comparison.