2008 Kawasaki Concours 14

[The_AirHawk]

Originally Posted by seruzawa

a freakin' Shovelhead. I remember my '81 FXEF when the temps hit 95 and 60W oil was in use. None of my other bikes have come close except that dammed Magna.... another rear cylinder heat pump.

Lotsa pussies out there I think.

The FZ6 has an undertail exhaust, I've heard complaints about all the "heat that thing throws out on yer arse". I've got over 43,000 miles on mine, I've ridden it from 6deg F to 110 deg F ambient temps, and I have to ask them the question: "Huh? Whatchoo talkin 'bout, Batman?"

[BrowningBAR]

Originally Posted by The_AirHawk

The FZ6 has an undertail exhaust, I've heard complaints about all the "heat that thing throws out on yer arse". I've got over 43,000 miles on mine, I've ridden it from 6deg F to 110 deg F ambient temps, and I have to ask them the question: "Huh? Whatchoo talkin 'bout, Batman?"

...Maybe you have more...um...ass padding...than others?

[sarnali2]

It's not to hard to figure out that a large displacement bike engine, wraped in plastic body panels is going to vent a lot of heat through whatever openings there are in the plastic.. Or that stylishly running the exhaust up three inches under your butt on your equally stylish wafer thin seat is going to get warm.

[seruzawa]

Originally Posted by sarnali2

It's not to hard to figure out that a large displacement bike engine, wraped in plastic body panels is going to vent a lot of heat through whatever openings there are in the plastic.. Or that stylishly running the exhaust up three inches under your butt on your equally stylish wafer thin seat is going to get warm.

.. to the heat problem is to just keep moving. Heat's not a problem if you're moving on down the road. If your're going to be stuck in traffic then whatthefock are you doing on a Concours14 or a Duck 999 in the first place? That's what the naked Bandit or Zrex is for. Sheeesh.

[The_AirHawk]

Originally Posted by BrowningBAR

...Maybe you have more...um...ass padding...than others?

I wish I DID have a bit more - the stock seat is a feckin' medieval torture-device after ~600 miles or so. Sheepskin seems to be the answer to that question.

How would more padding help with the heat, though? E'en The Wife commented that she expected a lot of heat from it when we've 2-up'd, yet has been pleasantly surprised.

[sarnali2]

The only time heat really bothered me was on the K100RS @ Craters of the Moon lava fields in Idaho. I was about 110 out and the black lava bounced it all back. The first K's were notorious for kicking off heat as well, it was pretty flippin' miserable till the sun went down.

[bmwclay]

Where are the terms like seamless power, instant passing ability, 175 mph top speed. Instead we get terms like excess heat, wooden brakes and ABS glitch. I am not happy about my supposedly dream bike. Might as well buy a used FJR 1300 for 9K. Or, better still, a 2008 Hyabusa with Heli bars and soft luggage.

[sarnali2]

Originally Posted by bmwclay

Where are the terms like seamless power, instant passing ability, 175 mph top speed. Instead we get terms like excess heat, wooden brakes and ABS glitch. I am not happy about my supposedly dream bike. Might as well buy a used FJR 1300 for 9K. Or, better still, a 2008 Hyabusa with Heli bars and soft luggage.

Hell, I'd be happy with that Moto Guzzi you have for a picture...

[Pete_Brissette]

Originally Posted by bmwclay

Where are the terms like seamless power, instant passing ability, 175 mph top speed. Instead we get terms like excess heat, wooden brakes and ABS glitch. I am not happy about my supposedly dream bike. Might as well buy a used FJR 1300 for 9K. Or, better still, a 2008 Hyabusa with Heli bars and soft luggage.

Maybe you missed the following from the story text:

"With two counter-balancers, the motor is very smooth and virtually vibe-free, regardless of engine speed. It's a great match to that ultra-smooth shaft drive. Fueling is trouble-free and precise, and there's bottomless power on tap from as low as what I estimated to be 2700 rpm (as evidenced by first gear power wheelies). Power builds swiftly and smoothly all the way to the 10,500-rpm redline."

I thought that would've covered your topics as succinctly as possible, but maybe not. I'll try harder next time.

And I didn't exactly say the brakes felt wooden as a whole, only at the time of what I perceived to be a strange blip from the ABS. Otherwise the brakes were pretty darn good.

Thanks for the feedback though!

[seruzawa]

Originally Posted by bmwclay

Where are the terms like seamless power, instant passing ability, 175 mph top speed. Instead we get terms like excess heat, wooden brakes and ABS glitch. I am not happy about my supposedly dream bike. Might as well buy a used FJR 1300 for 9K. Or, better still, a 2008 Hyabusa with Heli bars and soft luggage.

As an example I bought a ZRX1100. Some professional testers have complained about the brakes. I imagine that if I tried to actually race the thing there might be a problem with the brakes, but I've never been able to figure out what these professional whiners are talking about. The brakes are great.

I'd say try to get a test ride on the Concours14 and take the writeups in the mags with a grain of salt. Some of the best bikes I've ever owned have been heavily panned by the mags. Don't take the opinions too seriously. Opinions are after all just opinions.