A bitta help!

There are two types of fzr's : 2kr and 3ln.

2kr models have a steel box frame and twin headlights, and could be manufactured in 1988 or 1989 (the box frame is about 2 cm's wide). 3ln models have the deltabox aluminium frame (the main support is about 10 cm's wide). These were manufactured mid 1989 through 1994. The 1989-1991 models typically had twin headlights, 1992-1994 had a single headlight. The fzr250 was not built past 1994, so any new bikes were just recently imported and complianced.

The engine is the same in them (I beleive the engine designation is '1hx' and both have the exup valve), with the only difference being the frame - the deltabox is supposed to provide a little more control but adds 4 kg's to weight. The 3ln also has wider tires, and definitely looks much more modern. The exup valve simply controls the amount of exhaust escaping - essentially building back pressure in the exhaust system - which gives the bike better power in the mid range of revs (between 6000-12000 revs).

I have heard rumours of a 1987 model that was identical to the 1988 2kr model without the exup valve, but have never seen one so can't tell you anything about it.

The designation of the fzr, such as the 'fzr250r' is pretty much just paint. I have seen 'fzr250r', 'fzr250rr', 'fzr250r2', and just 'fzr250'. Typically, 2kr models are labelled just fzr250's, and 3ln's are fzr250r's, but that isn't always the case. Often importers/resellers are repainting/badging them to make them sound more modern and likable. Thus the fzr250rr (to compete with the cbr250rr), and fzr250r2 (to sound like an 'r6' or 'r1'). Just labelling. I am guessing that your bike, being a fzr250r, will be a 3ln model - especially if it was just complianced.

And congrats on the purchase! I had mine for over 2.5 years, and never looked back. Great bike, and will outlast the learning period. Just make sure you do regular oil changes (every 5000 k's - takes 20 minutes), regular oil filter changes (every 10 000 k's - takes an hour or so), and clean / relube your chain every 1000 k's or more (takes 5 minutes). If you do this the bike will last a lot longer and work much better.

When you get it post a pic for all of us to see!

 

Just a note.. I don't know much either but it seems the FZR250r has a twin disc front end, unlike my plain fzr which has the one disc.. (similar to how the cbr's are done) is that right?
But my plain fzr keeps up with a cbr250rr no problems.. <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s -->

 

told you i didn;t know much about bikes!! i stand corrected after reading the other posts <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_redface.gif" alt="" title="Embarassed" /><!-- s -->

 

On the discs - the 3ln has dual braking discs, the 2kr has single (but larger). Braking power - despite the dual discs - is about the same because of the increased size on the 2kr.

There are 3 different shapes to an fzr, corresponding to the 2kr (twin headlight), the twin headlight 3ln, and then single headlight 3ln. Both bikes with the twin headlights look similar, but some differences can be noted such as where the air intake is. The single headlight model has much stronger lines on it, and is 'pointier'.

Performance wise - a well tuned fzr will keep up with any other well-tuned 250 four-stroke sports bike, this includes cbr's, cbr-rr's, and zx-2r's. Some other bikes have similar horsepower, but are heavier (i.e. suzuki across). However tuning means a lot to these high performance 250's, so minor problems with carbies or exup valve can cause problems. I have been told that the fzr can reach 100 k/hr in around 6 seconds, which is typically considered two-stroke territory. I had my bike up to ~160 k/hr and was revving around 15000 revs - so had 3000 left before red line so could have gone a bit faster (the bike could have, I couldn't <!-- s:shock: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_eek.gif" alt=":shock:" title="Shocked" /><!-- s:shock: --> ). While the fzr won't compare to a larger bore sports bike, it is in the top of the 250's in performance. It will beat virtually any Harley on the road from the lights too... (simply due to power:weigh ratio) <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s -->

Oh - and your deal seems pretty good. Brand new ones are selling for 5500-6000 usually, so 4400 for 14 000 k's seems good, especially for one just complianced.

 

I can't tell you whether it is really a good deal or not. Looking at http://www.bikepoint.com.au I can see similar similar mileage 2kr models ranging from 3990 up to 6000. So your deal is still reasonable, but I wouldn't say 'exceptional'. The fzr is a strange bike in terms of sales simply because people don't know what to expect from them (simply because they are not that popular compared to the cbr), which is why the prices vary so much. The 2kr performs just as well as the 3ln, so you need not worry about performance issues. (I owned a 2kr until last friday, selling it after 2 years and almost 30 000 k's)

There is another issue - resale value - as I assume you will want to upgrade soon after getting off restrictions. I am reliably informed that SA is adopting the 150kw/tonne scheme (power:weight ratio) by years end - this is similar to the LAMS scheme in operation in NSW and some other states. This means you could consider a bigger bike, provided the power to weight ratio is below the value above. This would give you more options in terms of purchasing IF you could wait that long (I don't know the specifics of when). On the other side, it also means that if you buy a 250 cc bike now then by years end it won't be as desirable simply because people have an increased choice of bikes to purchase, and I would expect many to choose a bigger bike rather than the 250 cc.

Personally - and these are my opinions only - if it were my first bike, I would definitely want to test ride it. Further seeing how the power:weight scheme seems likely to come into play I wouldn't want to spend too much money on a bike because of loss of resale value. I would instead look for a bike 'close to home' so that I could test it, and also one that is cheap (after all, it is likely only to be used to learn on). A quick search on <!-- w --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.bikesales.com.au">www.bikesales.com.au</a><!-- w --> revealed: http://tinyurl.com/2q7q2 and is one that I possibly would consider.

 

Tim. just a note with bike prices.. i got mine 2 months ago, it's 88 with 39,000km on it, single seat rego (till jan next year) and it cost me $2,500... it's not the prettiest bike in the world but nice to ride.
In qld, we have a thing here called Q ride weith bike licences, you guys know about it?

 

You aint not the only one not knowin about bikes tanya.. im still learning heaps myself!

Timmy as for buyin a bike... request that the bike is not warm when you get there.. you are best to start it from it being cold for a while so you can hear from starting issues.. cause alot of things can play into that.

Be sure to check the bike in the day time, look for crash areas.. like the engine covers, forks bent, anything that can be damaged.. as it may cause u more in expense if its related to something severe.

Be sure to try and check under the fairings.. my damn oil sump was glued on !! i paid $250 to get a new one put on.. cause i couldnt change my oil except through the oil sensor.. but things u goin miss that u cannot find until later.. .like my headlights that point to the sky and never on the road... i need to get new headlights to fix that issue.

check common things liek a car,, tyre tread.. u can ask for discount for that if they are worn.. hear the bike runnin.. if it dont sound right... then its tellin u sometrhing.. ur gut feelin can usually tell if it sounds sweet or not.

when riding use of the levers slowly so u can feel how smoothly they work, then pace it up and do abit flat changing to see how it goes.. after riding it.. smell the bike.. look for leaks.. smell wrong.. probably goin cost u a shitload i rekon then.

my mechanic told me the grey import bikes when they arrive in australia the clock is wind back quite abit... cause he said lookin at my discs it had like 60k instead of 30k.. so dont be so worried about the Ks.. just keep an eye out on the condition.

and anything that dosent loook right... try and talk the price down.!

good luck with ur purchase.. i aint goin re read this so any mistakes.. pffft who cares hehe im goin sleep <!-- s:zzz: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_sleeping.gif" alt=":zzz:" title="Sleeping" /><!-- s:zzz: -->

 

A very extensive guide can regarding buying a bike is at: http://www.clarity.net/~adam/buying-bike.html. I printed this list and brought it with me when I bought my new bike. The dealer didn't seem to mind - I went through the list systematically.

Some other things that I would quickly check in addition to what Dean has said (these are on the list above):
- Sit on the bike, roll forward, and then hit the front brakes hard just to get some compression on them. Do this a few times, then check the forks for oil. If there is some oil seals need to be replaced (cheap parts but time consuming). If seals are shot this early in the bikes life it may be an indication of abuse (i.e. stoppies etc).
- After the bike is warm, sit it in neutral and rev it to 10000-12000. Look for smoke. Blue smoke = very bad (oil). White smoke = may need carbie tuning, but nothing too severe. Ideally there should be no smoke.
- Check chain and sprockets. Look for warping on the sprockets. With the chain (while still cold), pull the back of the chain around the sprockets. If it pulls off the sprockets slightly it indicates that it is stretched, and a new one may be required. THis shouldn't be a problem if the bike has only done 7500 k's.

Anyways - good luck with it! Sounds like a good deal, and hopefully after you have a look at it you still think so!

 

Hey Boz, nice link to how to check out a bike before buying. Wish I had that went I bought my bike. I seem to have missed a fair amount of stuff. But I'm still happy with me ride.

 

Don't know why it wouldn't start, but it likely will be a minor problem (hopefully) - fuses, flooding, etc. Tanya and Hammer may be able to help you out here... <!-- s:roll: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_roll.gif" alt=":roll:" title="Rolling LoL" /><!-- s:roll: -->

But sounsd like you got a good deal! The fzr250 is very revvy, and it has virtually no power until 6000 rpm, and peak power around 12-14000 rpms - thus no need to go above this unless racing. If just cruising along I used to try and keep my rpms around 7-8000.

I do hope your bike starts this morning. If not let us know, and we will try to troubleshoot based upon your explanations. (you should hear two things when you turn the bike on but not starting it yet: 'tick-tick-tick...' of the fuel pump and 'whirrr' of the exup motor. You won't always hear the fuel pump if you are starting it while still warm)

 

If it's starting then that is good - full choke is normal in the cooler temps. I do hope that the battery is the only problem (though if the bike was running then usually it won't just die). Quick question - did it, while riding, just stop being able to rev, and then when you let go of the throttle it died and not start again? (I ask this because this is a relatively common occurence on fzr 250's - simply means the exup needs adjustment which is quite easy to do. It always used to happen to me just as I was approaching lights and was reducing throttle)

The lights are hardwired - sort of. On the right hand box where the starter and kill switch are there is likely a sticker that says 'FZR', or it could be blank tape, or it may not be there at all (skip the next step if this is the case). You can remove this sticker and you will reveal a hollow into the box where the light switch should be. If you open this box (2 screws at bottom - relatively easy to put back together) you will see a white cover inside. Remove this and you will finally reveal that there is an actual switch in there, but something will be put in to keep it in the on position. Mine had some sort of putty in there. I pulled this stuff out, fabricated a switch (took a metal sheet, cut it to approximate size, put a whole in the middle to attach to the screw, and bent/twisted it until it fit) and I had a light switch. THis is the case with my old bike and one other fzr I looked at - not sure about them all.

The hardwiring is a left-over of early to mid 90's when Australia had a design rule saying that all bikes must have headlights on at all times. This has been overturned, and some bikes now have switches (though most still have them hardwired because other markets still need them hardwired).

 

It is a good link, and quite comprehensive. Perhaps too comprehensive though (takes too much time). It was pointed out to me a while back on another forum I am on (<!-- w --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.netrider.org.au">www.netrider.org.au</a><!-- w -->), so I can't take the credit for finding it...