Thinking of owning a Rocket since 2004, have some newbie questions

shadowarrior

.020 Over
Joined
Oct 15, 2016
Messages
16
Location
Gold Coast, AU
Ride
Kawasaki ZRX1200S
Hello from Down Under. I am in South East Queensland.

I wanted to own a Rocket since I first saw it's unveiling back in 2004 NEC show. Finally I can see myself getting close to owning one.

Its going to be a hard game to manage my budget along side my expectation, but am trying my best to stretch the budget and cull some expectations.

Had some questions which I thought would be best to ask here.

I am after a Roadster. Some of the models am looking at are 2010 model. They have 40,000+ kms on them. (Found a 2014 one with almost 45,000kms on it :|).

With that amount of kms on the bike, what are the things to look out for?

What is included in it's lifespan of major service history? Valve Adjustment?

I never had a bike with driveshaft, so bit concerned about failures, specially when buying used motorbikes. Are shaft servicing (lubing etc) part of major service? If I pick up something with 45,000 kms on it, am I looking at spending on valve adjustment/drive shaft service soon?

How expensive are those services? (Valve Adjustment/Drive Shaft Service/Drive shaft replacement?)

Do I have to worry about any year models or recalls around the 2010 Roadsters?

Should I push my budget more and get a lower km bike. From the looks of it am seeing two extremes, either really low kms (less than 8,000kms in 2011 models and so on) or high kms (40,000+ kms).

Any other tell-tale signs to look out for when going to inspect those bikes?

Thanks in advance! :)
 
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Welcome from Florida,your local dealer should be able to tell you a history of a bike just take the vin # in.I would buy one with the lowest milage that you can afford major services are done every 20,000 miles.Driveshaft splines should be greased every 10,000 mi. or when rear tire is changed.Others with R3's will give you more info.Hope this helps.
 
Hello Shadowarrior and welcome from Virginia. With a name like that, I either expect your are a big Honda fan or have worked at Campbell barracks. Or maybe a lot of video games. Anyway welcome to the show!
Any of the R3Rs you look at are going to be free from the early issues some Rockets had so you are safe there. To a large extent, high miles are not a bad thing. That means the bike has not sit around wasting away. Granted parts do wear down with usage, but I do not fear high mileage as a rule as long as the owner can show me a good maintenance record. Some low mileage bikes are tough to get going if they have sat for any length of time. Fuel goes bad and is a pain to rectify. But that is true of any bike.
As already mentioned, the value check is every 20,000 miles. Most on here do their own periodic inspections. Me however, do not have the place, tools or skills to do much more than an oil or light change. I am about to take my bike in for the 40,000 mile check and it will run me about $500 here in the US.
With this drive shaft, work is not tedious like checking the tension on a chain every 500 miles. Just make sure that each time the rear tire is off for changing that the splines are wiped clean, inspected and high grade Molly grease applied. Many folks here believe that Honda's brand of molly is the best out there.
As for tells to look on these rides, there is not any historically bad items on 2010 and newer bikes that I am aware of. However, on a bike like mine that sits under a cover all night (I have no garage) and is ridden year round in everything except snow, give the bike a good corrosion look around. Check the battery cables (just replaced my negative with two new ones; starts better than ever). I had to replace my left electrical bar assembly due to rain intrusion (the only one to date according to Triumph North America) and so on. There really is very little else to be concerned with.
I hope you are keeping that little Kawasaki. They are disappearing up here and I always thought they were a great bike for long trips through the hills.
 
Thanks Fingers! I will look at those service records to verify proper care taken.

Heya Boog. Spot on about the video games! In fact I work in the video games industry, only industry I have worked in, getting close to two decades now :) The Rex is a fun machine, and it has been quite comfortable for long trips as well as short trips up some twisties. Been a member of ZRXOA, with bunch of active members from the US, they love their Rex. Did Melbourne to Gold Coast (around 1800kms) with the Mrs on the pillion in two days without any trouble. I however enjoy the long trips over short mountain runs, hence I think the Rocket 3 will fit right in. Sadly, Mrs says only one two wheeler can stay, so the Rex has to go when the Rocket comes in :(

You are correct about bikes (or any vehicle) sitting around for too long and not being used. I will look for service logs and I guess that should give me an idea if they were taken care of. I do some small work on my bike and cars, I am sure with some help from the folks here I can pick on some more knowledge. I won't have to re-jet carbs on a rocket 3...that is both a good thing as well as a bad thing. Re-jetting and tuning carburetors was always a good challenge and fun when you finally get everything right without busting spark plugs anymore!

My Rex has 67,000 kms now; bought it with 20,000. The previous ZX6R Ninja had 90,xxx and neither of the engines skipped a beat!. You are right, the secret is how they are cared for through their life.

Hey Mike! Thanks for the welcome. Would all the Roadsters have ABS?

Are any particular Roadster year models easier to mod than others?

Things on my list:
- A good air filter (probably K&N) along with headers and exhaust change. Need something which has improved intake and exhaust than am assuming the choked stock option. Bonus if I can make it sound good. I think a Power Commander or something will need to be accounted for if I go this way?
- Highway pegs.
- Clip on front weather shield for long trips.
- Luggage system. My ZRX has Ventura racks and a Rjays 80l bag (RJays Expandable Explorer Rack Bag). Something similar would be ideal.
- I have read the newer Rockets don't use Lucas lighting and have improved the design. As long as they are adequate for long trips, I will keep them standard.

This is one of the bikes on my shortlist right now. Is AUD $14,990 for 2010 Roadster with 45,000kms too expensive? I think they are around $20,000 brand new?

http://www.bikesales.com.au/private/SSE-AD-3755058/2010-Triumph-Rocket-III-Roadster/?cr=0&psq=((((((((SiloType=[Brand new bikes available]|SiloType=[Brand new bikes in stock])|SiloType=[Dealer used bikes])|SiloType=[Demo & near new bikes])|SiloType=[Private used bikes])&Make=[Triumph])&State=[QLD])&BikeAll=keyword[rocket])&Service=[Bikesales])&pso=0&pss=Price
 
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Thanks Fingers! I will look at those service records to verify proper care taken.

Heya Boog. Spot on about the video games! In fact I work in the video games industry, only industry I have worked in, getting close to two decades now :) The Rex is a fun machine, and it has been quite comfortable for long trips as well as short trips up some twisties. Been a member of ZRXOA, with bunch of active members from the US, they love their Rex. Did Melbourne to Gold Coast (around 1800kms) with the Mrs on the pillion in two days without any trouble. I however enjoy the long trips over short mountain runs, hence I think the Rocket 3 will fit right in. Sadly, Mrs says only one two wheeler can stay, so the Rex has to go when the Rocket comes in :(

You are correct about bikes (or any vehicle) sitting around for too long and not being used. I will look for service logs and I guess that should give me an idea if they were taken care of. I do some small work on my bike and cars, I am sure with some help from the folks here I can pick on some more knowledge. I won't have to re-jet carbs on a rocket 3...that is both a good thing as well as a bad thing. Re-jetting and tuning carburetors was always a good challenge and fun when you finally get everything right without busting spark plugs anymore!

My Rex has 67,000 kms now; bought it with 20,000. The previous ZX6R Ninja had 90,xxx and neither of the engines skipped a beat!. You are right, the secret is how they are cared for through their life.

Hey Mike! Thanks for the welcome. Would all the Roadsters have ABS?

Are any particular Roadster year models easier to mod than others?

Things on my list:
- A good air filter (probably K&N) along with headers and exhaust change. Need something which has improved intake and exhaust than am assuming the choked stock option. Bonus if I can make it sound good. I think a Power Commander or something will need to be accounted for if I go this way?
- Highway pegs.
- Clip on front weather shield for long trips.
- Luggage system. My ZRX has Ventura racks and a Rjays 80l bag (RJays Expandable Explorer Rack Bag). Something similar would be ideal.
- I have read the newer Rockets don't use Lucas lighting and have improved the design. As long as they are adequate for long trips, I will keep them standard.

This is one of the bikes on my shortlist right now. Is AUD $14,990 for 2010 Roadster with 45,000kms too expensive? I think they are around $20,000 brand new?

http://www.bikesales.com.au/private/SSE-AD-3755058/2010-Triumph-Rocket-III-Roadster/?cr=0&psq=((((((((SiloType=[Brand new bikes available]|SiloType=[Brand new bikes in stock])|SiloType=[Dealer used bikes])|SiloType=[Demo & near new bikes])|SiloType=[Private used bikes])&Make=[Triumph])&State=[QLD])&BikeAll=keyword[rocket])&Service=[Bikesales])&pso=0&pss=Price

Maybe it's just me, and it could be the country you're in. But 14,000aud seems really high.

They're going for closer to 7000usd (9000aud) here.
 
Maybe it's just me, and it could be the country you're in. But that seems really high.

Rockets are tad bit expensive over here I think (along with almost every other thing :( ). AUD $20,000-$22,000 for a brand new one compared to I think USD $15,500 for you guys over there?
Having said that, AUD $15,000 for an almost 8 year old bike with 45,000kms seem to be high IMO. I could be wrong. Not sure how Rockets hold their value over the years. :|
 
I think the ABS came in about 2012 but might have been earlier
Ramair filter will run about $200
Exhaust pretty much as much as you want to spend but bank on the $2000 mark minimum
Yep the beasts cost round 22k new so 15k might be a bit high not sure but see what else is out there to cmpare prices
 
G'day Shadowarrior, from Victoria. I too had wanted a rocket for years and last month purchased a 2010 R3R with 16000km for $15K on road. The thing is a beast! I got a decent improvement from having Triumphs own after market pipes fitted (only $700, cheaper than replacing the stock pipes) and a K &N high flow filter ($120). She hits the electronically limited 200kph limit in a heart beat! I wouldn'tworry about the shaft drive, they're meant to be pretty much bullet proof given the adaquate maintenance. Much better then a chain or belt. Looking at the service records, the first 16000km service cost the previous owner around $800. That's not bad considering the large intervals in the servicing. Best of luck anyway and hope you get what you're looking for.
 
Welcome from another Aussie drop me a "conversation" if you need any of the restrictions removed or just moved up (speed limiter can be adjusted up to 299km) via TuneECU, oh if you need a unrestricted tune please include your email address.
 
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