Well after locking in a deal with OTD cycle orange county for the $ 7,199 otd and being first in line for over a month with my deposit, the first bike showed up last Sat.
They did not bother to call me because they sold it to some one else. The line of BS was over the top. Bottom line, somebody paid a grand over the price that I had a deposit on.

Moving forward I bought a green one from Saugus Kawasaki for $ 7,700 otd after calling around. Highest price quoteed was Kolbe in Woodland Hills @ $8,500 otd. It's the shipping cost that jacks the price and as we know it's BS.

I have not picked up the bike yet, I'll be doing that in the morning so can't say much other than I do like the color with the blacked out fork and wheels. I don't think there is much I can add to the glowing reviews, but may have a different perspective because I mainly ride Harleys and just sold my 1200 GS BMW for something lighter and more sporty. I'm looking forward to putting some time in on this bike. HB

The only difference is the addition of a charcoal canister so that fuel vapor from the tank doesn't vent to atmosphere (at least that's what it is on every other bike)... oh, and a sticker indicating that it meets CARB emissions requirements. European regulations require the same canister.

Thanks for the support everyone!

I spent some time yesterday on the new bike riding and doing some set up and it really is a bike that is very fun to ride. The motor is wonderful and for me the thing that shines most. Great torque curve and 4th gear is the magic gear for me. From 35 to 60 while cruising some canyons I just lugged it down a bit and rolled it right back to 60. Very much like my BMW just not as quick.
The handling, what can I say that everyone does not already know. It's really fun. Flickable, intuitive, stable but not the best suspension. I'm 225 lbs. and I think the bike is over sprung. The factory or dealer set up was no set up. Took me a couple of hours to dial in and still not sure if I got it. There is still a harshness over choppy or uneven surface that I can't get out.

Riding position is very good (5'11") but I did rotate the bars back a bit so they would be even with the fork tubes, readjusted the levers and bingo, better than my GS.

You know, this motor in a KLR would be quite a combo. But even better would be a 19" front wheel and up pipes for the Versys and what a dualsport you would have. More later HB

Could someone with an 09 outside CA check their bike for the same sticker and canister? That way we'd know if it is a "50-state" bike, or if it's a California bike here and a "49-state" bike everywhere else. If it's a 50-state bike we can buy one from out of state.

There are often more and subtler differences than just the canister. Most things have a PAIR valve now regardless of market but there might be changes in timing and fueling too.

gtiv20turbo,

I'm glade to hear you got it for a better price than the saleman, who was annoyed that I had busted them on the list thing told me. The internet quote that I had money on ($ 7,199) was from awhile back.
But now that I have some miles on the bike and I have bonded with it, all this other BS is fading and I just hope you enjoy your bike. Really fun bike!

Starting to get the suspension more dialed and on fast smooth roads it's great. Still chattery on rough surface's.

California bikes have a sticker for the emmsions data and canisters. They can be sold to any state. HB

Puzzled ...

Was there first gen with evap canister ?


LOP

Yup - the California bikes started in '09, and had the 'canister'. My AZ '09 had it (which I removed).