Traded 97 F3 for a 06 F4i this weekend
 

Hey All,

I picked up my new(to me) 06 F4i this weekend, its bone stock w/ 14k miles. So what I noticed since I made the switch so far in the 100 miles I've put on.

IMHO
F3-
Had better braking and mid range

F4i-
Has better handling, throttle response and feels lighter

So I have a few questions. The braking sucks on this F4i. So I replace the brake fluid cause I remember when I did this on my old F3 it made a huge difference, I could one finger brake and my old F3 would grab hard w/ very little movement on the lever. I had no luck w/ the fluid change on the F4i, I have to pull the lever hard and it still feels like it don't want to stop at all. I also had to adjust my brake lever to the longest setting(setting 6) just so I can get a good squeeze on the lever as to where my F3 was on setting 1(shortest setting). The back brake on the F4i feels just like my old F3.

There are no air bubbles in the system and the brake pads are good. If anyone has any ideas how to get some better performance out of my front brakes I'm all ears.

The new F4i just got all new 525 Sunstar front and rear sprockets and a new LM 525 Pro 108 link chain put on by the old owner. The new chain and sprockets only have a 100 or so miles on it and I was wondering if I can put a new vortex -1 front sprocket on or is it bad to mix manufactures when it comes to sprockets?

Moses

That is pretty surprising to hear that the F3 has better braking and mid range than the F4i. I would think the F4i would have better mid range being fuel injected and all. As far as the brakes go I would change the pads out that will probably help a lot.

As far as the sprockets I don't see any reason why you couldn't mix the brands. The general rule of thumb is to change the chain and sprockets as a set. If there is only 100 miles on the chain and rear sprocket then I think it would be fine to do. Just remember once you change the front your speedo is going to be off, it will say your going faster than you are which will rack up more miles than you are so you might want to get a speedohealer as well.

I owned a f2 and now a f4i. Since those two are simliar I am guessing you have brake issues. Brakes are better on a f4i than a f3. For mid range that is weird because the f4i is way lighter and has more hp. Then a 06 f4i is more de-tuned it appears than a 01-03

check the pads!!

I have both and if you're saying the brakes are better on the F3, something is up with the brakes on the F4i. My 06 definitely has better brakes than my 95.

Mid-range something is weird there too I'd think. Powerband on my 06 if definitely wider than my 95. And that's after jetting the F3

After pads you might also consider braided lines

I'd spend some time and clean up the discs with some fine sand paper and brake cleaner.

Fit some new pads and clean the caliper pistons. Check for leaks on all the banjo bolts and bleeders.

Good luck

Thx guy!

Since a lot of you said to get new pads, I did. I went through the brakes totally today. I cleaned the calipers and rotors w/ some brake cleaner and a tooth brush. Then went through one more time for pease of mind w/ new brake fluid just to make sure their was no air bubbles.

Now the old girl brakes just as good if not better than my F3.


Thx for all the help :icon_beerchug:

Moses

Glad we could help. Welcome to the money pit club.

LOL wait till you try steel braided lines on the front. The difference was 10x bigger then anything else I've used steel lines on.