I have an 03 600RR with 50,000 miles on it. I bought it new. Runs strong, no oil consumption etc. As a matter of routine maintenance considering my mileage I decided to do a compresion test with the following results

#1 137 PSI
#2 138 PSI
#3 136 PSI
#4 139 PSI.

Normally I would be very pleased with these numbers as they are very even across the board considering the mileage. But, in my service manual (Honda) it states on page 9-6 that I should have a minimum of 178 PSI on each cyclinder. It just doesn't seem right the bike would perfrom perfectly and be down this much on all four cyclinders. I am wondering if in producing the manual for the 2003 (first generation 600RR), Honda made a mistake in stating the min levels.
Tried finding a contact number/e-mail for Honda US or Honda Canada - no luck.

Has anyone else done a compression test on their RR - especially the 03, I would very much appreciate some feedback on your findings.

Thanks in advance.

 

The number for American Honda Customer Service is (866) 784-1870. They will know if anything is up, just ask them. All you need is your VIN. The other thing to note is that if they started to fail, they would not fail that evenly. Things such as the rings wearing out, or worn valve seals would not leave numbers that close to each other. I would try again on a different compression tester before you become concerned.

 

just did a compression and leak down test on my 03 cbr600rr while diagnosing a overheating problem just to make sure my engines in good health internally. Met up with a Honda expert and was told compression should be as high as 220 and as low as 120 (it’ll run that low but will run like a dog, super down on power)

cyl 1 had 210, cyl 2 had 205, cyl 3 had 205, and cyl 4 had 200.

Expert said cyl 4 will usually be a bit lower than the rest for some reason and that anywhere between 170-220 is right in the range of a healthy motor. Hope this helps even though this thread is ancient

 

Type of gauge you use will change readings as well. If you have gauge with release valve near tip of adapter where spark happens, you'll have higher more accurate compression readings.

If you have gauge with release valve at other end of hose by gauge, you'll get lower readings because internal volume of hose will be included in combustion-chamber volume. Depending upon actual displacement of cylinder, this can lower readings by -20-40%.