Gone Riding: 2016 Yamaha FJR1300

Back on the road once again, and this time I’m out in Arizona with Yamaha North America, riding the not too long ago updated 2016 Yamaha FJR1300 sport-tourer.

Tomorrow sees our group leaving Phoenix and heading up into Sedona, exactly where the red earth and picturesque mesas should make for an epic backdrop to our complete day of riding.

For those who don’t know, the FJR1300 is a model that Yamaha has been gradually evolving every model year, alternatively of making punctuated improvements every single couple of years. This tends to make it a surprising machine for press launch, but it also takes place to be an critical one particular for us to evaluate.

The sport-touring segment is surprisingly hot proper now, with 17% growth in the previous year, thanks mainly to the Yamaha FJ-09. There are some who feel that the sport-touring market is dead, supplanted by the adventure-sport category, yet for some veteran riders, the ethos of the Yamaha FJR1300 is excellent.

The big news for the 2016 model year is the addition of a new six-speed gearbox, which must make highway speeds a bit more friendly. We will also be keen to tryout the suite of electronics on the base model FJR1300A, and experience the electronic suspension on the FJR1300ES, each of which had been on the 2015 models, but are new to us.

As usual, I will try to answer questions with regards to the 2016 Yamaha FJR1300 from the road. We will have two days of riding on the machine, so that must be ample opportunity for A&ampR to get acquainted with this venerable sport-tourer, and give you the skinny on its qualities.

As before, if I do not know an answer, I will try to get a response from the Yamaha personnel that are here with me in Arizona. So, pepper away.

You can adhere to our thoughts on the bike reside via Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also try browsing for the hashtags: #FJR1300 for the thoughts of our colleagues as properly.

Spec-Sheet Comparison of Sport-Tourer Motorcycles:

	Yamaha FJR1300A	Kawasaki Concours 14	Honda VFR1200F	Honda ST1300 ABS	BMW R1200RT
Displacement	1,298cc	1,352cc	1,237cc	1,261cc	1,170cc
Engine	Inline-4	Inline-Four	76° V4	90° V4	Boxer Twin
Energy	144 hp	158 hp	170 hp	117 hp	125 hp
Torque	102 lbs•ft	one hundred lbs•ft	95 lbs•ft	86 lbs•ft	92 lbs•ft
Wet Weight	635 lbs	690 lbs	591 lbs	730 lbs	604 lbs
Electronics	TC, ABS, CC, RbW	VVT, ABS	DCT, TC, ABS, RbW	ABS	TC, ABS, RbW
Price	$ 16,390	$ 15,499	$ 17,499	$ 18,230	$ 18,145