Hi!
My last 3 bikes were KLRs. 2 of them were 650s and one was a 250. I started getting the bug to buy another one and thought how nice it would be if Kawasaki would ever consider fuel-injecting them. That's when I stumbled upon the Versys. I had never heard of a Versys, but when I found out it was fuel-injected, I was sold...
I hit Craigslist and picked up a 2009 Versys 650 with 3,950 original miles on it. It looks brand new in every way. I thought that $3,500 was a good deal. What do you think?
It starts right up and runs beautifully. It really does look brand new all around. No scratches, dings or dents, and the paint is perfect. The mirrors are a little irritating and seem to come loose all the time. I cranked it as tight as I could, feeling like I was going to break them, but they still pivot on their own. I'm considering possibly ditching them for bar-end mirrors unless I can find a way to make them stick.
I rode it to work for the first week that I owned it (2 weeks ago) and practically launched off of the seat every time I hit a decent bump in the street, so I'm assuming that it's a rebound vs. preload mismatch with my weight.
This last weekend, I changed the oil with Kawasaki synthetic and a Kawasaki oil filter that I bought as a package deal on Amazon. The previous owner told me that the bike "needs nothing" but the oil was black as ink when it came out, so I'm thinking that it was original. The old filter was also Kawasaki brand and I felt like I was going to have a stroke trying to break the seal loose. I ended up crushing it with a rubber strap wrench before it popped loose!
Anyway, I cleaned and lubed the chain after I changed the oil last weekend and now I'm ready for some suspension adjustments. It looks like the rear shock has the preload all the way out for a very light rider. I know people say that you need to just try different settings, but it's a new bike to me, so I don't know how it's actually supposed to feel. Maybe I'll start at the half-way mark and test from there.
Well, I hope to have some fun on this thing before it gets too hot here to ride. It's already in the mid 90s this week. I wonder if there are any Versys meetups or riding clubs in the Phoenix area?!?
Thanks,
-Derek
My last 3 bikes were KLRs. 2 of them were 650s and one was a 250. I started getting the bug to buy another one and thought how nice it would be if Kawasaki would ever consider fuel-injecting them. That's when I stumbled upon the Versys. I had never heard of a Versys, but when I found out it was fuel-injected, I was sold...
I hit Craigslist and picked up a 2009 Versys 650 with 3,950 original miles on it. It looks brand new in every way. I thought that $3,500 was a good deal. What do you think?
It starts right up and runs beautifully. It really does look brand new all around. No scratches, dings or dents, and the paint is perfect. The mirrors are a little irritating and seem to come loose all the time. I cranked it as tight as I could, feeling like I was going to break them, but they still pivot on their own. I'm considering possibly ditching them for bar-end mirrors unless I can find a way to make them stick.
I rode it to work for the first week that I owned it (2 weeks ago) and practically launched off of the seat every time I hit a decent bump in the street, so I'm assuming that it's a rebound vs. preload mismatch with my weight.
This last weekend, I changed the oil with Kawasaki synthetic and a Kawasaki oil filter that I bought as a package deal on Amazon. The previous owner told me that the bike "needs nothing" but the oil was black as ink when it came out, so I'm thinking that it was original. The old filter was also Kawasaki brand and I felt like I was going to have a stroke trying to break the seal loose. I ended up crushing it with a rubber strap wrench before it popped loose!
Anyway, I cleaned and lubed the chain after I changed the oil last weekend and now I'm ready for some suspension adjustments. It looks like the rear shock has the preload all the way out for a very light rider. I know people say that you need to just try different settings, but it's a new bike to me, so I don't know how it's actually supposed to feel. Maybe I'll start at the half-way mark and test from there.
Well, I hope to have some fun on this thing before it gets too hot here to ride. It's already in the mid 90s this week. I wonder if there are any Versys meetups or riding clubs in the Phoenix area?!?
Thanks,
-Derek