2011 Farkles Fanfares and Frustrations

[Shakey]

Forgive the titluar assonance but if you check out my avatar and site name you'll see that it may run in the family

Well now, I had to wait so long for my bike to be delivered and then for work to allow me to return home and play with it that it was only natural that I should, ahem, pre-order some nice farkles for it.

However, apart from my Givi rack success, a Mudsling and fender extender (the fanfares) I've found fitting these to be a bit frustrating;

1. Repair cable to allow power to my Zumo 660 from the "spare" connector
Nice idea but as yet I haven't been able to find that spare connector despite having cut several zip ties. I'd delve deeper but for the suspicion that it may have been eaten by Chilean miners. Net result is I have run the Garmin loom back to the battery as per the last 3 bikes. The in-line fuse will protect it. I would have fitted my newly acquired Fuzeblock but see item 3.

2. I have always been a huge fan of Baglux harnesses and tank bags but I didn't want to spoil the looks of the tank so I opted to go for the SW-Motech / Bags Connection bag with the mounting that fits on the filler cap ring. Beware, because Motech have modified this especially for the 2011 bike and the new item is as available as hen's teeth. I'm having to return the one I was incorrectly supplied, cancel my order with another supplier who almost supplied me the '09-10 item and then pay to have the right thing couriered to me from Germany.

I will put on record here that SW-Motech and Motohaus.com (UK distributor) have given me the best customer service I have experienced in many a long year Thank you Carmen and Bonnie

3. HEY! who stole all the space from under the seat? I could hide a heap of stuff under there on the FJR....
I just about made space for my Fuzeblock power distribution but then realised that the thing I wanted to power from it - my Autocom Pro - won't fit! So now I'm forced to go the Bluetooth route by using a SCALA rider G4 Power set although the benefit of this is that me and my wife can talk to each other bike-to-bike as long as we're not more than 500 meters apart. So that being the case I don't actually need to put my Fuzeblock under the seat at all
What about my puncture repair kit? my do-it-all toolboxette? my visor cleaner spray and cloths? etc. etc. etc. Iguess I'll have to go retro and get a bum bag

So much frustration and only 130 miles on the clock as yet

I think it's time to cease farkling and just ride.

[xbpod]

Shakey

The satnav plug is under the tank at the front, if you remove the black plastic trim it is on the left hand side looking from the front.

Pete.

[Shakey]

Pete,
There was indeed a single plug there but it wasn't compatible with the repair cable.

[websterize]

There was indeed a single plug there but it wasn't compatible with the repair cable.

On the 2009, the GPS connector is zip-tied to the throttle-side frame. The connector is black and gray. Here it is in the light of day:



The GPS connector plugs into the yellow BMW repair plug (part 83300413585) shown here with a zumo 660 mount:



Does the GPS connector on your 2011 look different than the black and gray connector in the first photo?

[xbpod]

That looks the same as on my 2011.

Pete.

[Shakey]

Bill, Pete,
Thanks for the advice and photos. The connector I did find was on the clutch side of the bike so I obviously wasn't looking hard enough or in the right place

One benefit of wiring direct back to the battery is that it the cable is just about the right lenght so it ties into the bike very nicely. I'll leave it like that for the time being and see how it goes.