Here are some pictures of my damaged steed:

The front left side is pretty much demolished. We were unable to salvage anything from the front at all. The head of the bike was literally stuck underneath the back of the car I hit.

The fairing stay was bent and twisted. Maybe we can find a place in the city to have them bend it back into shape.

The front fairing is cracked and pieces are missing so there is no super-gluing it back together.

The left turn signal pretty much disintegrated upon impact with the asphalt. No saving anything there.

Now onto the rest.

(more…)

As I mentioned last month, I have done two oil changes, following Moto Tune’s  break-in procedure, on my Gsxr since rolling it off the showroom floor. I did one at 20 miles, to get rid of all those shavings that don’t allow for proper ring/cylinder break-in; and one at 200 miles. All of these miles were ridden with variable loading and engine unloading.  This meant that I never kept the engine steady at 6000rpm like the dealer suggests, but rather always accelerating or engine decelerating. This is so that the cylinder walls are not glazed (which curiously is done by holding the revline steady). The manufacturer’s suggested method tends to overheat the cylinder walls and create thin films which never allows for the rings and cylinders to fit perfectly. So next time your Sale Associate over revs the bike at the stealership, don’t cringe. They are actually doing you a favor, and starting the proper break-in process. Once the bike has reached 200 miles you can start revving the bike closer and closer to the rev-limiter.

(more…)

The Honda XR650R has Acerbis handlebar handguards, Acerbis headlight, and Pro Taper Handlebars.