brake pedal position.

[alantf]

In most (all?) of the bike photos I've seen on the site, it seems as though the brake pedal is set pretty high up. This looks as though you have to ride with your toe under the pedal then move all of your foot from the peg to the pedal when you want to use the brake. Mine came set up like this when I bought it (new), but I've set the pedal to the Suzuki spec of around 2" above the peg, which means that my toe is hovering just above the pedal when I'm riding, so I can press down without having to move my foot. Two questions - why do they come with the pedal not set to Suzuki spec, & does everyone feel comfortable having to move their whole foot. My personal feeling is that those few milliseconds might make all the difference in an emergency stop.

[adrianinflorida]

I'd rather the pedal set below my foot when it's resting on the peg, I'll have to adjust mine when I get a chance

[Easy Rider]

This looks as though you have to ride with your toe under the pedal then move all of your foot from the peg to the pedal when you want to use the brake.

does everyone feel comfortable having to move their whole foot. My personal feeling is that those few milliseconds might make all the difference in an emergency stop.

Excellent points all.

I can't speak for the brain dead dealers.....as they should have a "set up" man to explain things like that to new owners and adjust them to fit YOU.

It makes a difference how long your legs are. Short legs, knee not bent much, places your toe more vertical at the peg (me). Longer legs, knee bent a lot makes your toe more horizontal (and lower) at the pedal. A similar thing happens with the shifter......which is also affected by the thickness of your boots.

The brake should absolutley be adjusted so that the pedal is UNDER your foot and not over.

[Water Warrior 2]

I have adjusted the shifter and brake pedal on every bike I have owned. Foot controls are paramount in safety and control. With proper control you also get comfort and the pleasure of a bike that fits. The same goes for hand controls, everything must fit the rider. In a cage you can have adjustable pedals, steering wheel(tilt and telescoping), seats with lumbar support and mirrors. Why not get the most from your bike too ?

[Tranquility]

The brake should absolutley be adjusted so that the pedal is UNDER your foot and not over.

I went on my first Group Run yesterday (a shortie @ 45 miles) and felt, for the first time, the foot brake is set too high. I have to keep reminding myself to ask the question "is this something I HAVE to live with or can I modify it?"

Is this an easy adjustment? Similar question regarding the shift: easy adjustment?

[Easy Rider]

Is this an easy adjustment? Similar question regarding the shift: easy adjustment?

Yes, both are relatively easy. I commented somewhere just yesterday, maybe in another forum, that if you can't figure out those two things, you shouldn't be messing with your bike at all !!

The shifter adjustment is done by loosening a nut at each end of the long connecting rod (one nut turns "backwards") and then turning the rod to move the pedal; re-tighten the nuts.

The brake is a 3 step proceedure......well 4 actually if you are adjusting the pedal height DOWN.
Back by the rear brake is a lever attached to the hub and a rod attached to that. The rod is threaded and has an adjusting nut.
1) Loosen that adjusting nut until there is a LOT of slack.
2) Move to the actual brake pedal. Operate it a time or 2 with your hand and notice what stops it when it springs back up. The stop is a bolt that is adjustable, after loosening a lock nut.
Adjust the pedal stop so that it is barely below your foot....or barely touching....in your normal riding posture.
3) Go back to the back and "tighten" the adjusting nut until the brake is almost applied but not quite. Easier to get this right with the wheel OFF the floor; adjust until it just barely drags and then back it off 1 or 2 clicks unil it just barely DOESN'T drag.
4) Lastly, check the operation of the rear brake light. The switch is about half way between the pedal and the back wheel, down by the operating mechanism and is attached to a little spring. If it doesn't operate/release the light properly, you adjust it by turning the big plastic nut that holds it into the bracket......(I think that's how the GZ adjustment is. On some, you turn the actual switch body.)

Good luck!

If you get all that right, then you are qualified to fix ANYTHING on your bike !! :roll: :biggrin:

[alantf]

The stop is a bolt that is adjustable, after loosening a lock nut.


and the bolt (with lock nut) is UNDER the brake pedal.

and yes, you do have to turn the switch body to adjust the brake light.

It must be all of two weeks since easy worked on a gz, & us "senior citizens" have what the doctors term "short term memory loss" :whistle: :whistle: :2tup: :roll: I was going to add something, but I can't remember what :roll:

[Easy Rider]

us "senior citizens" have what the doctors term "short term memory loss"

Indeed. And I have "selective hearing loss" too. I can't hear my wife any more.....but that condition has been developing for a LONG time!! :whistle: :crackup

And thanks for filling in the "blanks" ! :tup:

[Tranquility]

Thanks for the step by step instructions guys!
I will keep you posted on my progress. I still need to build a center stand to get my wheel(s) off the ground. That will make this (and future jobs) much easier. Now, I know I saw the how-to on that somewhere around here ... which index was that again? Hmmmmm...

[Water Warrior 2]

The owner's manual will also give you a nice step by step brake pedal adjustment procedure. Just bear in mind that their measurements are not part of the real world. The manual sets the pedal too high for humans if I remember correctly.

[New GZ250]

In most (all?) of the bike photos I've seen on the site, it seems as though the brake pedal is set pretty high up. This looks as though you have to ride with your toe under the pedal then move all of your foot from the peg to the pedal when you want to use the brake. Mine came set up like this when I bought it (new), but I've set the pedal to the Suzuki spec of around 2" above the peg, which means that my toe is hovering just above the pedal when I'm riding, so I can press down without having to move my foot. Two questions - why do they come with the pedal not set to Suzuki spec, & does everyone feel comfortable having to move their whole foot. My personal feeling is that those few milliseconds might make all the difference in an emergency stop.
[c:37ibmzj2][/c:37ibmzj2]

Think it is a personal preference, as I prefer mine higher. If you check out a Harley their pedal is higher than the foot peg. Think you can break faster the closer the pedal is to your foot! All depends on how you position your foot when you ride!
:roll:

[alantf]

Think you can break faster the closer the pedal is to your foot!

I think you're misunderstanding ..... What we're saying is that when you get your nice shiny new bike from the dealer, the brake pedal is set so high that to ride comfortably, your foot is between the peg & the brake pedal. This in turn means that to use the rear brake you have to take your foot off the peg & place it on the pedal. With the pedal set at the Suzuki spec of 45mm to 55mm above the peg(the exact position should be determined by your riding position) the pedal is in a more natural position, under your foot, so that you can press down without having to take your foot off the peg.

The other point that I was making, was - If suzuki specify the pedal height (& their spec seems correct!) why do the dealers not set it correctly when doing the pre sales check?

As for Harley riders, I suppose they think it looks cool to have the brake pedal set nearly vertical. It still doesn't make it safe! And don't forget, with the Harley cruiser riding position a lot different to the gz, the rider's foot may be more vertical. O_o

[patrick_777]

When I got the Shadow, the brake was set too high. I had almost thought it was bent because I had to pull back on my ankle so far, it almost hurt. After a quick adjustment to the lever and the brake switch activator, it was down to where it needed to be. The guy I bought it from had obviously never adjusted his new bike to where it was comfortable to ride. Even the bar levers were set really high. It's very likely that I got the deal I got on the Shadow (it was pretty much outright theft), because it was uncomfortable for him to ride and he didn't know enough to adjust everything to fit him.

The dealerships tend to get the bikes like that from the factory and leave them for the buyer to adjust. They used to spend an hour with the rider in advance adjusting things like that to personal preference before he rolled it off the lot, but no more. Now, if you can twist a throttle and make it past a particular line in the parking lot, you're on your own. There are Youtube videos of people coming off the lot with their brand new bikes, with Armor-All on the rear tires, just to make them look black and shiny! Of course, the video is up there because the rider dumps it in a few feet, imagine that.

Adjustments to levers and even the bars, are a personal thing that MUST be made, sometimes before even riding it the first time. If you sit on it, and it's uncomfortable in the slightest, then that feeling will be multiplied 100 fold by the end of a fifty mile ride.

BTW, if you equate a high brake petal with HD only, then you're quite possibly looking at the situation I just described. A lot of HD owners have never ridden before, and don't really know to adjust that stuff. Alan is right though, the riding position is so different that the brake has to be so high to accommodate the brand new $200 HD engineer boots they just bought with the bike, to match the $800 HD jacket.

[alantf]

The dealerships tend to get the bikes like that from the factory

I agree with everything you've said. The point I'm trying to make is - If they come from the factory like that, why the hell don't Suzuki even attempt to set them to roughly the correct spec before they roll off the production line. After all, they have to set up the throttle cables, clutch cable free play, rear brake free play etc., so why leave the brake pedal WAY out of spec? Just doesn't seem to make sense to factory fit it so high.

[Tranquility]

alantf, it probably makes financial sense somehow. In the world of manufacturing, a few cents here and there during assembly can make a difference to the bottom line. Perhaps it is simply cheaper to build with the break pedal "out of spec". And since the Dealers aren't adjusting as SOP anymore, they're not complaining to the Manufacturers ... and since it's a relatively easy adjustment, the customers are probably not complaining to the Dealers ...

[New GZ250]

Think you can break faster the closer the pedal is to your foot!

I think you're misunderstanding ..... What we're saying is that when you get your nice shiny new bike from the dealer, the brake pedal is set so high that to ride comfortably, your foot is between the peg & the brake pedal. This in turn means that to use the rear brake you have to take your foot off the peg & place it on the pedal. With the pedal set at the Suzuki spec of 45mm to 55mm above the peg(the exact position should be determined by your riding position) the pedal is in a more natural position, under your foot, so that you can press down without having to take your foot off the peg.

The other point that I was making, was - If suzuki specify the pedal height (& their spec seems correct!) why do the dealers not set it correctly when doing the pre sales check?

As for Harley riders, I suppose they think it looks cool to have the brake pedal set nearly vertical. It still doesn't make it safe! And don't forget, with the Harley cruiser riding position a lot different to the gz, the rider's foot may be more vertical. O_o

As you are aware there are many Suzuki dealers, some, if not most adjust to the correct spec. others don't. When you first ride you new bike how many of us know the spec. for pedal height? You are right, some bikes come with various assembled parts out of spec. Not to push anybodies button here, but what's the big issue here? Just adjust it, that feels comfortable and functions safely. No I didn't misunderstand the question, guess I was unclear. Not all Dealers set the specs. incorrectly. My turn signals were out of alignment, should I take them back have them fixed under my warranty or fix them myself, that is the question? :tongue: Must be in a pissy mood today, sorry!

[patrick_777]

New, you're spot on.

Some dealers out there probably will do it for you. In fact, they used to not let you out of the parking lot without having the personal fit just right on the bike. It's a lot like adjusting the driver's seat in a new car. You don't necessarily EXPECT the dealer to make sure your seat is set to your exact specification, because it's a very personal-feel type setting. The shifter, brake and levers are all the same. It's very much about how comfortable you are on the bike as to how you want them adjusted. Over the time I've owned my bikes, I've adjusted my levers and shifter several times, just like I've adjusted the seat in my truck.

The reason the factory doesn't "spec" it, is exactly about time and cost in manufacturing. According to Honda, it takes them exactly one hour to get a CBR1000RR from bare frame to the finished product - driving off the line and onto a dyno under its own power. The same is true for every other assembly-line motorcycle manufacturer. They don't think about the end-user when they're putting them together, that's a personal adjustment that's supposed to be made BY the end-user. Occasionally, it's helped by the dealer/salesman. IMO, they shouldn't let anyone out the door without the levers and foot controls being adjusted to fit, but that's how it goes in a commission-based environment.

It's not something to really complain about, and if asked at the time of purchase, I would bet the dealership would have no problems helping you adjust some stuff, especially if you're pulling the trigger on a brand new machine, but people can't possibly expect a manufacturer to have everything adjusted perfectly to suit every rider and every ride. In fact, it's probably a good bet that they're intentionally placed off "spec" to make it more likely to GET adjusted to the rider...if it's far off, it's more likely to be uncomfortable.

[primal]

Honestly, while mine was set the same way, I don't think I would have liked it if it was adjusted "correctly". Several times I had pretty much reached the rotation limit of my ankle while braking. 2 inches lower means 2 inches less travel which means 2 inches less braking power.

[Water Warrior 2]

The dealerships tend to get the bikes like that from the factory

I agree with everything you've said. The point I'm trying to make is - If they come from the factory like that, why the hell don't Suzuki even attempt to set them to roughly the correct spec before they roll off the production line. After all, they have to set up the throttle cables, clutch cable free play, rear brake free play etc., so why leave the brake pedal WAY out of spec? Just doesn't seem to make sense to factory fit it so high.

Their lawyers said Do It This Way. If a short legged person buys a new bike and crash 5 minutes later because he/she could get the rear brake to do it's job there is a law suit or death and law suit. Well, it is a theory only.