handling

[WATERBOY]

Hi , does anyone else have handling issues when riding with Yamaha side boxes on ? especially in high wind

 

[cbrunsw]

I find it can be a struggle in some strong sidewinds here in the foothills of the Rockies. Moreso than my friends cruiser, maybe due to the higher seat height.

 

[hANNAbONE]

no issues with Jesse's Odyssey bags.

 

[Bullett]

IMHO, the Yamaha doesn't blow around as much as my BMW R1200 RT in high winds.

 

[ThatsLife]

Let there be no misconceptions that putting something on a motorcyle that creates more surface area will catch more wind. ::024::

With that being said, I do not have issues with the handling with the Jesse bags in high winds. BTW, This is also my first scoot with side cases and I love it/them.

 

[20valves]

...handling issues...

Can you be more specific?

I have the Yamaha side cases and have ridden in about every condition there is. While I wouldn't say the bike is unaffected in high winds, it's never done anything that surprised or alarmed me, not even close. Maybe you need to get your suspension better balanced, check tire pressure, steering head bearings, bag mounts, etc. Make sure all the basics are in perfect working order and then see if you still have the problem. Based on my experience, sounds like something is amiss with your bike as mine doesn't misbehave with the bags on.

 

[WATERBOY]

Thanks for the input but I have the setup pretty much perfect when the boxes are off and I can really notice the difference when they are on , I am just embarking on a 4000 mile round trip down to Spain from the UK and I plan to stack my luggage on the seat behind me along with the Yamaha top box, I did a similar trip last year with some other guys, one on a GS, one a Multistrada and one KTM 990, they packed their luggage this way , I had the boxes on my super 10 for that trip but the bike was new then so I was still trying out the setup, one thing to add and that was my bike was much better on fuel than all the others ! ::018::

 

[tomatocity]

Very Scary but better than my KLR.

 

[Rasher]

Let there be no misconceptions that putting something on a motorcyle that creates more surface area will catch more wind. ::024::

With that being said, I do not have issues with the handling with the Jesse bags in high winds. BTW, This is also my first scoot with side cases and I love it/them.

::026::

I rod emy bike home about 150 miles in high winds after having the SW-Motech Trax boxes fitted and found it pretty good, I reckon better than the GS I owned before, but probably due to more stable steering than catching less wind. I would say the Tenere is the most stable bike I have ever owned in these conditions, but apart from the GS the rest have all had fairings...

My old ZZR 1400 was awful in high winds even without the boxes

 

[Checkswrecks]

I can't imagine anything better than the FJR in cross winds. After two of them, I was dreading the worst.

After coming across the plains in 115f heat on the my Tenere and my sons' VStrom 1000, both with bags and Givi 52L top boxes, I'll take the Tenere any day. The Strom is known to be bad in cross-winds, but it was to the point that the bike was our speed limiting factor. We'd actually trade off to get a break by riding the Tenere.

I haven't ridden a 12GS in wind for a while, but by memory it would be on par or worse than the Tenere. Certainly not better.

 

[Snowedin]

No worse than any other bike I've had......

Cheers,

Mike

 

[WATERBOY]

I am not criticising the bikes handling at all , in fact i would say it is by far the best handling bike i've ever had it is just that with the side boxes I notice a big difference.
My bikes in the last 15 years have been Yamaha XJR , Yamaha FJR (two of) Kawasaki KLR , Yamaha 660XT,
Yamaha XT 600E, Yamaha XT 500 , Yamaha 900 Diversion , Yamaha 600 Diversion , Yamaha TDM 900 (easily the second best bike) Buell Ulysese ( easily the worst bike in the history of motorcycling !)
Suzuki DR, and before that a whole host of 60s and 70s BSAs and Triumphs, various motorcross and trail bikes , at sometime an early Honda 750.

 

[Twisties]

Thanks for the input but I have the setup pretty much perfect when the boxes are off and I can really notice the difference when they are on ,

Are you increasing the rear preload when you load the bike up? Rear damping? Note that increasing the rear damping requires turning the knob counter-clockwise, IIRC.

 

[EricV]

I am not criticising the bikes handling at all , in fact i would say it is by far the best handling bike i've ever had it is just that with the side boxes I notice a big difference.

You're not really telling us what you feel that's different. How many bikes you've owned doesn't really tell us anything either, with out knowing if you rode them much or not.

What handling characteristics change, or negative ones do you notice with the bags on? Loaded or unloaded? Two up or solo, and how do you normally ride? How many miles on the bike?

And why do you plan to stack luggage on the back of the seat for your trip, when you have perfectly good side bags to use? If it's an off pavement trip, I understand, but if it's mostly pavement riding, what do you hope to gain?

As has been said, pre-load needs to be adjusted with the heavier load. If you're already running a high pre-load, you simply may not be able to adjust it enough. We don't know what's "perfect" for you, so what adjustments to the suspension have you already made?

 

[WATERBOY]

It is as ThatsLife said earlier , it must be all about surface area and side wind effect, but what I apologies for not mentioning earlier is that this my first bike with these type of boxes, on all previous bikes I have always used soft luggage , if I am riding 2 up or fully loaded I will adjust the preload which is a great feature ! But solo and unloaded this is a very stable bike , on most of my previous bikes I have averaged 15000 miles a year , but never before have I noticed such a difference in handling between loaded and unloaded . Most of you guys are more experienced than me with solid luggage so that is why I bought up the subject .

 

[ThatsLife]

Are we talking high speeds, low speeds or both? What's the bike doing that concerns you?

The Yamaha panniers are surely lighter than my Jesse setup. I had to adjust preload after mounting them just to compensate their weight and by doing so dramatically improved low speed handling. I took two tenths off of my lap time!

I'm betting that the problem is suspension setup and if it is then I'm sure you'll get it sorted.

 

[Brntrt]

Never had a problem in high winds on my Tenere. Wait a minute, that's right I don't have side cases, I have Gian Loop Great Basin Bags!! I did have HT cases on my KLR and yes high winds, side cases and KLR spelled disaster. Based on my KLR experience I've decided to shy away from hard cases.


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Mark

 

[viewdvb]

Thanks for the input but I have the setup pretty much perfect when the boxes are off and I can really notice the difference when they are on , I am just embarking on a 4000 mile round trip down to Spain from the UK and I plan to stack my luggage on the seat behind me along with the Yamaha top box, I did a similar trip last year with some other guys, one on a GS, one a Multistrada and one KTM 990, they packed their luggage this way , I had the boxes on my super 10 for that trip but the bike was new then so I was still trying out the setup, one thing to add and that was my bike was much better on fuel than all the others ! ::018::

I second the fuel comment. I've just moved from a 1200 Multistrada and a Pan European and the Yamaha is better than both. The Yamaha with boxes isn't too bad. It is not ever scary even in nasty viaduct cross winds. You want scary, try a GL1800. I've just completed a 3000 mile European trip two up, panniers (Givi) and top box with no problems though I would never use a top box solo as something seems to happen with the airflow over the rider and the top box that isn't nice. Perhaps the stuff on the seat will mimic a passenger and fill in that nasty vortex behind the rider. On the other hand, if you need boxes, top box and luggage behind you travelling alone, maybe you should consider a truck.

 

[Monty]

Hi folks,

I agree with comments above pointing at the suspension settings. I have BIG Holan cases on my S10 and with them loaded and with a passenger the handling would be pretty bad unless I set up the suspension.

Now with the Wilbers I can still feel the extra weight but the handling is sharp and causes no issues. I don't notice any particular wind issues. Not with the bike anyway. 8)

Regards,

Matt

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