So I was lucky enough to have the IMS/Progressive bike show come around again this year, and it was even closer at 25 minutes from my house. This only convinced me to buy a ticket last month and make plans.
So on Friday three of us rode over and enjoyed the wonderful Northern California weather and motorcycles. Kawasaki was there in full force, and had test rides available on the New 2022 KLR. Uh... sign me up. I was hoping for some dirt trails up on the hillside behind Sonoma Raceway, but no luck. It was all street driving with all different models.
I picked out the orange model, and donned my gear after a breathalyzer test (no beer until AFTER the ride) and rider instructions. The first thing I noticed when leaving the paddock area was the fuel injected control idle. With the lack of a tachometer, it seemed a little high but had no lugging or hunting when idling in first gear. It was steady, smooth, and made putting around in first a breeze. Then up a slight hill toward the highway made the throttle response even more desirable and smooth. I like it so far.
Hit the highway and we started accelerating and now I was really impressed. It seemed like it had as much power as my 685 equipped 2008 with carb mods. Revving it up thru the gears gave me the impression that the cams are different because the powerband is a lot wider and higher. Ride was about the same as a stock GEN II, the seat might be a tad better quality than a stock GEN II, but riding position felt the same.
The front brake definitely feels better with the bigger rotor and caliper, rear braking was about the same. But the dash and display area... I LOVE IT! Except for the no tachometer (which I'm sure the after market is already in design for) a fuel gauge & clock just make it a nice display. The overall dash layout? To me screams for farkles and mods. Lots of area for switches, accessories, GPS mounts, etc.
Played with the gears on the way back and found that this thing can run in third gear at 65 miles per hour. And it still was pulling (needed that tach again) strong when I shifted to 4th, and it cruised very smoothly in 5th at 72 MPH. It was a group ride so no high speed runs here that day.
Worst thing I felt was coming back into the track area and downshifting into first and going slightly off idle. This created a slight bucking when the throttle position sensor was clicking on & off idle. Mentioned this to one of the lead riders, and he agreed that they might have a TPS adjustment issue. Small thing, but it could be addressed later.
Until someone opens one up, we won't know about any Doohicky improvements, but I'm sure Eagle Mike already has one lined up, or has one open in his shop.
Overall impression? Great improvements to the KLR that I could feel and see. Just wish I could get one for a day ride in the hills.
