08 klr, first look

[Mike Peplinski]

They are going to sell a ton of these bikes. To the dedicated "KLRista" its not that big a deal. Well, maybe it is. But to the novice the 08 will be a slam dunk. The pre-08's looked a lot like other ds's. Sort of utilitarian, early Jeep like, tough and rugged. Compared to the newer "adventure" bikes on the marketplace the KLR was just plain ugly. But then beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I think the KLR(pre 08) is gorgeous. Thelatest wave of new bike buyers are more smitten by the V Strom, KTM, F650, and even R1200 GS look, which is "attractively rugged", or is ruggedly attractive. Sort of like a 3 day beard. This new KLR is very attractive. The fit and finish is miles ahead of the older one. Someone actually looked at how the pieces fit together. It all fits. Admittedly it will be costly to fix when dropped. Kawasaki has elected to go for beauty over beast here. The panels look and feel far more comsetic than those of old. Plus they stick out. Way out!. A simple drop on its side is sure to fracture the side panels. The front fairing looks great but will also undoubtedly fall victim to duct tape on the trails. As a road rider I don't really care. LIke most of the new members joining the swelling ranks of "adventure" riders, form will outweigh function. I like to think of the KLR as a Jeep, in many ways. The early Jeep CJ was totally utilitarian, uncivilized but highly competent. As time went on marketing pressure dictated more and more creature comforts to the current C... whatever it is. The latest iteration is still very tough but also far more civilized, as well as more fragile. TheKLR is going the same way. But thats OK. These changes will only bring more riders on board. Kawasaki will be happy, the riders will be happy and our prescious KLR will live on. I was wondering what my next bike would be. Now I know, and it may be sooner than I thought. _________________________________________________________________ Make every IM count. Download Messenger and join the i m Initiative now. It s free. http://im.live.com/messenger/im/home/?source=TAGHM_June07

[Denis Dimick]

My two cents: The "leak proof" seals aren't. Only lasted about a year, I'm going back to stock, they at least lasted 6 years. Denis

On 6/1/07, Blake Sobiloff wrote: > > On May 31, 2007, at 8:00 PM, billshel2003 wrote: > > I ask for > > your opinion on what you think is worth changing in addition to the > > fork seals and new fork oil: add fork brace, new fork boots, upgrade > > to Larry Roessler springs? Oil weight and brand? Seal brand? > > Hi Bill! The LR springs will have the most obvious effect; pair 'em > with 10W given your weight (most heavier folks like 15W). Fork oil's > fork oil in KLR; just make sure you change it every year or two. No > need for new boots unless yours are tattered. I've heard that the > "Leak Proof" seals are actually pretty leaky when used with KLRs, so > you're probably better off with a different brand. > > Enjoy! > -- > Blake Sobiloff > > http://sobiloff.typepad.com/blakeblog/> > San Jose, CA (USA) > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]