During the first half of 2001, I had been having electrical problems with my RF900R. Every time I took her out I blew the fuse for the brake lights within a mile or two. After many unsuccessful hours trying to track down the problem, I finally decided to just replace the entire wire harness for the bike. After a couple months of waiting for the parts, I got tired of not riding. So I purchased a new black and silver GSX-R1000. Trading in the RF was a necessary evil. I loved the bike, but I love riding more.
Here are the modifications I did to my RF900R during the seven years I owned it.
The first item I purchased was a Corbin Gunfighter 'N Lady seat with backrest. Came to $260 for the seat and $140 for the backrest. The stock seat was too soft for extended rides. The Corbin is vastly superior to the stock seat in comfort and looks. The only problem is that it lowers the seat height by an inch or so. That puts it right on the limit as far as leg room goes. The effect of lowering the center of gravity that much on a sport bike is obvious. The bike changes direction noticeably quicker. Comfort has definitely been improved too as I've spent many 4 or 5 hour sessions in the saddle since (just stopping for gas) with no problems.
Tires, I like tires. They keep the exhaust pipe from dragging on the ground. But I seem to be buying new ones every six months or so. After I wore out the stock Sportmax's I found out they quit making them. So I decided to try the Dunlop D204 Sportmax II. The RF900R comes standard with a 170/60-17 on the rear. I went to a 180/55 and have experienced no adverse handling effects. I changed size just for looks as it fills the rear fender a little better (and a fellow RF owner has E-mailed me to say a 190 will fit). They have tons of grip. You have to really try to get the back tire to spin when launching it off the line. And when driving out of a corner, they slide consistently and are very controllable. Tire Update. I started getting tired of buying a new rear tire every 6,000 miles, so I bought a Dunlop D205 Sportmax Touring tire in early 97 for the rear. No noticable change in grip, and I got 10,000+ miles on it. Sounds like magic, but them's the facts. Tire Update #2. I'm heading to the California Superbike School in Sept. 98, so I put a D207 on the rear. But due to a worldwide shortage of front D207's, I had to go with a leftover D204. If mixing them will cause any problems, I'm sure they will show up on the track. I'll keep you advised. Another tire update. At the Superbike School this rear I got the rear sliding coming out of both of the hairpins at the track. That didn't happen with the D204's. I don't know if it's the tires or that the bike was accelerating a little faster because of recent mods.
Next on my list was Lockhart Carbon Look turn signals. I used the short flush mount ones on the front, and they really clean up the front end. I did have to drill a small hole behind the existing turn signal location to attach them securely. On the rear I used the short stalk model in the existing turn signal location. They tuck under the rear end completely and make it much easier to hang saddle bags on the bike. Order extra bulbs when you buy them as it's damn near impossible to find replacement bulbs in the local bike or auto parts stores.
Next on the list was a Lockhart/Phillips windscreen in transparent red. The color match is excellent and the quality is far better than the stock windscreen. Installation is a snap if you take your time. Remove the inner fairing liner on both sides (three small screws). Then the mirrors, and the small screw on each side of the subframe assembly near the top. Slide it in carefully so that the tabs on the windscreen don't scratch the paint. Reassemble and hit the road.
Have you ever heard of those fender eliminator kits? Well, don't waste your money. I trimmed mine with a shop knife and sanded the edges smooth. It doesn't cost a penny, you don't have to wait for the UPS truck, and I left enough fender on to keep mud off the back of my bike
Installed a Carbon Fiber Triple Clamp Protector $19.95, and a Carbon Fiber Licence Plate Frame. $19.95. What can I say, carbon fiber gives me a woody. The triple clamp cover looks nice and does what it advertises by eliminating the rings put there by key fobs. I attached the licence plate frame using black allen heads I picked up at the hardware store. I think it is a nice touch to the back end after trimming the fender.
At around 12,000 miles I started experiencing some minor transmission problems. After upshifting into second and getting back on the gas, it would occasionally jump out of gear and hit neutral. My dealer kept it and rode it for a few days but couldn't detect any problems. So I decided to try a shift kit. I purchased a Factory Pro Shift Kit. It was $69 and seems to have corrected the problem. The only difference between the standard and Pro shift kit is that it comes with a detent lever with roller bearing, stick with the standard kit and save yourself $30 as the RF900RR already has a bearing equipped detent lever.
At 17,000 miles I started hearing some noise from the drive chain.
The stock chain is a 532 with 110 links. And if price is any indication, made out of unobtanium. When I found out Suzuki wanted $288 for a new one I said screw that and converted it to a 530. I put a 43 tooth Renthal aluminum sprocket on the rear, and the front sprocket from a 92 GSXR750. That way it will preserve the stock ratio. The 530 chain works out to 110 links also. The Renthal was $65, the front sprocket $9 and the 530 O-ring from RK $82. All together $120 LESS than just the stock replacement chain. And the Renthal reduces unsprung weight at the rear and looks better to boot.Update.I had to replace the aluminum sprocket at 7000 miles. I put another steel one on. I liked the aluminum, but I have better things to spend my money on.
I've been running with an 80/100 headlight bulb for some time now. Sure, I can hear you saying "Hey Bob, that's illegal." Yah, bite me. So is the way most of us ride our bikes. I get flashed once in a while, but that just shows me that it's working. And I've yet to hear of someone getting pulled over to have their headlight bulb checked. People see me better in the daytime, and I can see MUCH better at night.
In May of 96 I got a Vance & Hines SS2r Carbon Fiber slip-on. Very impressive quality. Nothing tricky about the installation. Just make sure you get the aluminum support positioned before you tighten it down so you don't scratch the pipe by moving it around. The baffle that comes with the pipe is excellent. Not too loud around town so you don't attract attention, but it really wakes up when you get on it. It deepens the exhaust note a bunch, sounds very nice.
In June of 96 I installed a set of stainless steel braided brake lines from Russell. The front lines just make good brakes great, but the rear one is worth it's weight in gold. It improves the feel and feedback 500%. I would recommend this addition to anyone.
In October of 96 I purchased a Fiamm horn from my local (100 miles away) Ducati dealer. It was thirty bucks, so I figured it was worth it to see if they worked as advertised. No question, it's a huge improvement over the "joy buzzer" that comes with most of our bikes. During installation I encountered just one problem. The Fiamm can't be grounded when it's attached. So I drilled a small hole in the plastic splash guard below the triple clamp and attached it there. It's slightly larger than the stock horn, so I moved it all the way back against the radiator. No problem.
Near the end of November 97 I had my dealer put a 14 tooth countershaft sprocket (one tooth smaller) on the RF. Talk about a difference. The front end comes up as soon as the needle gets to 7000 RPM. I don't think top speed will drop much either. It probably wouldn't pull redline in top gear before. But I think it will now. And I wouldn't recommend this change to everyone. You have to relearn traction control all over again.
During the same trip to the shop, I also had them install a Race-Tech suspension kit in the forks. Since I had the 94 RF, which doesn't have any front damping adjustments, I wanted to improve the performance of the front end. Mission successful. It is slightly firmer under braking, and much more stable in the corners. Adjusting the damping is just a matter of changing some shims inside the fork tubes. My mechanic says it can be done without removing the front end. It can be accessed by unscrewing the top of the forks where the preload adjustor is located.
In January of 98 had my guys at Sooner Suzuki install an adjustable ignition advancer from Rohm Performance Machine, the guys I mention on the performance parts page. At the same time I had Ray (chief of the service department) install a K&N stock replacement air filter and degree the cams. This is not cheap because of the time involved. And it ended up that my cams were so close that they decided not to modify them. We're going to fine tune the bike over the next couple of months as the weather warms. Right now I'm noticing a slight stumble when I open the throttle all the way at low RPM's. But as soon as it hits 6500, it smooths out and starts lofting the front wheel. We suspect it's a little lean because of the air filter. I'll keep you advised.
I got this account of theVance & Hines Powerpack from Randy in Indiana.
Yes!! it is worth the cash, it will allow you to change your timing as you improve the flow of your engine. The Powerpac is the direct descendant of the EMPAC onboard engine management package used on todays winning drag race and road racing motocycles. The Powerpac controls the heartbeat of your engine by allowing you to set any one of 16 ignition and rev-limit combinations. Powerpac increases the performance of ANY Suzuki motorcycle regardless of engine modifications or riding application. It gives you the onboard control of the ignition curve and rev limit with the flick of a switch. You can set it for stock ignition or one of three higher performance curves. Each timing curve is fully mapped from idle to 14,000 rpm!!, Ignition accuracy is within a fraction of a degree. The microcontroller has high speed timers on board to an accuracy of .000001 second. The interval between each crank pulse is timed and converted to RPM. The micocontroller then reads the dipswitches you have set and determines the proper timing and checks for an overrev condition. After calculating the ignition timing the microcontroller will signal the output stage of the Powerpac to trigger the coils. All of this occurs every half a crank rev, or every .0025 second at 12,000 rpm!!. You can use stock or high performance coils. The system will deliver a hotter spark for faster starts and better high rpm running. You can test the system with your stock unit YOU WILL FEEL THE POWER !. With the Powerpac you have 4 power settings 1. stock 2. sport riding/better low end performance 3. road racing/fast mid range & top end 4. (ball buster) drag racing/ maximum acceleration. Rev limits can be set to stock, +500, +1000, or +2000rpm. I use setting 3 on the street with plus 1000 rpm (with the right mods !!!!), If your going to the strip use setting 4, the timing advance is great with full wide open power (dont use this for the street, the advance is too much unless your running wide open ALL THE TIME!. Back in 95 when I got my Powerpack it cost just under $300.00 bucks. The Powerpac will fit in the same place as the old unit if you remove the rubber supports, just put down a small amount of any good silicone and its done!.. If you want to get crazy (who dont?) you can upgrade your eprom for NOS, turbo and supercharger apps. My gas combo is AMOCO 93 gas with 4 oz. of super 104+ and 4 oz. of Castrol Syntec power system with each fuel up.
I received an Email in April 98 from David Gonzales, and he has made some interesting modifications to his RF. It seems he discovered that the intake cam from a 93-95 GSXR750 will fit, albeit with some minor modifications. He says to drop him an Email if you would like more details on this. He also has started a web site you can check out. I have pictures of his RF and the turbocharged 1200 Bandit he owns on my pics page.
I haven't been able to figure out the off idle stumble the RF picked up when I put the ignition advancer on, so I'm getting a jet kit installed. I ordered a Factory Jet Kit from a new shop here in Oklahoma City called Cycle One. A former employee of Sooner Suzuki (the guys I do most of my business with) opened it up with a friend of his. It should be in by 15 July 98, so I'll have a report soon after.
The Factory Jet Kit has been installed and fixed the carburetion problem I picked up with the addition of the K&N air filter and adjustable ignition advancer. It hasn't added much in the way of H.P., but the flat spot has been eliminated and the throttle is more responsive everywhere. Better throttle control = smoother (and faster) riding. The jet kit was $85 at Cycle 1 here in Oklahoma City.
It's June of 2000 and it's been a while since my last modification. The bike is running great, so I haven't felt the need to mess with it. But I'm starting to get the bug again.
I picked up a pair of aluminum foot pegs made by Emgo. The package is listed as fitting a 93-97 GSXR750. But I can assure you it bolts right on the 94 RF900R.
I've only done the front for now, but I'll do the passenger pegs shortly. Here is what they look like.
The rear pegs are in place now and they look great too. (August 2000)
At 36,000 miles another problem showed up. Whenever the RPM's got above 6,000
or so, black smoke started coming out of the exhaust pipe. And it stumbled real
bad when rolling on the throttle from idle. Both are classic symptoms of
richness. I informed the guys at Cycle 1 and dropped it off. Three weeks later,
they finally (they think) figured it out. My buddy Scott told me it was
"emulsion tubes". Naturally I was somewhat skeptical and busted his
chops about it for a while. Since I trust these guys like a family member I get the bike back in a couple days (6 March 2001), so I'll
let you know if it's fixed.
Got
the bike back (9 March 2001) and it's running great, except that I'm blowing
fuses every mile or so. (this was happening before I dropped it off). Spent
three days trying to track the short down. I think it's in one of my brake
lights. Thanks to my neighbor Pat, we THINK we traced it down to the short wiring harness
in the tail section that services the brake lights, running light, and license
plate light. I ordered a new part ($51), I'll report the results.\
Got
an Email from Martin (of Great Britain) on 19 March 2001. He has converted his
RF900 to dual exhaust courtesy of Renegade
Exhausts. The pipes look great and the company has other options for RF
owners. Here are some pictures of his bikes setup. Pic1
Pic2 Pic3
Pic4 If anyone calls or
Emails these guys, make sure you let them know Martin with the RF900R gets the
sales commission.
