What to look out for...
Owners and mechanics highlight the weak spots
1 ENGINE
Nothing to see here, move on. There’s the odd camchain tensioner grumble but that usually means it’s about to ratchet to the next position and will quieten down soon. If it bothers you, fit a manual one.
2 ELECTRICS
It’s worth doing a regular check on your charging system, as the regulator/rectifier unit is a known weak link and can damage the (expensive) alternator if it allows over-charging. First check voltage at the battery with the ignition off - it should be between 12V and 12.5V if the battery’s healthy and charged. Start the engine and measure again with the revs held at 4-5000rpm. Now do the same but with the headlights full on. In both cases the voltage should rise to above 14V. If it doesn’t climb that high, the alternator’s not charging properly. Anywhere from 14V to 15V is normal, a little over isn’t a problem. Over 15.5V is a concern as it means the regulator isn’t doing its job.
3 BRAKES
They’re powerful with good feel as long as they’re kept nice and clean. Whipping the pads out at every service and cleaning the pistons, then making sure the pads can move freely in the calipers, will help them stay that way. While you’re down there, check that the bobbins between brake disc and carrier move freely - they clog with dust and corrosion, leading to judder and uneven wear. One tip is use an expanding wall bolt to grip the inside of the bobbin, and turn it with a spanner until it spins smoothly and freely. Don’t oil them, as it’ll end up on your discs. Speaking of which, some trackday riders run larger 320mm discs from other Hondas (’07 Fireblade favourite). It’s an easy swap - you just need longer caliper bolts and 5mm spacers.
4 POOR RUNNING
The number one cause of bad running is problems with fuel delivery, specifically a clogged filter and/or failing fuel pump. The fuel injection system needs a constant 50psi at the fuel rail to work properly, and a flow-rate of about 1 litre/minute. If the pressure and/or flow drops, you get all sorts of problems including bogging down and cutting out. Cleaning the fuel filters and pump might help, and it’s easy enough to hotwire the pump to check the flow-rate but ideally, you
need to get the pump pressure tested to make sure it’s working. It’s also worth checking the Throttle Position Sensor settings, and having a look at the connectors to the injectors - the wires are prone to breaking near the connectors. If it repeatedly cuts out for no reason and it’s a lottery whether it restarts, check the killswitch - they’re notorious for burning-out contacts (the starter button isn’t much better). There are DIY fixes but the best solution is to fit a new switch unit. Also worth thinking about rewiring so the killswitch controls a relay to make the high-current circuit.
5 GEARING
The RR is geared pretty tall overall, because of a relatively close-ratio gearbox for racing, so needs tall gearing for top speed. That means first gear takes you to nearly 70mph at the redline... If you want more snap at lower speeds and aren’t bothered about top speed, it makes sense to lower the gearing. An extra tooth or two on the rear sprocket (up from standard 42) makes a surprising amount of difference - you’ll probably find your speedo is more accurate too.
6 SUSPENSION
The bouncy bits on all models are high quality and need little fettling to achieve a good set-up, according to Darren from suspension specialists MCT (01449 777161): “It’s a bit underdamped at both ends, but there’s really not much needs doing to make it nice. Changing the oil in the rear shock is the biggest thing - makes an improvement, even without any re-valving. At the front, again the oil is the biggest thing on most bikes, we use lighter oil but on the RR it needs slightly heavier oil to give it a bit more damping. Then you can fine tune it with different springs if you need to. The later BPFS are a bit different. Generally an improvement over the older forks but, if anything, they’re a bit over-sprung for the road so we’d recommend slightly lighter springs. And they’re trickier to set up because the compression damping adjuster doesn’t really do much.”
7 MODIFYING
Few owners leave their bikes completely standard but it’s mostly additions and tweaks rather than anything fundamental, at least for road use (serious trackday addicts are a different story). Crash bungs are popular and a double-bubble screen is seen as essential by most owners. For taller riders, a thicker seat pad helps take the strain off the knees and several owners fit bar risers to take the weight off their wrists. Predictably the most popular mod is a lighter, louder exhaust can but beware - you will need a proper dyno setup to get the best out of it. That’s fine but many owners find dyno operators set the bikes up for impressive-looking peak power figures and spoil the excellent original fuelling map low down. Make it clear you want proper low-end driveability.
“The most popular mod is a lighter, louder exhaust can”