thx for the right up. i have a 23 adventure. i have 123 miles on the clock......from what i read, the 22's didn't have exceptional build quality because most of them were built during the pandemic. ( i could be 100% wrong about this) but if thats the case, it wont be all the bikes.......im sure someone will yell at me too about my comment.........im hoping this isn't the case on my 23....i did thermo bob already and i have the eagle mikes doo hickey kit brand new sitting in a box on my shelf in the garage.....havent decided if and when i will be doing that.......also i will be doing the 1st oil change at 200 miles......i really hope after you ironed out all the kinks on your bike, that you will start having trouble free maintenance. i do agree with you about being one of the most comfortable bikes I own......thx

 

i really hope after you ironed out all the kinks on your bike, that you will start having trouble free maintenance. i do agree with you about being one of the most comfortable bikes I own......thx

This is the current plan, hopefully with upgrading parts as I go it can become the reliable machine I was hoping for, or at least as reliable as my Russian made bike lol. I do plan to keep it and continue to fix things as it breaks because it is such a nice bike to ride.

 

Original tires are known junk, vibrates bolts loose is known, OEM chain is also known junk

Kickstands generally aren’t solid

Fuel pump is a problem but any machine is prone to a failure occasionally.

So with that recap they could use better batteries, tires and chains but that’ll raise initial price. KLR is known and purchased as a budget machine. Everything else you listed is general maintenance or preference.

 

...
List of work:
3 oil changes at 500 miles, 1500 miles, and 3500 mile.
2 oil filter changes at 500 miles, 1500 mile.
1 air filter change at 1500 miles, original was very dirty.
Added EE skid plate.
Added Oxford heated grips.
Clutch bypass modification.
Replaced shift lever due to inability to shift bike while wearing boots.
3 bolts missing (presumed rattled away).
New tires needed/installed at about 1500 miles.
New rear tire needed again at current mileage.
Chain Failure (broken link) at current mileage.
Side Stand Failure (loose to the point of moving to the bikes left when extended) at current mileage.
Fuel pump - not currently on recall list, yet the pump continues to sound worse and worse with each startup.
Needs a new battery currently...

I crossed off the stuff that most people would consider normal maintenance for a motorcycle. Looks like you've done a couple of hours of work on stuff beyond normal maintenance.

Perhaps your past experience with used motorcycles has prevented you from having to deal with stuff like loose bolts (the KLR is a thumper and shakes like a dog poopin' peach pits and any pre-ride inspection would include the presence of fasteners and their security. It's been like that since the inception of the bike. Forewarned was forearmed.)

I never met a motorcycle that didn't have some play in the side stand. My R1200RT certainly does and that's not a budget-basement motorcycle. Not sure how that constitutes a failure.

There no balancer lever upgrade listed and your bike is into the range where the balancer spring will go slack (an admitted issue greater than all of the other issues on the bike combined, but one that goes back to the inception of the bike. Forewarned was forearmed.) Fuel pump issues are another admitted issue, but they usually manifest themselves as failures to start, dying while underway, etc. Are you sure that the noise you are hearing is from the fuel pump and not the balancer chain?

It seems then, that you're down to a broken link in the chain. What's the deal with that?

 

Perhaps your past experience with used motorcycles has prevented you from having to deal with stuff like loose bolts (the KLR is a thumper and shakes like a dog poopin' peach pits and any pre-ride inspection would include the presence of fasteners and their security. It's been like that since the inception of the bike. Forewarned was forearmed.)

I apologize if mentioning purchasing used motorcycles was misleading, I have also purchased many new motorcycles. This is the first new motorcycle I have owned to require the work it has with so little miles!

I never met a motorcycle that didn't have some play in the side stand. My R1200RT certainly does and that's not a budget-basement motorcycle. Not sure how that constitutes a failure.

Correct regarding "play", however the side stand failing to support the bike resulting in the bike not standing up... failure.

There no balancer lever upgrade listed and your bike is into the range where the balancer spring will go slack (an admitted issue greater than all of the other issues on the bike combined, but one that goes back to the inception of the bike. Forewarned was forearmed.) Fuel pump issues are another admitted issue, but they usually manifest themselves as failures to start, dying while underway, etc. Are you sure that the noise you are hearing is from the fuel pump and not the balancer chain?

The noise I referred to is the fuel pump priming, sounding worse and worse each time, prior to the bike running.

It seems then, that you're down to a broken link in the chain. What's the deal with that?

I would agree with your implication of that statement, if the chain had more than 5k miles on it. A broken link in under 5k miles is unacceptable in my book. Most of my chain drive bikes (hondas and yamahas) have acquired 20k+ before requiring a new chain, and even then without breaking a link. This is the first time I've actually found a broken link. For a bike less than a year old with less than 5k miles? I'd say that's pretty sh*tty build quality.

A chain that cannot last a single year on a bike that only makes 40hp is a dangerous thing.

 

Why did you replace your air filter instead of washing the dirty one?

 

I have washed the dirty one for re-use. I use two, and switch them out so the bike doesn't have to have down time waiting on me to wash things lol.

 

Agreed.
The OEM battery is a piece of crap, along with the drive chains & early-gen fuel pumps. I don’t have much faith that my fuel pump won’t go out some day, even tho it’s not (currently) on the recall list.

All the valves were super tight @ 3,000mi, and stealerships DO NOT know how to properly assemble motorcycles nowadays.

In recent rides, my odometer began acting up all because the sprocket sensor had crud on it.
My gen 3 remains very finicky compared to my previous 2018 KLR…which I never should've sold.
Rant over!

 

or when the piston decides to warp due to not doing the thermobob.

I wouldn’t worry much about that.
Upgrading the doo & adjusting your valves should be higher up on the priority list.
Just my .02!

 

"Side Stand Failure (loose to the point of moving to the bikes left when extended) at current mileage."

My reading comprehension is pretty good. I read the above as that the slip-joint was loose enough that, when the stand was extended and the bike placed one the stand, the bike leaned further to the left than it would have had the joint been tight. That effect, you called a failure.

Nowhere in your post did you say the bike fell over. For that, I would have expected to read "The side stand is so loose that my bike falls over quite frequently."

 

Ah You are correct Tom, This weekend I had the bike on the lift to lube the chain and investigate the side stand because it had been doing that quite a bit. I had started to write up my post at that time and failed to update that part. When I brought the bike off the lift the side stand failed and the bike toppled over. I now am in need of a new side stand. I apologize I thought I had changed that to add the fact that it fell over.

 

On your list of items you need to correct, I can only identify with a few unusual things inherent on the 22+ KLR650:

Fuel Pump (mine doesn't have an issue yet, and I have a '22 on the recall list)
Battery (barely adequate but it works; mine has not failed but replaced it with something more powerful)
Too short of a shift lever - definitely a fail from Kawasaki
Cheap Chain - definitely annoying as OEM chains won't last past 15k miles even with a lot of TLC (my '17 DR650 OEM chain didn't last past 15k either)
Clutch Switch Bypass to smooth out throttle response at low RPM - definitely a fail from Kawasaki but is mostly annoying

Compare this to my 2021 Suzuki VStrom 650 XT: This bike needs no upgrades if used as intended and not beaten off road. No screws have fallen off. Throttle response is smooth as silk. Battery is powerful in all temperatures. Chain going strong at 18k miles. Absolutely nothing has failed, and every design element feels just right for the bike's mission. I upgraded a few items to aftermarket, like controls, handlebars, foot pegs, only to put things back to stock because they work so well. If I have to find something to complain about, it's the front fork damping needs to be better, and brakes need to have more bite. That's really about it.

 

Compare this to my 2021 Suzuki VStrom 650 XT: This bike needs no upgrades if used as intended and not beaten off road. No screws have fallen off. Throttle response is smooth as silk. Battery is powerful in all temperatures. Chain going strong at 18k miles. Absolutely nothing has failed, and every design element feels just right for the bike's mission. I upgraded a few items to aftermarket, like controls, handlebars, foot pegs, only to put things back to stock because they work so well. If I have to find something to complain about, it's the front fork damping needs to be better, and brakes need to have more bite. That's really about it.

This is really my main gripe with the KLR. The experience you describe above with your VStrom is similar to mine with my BMW, Honda, and Yamaha that I currently own. When compared, the experience with the KLR is frustrating. But as I said above it rides so nice for it's intended purpose that it is worth keeping.

I hope people see past the gripe that I am saying the KLR is a worthy bike, I have enjoyed having it and will continue to enjoy riding it; but it is frustrating the amount of sh*t that has failed in the first year.

 

nose in the air . . . . the oldest whitetail doe is the one that can smell the wind and seeks out trouble . . . . sidestand???? on a new bike?? are you vaulting off of it?

 

Yeah, but it's a KLR. What do you expect? It's like buying a jeep wrangler and expecting it to have the reliability of a 4runner. It ain't gonna happen.

 

Yeah, but it's a KLR. What do you expect

Granted, but that one photo of the broken chain link at less than 5k miles is absolutely shocking and serves as a good advertisement for regular chain maintenance.

 

This is a weird post. I've done a crap load of stuff to my bike, some of which the OP did too. So what's the point? Most of this stuff is maintenance or personal preference. He even admits that he is gonna get reamed for making the post. I'm not sure what the OP is trying to accomplish. Can't these unhappy owners just sell it and go buy a Tenere instead?

 

So what's the point?

In short: The point was to discuss the KLR.

Seems to me a discussion of what we like and don't like about the KLR fits right into the reason for the existence of this forum.

Or are you saying we should only be posting positive things about the KLR? Are we that sensitive here?

 

Geez, sorry to hear of your KLR woes. My 22 Adventure has been flawless and I’ve got a tad over 2,000 miles on it). Fuel pump isn’t on the recall list, and it is still priming the same before each start.

I do all the basic maintenance myself, oil and filter changes, air filter cleaning, chain maintenance and I keep the battery on a tender when not using the bike for more than a few days. Tires still got life in em, but I will probably upgrade them soon.

 

If you've read some of my posts, I've complained loudly too about certain pain points on my own KLR. I suppose I'm guilty of complaining more than giving praise, because there is lots to praise. The way I evaluate how good (or bad or annoying) my bike is, is based on how much I'm willing to put money into it to make it better (for me). I don't mean little things like hand guards, mirrors, etc. I mean bigger things like exhaust, suspension, engine mods. Because if I did any of that, it means I'm keeping the bike for a while, which means it's not a bad/annoying bike. I've had annoying bikes that I couldn't wait to get rid of! I guess my KLR is going to stay for a while.

 

I don't see these as build quality issues (pending pictures of the side stand failure), but perhaps poor component quality. Not saying that it can't be frustrating, but there's an important distinction there.

The chain is obviously poor quality. Hard to argue against that.
Fuel pump failures are seeming to pop up often. Again, component failure. Unfortunate, but you'd be surprised what supply chain issue can do to component quality.
Batteries are apparently crap. That's kind of an industry thing in the past 20yrs, but seems to plague KLRs more than anything else. Again, poor component quality.
Tires are a wear part. Factory tires are designed to be cheap, ride smooth, have good traction, and not fail catastrophically. This goes for cars as well as bikes. Longevity is not a factor for the OE tires.
Bolts rattling loose is a thumper thing. Sure, some factory loc-tite might be nice, but $$. Loc-tite and torque your fasteners.
Why was the air filter replaced? It should be cleaned regularly. I check mine every couple months of street use, or after every trip off road. There's nothing wrong with the stock air filter.

Again, not saying that you shouldn't be mildly frustrated about things like the chain and battery, but those aren't build quality issues. They're also not major issues, and they're also wear parts. Admittedly poor quality wear parts, but wear parts nonetheless.

 

He clarified that by replacing the air filter he installed a clean spare then cleaned the original for future use. It makes sense now obviously but most would’ve just said they cleaned the air filter. I’m not sure why maintenance like that was included in a ‘The new KLR is a let down’ thread.

 

I almost get the impression that the OP had unrealistic expectations for the KLR and now has buyers remorse. It seems more of a personal review of his individual unit , than a general consensus of all owners. Thankfully I don't share his frustrations, nor have had to deal with what he sees as major faults. I had a bad fuel pump. My only gripe. Every machine will have its own unique flaw(s) or shortcoming(s). With mass production there will be occasional bad completed products.

 

I almost get the impression that the OP had unrealistic expectations for the KLR and now has buyers remorse.

Nope, No buyers remorse here, if you read all of my posts you'd see that I spoke several times about enjoying the ride, comfort, ergos, and relaxed character of the KLR and plan to keep it for a long time. I own and buy many bikes, if I had buyers remorse I would not be wasting my time typing this but would be buying another bike.

It seems more of a personal review of his individual unit , than a general consensus of all owners.

Yes, This is correct. This entire thread I have been speaking about my experience with my KLR. I have mentioned that in comparison to other bikes it is shocking the speed of wear on some of the components, but in no way have said "all KLR's are sh*t". MY experience is that this is sub-par build quality, or as StarfuryTH stated above component quality for a new bike. I find the amount of defensiveness in response to MY experience amusing, as it overlooks the fact that I am one person speaking about one experience.

 

The thing does rattle A LOT, even for a thumper. It does not give the impression of quality, relative to other new bikes. The plastics rub on the tank, the plug that covers up the 12v socket (if you have the base model) rattles, and then you crack the flimsy plastics and they rattle some more. The tractor sound from the stock exhaust is not "cool."

I was initially torn between the 22 KLR and a KTM 390ADV (almost the same price). I chose the KLR a few months ago. I finally got to ride the KTM two weeks ago, and it was a totally different experience. I was like, ooooh this is nice! So smooth, so much power for each pound of metal, and a front brake that actually works!! And it sounds like a FUN bike, not farm equipment!! The first impression on the 390 is admittedly much better, although I don't know about long-term reliability.

Definitely a lot of bottom-shelf components on the 22-23 KLR. Battery is the worst of them all, IMO.

Also odd that everyone buys a KLR knowing that there are at least two essential engine modifications that need to be done almost right off the bat (I'd maybe chalk that up to the fact that some of the newer bikes just haven't been around long enough for the quirks to become common knowledge). It's almost like buying a used bike that you know needs work, but it's much cleaner and you get to pay dealer fees.

I still think it's the best value for a true jack-of-all trades bike, though. Not the one I would get if I had all the money in the world, but the one I would get if I was on a budget and I could own just one bike for every possible ride. And if you enjoy tinkering, as many of us do, it's gotta be one of the easiest bikes to work on - especially with all the help from the community!

 

I've ridden the 390 Adventure too, before I chose the KLR. I also took a very deep dive into 390 Adventure ownership. Both bikes have their quirks. The 390 Adventure is more pavement oriented than the KLR. Ergonomics are more biased for road use. But cheap and easy to fix. The 390's chain is also a low quality POS that won't last much more than 10k miles. The 390's advantage is higher quality suspension that is almost fully adjustable, and the power to weight ratio. It's faster in acceleration than a KLR that's for sure. I thought the suspension was too stiff even on pavement. Highway performance is about even with the KLR in that it feels very busy above 80 mph. But it will do an honest 100 under ideal conditions, usually around 95 mph consistently. Long distance comfort, KLR is way better. It feels more relaxed and it coddles you in wind protected comfort. The 390 Adventure feels almost like a naked bike with a nice windscreen. The KTM is a small bike, the KLR is a big bike, and they will feel as such.

As for sounds and rattles, the '22 KLR's right side fairing has a curve where the fairing mounting bolt is located, this part rubs against the tank. Unbolt that part of the right fairing and file down that part of the plastic so there is sufficient clearance. You only have to remove 1/8" of material. That solves the rattling forever. The stock KLR exhaust actually sounds better than the anemic sewing machine sound of the 390 Adventure. Both mufflers have ugly holes. If you want to improve the sound of your engine, just remove the air box snorkel. Makes a huge difference in giving the engine a deeper, intake note, which matches up really well with the bassy (for an OEM muffler) exhaust note.

Anyway, if I were going to ride mostly on pavement and was going to keep the bike mostly stock, I would have gotten the 390 Adventure. But if I were going to modify the bike to make it a higher performance adventure/off road worthy, KLR all the way. The KLR's basic DNA favors off road riding more than the 390 Adventure (which is based on the 390 Duke chassis with some modifications to make it Adventure ready). So there's more inherent capabilities in the KLR for that purpose.

 

I don't know, a sloppy kick stand wouldn't surprise me too much. It would be easy for a poor weld to give. Not representative of the whole, but frustrating for the owner, I'm sure.

I think a lot of us are biased both because we own and love our KLRs, but also because we love working on them. For the average Joe who buys a new bike and expects it to work, those minor niggles may be supremely frustrating. I'm sure my wife would flip her lid if the parking brake on her new MDX stopped working because a switch connector rattled loose. It's just a different mentality of vehicle ownership.

I bought a 2005. It was the right price, and I love a good project. I've done all sorts of stuff to it, including fixing some factory design issues (peg geometry, bar geometry, etc.). For me, it's part of ownership. For the next person, it's a frustration. Everyone is different.

 

I'm pretty sure the chain was over tightened. That would explain the short life and broken link. This is a common mistake with the KLR (see many other posts on this site) and I've made it as well (my rollers started coming off). You have to leave a lot of slack in the chain because of the swing arm angle.

As for the quality, you get what you pay for, and the 3 KLRs I've had were very reliable for the money. I had a much more expensive KTM just before I bought my 2022 KLR, and it had some quality issues as well and cost 3 times what the KLR did. All bikes have their quirks, but you can see the huge loyal fan base of KLRs, and that says a lot. For me, the KLR is the perfect bike for this stage of my riding. Cheap, reliable, easy to work on and does everything I want to do these days. Sure, I wish Kawasaki did a torsion spring on the doohickey, put a tach and temp gauge on the gen 3 and had a thermostat bypass and a six speed, but fixing most of those with accessories was pretty straightforward.

 

I have similar gripes, and like you love the ergos on the bike. By far the most comfortable ride I've owned, that's for sure. Rear tire was disintegrating at around 3K miles, the knobbies were coming off. Front tire was wearing all funny and had become noisy. Valves were out of spec well before the recommended service interval. Bike is under a recall because of the fuel pump. Mine made the naughty list and the dealer has one on order. Outside of that, the chain and battery are holding up just fine so far, and I'm going to give my side stand a good inspection here soon. Have not lost any fasteners to date. What exactly happened to your side stand please? My bike currently has a smidge over 6K miles.

Regards, Jim.

 

I'm not going to lambaste the OP but I generally concur with Tom's comments; most of the listed items are regular maintenance or wear items that are not produced by Kawasaki (tires, battery, etc.) Loose bolts are a maintenance item. The chain, sidestand mount and potential fuel pump issues seem like legit complaints to me (the chain is really surprising: I've not seen that before). While I don't have a 2022, I suspect the general quality is the same as it's been since 1987......which is OK/fine/middle of the road. Certainly there are budget components here and there (cough, suspension, cough) but the overall build quality is average for a Japanese motorcycle in my experience.....my latest KLR is my 47th motorcycle.

YMMV,

Dave

 

I'm not going to lambaste the OP but I generally concur with Tom's comments; most of the listed items are regular maintenance or wear items that are not produced by Kawasaki (tires, battery, etc.) Loose bolts are a maintenance item. The chain, sidestand mount and potential fuel pump issues seem like legit complaints to me (the chain is really surprising: I've not seen that before). While I don't have a 2022, I suspect the general quality is the same as it's been since 1987......which is OK/fine/middle of the road. Certainly there are budget components here and there (cough, suspension, cough) but the overall build quality is average for a Japanese motorcycle in my experience.....my latest KLR is my 47th motorcycle.

YMMV,

Dave

I felt my bike was pretty well built. I don't have a ton of miles on it yet but I typically expect the oem tires and chain to not be exactly what I would put on and look forward to them wearing out to get it how I want it. The faulty fuel pump is a bummer but they are making it right. I was a bit surprised how cheap a few parts were but I think for the money spent I got a good amount of bike. If I was going to nit pick I think I was disappointed that the dealership let it out the door with lots of bolts loose and one missing. Plus I had to fix a few good squeaks. I was a mechanic back in the 90's and my rule of thumb is never let anyone touch my bike unless I have no choice. Nobody's cares as much as I do. It has served me well.

 

I've only owned two brand new bikes, a HD and a Vstrom. I just picked up a 07 KLR and am getting it ready for the season. The Vstrom was an excellent bike, and stayed in the garage the longest of any I've owned-6 years. Dealer setup is always sketchy. The front brake caliper fell off the Vstrom after about 50 miles. My bad for not going over a brand new bike with my own torque wrench.

One thing I've learned tho, avoid buying the first year of any new or major updated anything. Doesn't matter if it's a motorcycle, car, aircraft, computer or cell phone.

 

That is a scary thought having the front brake caliper come off, I'll take a prematurely worn out chain and battery over failing brakes! Bikes I have bought new have mostly been BMW's and Honda's. Maybe I was just lucky and that luck has run out but it seems like the bikes I bought new in the past have been much more solid for the first year of use. My 2017 BMW RnineT that I bought new still has the original battery in it now, and it still starts the bike in one turn, I have another battery for it ready to go, but will keep using this one till she dies.

Now that I think about it the last time I bought a new bike was before covid, perhaps fit and finish has gone down overall in that time frame.

 

Build quality and/or defective parts is more of an issue these days than ever before.
The Vstrom had the original battery, new in 2016 and still cranking when I sold it in 2022. Fortunately, the brake caliper fell off as I came to a slow stop. I went back to the dealer to get new bolts and they offered to come get the bike and check it out to make sure it was as it should be. I passed on that.

 

I will defuse the situation and say much like Elon Musk I enjoy social media while on the toilet! Dont judge. It all comes out fine!

 

As long as everything keeps moving...

 

Stinks when you have a bad experience for sure. My 22 is the first New bike I've bought since 2008 so for me it was a risk but was worried about supply back during lockdowns.

My stats for reference - 5,10, shoe size is 43, ~200lbs.
Bike is the basic model. Has just under 5800 miles at present

Stock tires lasted 3500 miles
1 oil change with filter at 600 miles (first tune)
Added Bike Master Heated Grips
Added USB charge port
Clutch bypass modification.
For me the shifter is ok. I'm not going to change it until I know if's not my ability (I'm new to off pavement riding)
No loose bolts that I know of, but will keep my eye on it
Chain is fine I think, but will double check
No issues with side stand.
No issue with Fuel pump.
Battery seems fine. Starts every time (It never sits more than a couple weeks without at least a short ride.)
Water Pump seal + Mechanical seal replaced under warranty (Failed @ 5400 miles and I got it in 1 month before it expired)