2002 Kawasaki KLR650
2002
KLR650 Parts Diagram
40.7 HP (stock)! See my dyno run!
Maintenance log
Additions and modifications
- Moose Tyre Irons: First "tire iron" tire change.
Also around 25,000 miles I performed my first home tire change.
Physically, the hardest job I have done on the KLR. I learned several
things mounting the rear Dunlop D607, one of which is two tire irons are not
a set -- they are a pair. This seems to be about half a set.
A second pair were on order as soon as I could get to www.DennisKirk.com.
Another thing I learned is
that tire irons as ingeniously shaped for their purpose. I got the Moose
irons with the red handles. Since I plan to use tube tire Slime
again to protect/balance the tubes and tires I did no balancing.
I hear mounting is easier with a tire changing rig like the stuff from Northern Tool, but
I think it will be easy enough with four tire irons to alleviate the need for
special equipment to bolt to the garage floor.
- Arrowhead Motorsports Valve Shim Kit:
At 25,000 miles I did my first home valve adjustment (dealer did one at 10,500 although
all the shims were stock 2-55 thickness ...).
Tedious but not really hard.
The left exhaust valve shim is the hardest to reach, and of course the only one at
or below the bottom of the clearance specification. I loosened all of them
to the top of the spec and replaced the spark plug while I had it all apart.
It took about 4 hours start to finish. I
recommend Marks instructions for
doing the job yourself.
I saved enough money on this to buy all the shims and a nice set of Craftsman ratcheting
combination wrenches.
- "Doohickey" Balancer Shaft Tensioning Lever and Spring
My factory spring was broken when Don and I replaced it and the lever
with sturdier replacements from Jakes machine
shop at 17,000 miles. The bike runs much more quietly now and is
smoother especially under low rpm acceleration. Handlebars shake much
less and the mirrors are more useful. I can't recommend loosening the
bolt to adjust
the lever as prescribed in the manual without checking to see if the
spring and lever are intact, or replacing them outright. Doing so with
a broken lever or spring can release tension on the chain and
potentially cost big bucks in repairs.
- Hot Grips ®
- Corbin "Flat" KLR Seat Much better than stock! Write-up
coming soon!
- Tires
- Home-made Seat modification
- Luggage
- Givi E-45
- Givi
E-21's
- Givi E-52
- Kawasaki tank bag
- Moose fender bag
- Luggage racks
- Givi top rack modification for tool kit access
- Happy Trails PD Nerf bars
- SW MoTech Center Stand
- Maier Deep Woods Pro Handguards
- Maier 2QT Super Jug
- Aquatech waterproof watch (Wal-Mart) and
velcro
- Superbike Pro Gel grips
The KLR650 has been my only bike for the last year. It's very versatile
bike. Although the KLR650 is a little underpowered on the road it
handles quite well and is the only bike in my price range capable of
all the riding I do. Alternatives like the BMW F650 and KTM 640
Adventure are close matches but cost significantly more. The KLR is
under $5000 and takes me from power line trails to across the country
tours in relative comfort.
The single cylinder engine produces 48 hp, with about 38 at ther
rear wheel depending on whose dyno numbers you believe. This leads to a
wide open throttle at high speeds which leads to gas mileage issues. I
have recorded as low as 35mpg carrying three loaded bags. But I have
also recorded 55 mpg on lower speed trips. The 6.1 gallon gas tank
helps with the touring. I have heard that you can get about 5.5 gallons
out using reserve, but to go beyond that requires laying the bike on
its left side to allow the gas in the lower right hand side of the tank
slosh over to the left where the petcock resides.
The front forks are pretty good offroad and the 9 inches of travel
are appreciated on rough roads. However, that soft nine inch travel
allows a lot of fork dive when the front brake is grabbed hard. And
grab it you will, the front break is the weakest link of the KLR
experience. A lot
of folks replace the front disk with a larger one from MAP Engineering
but I have not yet even installed steel brake lines, another popular
add-on. I'm a one or two finger brake kind of guy and what braking is
available on the KLR can be summoned with no more lever effort than
that.
For more information about the KLR650 see: