It all started in April 1989. I had a mate who'd just bought a brand new Yamaha FZR600. Very trustingly, some might even say foolishly, he let me ride it at Suzuki’s Mallory Park track day. I loved it, it was the first bike I’d ridden which actually steered and braked better than my Suzuki GSXR750H. I decided that I had to have one.
I got my chance when the GSXR was stolen in November. By January I had a £3000 insurance pay out which was enough to buy a nearly new FZR600 as the depreciation had, as usual, been stunning (they’d cost £4000 only 9 months earlier). It took me a couple of weeks to find one as there weren’t many in MCN in the middle of winter, but I managed to track down a good one for £3150.
The only problem was that the owner lived in South Wales and I live in Central London. We arranged to meet halfway at Swindon station and the bike changed hands in the middle of 1990's great hurricane for £3050. All I had to do was ride it back to London up the M4, which was one of the crazier rides of my 15 years of motorcycling.
Having got home unscathed, I checked the bike over thoroughly. It was immaculate, as it should have been at only 9 months and 4000 miles old. The front pads were worn out, as was the front tyre, thanks to the excellent 298mm double disc front end - as I am old enough to remember when most bikes came with drum brakes, I can't share the editor's enthusiasm for them.
The bike was otherwise very clean and seemed easy to work on, like most modern Jap bikes. I changed the tyres for a set of track compound Avons and the pads for Ferodos, a procedure which was to become familiar to me over the following months... thus equipped it was ready for its first serious outing, which was a track day at Castle Combe circuit organised by Heron Suzuki. The brakes and handling were as good as I’d remembered and the power was as good as my Suzuki, but in a smaller package.
The only problem was that riding it down to the circuit (about 100 miles) had shown up the bike’s major shortcoming - FZRs are not known for their comfortable seats, although its lower footrests meant that my legs didn't get as cramped as they had on the Suzuki. l was a little worried about taking it to Le Mans shortly afterwards because of the comfort angle, but it turned out to be fine and indicated 145mph on the long straights on the way there. After Le Mans l fitted a new rear tyre. The Avon had lasted 2500 miles.
In May we took a trip to Nurburgring which we’d visited several times before. This is an amazing place which has to be seen to be believed. An old Grand Prix track, it's 14 miles long and winds around the side of a mountain. It's very fast, quite bumpy and lined with dangerous Armco. You can turn up and pay about £3 to have a go. The FZR was brilliant around there, its power and handling are very well balanced and it doesn’t try to keep spitting you off like the bigger bikes. When it started raining I realised the front Avon was knackered as it kept sliding away going into corners, but the bike’s handling was forgiving enough to let you get away with this sort of silliness. When I got back to England I had to buy a new front tyre, a Michelin Hi-Sport radial. This was an -» unbelievably sticky treat and worked very well at Goodwood.
The head gasket developed a slight weep which I had fixed under warranty, as was the clutch which had started slipping slightly. This is a definite weak spot and you should budget for new plates and stranger springs when buying used. Fortunately, the clutch is easy to access and you don't even have to drain the oil as you can lean the bike over on the sidestand. These were the only problems I had with the bike all year.
In between race track outings the bike was my everyday transport on the road, where it was very well balanced whether in Central London traffic or on the motorway. Fuel consumption varied between 30mpg on the track and up to 50mpg on the road at legal speeds. It really was a great all rounder, as can be shown by the fact that in July my girlfriend and I decided to go to France for the weekend. We covered 800 miles two up with no problems, although the handling deteriorated a bit two up. The girlfriend didn't complain about pillion comfort; as she is not a woman known for suffering in silence this must be true! Not bad for an out and out race replica. We had a great time gently touring northern France and southern Belgium; eating and drinking excessively.
When I got back to the UK, it was time for another tyre. This time I fitted a Michelin to match the front, this was an excellent combination, but on the track you could see chunks coming off the tread when it got hot - and it had cost £85! Never mind, I thought, at least I'd have a good pair of tyres for the next German trip.
Unfortunately, just before this August bank holiday thrash I went to another track day at Goodwood to limber up. By the end of the day the front HiSport was completely knackered. I didn't know what to do as I wasn't expecting to wear out a front tyre after only 2000 miles and with the German trip coming up I couldn't afford another new tyre. Luckily, a friend came to the rescue with a used Metzeler ME1 that had only done one meeting.
This was a completely brilliant tyre that gripped as well as the Michelin but lasted much better. I also replaced the pads again, they had lasted about 6000 miles which I thought was OK considering how hard they'd been used and that I weigh 18 stone. I think the bike had a back brake but I never used it, as the front brake would lift the back wheel even with my bulk on it
The trip to Nurburgring was a great success. Twelve of us went and we all came back, which was a bit surprising. As I'd come to expect, the bike was great, cruising at up to 135mph on the motorway on the way there and lapping the track as quick as anything else. It did rather better than the Porsche 911 which a mate hired from a local firm - he ended upside down in a ditch before even getting to the track. As he said, it just went whoosh! When the German police fined him about £30 for careless driving they told him they were the cheapest in Europe!
When I got back from Germany I faced a bit of a dilemma. I could either keep the bike and miss the Bol D'Or or sell it, buy a cheaper one and go. I haven’t missed a Bol since 1984 and I really wanted to go. Reluctantly I put the bike in the paper. I was helped in my decision by the fact that it needed another new clutch, a new pair of tyres and a set of pads, although with 14,500 miles up it would still clock 145mph, so I didn't think there was anything wrong with the engine.
It took a couple of weeks to sell but it went to the first person to look at it for £2950, just £100 less than I'd paid for it 7 months and 10000 miles previously. It had worn out three sets of tyres and two sets of brake pads. Apart from changing the oil every 2000 miles and the filter every 4000 miles that was the - only expense I'd had apart from the clutch. I bought an FZ750 for £2000 which left me plenty of cash to go to the Bol.
David Black