Sorry to not respond. I've been out of town all week. Tomorrow night ride, I promise.
2023 base model steering issues
180 miles on a new base model and I have a steering question. First, yes, I'm still on the stock tires.
At slow speeds, neighborhood speeds 15-20 MPH, the bike needs a push to get it to turn in. It feels like there's a catch in the steering head bearing. At a stop, it all feels and turns smoothly. I've tried tire pressures from the as-delivered 21/21 PSI to 30/30 with no change in steering feel. I can't see anything rubbing in the fender area. The only known issue is that the dealer didn't fasten the brake hose in that little clamp by the fender. I pressed it into place and it doesn't seem to matter.
Any ideas?
At slow speeds, neighborhood speeds 15-20 MPH, the bike needs a push to get it to turn in. It feels like there's a catch in the steering head bearing. At a stop, it all feels and turns smoothly. I've tried tire pressures from the as-delivered 21/21 PSI to 30/30 with no change in steering feel. I can't see anything rubbing in the fender area. The only known issue is that the dealer didn't fasten the brake hose in that little clamp by the fender. I pressed it into place and it doesn't seem to matter.
Any ideas?
41 - 60 of 110 Posts
So after some research. I have found that from the Gen 2 and Gen 3 Kawasaki increased the rake of the front by 2 degrees. Not sure if this is the answer. I did talk to a guy at work that used build choppers. He advised that back in the day they would rake out the front to around 5 degrees. He advised that the issue we are experiencing is consistent with that. IDK. Sounds plausible anyway. Still going to dealer to get mine looked at. I think there is more to the reason. Opinions welcome.
UPDATE: I think I fixed it. I loosened the steering head bearing and the "catch" in the steering is gone. Rides like every other motorcycle I've ever had. My settings are:
32F
30R
4 Rear preload
Minus 1/8 of a turn on the steering head castelated nut.
32F
30R
4 Rear preload
Minus 1/8 of a turn on the steering head castelated nut.
Awesome! Did you have to jack your front wheel off the ground when adjusting or could i adjust it on sidestand? I know I can’t test it with wheel on ground but if I wanted to run the same test and do a small turn loosening it?UPDATE: I think I fixed it. I loosened the steering head bearing and the "catch" in the steering is gone. Rides like every other motorcycle I've ever had. My settings are:
32F
30R
4 Rear preload
Minus 1/8 of a turn on the steering head castelated nut.
I did it all with the bike on the ground/side stand.Awesome! Did you have to jack your front wheel off the ground when adjusting or could i adjust it on sidestand? I know I can’t test it with wheel on ground but if I wanted to run the same test and do a small turn loosening it?
Sweet, glad you got it worked out! I’m going to give it a shot as well soon.I did it all with the bike on the ground/side stand.
Sounds good. Ill give it a try myself. Thanks for the infoAwesome! Did you have to jack your front wheel off the ground when adjusting or could i adjust it on sidestand? I know I can’t test it with wheel on ground but if I wanted to run the same test and do a small turn loosening it?
Less than one month ago I bought my first KLR, a brand new gen 3 adventure. From the first moment I rode it, the steering felt odd- spooky -exactly as described by the OP. This cannot be right, I thought. In the back of my mind I had a nagging suspicion about the steering head bearings, but I kept turning towards tire pressure because the bike feels like it has a flat front tire. 21 psi? Really, Kawasaki? I set each end to 29 psi and it seems to feel a little better, but not cured completely or even close to it.
I have been an active rider and racer for decades, have owned many motorcycles (my last brand new Kawasaki was a 1985 600 Ninja) and have always done my own repairs. But I allowed the selling dealer to perform the break-in service at 600 miles just to have it on record for the warranty. When I told the service writer about the steering he had nothing to say.
This weekend I will adjust the bearings and see what happens. I haven't looked closely yet, but I suspect that the top clamp should be loosened to allow the castle nut to be loosened a tiny bit. I haven't yet purchased a shop manual. Can someone please provide the torque values for the top clamp center bolt and pinch bolts?
I have been an active rider and racer for decades, have owned many motorcycles (my last brand new Kawasaki was a 1985 600 Ninja) and have always done my own repairs. But I allowed the selling dealer to perform the break-in service at 600 miles just to have it on record for the warranty. When I told the service writer about the steering he had nothing to say.
This weekend I will adjust the bearings and see what happens. I haven't looked closely yet, but I suspect that the top clamp should be loosened to allow the castle nut to be loosened a tiny bit. I haven't yet purchased a shop manual. Can someone please provide the torque values for the top clamp center bolt and pinch bolts?
I just adjusted mine, i had to take the handlebar upper clamps off because my wrench wasn’t thin enough to fit. Even with that, took me about 25 minutes, with the added bonus of actually putting my handlebars in a comfortable position when putting back on.Less than one month ago I bought my first KLR, a brand new gen 3 adventure. From the first moment I rode it, the steering felt odd- spooky -exactly as described by the OP. This cannot be right, I thought. In the back of my mind I had a nagging suspicion about the steering head bearings, but I kept turning towards tire pressure because the bike feels like it has a flat front tire. 21 psi? Really, Kawasaki? I set each end to 29 psi and it seems to feel a little better, but not cured completely or even close to it.
I have been an active rider and racer for decades, have owned many motorcycles (my last brand new Kawasaki was a 1985 600 Ninja) and have always done my own repairs. But I allowed the selling dealer to perform the break-in service at 600 miles just to have it on record for the warranty. When I told the service writer about the steering he had nothing to say.
This weekend I will adjust the bearings and see what happens. I haven't looked closely yet, but I suspect that the top clamp should be loosened to allow the castle nut to be loosened a tiny bit. I haven't yet purchased a shop manual. Can someone please provide the torque values for the top clamp center bolt and pinch bolts?
I’m going to go for a ride here in probably 2-3 hours, will report back
@
Twar90, the nut that adjusts the bearing preload is hidden beneath the top triple clamp. It is labeled as #92015 in the attached image. The nut that is visible between the handlebar clamps (92210) should not affect bearing preload. This is a common method of construction across almost all brands of motorcycles.
![Product Rectangle Font Parallel Screenshot]()
Twar90, the nut that adjusts the bearing preload is hidden beneath the top triple clamp. It is labeled as #92015 in the attached image. The nut that is visible between the handlebar clamps (92210) should not affect bearing preload. This is a common method of construction across almost all brands of motorcycles.
Yeah I got that, but you still have to loosen the big nut before you adjust preload@
Twar90, the nut that adjusts the bearing preload is hidden beneath the top triple clamp. It is labeled as #92015 in the attached image. The nut that is visible between the handlebar clamps (92210) should not affect bearing preload. This is a common method of construction across almost all brands of motorcycles.
View attachment 41634
Sorry - hope I didn't sound like a know-it-all.Yeah I got that, but you still have to loosen the big nut before you adjust preload
Looking around this site, I found comments saying the top nut under the handlebar should be torqued to 29 foot pounds, and the pinch bolts to 15.
I'm headed to the garage.
No worries at all! 👍Sorry - hope I didn't sound like a know-it-all.
Looking around this site, I found comments saying the top nut under the handlebar should be torqued to 29 foot pounds, and the pinch bolts to 15.
I'm headed to the garage.
I’ve ridden the bike a few times to work and back and loosening the steering stem bearings definitely helped. I backed mine off maybe 1/10 or 1/8 of a turn and haven’t really noticed any of the notchiness or low speed wandering that was present before. So far no symptoms of too loose bearings have appeared but will keep an eye out in case more adjustments are needed.
It’s disappointing to me that the dealership I brought it back to (the one I bought it from) didn’t want to spend the time trusting my feedback and instead gave excuses ranging from my riding style to the tires. I appreciate everyones feedback on this thread.
It’s disappointing to me that the dealership I brought it back to (the one I bought it from) didn’t want to spend the time trusting my feedback and instead gave excuses ranging from my riding style to the tires. I appreciate everyones feedback on this thread.
Same problem here, 2023 traveler. Felt like flat front tire.Stem preload was too tight.180 miles on a new base model and I have a steering question. First, yes, I'm still on the stock tires.
At slow speeds, neighborhood speeds 15-20 MPH, the bike needs a push to get it to turn in. It feels like there's a catch in the steering head bearing. At a stop, it all feels and turns smoothly. I've tried tire pressures from the as-delivered 21/21 PSI to 30/30 with no change in steering feel. I can't see anything rubbing in the fender area. The only known issue is that the dealer didn't fasten the brake hose in that little clamp by the fender. I pressed it into place and it doesn't seem to matter.
Any ideas?
Count me in too. I just took my 3rd and longest ride on my new 2023 base model. There is a definite notch in the center.. it’s most apparent when coming to a stop and the front tire is loaded. It makes the handling awful in general. With the bike jacked up however I cannot detect it. I have also owned a 2022 base model (long story) but it definitely did NOT have this problem. I will try to adjust since I don’t have a lot faith in the dealer that set it up for this and a couple of other reasons.Same problem here, 2023 traveler. Felt like flat front tire.Stem preload was too tight.
It's an easy adjustment and will turn your bike from an evil handling toad into...well a KLR!
If your bike is still under warranty, take it to your dealer and insist that they adjust the steering correctly.
THIS. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^If your bike is still under warranty, take it to your dealer and insist that they adjust the steering correctly.
is the only WAY that KMC USA will force the Thailand plant to get the next batch off the assembly lines CORRECT the next time.
These repetitive problems must run thru proper channels or they will never get straightened out, just like the frigging doo-hickey. "We don't see enough failure claims on warranty to even bother with it!"
What ever the current "IT" may be!
41 - 60 of 110 Posts
Kawasaki KLR Forum
A forum community dedicated to Kawasaki KLR 650 motorcycle owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about performance, modifications, adjustments, classifieds, troubleshooting, maintenance, conversions, and more!
Full Forum Listing
