Oh what a feeling!
Written: Aug 15 '01 (Updated Aug 15 '01)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Reliability: |
 |
|
| Comfort: |
 |
|
| Handling And Control: |
|
|
| Quality and Craftsmanship: |
|
|
|
Pros: Learn to live with all the unexpected attention.
Cons: Brakes are weak, but improve with time.
The Bottom Line: Great engine, good handling and 50 MPG does a great bike make.
|
|
|
| buddy1065's Full Review: 2000 Kawasaki KLR650 |
I looked across the show room, past the sea of sport bikes and cruisers, and there it was, alone, against the wall, separated from the others. Those who came in gravitated immediately to the sport bikes. I found myself on the KLR, seated bolt upright, only the front balls of my feet able to contact the floor. The salesman started with a $5969 figure for "out the door". I Haggled it down to $5100 and the bike was mine, this wallflower of a bike that nobody wanted to notice. But what I thought was a wallflower soon attracted attention. People were giving compliments from their cars while at stop lights. Kids on the sidewalk were pointing to my bike. It was then I realized that folks are used to the rice burners and everyday cruisers but the
KLR, ignored on the show room floor was a new celebrity, drawing all kinds of favorable comments and attention. "Really cool, looks military, Great color combination!"
I find myself asking why I love this bike so much. Why is my '95 Triumph triple, with an engine as powerful as a little locomotive now languishing in the car port? Is it just the fleeting glory of another new bike? My thoughts went back to my high school days, when I bolted a 2 1/2 horsepower Briggs & Stratton upright engine onto a small bicycle with high rise handle bars and a banana seat. That "seat of the pants" feeling I got from that bike is there in the KLR, as were the marginal brakes and light weight. The big KLR piston sounded mightier than my 900cc Triumph, chugging out power that was not eyeball flattening, but some how intriguing.
On the internet I see devices that can lower the bike about 2 inches and a Corbin seat that should lower it 1 1/2 inch more. I have the seat on order, hoping for the day when I will sit flat footed on the bike. Actually the height can be an asset, giving one the ability to see even over pickup trucks on the highway. Though the height is no real annoyance, I'd still want a lower bike. Since the KLR comes with a back rack I've already attached a detachable top hard case big enough for full face helmet. That 6.1 gal gas tank also helped me decide on the KLR. I hear some get up to 50 mpg, but don't quote me.
No, I don't recommend this bike to everyone, but perhaps this little story of mine may attract someone such as myself, a 49 year old baby boomer who wants to recapture some of the excitement of his or her youth, someone who is willing to try the road least travelled by, an adventurous
soul such as I am, who once rode from Long Island to Mexico on a 100cc Honda, able to do 55 mph if the wind was with me. Fortunately my KLR can top out at an incredible 105 mph, and unlike some of the other opinions here which seem to be judging by a little increased vibration, I feel that riding for hours at 75 mph will not damage my engine in any way, and many times I play around at 80 mph for a while on the highway. The fact that the engine is water cooled is also a big plus. But on windy days at high speeds one should be more careful; this is a light weight bike. Another thing to be careful about is the bikes ability to wheelie if you are riding a passenger. I almost had to change my underwear one morning after having given the bike full throttle at a green light to get ahead of traffic and make a turn.
I have been through 8 motorcycles in my lifetime, but I think I have finally found, at last, the answer to my longing. An answer that, unlike the rest of the world, we "Bigger and faster is better" Americans continue to ignore.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $5100
Condition: New
Model Year: 2000
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
buddy1065
|
|
Location: Florida
Reviews written: 11
Trusted by: 1 member
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.