Motorcycle.com

Where have you been?

This is so much better than I had hoped for in a small light dualsport bike. If you like me get tired of picking up your r1200gs, then you must look at this bike. Even better is the suspension even while hauling my fat ass over rocks washouts and other surprises you see on an offroad run.



It is a...lso so much fun on a nice twisty back road that I find myself giggling.

However the fun ends too soon even getting 72 MPG with only a 2 gallon tank Read Full Review

a litle under powered

First, I like the bike. It is under-powered and it's virtualy imposible to pull the front wheel off the ground. The bike can be fixed with a $500 investment. First, got to a 13 tooth sprocket, (down from 14). Add a Dynojet kit, and FMF Q-4 exhaust, finally, remove the snorkel to let it breath a litt...le better. After a few rides on the trails in the California Sierra's I'll have a better comparison. Read Full Review

This is the perfect short getaway bike

I also traded down from a BMW 1150...monster kept fighting me in the sandy stuff...This gem is simply too much fun on backroads...perfect when the initial mods are applied. Dynojet kit, aftermarket pipe, and 13 tooth front sprocket and all is good with this bike! Handling is spot on excellent with... fast responsive behavior that feels like my mountain bike! The 2 gal tank is the only issue and 140 miles is usually more than enough for the trails in my area, but more would be better...

Read Full Review

Great Bike...just not at first.

Kawasaki's dual sport offering in '09 is great bike, but off the showroom floor it's a beginner's bike. All of the potential is right there, but it's been subdued at the factory (and even more here in California). If you're able to find one cheap (I bought mine brand new in '10 for $3900), the mod...s may be worth it. It won't ever be a KTM killer, but your wallet may be happier. Remember, KTM's don't come without mods that you may want done either (suspension seems to be the biggie from what I've been told).

I'm one of those guys that can't ever leave something alone. I've always got to pull off something and replace it with a better/beefier/faster part. I got over my squeamish-ness about cutting and/or drilling into a new bike years ago. I'm willing to bet most of you guys are just like me.

First off, stock sucks. It just does. I bought this bike because I wanted a street legal dirt bike, not a street bike that LOOKS like a dirt bike. After a few rides on road and a few more off road, I realized what would need to be done. Now, there are those of you that won't mind spending the money upfront, so you may want to skip this bike & spend more on a WR or a TE or a KTM. I was committed to my KLX though, having just bought it. Bring on the mods...

My first task was to remove all the factory superfluous-ness (helmet lock, reflectors, smog stuff etc). Then I started in on the free mods (Google it) and switched out the tires for something more aggressive offroad - in my case Metzler DOT dirt tires. After that came an FMF PowerBomb & PowerCore muffler. Then it was time to rejet the carb. Once I did that, I swapped my front sprocket for a 13T from Moose Racing and that REALLY woke the bike up. It was like a totally different motorcycle after that.

I now had the torque and speed I was looking for in the desert, but all those mods began to make one thing blaringly apparent (doesn't that always happen?): The stock suspension SUCKS in the whoops & soft sand. I had the motor and gearing to keep up with my buddies, but not the fr/rr suspension. I'd come this far though, so I called John at MotoPro (Google it) to see if there was any hope. John's a big fan of these bikes & knows the shortcomings of the factory suspension. Luckily for all of us in KLX Land, he knows its potential and more importantly - he knows how to get it there!

I sent my forks and shocks to him & within a couple weeks, they came back with all new guts. What a difference!! NOW I've got the bike I had in mind when I put down my hard earned money at the dealership. After John's voodoo, my KLX rips over the whoops and ruts and soft sand like I wanted it to. I couldn't be happier.

Who knows, maybe a 351 kit from Bill Blue is in this bikes future. Maybe. Maybe not. One thing's for sure though, this is one great bike. It's the bike Kawasaki SHOULD have built in the first place, although it would have cost more.

Final word: Buy the bike and work your way into the mods gradually. You'll find out that you like more with each mod you do. Read Full Review

Great Bike...just not at first.

Kawasaki's dual sport offering in '09 is great bike, but off the showroom floor it's a beginner's bike. All of the potential is right there, but it's been subdued at the factory (and even more here in California). If you're able to find one cheap (I bought mine brand new in '10 for $3900), the mod...s may be worth it. It won't ever be a KTM killer, but your wallet may be happier. Remember, KTM's don't come without mods that you may want done either (suspension seems to be the biggie from what I've been told).

I'm one of those guys that can't ever leave something alone. I've always got to pull off something and replace it with a better/beefier/faster part. I got over my squeamish-ness about cutting and/or drilling into a new bike years ago. I'm willing to bet most of you guys are just like me.

First off, stock sucks. It just does. I bought this bike because I wanted a street legal dirt bike, not a street bike that LOOKS like a dirt bike. After a few rides on road and a few more off road, I realized what would need to be done. Now, those of you that don't mind spending the money upfront may want to skip this bike & spend more on a WR or a TE, but I was kind of committed to it, having just bought it. My first task was to remove all the factory superfluous-ness (helmet lock, reflectors, smog stuff etc). Then I started in on the free mods (Google it) and switched out the tires for something more aggressive offroad - in my case Metzler DOT dirt tires. After that came an FMF PowerBomb & PowerCore muffler. Then it was time to rejet the carb. Once I did that, I swapped my front sprocket for a 13T from Moose Racing. That REALLY woke the bike up. It was like a totally different bike after that. I now had the torque and speed I was looking for in the desert, but all those mods began to make one thing apparent (doesn't that always happen?): The stock suspension sucks in the whoops & soft sand. I had the motor and gearing to keep up with my buddies, but not the fr/rr suspension. I'd come this far, so I called John at MotoPro (Google it) to see if there was any hope. John's a big fan of these bikes & knows the shortcoming of the factory suspension. Luckily for all of us, he knows its potential and more importantly - he knows how to fix it!

I sent my forks and shocks to him & within a couple weeks, they came back with all new guts. What a difference!! NOW I've got the bike I had in mind when I put down my hard earned money at the dealership. After John's voodoo, my KLX rips over the whoops and ruts and soft sand like I want it to. I couldn't be happier.

Who knows, maybe a 351 kit from Bill Blue is in this bikes future. Maybe. Maybe not. One thing's for sure though, this is one great bike. It's the bike Kawasaki SHOULD have built in the first place, although it would have cost more.

Final word: Buy the bike and work your way into the mods gradually. You'll find out that you like more with each mod you do. Read Full Review