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L7 R Upgrades

22K views 94 replies 25 participants last post by  odhogie22 
#1 ·
When I decided to buy Suzuki's latest and greatest liter bike, I put forth a plan to take it from brand new with zero miles, add some tasteful upgrades and then ride it.

This bike will never see a race track and will only be used for a weekend toy. I figured the power output will be more than I could ever use, so performance upgrades will be limited to a Yoshimura Alpha T stainless full system, a derestriction and a custom tune.

As I wait for the soon to be released exhaust, I've been hunting and gathering what parts I could find for this new bike. After hitting the books and taking a few chances, here's what I've found.

First thing I did was to remove the chain and clean it in kerosene to remove the ridiculous amounts of grease. I then hung it up for a week to dry it out. It's totally spotless and has a nice light coating of lube on it. No fling means more time riding and less time cleaning.

This is not an endless chain. It has a riveted master link. If your going to remove the chain, be mindful of this. The link is available from Suzuki. Part number: 27620-17K00. It's a 525 pitch.

Parts I've added:

A Vortex Cat 5 rear sprocket in black. Part number: 435ZCK-45. I kept the stock gearing.
This sprocket is from the '11-'16 GSXR 600-750. Held on with Pro Bolt sprocket nuts, Part number: SPN10BK. Also some blue anodized valve stem covers and caps. They match the wheels perfectly.

Yoshimura fender eliminator with LighTech Stripe LED directionals. These are extremely bright! Part number: FRE906NER for the rear and Hot Bodies clear flush mount LEDs for the front. I bought the cheap E- Bay knock offs first to mock up and check fitment. The stripe units didn't look or fit right up front, So I went with the Hot Bodies.

Being a plug and play type, I went with the Bike Master wire adaptors for the directionals. No splicing into the harness. Part number: 266275. A LED electronic flasher instead of resistors. Part number: Novita LL 552.

CRG Carbon Fiber levers, I took a shot here and they fit perfectly. My gamble paid off. The lever is much firmer and doesn't come nowhere near as close to the bar as the stocker. I think the insert that contacts the master cylinder pin might be the key. These levers are from '11-'14 GSXR 600-750 and '09-'14 GSXR 1000. Part Number: CN-643 for the clutch and CN-511 for the brake. I suspect levers from all makers for these years will work.

I removed the stock pipe, servo and cables. I also removed the smog equipment. Surprisingly, the bike is easy to work on and very well thought out. Remove the rear tail section to get to the servo and remove the tank and air box to get to the smog solenoid and hoses.

Remove the fairings. Cover the inside of the radiator with masking tape. The fins are very fragile and will distort if you even look at them wrong. Remove the radiator and oil cooler brackets and remove the two top radiator bolts. This gives you enough wiggle room to move stuff around to get to the header bolts. The pipe simply drops right out.

Block off plates are not available for the valve cover yet, so I went to Home Depot to look around.
I found these items that will do the job nicely. I first inserted the rubber stopper into the hose port. Part number: 755-472 and then capped it off with part number: 756-587. I did the same with the air box port.

Other misc. parts include a R1 throttle tube from Motion Pro. Part number: 01-0094, Yoshimura stem nut, billet master cylinder cap and Christmas tree plugs inserted to any open holes in the frame and swing arm. If your going to use a Pit Bull fork lift, remove the ABS sensor or risk damaging it.

The only parts I'm waiting for is the Exhaust and Zero Gravity dark smoked double bubble wind screen. I'm very pleased the way this project is coming together.

After that, it's off to Jason Karns, one of the top tuners in the business to work his magic. He states, "You don't need a servo buddy or a resistor for the smog solenoid". His program deletes these parameters.

7/02/17. I installed my R1 throttle tube today. There's a ridge on the end of the tube that was a perfect index for cutting the closed end off. I cut and then smoothed the inside with fine sandpaper.

There was a "slight" amount of interference between the tube and the cable holding screw. It was so little I considered leaving it alone, but I didn't.

I simply removed the screw, ran a nut down it and filed about one and a half threads off. Backed the nut off to chase the threads and reinstalled.

I removed the old grip from the stock tube, used alcohol to mock up the grip fitment. The alcohol lets you move the grip around to get the right spacing.

Once I was sure of the proper spacing, I cleaned everything and used Scotts Grip Stick to adhere the grip to the new tube.

Works perfectly!

Fantastic $10.00 upgrade.

I'll add to this post as the build progresses.
 

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#11 ·
The can is very light. The header is heavy. Just pushing it into the garage, I could feel the difference. I Shit you not!

I'll try to somehow weigh the entire system. Pipe, can, servo, cables and all related parts. I'm thinking the Alpha T will be a great reduction in weight.
 
#23 ·
I first removed the trim piece under the headlight, unplugged the directionals, unsnapped the center chin piece from the right side fairing and removed each half.

Very easy. This bike is a pleasure to work on.

Yes, that's my Roaring Forties GT40 Replica.
 
#27 ·
"This is not an endless chain. It has a riveted master link. If your going to remove the chain, be mindful of this. The link is available from Suzuki. Part number: 27620-17K00. It's a 525 pitch."

Is a removable link safe on high power bikes ?? I am used to using and seeing them on old and low powered bikes !

I would really like to remove my chain to clean it but being endless on my bike makes things awkward.
 
#28 ·
Yes they are. If you think about it, There's no side load on a chain. All the force is in the pull direction. No worries, just find a master link that fits your particular chain. If it's the OEM chain, Chances are good there's a master link available. Buy a good chain rivet tool, learn how to use it, and be done with it.

These rivet master links do not fail if properly installed.

Let me know if you need any help.. I've got this down to a science.
 
#34 ·
Today I weighed the exhaust, smog, and other parts that I removed from the bike.

I weighed these parts on our digital scale and zeroed it out each time.

I feel these weights are very accurate.

Header: 15.5lbs.
Muffler: 7.0lbs
Servo, cables and all removed hardware for exhaust: 1.5lbs.
Smog solenoid and hoses: .5lbs.
Rear fender: 2.7lbs.
Rear foot pegs: 1.3lbs.
Front directionals: 9.3oz.
Chain guard: 4.5oz.
Front reflectors and hardware: 3.0oz.

According to my math, That's exactly 30lbs of weight removed from this bike. That's a big chunk of fat!!

That doesn't include the weight reduction from the aluminum Votex sprocket and the CRG Carbon Fiber levers. Maybe add a pound back for the Yoshimura fender eliminator and LED directionals.

It still ends up about 30lbs lighter.

I could tell it felt lighter just pushing it in the garage, But I'd no idea it was this much.

I'll weigh my Alpha T stainless full system next week when it arrives.

Even if it's 10lbs, 20lbs is a significant weight reduction.
 
#36 ·
awesome!
are you going a titanium system or SS?
i've chosen titanium for mine, i figure if im paying for a system may as well get the best i can.

has akra done a system yet?
 
#38 ·
I went with the stainless. I couldn't justify the extra grand for a bit less weight. I asked Yoshimura if there's any performance gains between the SS and TI, and they said "NO", same design different materials.

Akrapovic has been silent thus far. I suspect we won't see anything from them until next year.

I asked Yoshimura about Akrapovic systems. All he said was, "Try getting customer support if you have a problem" That speaks volumes right there.

Yoshimura and Suzuki go together like Titties and Beer. :lol

Congrats on your TI system.

:cheers
 
#39 ·
Yoshimura exhaust system prices have went up drastically. They use to chat around $800, note they are $1300. Actually, every exhaust manufacturer prices have shot up in the last couple of years. Did the price of steel go to that much? I'm not sure about you but I've never needed a customer support for an exhaust system I just slap it on and think nothing else of it. I guess with there new advisory about there exhaust, you will need great customer service. I'll pass and wait for something better.
 
#40 ·
You definitely make some valid points. Right now there's not many choices. There'll be others getting into the game eventually. Will they be better? Only time will tell.

If something comes along in the next year or two that's "substantially" better, I'll buy it. I'm not loyal to any brand, but right now I'm going with the Yoshimura. If it proves to be at or near the top, I'll keep it.

If the traction control is going to shorten the life of the packing, I think this will affect all pipes from all makers.

I'll never ride this bike hard enough to compromise the pipe, so it's really a non-issue for me. This is just a weekend toy.

I want to clarify.. I didn't feel Yoshimura's response was a dig to Akrapovic in any way, shape or form. He didn't say anything negative about the product.
 
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