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"New" KLR650

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gots_a_sol
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"New" KLR650

Post by gots_a_sol »

https://www.cycleworld.com/story/bikes/ ... irst-look/

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This year might have gotten off to a shaky start, but 2021 has redeemed itself. After a two-year sabbatical, Kawasaki dropped the news: The KLR650, king of the KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) ADVs, is back. And at first glance, the bike thrifty backcountry explorers love most appears to be blissfully unadulterated. Sure, the list of new-for-2022 features is pretty long, but wisely enough, Kawi seems to have addressed many of the affectionate grumbles aimed at the previous version while maintaining its bare-bones “I’ll take you wherever you want to go as long as you don’t mind if it takes a while” personality.

Rather than, say, shoehorning in the parallel twin from the Versys 650, for example, Kawasaki simply added DFI fuel injection to the previous model’s tried-and-true 652cc liquid-cooled single. Kawi also made a few tweaks it says boosts midrange torque, such as revised intake and exhaust cams and a narrower exhaust pipe with smoother bends. A certain portion of KLR Nation (you know who you are) should warm up their “back in my day” stories, as Kawi also seems to have fixed The Doohickey; the cam chain guide is said to be stronger, made from new materials, and with a new shape.

Tensile steel frame
Tensile steel frame now includes an integrated rear subframe, while a 30mm longer swingarm adds on-road stability.Kawasaki
The KLR’s gearbox is still stuck with just five gears. But revised third gear dogs, a new finishing process on the fourth and fifth gears, and new thrust needle clutch release bearings should make things a bit smoother and more robust in demanding riding conditions. Speaking of which, suspension both fore and aft is stiffer, the 300mm single front brake disc is 20mm larger than before, and the 240mm rear disc is 1mm thicker for better heat dissipation.

KLR650 brakes
Brakes on the previous KLR650 were a weak point; a larger 300mm front disc with optional ABS should help.Kawasaki
New “dual purpose ABS,” developed in partnership with Bosch, allows for some wheel slippage; Kawasaki says that this results in a natural braking feel off-road, while the on-road feel is “like normal ABS with a less sensitive setting.” It’s unclear whether ABS is switchable, but purists can rejoice, as it’s optional on the standard KLR650.

Black rims holding tube-type tires are said to be stronger than before, with larger axles. The swingarm is 30mm longer with a 2mm-longer pivot shaft, improving the KLR’s stability and highway road manners. Footpegs are pushed out 10mm to match the 10mm-wider handlebar, and both are rubber mounted for buzz-free comfort on those long slogs in between the dirty bits.

KLR cockpit
The 2022 KLR’s cockpit: a new LCD instrument, wider, rubber-mounted handlebar, wider mirrors, a taller, two-position adjustable windscreen, an integrated accessory mounting bar, and two optional power sockets (standard on the Adventure and Traveler models).Kawasaki
At its core, however, the KLR is still a no-frills adventurer. Despite its new LED headlight and pumped-up generator, the 2022 KLR650 still only manages 80 watts of available power for accessories like heated grips and a GPS. Its 6.1-gallon fuel tank, reshaped for a comfortable fit between the knees, will carry you well off the beaten path, and the new LCD instrument includes a gas gauge in addition to two tripmeters and a clock, but no tachometer.

There will be two standard 2022 KLR650 models, one with ABS and one without, as well as two travel-ready models, the KLR650 Adventure and the KLR650 Traveler. The Adventure comes equipped with a set of 21-liter hard plastic top-loading side cases by Shad; LED auxiliary lights; engine guards; and two power sockets, one standard cigarette lighter adaptor and one USB. The Traveler comes with two power sockets and a 42-liter plastic Shad top case large enough to fit an off-road-style helmet.

2022 KLR650 Adventurer
The 2022 KLR650 Adventurer (shown in Cypher Camo Gray) comes with engine guards, auxiliary lights, and Shad side cases. Shad top case is standard on the KLR650 Traveler model.Kawasaki
At $6,699 for the non-ABS model, $6,999 with ABS, and $7,399 for the Traveler, Kawasaki has managed to hold true to one of the most endearing aspects of the KLR650′s personality: a reasonable pricetag. As an avowed KLR-ista (mine was a 2009), 2021 has given me something—and somewhere—to look forward to.
-Joe.

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Laoch
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Re: New KLR650

Post by Laoch »

I saw that on ADVrider. IDK what to think. I loved my KLR, big hog that it was. FI, better brakes and ABS are nice, but the same weight and same power, or lack of is a bummer. Better forks too, I think. I think they could have done better. I'm guessing they were trying to keep prices down.
Good to see it back.
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Re: "New" KLR650

Post by Firebolter »

Alot of folks were really hoping for the Versys 650 motor in a decent frame for ADV riding. But fixing the niggles is better than only new graphics!
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Re: "New" KLR650

Post by Bucho »

I think FI is pretty cool.
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Rut Row
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Re: "New" KLR650

Post by Rut Row »

Firebolter wrote: Tue Jan 26, 2021 6:40 pm Alot of folks were really hoping for the Versys 650 motor in a decent frame for ADV riding. But fixing the niggles is better than only new graphics!
barely. They need to do something about how top heavy it is. That is a major issue
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Re: "New" KLR650

Post by Firebolter »

Rut Row wrote: Wed Jan 27, 2021 6:07 am
Firebolter wrote: Tue Jan 26, 2021 6:40 pm Alot of folks were really hoping for the Versys 650 motor in a decent frame for ADV riding. But fixing the niggles is better than only new graphics!
barely. They need to do something about how top heavy it is. That is a major issue
Yeah, top heavy is a problem with alot of the ADV bikes. My 2014 F800ADV was a SUPER top heavy pig. But hey, they addressed the doo-hickey! I mean that has been an issues in the older design for what, 20ish years? See the manufacturers listen to their customers! They finally fixed it!
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Re: "New" KLR650

Post by Twist »

I think what Kawasaki has done here is pretty right on. They've tweaked the tried and true with things that make it more robust and capable while maintaining their value price at the bottom of the mid-sized ADV bikes. In the winter of 2015 three other friends and I all went out and bought 2014.5/2015 KLRs and spent the winter prepping them and testing them (and ourselves) for the full TAT ride. I have a ride report on ADVrider for that and my first post on it was made from the experience we we'd had after we'd ridden from NC to Moab on the TAT:
I bought a KLR, my first "adventure bike," over this winter and spent the spring prepping it for the Trans Am Trail. When I left on the ride in mid-June the way I felt about this bike was best characterized as cautiously skeptical - kind of like when you took that girl you just met to Cozumel for a week - it could be great, OK, or horrible but regardless it had an expiration date when it would be over. I felt that way about taking my KLR on the TAT. I never really warmed up to it because I felt it doesn't do anything well: it's heavy and low on power, the brakes suck and the wind protection was designed by an idiot for street riding, and it needed a lot of attention to make it ready to go the distance on the TAT. I kind of half expected to ride it across the TAT and then take the tags off it and leave the key in it in the airport parking lot in Oregon when I flew home.

Now having ridden it 3,600 miles from Annapolis MD to Moab I feel differently. This is going to sound like a Sheila talking but I can actually say exactly when it was when I felt like I was in a committed relationship with my KLR and it was when I had 2,000 miles of named storm soggy TAT behind me and it got me and my pile of gear up to the top of Cinnamon Pass going up from the east (Lake City side) and down into Silverton. After days of trail, mountain passes, highway and twisty road I now know what the KLR does extremely well. It hauls me and my load anywhere I want to take it across just about anything I could possibly want to ride it over. It'll do hours at a stretch at 75 - 80 mph with a -1 tooth countershaft sprocket on it and knobby tires and then climb like a mountain goat over basketball sized rocks and slick mountain snowmelt at 12,000' on stock jetting. It'll cover a quarter mile of water up over the wheels and commute around town like a scooter. It's the most versatile, simple, unexciting swiss army knife of a bike you could ever want and the exciting part is how reliably and cheaply it'll fill your memories with phenomenal experiences if you take the road less traveled on it.
I scored a really good deal on mine at $5,300 (right at $6K OTD). For a brand new bike that will do what that bike did for me is a real value. Even this new KLR can be had for not much more than half what a KTM 690 Enduro R would cost and still thousands less than a T700 (which is also a great value) I have to admit that I kept mine for a few years longer than I should have. It had a lot of sentimental value to me from the TAT but I passed it along to another ADVrider inmate that was going to use it as his epic adventuring steed.

Full TAT ride report here:

https://advrider.com/f/threads/my-first ... t.1077645/
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Re: "New" KLR650

Post by Firebolter »

I bet they will sell a crap load of these KLR Adventure models at 7999-

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