A KLR650 for the next 21 years
By
James Holter
Photos by Kevin Wing
Take a '07 KLR650.
Now, take 150 bucks out of your bike fund.
Your goal: Add larger forks, two-piston brake calipers (front and rear),
a modern instrument cluster, a better seat, a more aggressive cam, a
larger luggage rack, an aluminum swingarm, a 17-amp (instead of 14.5)
alternator, lighter radiators with better cooling properties, get the
head ported for better low-end power, and have enough change left over
to make more than 40 other updates, not to mention bringing the style of
the bike into the 21st century.
Don't think you could do it? No problem. Kawasaki just has.
With only a $150 increase in the MSRP – the '08 KLR650 will set you back
$5,349 – the guys in green have fixed many of the nagging problems that
KLR owners have reported for years. They also addressed some aspects of
the bike that were understandably showing their age after a 21-year
product run.
 But they didn't go nuts. Kawasaki has a good thing going with the KLR,
its fourth-best-selling motorcycle. And with adventure-touring growing
in popularity, the company considers the KLR one of the more important
models in its lineup right now. So, the character of the bike is
unchanged. It's just more refined where you need it and more aggressive
where you want it.
I got a chance to see the results of all those refinements at the model
launch for the '08 KLR650 in the twisty paved and gravel roads in the
hills of Monterey, San Benito and Fresno counties in Central California.
With 420 miles of curves, dirt, asphalt and just enough freeway to get
from one great road to another, it was the perfect location to get a
feel for the versatility of the multi-talented KLR650.
And thanks to a flat tire that I got when I failed to steer around a
screw sitting in the middle of a dirt road, not to mention the
generosity of Kawasaki's Greg Lasiewski, who let me ride his '07 KLR
while he waited for the chase truck, I got a chance to compare the new
KLR with the old one back to back.
The first improvement I noticed? OK, other than the additional comfort
offered by the new seat on the '08, that would be the improved braking
performance. While I could ride the new bike confidently with just one
finger poised on the front brake lever, the older brake demanded a
considerably firmer squeeze and at least two fingers ready for action in
pretty much all situations.
 The extra stoppage power comes from the new two-piston caliper and a
280mm petal-style brake rotor up front, 20mm larger than before. Another
two-piston caliper in the back also makes a significant difference.
Motor-wise, the new setup isn't radically different from the old model,
but the changes add up enough to be noticeable. The '08 pulls a bit harder
through the entire rev range and punishes you less with vibration as you
inch toward the redline.
Lending to the better performance are different cam timing, a throttle
position sensor and new intake porting.
A fully transistorized ignition also replaces the analog CDI used
before. The more modern unit more precisely controls timing across the
rpm range, and, as is usually the case, fewer moving parts means more
reliability.
Everything is kept cool by new Denso radiators that are thinner and
lighter than before. Kawasaki claims a 20 percent increase in cooling
efficiency.
The same five-speed transmission gets the power to the rear wheel, and
it provides plenty of gearing for everything from tight fire roads to
cruising at highway speeds.
And when I rode anything in between, such as the wonderful
one-and-a-half-lane twisty roads where we spent most of our time, I
discovered one more feature on the '08 that would need added to that '07
to bring it up to spec: feelers for the foot pegs.
 With the high seating position and
mucho leverage offered by the
dirt-style handlebars, the KLR carves through corners with minimal
input. Thankfully, the dual-sport tires offer a surprising amount of
grip. A couple times on day one, but several on the second day of my
ride, I had built up enough trust in the tires to drag feeler to asphalt
on a regular basis. More important, I never had any regrets for doing
so.
A lot of the cornering prowess comes from a tighter feel in the front
end. Not only does the new model have a beefier fork – a 41mm this year
vs. 38mm before – but thicker spokes that also reduce flex.
The rare times I had the time to take my eyes off the road, I was happy
with the high-visibility gauge cluster. The instrumentation is a huge
improvement over the '07 in look and readability. It includes a large
speedometer, tachometer, odometer, trip meter and a water temperature
gauge.
 As far as style, the new fairing provides a modern, aggressive
appearance. While the look does deviate from the old KLR's off-road
heritage, don't be fooled. The new KLR isn't just a better bike for the
street. It's also a better bike for the dirt. While it might no longer
share styling cues with your old enduro mount from 1986, that doesn't
mean it isn't a better package for gravel roads and two-track compared
to the old KLR.
The same advice applies to the suspension. Glancing over the spec sheets
for the '07 and '08 models, you'll notice that the bike lost just over
an inch of travel up front and less than that for the rear. But
suspension is about set-up, not just raw numbers; otherwise, James
Stewart's KX450F would have two-and-a-half feet of travel at both ends.
Don't worry, dirt riders. The bike didn't lose any off-road prowess when the
engineers sliced off a bit of travel.
And thanks to refinements elsewhere – redesigned linkage in the rear and
thicker forks up front – the new suspension is flat out better, both for
soaking up the bigger hits and for keeping the wheels planted as you
carve through a loose corner.
As a bonus, previous KLR owners will also be happy to know that the new
fork also eliminates the front-end dive that plagued the older model.
If I had any gripe about the 2008 model vs. the 2007, it was that the
fairing did create a slightly wider position at the knees when I was
seated. That's getting pretty picky, though. Not only did the additional
wind protection make it worth it, but it became a moot point whenever I
stood up through the rougher off-pavement sections.
No question, the new bike definitely stops better, pulls stronger,
corners with more confidence and feels way more comfortable while doing
it.
And that goes for both the dirt and the pavement.
The KLR650 was already a lot of usability for the price. With the
changes made to the new model, and only a $150 increase in MSRP, it's
now even more.
© 2006, American Motorcyclist Association
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