Kawasaki Versys Forum banner

Reasons NOT to buy a Versys

14K views 53 replies 42 participants last post by  Morpheous 
#1 ·
Hey all...first post here but have been lurking for a long time.

Got myself riding on a 2010 Ninja 250 back in March and I'm about 5000+ miles down the road and am nearing my plan to sell the Ninjette and move up to a larger, more comfortable bike that I plan on keeping for years and farkling as necessary.

That being said...I've ALWAYS been eyeing the Versys and I'm pretty much dead set on pulling the trigger on one in the relatively near future.

So, my question to you all, why is it NOT a good investment? What are some of the common complaints about the bike? I plan on using it as a commuter as well as a tourer. Off road is NOT going to be in its job description.

I ask this question honestly. I am not trying to have my mind changed, but just trying to hear from some real world users what are some of the negatives I might encounter should I drop the funds on one in the future.

Thanks!
 
#2 ·
It gets to be quite expensive with all the cool stuff you can buy for them.
 
#10 ·
I'll have to think about it. Let me get back to you in a hundred or so posts...:rolleyes:
 
#13 ·
Oh come on, people, there are LOTS of reasons not to buy a Versys. Here are the top ten reasons, off the top of my head.

1) You have several hundred thousand dollars in the bank, no idea what to do with it, and you have deep-seated feelings of inadequacy and anxiety because your father ran off with his secretary and abandoned your family when you were a child, and you somehow feel you were to blame. You feel an overwhelming compulsion to buy the Motorcycle of The Year winner to bask in the weak reflected glow of glory.

2) The Versys' fairing buzzes and you're too lazy to fix it.

3) You have poor choice in friends and your friends all ride Harleys and will make disparaging comments about you and refuse to let you ride with them if you buy a Versys.

4) You have poor choice in friends and your friends all ride Ducatis and will be embarrassed to be seen with you if your bike doesn't cost five figures.

5) You do more track days than commutes to work.

6) If you aren't riding a $35,000 custom you won't be allowed to park right by the front door of the chicken wing joint on Bike Night, and you really, really want to park by the front door and bask in the weak reflected glow of glory.

7) You only have $2,000 to spend on a motorcycle.

8) Your grandfather worked in Kawasaki's ship-building division, was killed in a horrible industrial accident and was screwed out of his pension and survivor benefits by an unscrupulous supervisor, so your family has sworn to be personal enemies of Kawasaki for six generations.

9) Versys is kind of a stupid name and because of your Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, that really bothers you. So much that you might be forced to set your bike on fire because the voices just won't leave you alone.

10) You can only have one bike and you plan to enter the Dakar Rally.

These are all perfectly legitimate reasons not to buy a Versys.

I'm sure there are others.
 
#14 ·
A Versys might be more fun than you can handle. Also you find you did not save on fuel because while a commute to work takes a half hour, it takes three hours to get home.:devil::devil::devil:

Maloy
 
#15 ·
I love the bike, butg let's not live in fantasyland here.

a couple things i have found:

1. seat sucks. just like on the 650r. give me a break, the forward slide is just poor engineering. it wouldn't cost anything more to design a proper seat.

2. fairing buzzes. yes, i can probably fix it. but they could probably straighten that out at the factory with 2$ worth of foam tape when assembling.

3. no self canceling turn signals. pet peeve of mine. all bike should be required to have this.

4. mirrors buzz at speed, especially left mirror.

5. no scroll button for display on hand controls. doesn't seem like it would cost that much. on the tiger board they had a fix worked out using the high beam flash or extra switch.

bottom line is it is a really nice bike. super fun to buzz around on and super versatile as the name implies. The niggles i have found can be fixed, but it would be nice if they could take care of those when they design a bike. I'm sure i dont have to list the pros of this bike as they are well knoiwn and numerous. have fun out there!
 
#16 ·
Here are my reasons" why not to buy a Versys.

1. Too much money spent on farkling.

2. Too much time spend in this beautiful Forum.

3. Too many good friends-versys friends- whom I cant ignore and run my own private life.

4. less time spent on home front.

5. Not enough time on the bike riding.

6. Not enough twisters around.

:cheers:
 
#22 ·
Reasons not to buy, lets see

you don't want to ride, but pose (whether thats in your own garage, a near by bar or the mirror)

you want to show off to your mates you are a grade one bad ass 'biker', whether thats as a cruiser or rice rocket pilot

you like polishing chrome

you want to ride off road (anything more than say 5..15% off road would indicate its NOT the bike for you).. it doesn't mean the Versys can't cope doing that, just that you'd be better off getting a bike that is designed for off road

you want 'more power', the Versys by modern standards is not a power bike, its got plenty of pwoer where you need it, it just doesn't feature in 'spotty kid' "how fast does it go mister", or "how quick does it accelerate to 60 / 100 / 200 / warp speed" bragging rights.

you can't put up with Kawasaki's less than perfect build quality.

you don't like riding through corners, 'canyon busting', enjoying the twisties

you don't want to have an ear to ear grin oin your face when you come back from riding

you don't want to be caught out muttering apologies to the bike as you take the car / bus / train or whatever and leave the bike all alone

you are brand and/or fashion concious, K isn't going to cut the mustard if you are into brands in a big way

however its a bike, not an investment. if you want an investment get professional financial advice. its a bike, ride it enjoy it. if you want to pamper it do so, but it will not appreciate in value. if you want an investment then do what that Hionda dealer in, was it Holland, did buy 2 or 3 highly thought of race rep bikes (NR30 comes to mind), leave them in their shipping crate for 20..30 years when they have become a 'classic' then sell 'em to some sad rich guy who likes toys but dare not touch in case they loose value.

yes you could buy something like an Egli Vincent, or other exotica but would you ride it, and if you did ride it would you ride it with the same frequency and enthusiasm as a £3...£6,000 bike?

reasons to buy the bike

its fun, it does cover several bases, its a master of none, yet good on the motorway, twisties AND graded non tarmac road)

its relatively economical (50mp (real) gallon)

it doesn't cost a great deal to service either at home or the dealer, certainly peanuts comapred to some other bikes

its high on smiles per gallon too.

its a relatively cheap bike that isn't going cost much to insure, isn't going to be a concern if it gets dropped or written off.

its reliable (yes there are a few question marks over the electrics, but there are precious few other issues..)
 
#23 ·
Reasons not to buy, lets see





you don't want to be caught out muttering apologies to the bike as you take the car / bus / train or whatever and leave the bike all alone
Want to admit publicly that i have done the above so the Versys and my wife thinks i need to check out my mental health so it is not a good idea to buy a V as you may end up talking to her and yes even patting it, okay i came out of the closet
 
#24 ·
To answer not the question in your subject line, but the one in your post:

So, my question to you all, why is it NOT a good investment?
Because you won't get enough of riding your Versys! You will use it. You will make it your own and wear it out.

Financially it is a horrible investment, you will never recuperate what you originally spent.

Return On Investment in experiences and joy, however... well, that makes this bike one of the best deals in the business. IMHO.
 
#25 ·
The reasons to not get a V have probably shrunk as more aftermarket support has become available for the bike.

Despite it's all round performance as a comfortable, reliable, gas efficient, and fun commuter there's one area that still seems to be a sore spot (pun intended) with the bike. The stock saddle is prettu uncomfortable for anything over an hour of riding or so and I think the engineers either screwed up the design or didn craft the saddle shape to compensate for the higher rear end.

Problem is not too many AFFORDABLE options exist in the replacement seat category. The Corbin is damn-many bucks and all the others modify the stock seat pan (which I think is the problem).

If you don't plan on doing any cross country t rips on the V then it's not really all that big a problem. Other than that, the bike is a fantastic value and you can find excellent example of second hand V's for around 4000 bucks with very low mileage.

I'd rather have a V over some more expensive bikes in the similar class like the Tiger and Multistrada. Yeah I know people like these bikes, but I love my Versys! Pound for pound fun, dollar for dollar value, long and short term cost of ownership has all these beat!

CC
 
#27 ·
The stock seat needs a little love, as mentioned. I reshaped mine a bit to keep me closer to the tank, and it's greatly improved.

Fairing buzz. I wear earplugs, though, so I rarely notice it.

The stock suspension is pretty marginal.

The throttle, like the 650R, is really long-throw. Inexcusable for a moderate-power bike.

Other than that, nothing I'd really complain about for a budget middleweight.
 
#29 ·
As a few others have said, don't buy the Versys if you are planning on spending the majority of your time in the dirt. Without some serious changes, it just is not the right tool for the job. I love my Versys to death, but spending 30 miles on it, 2-up on a terrible fire road taught me I should not be doing those kind or roads on this bike. In all fairness to the bike, I have the suspension dialed in perfectly for the pavement 2-up, which is a lot different than the conditions we faced off road. I am sure with a fair amount of suspension tweaking and some better tires, the ride would have been better, but still, the Versys is great at what it does - on the road, which is what I bought it for anyway.
 
#32 · (Edited)
Let's be Honest

I generally like my '08 V, or I wouldn't still have it after buying it new over two years ago. Having said that, it's not my favorite bike of all time. In fact, it's not even the favorite bike in my garage. (that title goes to my '03 KLR 250)

To be honest, the stock suspension is way too harsh. It's softened up some as the miles have accumulated, and on a very smooth road it's the cat's ass, but on your everyday screwed up surface streets, it's still pretty jarring. (Yes, I even have my preload turned almost to full soft)

The V is also a hard bike to ride smoothly. Power delivery is jerky - the throttle is either on or off, or so it seems on my bike. Engine braking is pretty severe under almost all circumstances - though that's not always a bad thing. If you drive the V like you're being chased by an axe-murderer, it's actually a pretty fun bike. If you're commuting and trying to be smooth and unobtrusive you can forget it.

The stock seat is way beyond bad. It's terrible. I couldn't drive mine for more than twenty minutes at a time when I first bought it. I ordered a new Corbin within 2 weeks of buying my V, and it has made all the difference in the world.

I've heard a lot of different opinions on the stock tires, but mine sucked. I've had the rear tire slide out on me on several occasions, and I just don't trust them. I'm always sure to warm them up properly, and I keep them right at the recommended pressure.

The buzzing in the dash was annoying, but I fixed it pretty easily.

The Pros:

It was cheap.
It's been super-reliable, and I have every reason to believe it will last for many years.
It's a fun bike to ride if you are an aggressive driver who likes to drive hard/fast everywhere you go.
It has a small-to-medium degree of dirt/gravel road capability, which is kind of nice when exploring in the countryside.
It has a very decent amount of low-end grunt. Top end isn't too bad either, provided you keep the rpm's up.

All in all, not a bad ride. I'll probably keep it, in fact.
 
#34 ·
I generally like my '08 V, or I wouldn't still have it after buying it new over two years ago. Having said that, it's not my favorite bike of all time. In fact, it's not even the favorite bike in my garage. (that title goes to my '03 KLR 250)

To be honest, the stock suspension is way too harsh. It's softened up some as the miles have accumulated, and on a very smooth road it's the cat's ass, but on your everyday screwed up surface streets, it's still pretty jarring. (Yes, I even have my preload turned almost to full soft)

The V is also a hard bike to ride smoothly. Power delivery is jerky - the throttle is either on or off, or so it seems on my bike. Engine braking is pretty severe under almost all circumstances - though that's not always a bad thing. If you drive the V like you're being chased by an axe-murderer, it's actually a pretty fun bike. If you're commuting and trying to be smooth and unobtrusive you can forget it.

The stock seat is way beyond bad. It's terrible. I couldn't drive mine for more than twenty minutes at a time when I first bought it. I ordered a new Corbin within 2 weeks of buying my V, and it has made all the difference in the world.

I've heard a lot of different opinions on the stock tires, but mine sucked. I've had the rear tire slide out on me on several occasions, and I just don't trust them. I'm always sure to warm them up properly, and I keep them right at the recommended pressure.

The buzzing in the dash was annoying, but I fixed it pretty easily.

The Pros:

It was cheap.
It's been super-reliable, and I have every reason to believe it will last for many years.
It's a fun bike to ride if you are an aggressive driver who likes to drive hard/fast everywhere you go.
It has a small-to-medium degree of dirt/gravel road capability, which is kind of nice when exploring in the countryside.
It has a very decent amount of low-end grunt. Top end isn't too bad either, provided you keep the rpm's up.

All in all, not a bad ride. I'll probably keep it, in fact.
I appreciate the honesty! Keep em coming! This is a great read for me!

That being said....whats the fix on the buzzing stuff?
 
#38 ·
That Motociclista is one funny guy...'till i got down to number 9 and thought...hey I resemble that comment....i need my happy pills....where's my matches? Shut-up...leave me alone....i'm naught listening!:stickpoke:

Hold it maybe the stickers can come off...then i could re-name it!
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top