Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

Good one durai. Everytime I think I have over spent over the past 12k+ kms, I try and read something like this or watch a review online. Then I drink the kawasaki cool aid to sleep.

The "ver"satile "sys"tems 650...awaiting delivery

This is the story of how I ended up being a biker and also one with the genre of motorcycle of his dreams. I would like to give a fair warning that the story is long and to skip to the end for a briefer story and the all important pictures


Getting a bicycle was not something I had to work for. My dad always had the condition of keep your grades up and I will get you what you want (within limits of course, I wasn't driving a geared bike without a license or anything). I got my "hercules rockshox" when I was in the 8th std I believe. Still remember how I used to pack food on its carrier (laddoos and water lol) and drive with my friend 6 kms to a stone quarry just for the sake of it. This kind of thing was unheard of among my friends (bicycle mini touring I guess).


When I entered the higher secondary school (11th std) the school would not provide transport for boys, and we either had to take the town buses (which are a "nightmare" for a spoiled kid who went everywhere in a car, the good old ambassador) or make our own arrangements. Without hesitation my dad said I should get a moped and hence came the TVS XL super powergear into my life. I was touted as a rich kid for having it, although my other friends had splendours and cd100s and what not (I didn't even consider the possibility of getting a geared bike (illegal to drive at that age but hey I was a kid and not very wise)). I never did any kind of long distance driving on that moped, and some memories include me trying to show off (and failing) miserably by getting the centre stand on while sitting on it, trying to wheelie (i know i know) by holding the rear brake and letting go after having the throttle fully open, and dealing with my friend who lives on the way I go home whom I used to hate for having to give free rides. The worst memory with it was when I had a head-on collision with a school boy who decided to cross the street in front of the van I was passing. I couldn't see him till a second before and it ended up with just a hole in my lower lip (though i wasn't wearing a helmet) and the poor boy had his entire skin come off in his elbow and I remember seeing the bone. Anyway it ended better than it could have as I was literally rolling over on the road after the crash and fortunately there were no maniacal private buses that would have squished me.


Then came my bachelors, and into my second year my moped just wouldn't cut it as most of the day scholars had either more powerful scooters or geared bikes. My dad said no motorcycle over 150 cc and not the pulsar (as it was put into his mind that pulsars were groin crushers lol) When looking into alternatives I didn't want the common 100 cc and there were little to no intermediates between 100 and 150 ccs....one of the exceptions being the Kawasaki bajaj wind 125. It was an awesome bike with 5 gears (maybe the only one under 150cc that had that at that time) and very smooth engine. The most fond memory I have of it was hauling my weight (about 70 kgs) along with a fat ass friend who weighed over 100 kgs to the hills of kodaikanal. His activa wouldn't move in an incline with him onboard and hence he was offloaded onto me as I had the highest capacity motorcycle of the lot. My poor bike's suspension bottomed out one every little bump.I still remember one friend saying after we came back that he though I was a dud when it comes to riding but he changed his mind when he saw my crazy ride on the way down. Made me prouder to have that bike


Away I went to Surat for my job that came through campus placement and I had to quit it for personal reasons. I was then at home preparing for my GATE 2009 exams and had a couple of months in my hand. I saw my childhood friend on the rocking new pulsar 220 FI (first gen) given to him by his parents who were also spoiling him into having anything he wants, just to a higher degree than me.I kept all my jealousy within me for a year or so but couldn't hold it in any longer. it was almost 4 years since the last upgrade after all. Told my dad (yeah, a real dadas kid I was till now) that I needed an upgrade again and without thinking he was like "oh ok lets do it" and when I said "it will cost about 90000 INR" he was like "so what?". Hence came the pulsar 220 dtsi into my life. Made multiple solo trips to kodaikanal with it and also to bangalore, just to get the apache RTS RVMs fitted onto it at banashankari auto service (tks to xbhpian manohar_manu for the rvm idea). It was there that I saw the ninja 650 for the first time (this was in 2009 I believe) and thought to myself, "why the hell would anyone want that high capacity of an engine in india" and feeling sorry for the owner as he has to deal with the fuel costs and whatnot.


Got into NIT calicut for masters' and only had my weekends to ride to places whenever I came home. Made the most out of each weekend and went to ooty, munnar, kodai, meghamalai and yercaud multiple times on it. Misery struck again to the biking life as I decided to go to the U.S for my PhD. Sold my bike off with a heavy (not sooo much but still) heart.


First vacation after 1.5 years and I was at home without a ride and miserable. Managed to borrow my wind 125 which I had sold to my mechanic (who got my p220 as well) but it was really in bad shape and the most I could do was 60kmph before everything started to vibrate and warn me of falling apart. This situation was rectified during my next vacation where I had my dad buy a brand new p220 again (with the money I saved up, finally) and it was ready to ride when I landed. The other option i looked at was the ceeber but at that point various niggles like the unavailability of spare part, poor quality of service at dealerships and fragile and expensive parts such as the radiator fins and the fairing put me off. Went straight from the airport to the place where the brand new red p220 was parked and felt alive after 2 years (maybe an exaggeration). Rode 3700 kms in 15 days which included a coast to coast trip from calicut to chennai which took me 16 hours (partly because I couldn't cross 75 kmph during run in and partly because of rains) which I think is the most memorable trip I made to date, including the 660 km day ride I made to ooty and back on the older p220....good times

Bear with me...almost there now...


It has been 2 years since I had a vacation, slaving away at a lab with no fixed timings or weekends except the occasional 3 day weekend. I did not get a motorcycle in the U.S as my place had near zero temperatures for over 6 months, which could be a mistake as I still had 5 months of riding in a year. Regardless, I wanted to upgrade again as I had saved up a nice amount of money and the YOLO mode in me kicked in to help in the upgrade decision. Looked at a number of options such as the duke 390, mojo, cbr 250r and the RC 390 before almost finalizing the RC. Then thought that crossing 30 years and riding an RC does not appeal to me, and since the cbr 250r was a minor upgrade at best from the p220 (though I absolutely loved the suspension) which was barely 3700 kms old and none of the rides were made for pillion comfort (hoping the future wifey likes riding lol) except the ceeber, I decided I should have a bike for everyday rides (which can take the abuse, by other people fiddling with it or scratching it "accidentally")and one with a higher capacity for touring. The p220 is just too much VFM for me to get rid of just like that. Then began the search...the 800cc and up
class was out of my budget, the nakeds like the benelli 600i and the z800 were not touring ready (and came along with availibility of service centres). The advantage of getting a phd from aboard helped me to make this decision without thinking about the finances. One could save up mucho moolah studying abroad for 5 years, and
might be motivation enough for some people to look into this as an option to buy a higher capacity motorcycle in india. The gt was just too ugly in the front and bulky (please, no offense intended) for my taste, had no abs and just looked like too much unnecessary plastic for my taste. On a side note, saw a gt for the first time on my
ride from kolli hills to madurai this month and have to say, the way it left my p220 in the dust (and i though I was going fast at 110 kmph), all the while just humming along as it overtook me as if to say "so cute" at my bike left me wanting the versys even more and I was imagining me doing the same in the near future. Ruling out the gt and considering my budget left me with the default choice of the ninja 650 (i did not find the 650f worth the asking price, specially with the poor pillion seat) and settled with it although the pillion seat still isn't the best for touring.Started the usual watching of youtube videos of the ninja 650 (ironic that i felt bad for the poor chap who got it, as was said a while ago in the story). One day I stumbled upon the versys 650 (really wish I remember how I did). Boom, there was my decision in black and white (well just black, really).


Within budget...barely but yes
huge fuel tank along with non-requirement of premium fuel...I am not complaining
Best in class pillion comfort for this asking price (could be wrong here but not likely)....niiceee
ABS....oh yes
More torque lower down...hell yes
Adjustable suspension...throw in the bonus
Vibe free (expectation from watching videos).....dayum yes
ladakh/ long distance touring readi-er out of the box... granted ladakh might not even be a possibility for me but good to have it and not need it than need it and not have it
Best in class service centre network as probiking ktm centres can service it too...shut up and take my money, please


I just wish kawasaki india offered at least one other colour (the white one or the green one) than the black..oh well


At this stage, i want to really appreciate the videos made by powerdrift on the versys 650. If anybody have not seen them, specially the review of the bike, I strongly recommend to watch at least that one. Man, now there is commitment for you. Kudos to your team guys.


Aand that brings us to date, where I booked my versys 650 with KTM coimbatore last week. Delivery should be apparently take only 7 days but I guess anywhere from 14 days to a month is normal considering they only sold 2 versys 650s in all of coimbatore in almost a year. Dealer experience was very good but remains to be seen how it progresses with time. Will be getting frame sliders installed during delivery and also have purchased a tank pad and a radiator cover from the U.S. I have no other accessories planned as of now but maybe the scott oiler system later, although I have a pack jack for chain maintenance on the fly. Apparently 2 ninja H2s have been sold in tamil nadu of which 1 was from the exclusive showroom in coimbatore but I digress.

Will be posting oodles of pics soon as I get my hands on it along with reviews and obviously comparisons with my current p220.

Re: The "ver"satile "sys"tems 650...awaiting delivery

Motorcycle Ownership Experience Approved

That was a good read

Do keep sharing your experiences with us!

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

great one!!!! Mine is still under 1000 kms... its killing me ..... but 4K Rpm 80-85 and all smiles ... loving it !!!!

What all accessories u installed??

Cheers!!!

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

Hey dv, i haven't got the bike yet...just booked it. .will get frame sliders installed, along with radiator cover and a tank pad
Have u installed frame sliders yet?

Sent from my SM-P900 using xBhp Connect mobile app

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

ohh I asked the guy who started this thread [MENTION=14926]khaldurai[/MENTION]

Only thing I installed is Aux light till now.. Still looking for radiator guard ... Will be not be putting tank pad instead will be doing 3M PPF on tank. Will be installing Engine Guard next month ..

Cheers!!

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...


Barkbusters VPS handguards only. However, there is a mild vibration due to the installation at 4000 rpm.

Next on list is a good pannier. Stock ones are out of question for their price. But will keep you posted.

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...


Is the vibration is due to wrong or faulty installation or you think its just vibrate at 4000 rpm?.Where you bought it from ? how much?
I am thinking of getting the storm hand guards. Also looking for good RIM tape and radiator guard. Any links??

Cheers!!!

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

I am taking delivery this Saturday. ...3 long days to go

Saw the bike at the showroom and man was it big!.

Felt some vibes on the handle bars at idle but once i increased the throttle a bit there were absolutely none till 4k rpm, although it was at standstill and i didn't rev it higher

Someone said the seating Position is like a sofa and they were spot on. ...it was like sitting on an armchair exactly

Dealer was kind enough to offer 7000 INR discount and a tank full of petrol on delivery

Getting puig frame sliders installed, apart from a tank pad and a radiator cover on delivery

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

Congrats bro....
Tank full of petrol, that's awesome.
Waiting for last couple of days is a real pain. Hehe.
Do upload pictures once you get it.

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

Yeah hope they don't go back on their word at the last moment lol..do u own one?

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

Took delivery today. .showroom guys had a nice cake cutting ceremony and a delivery cerimony. Will post pics along with initial ride impressions soon

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

No, not... yet.
Its the same anticipation and impatience that surrounds a person before few days of any and every bike delivery... Its only hightned if it's a Superbike... Hehe

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

All right, here goes the initial impressions post approx. 350 km on the ODO...

Took delivery this saturday at approx 5 p.m. The dealer was sungam by-pass ktm at coimbatore, and they were really good from the day i signed the booking cheque till the day I left the showroom with the bike, barring a few negligent non-answers to phone calls which is only natural but still irritating. Rode for about 70 kms which gave me a good idea of how good the head lights of the bike were. To be honest, the headlights are not at all adequate and should be seriously looked into by kawi for the 2017 update...either aux lights have to be installed or night time riding should be avoided/ speed restricted to 70 kmph on highways and maybe 60 on two-lane roads. It is so much worse than the pulsar 220 which is way down the food chain of bikes compared to the versys..

Another drawback of which I was quite surprised is the rebound from the front shocks..broken roads seem non-existent on the versys but patched up roads/roads with blobs of tar on them left behind since ages/ roads with section breaks do make their presence felt through feedback from the front shocks. Hope adjusting the rebound damping on the front shocks improves this. The service engineer said that the front shocks need to be adjusted only at the service center...if anybody has more feedback on if this can be done by myself and if so how would be helpful

The engine smoothness needs to be felt to be believed. I can bet that it is at par/not much different from inline fours once the revs climb past 3k rpm (even prior to that if on the right gear). There is a distinct v-twin idle clutter which I LOVE. Gives the impression of the calm before the storm (well not a storm but a surge maybe?). Engine does stutter a little below about 2.5 krpm but is smooth past that in all gears. Coming to the gears, there is a loud thunk when the first 3 gears are engaged as mentioned by oodles of reviews and owner impressions but I guess that's the nature of the beast so I am ok with that.

RUN-IN: Though the manual says the 4k rpm/6k rpm boundaries are strict, I am treating that as the L.O.C and going up to 5k rpm till first service post which I am planning to not exceed 7k rpm. The service engineer bets his life on the fact that I can ride it without the rpm limits in mind and I tend to agree with him this time (call me an idot/ignoramus/arrogant fool i don't care). Let's see how the future turns out with this method of run-in.

Covered about 180 kms today in 2.5 hrs which is awesome not because of the time it took but because of how comfortably I was throughout the ride. There are no vibes during acceleration although vibes are felt briefly once you roll off the throttle. Maybe post first service it will get better on this front. There is significant buffeting post 105kmph but i Presume it is due to the fact that the wind shield is only half way high. The service guy seems to have welded the adjustment knobs as I simply cannot loosen them to raise it higher. Hoping that this takes care of the buffeting, as I could feel very less wind blast when I lowered my head down a bit. Engine wasn't stressed at all when I took it to higher speeds and 100 kmph is a breeze to be at, with no noise except the wind.
Few pics follow



Will be installing puig frame sliders during first service and also ordering swing arm spools. Have installed a radiator guard and a tank pad for now.

Cheers

Re: Kawasaki Versys 650: First impression, ride, and service...

Ah so it's you on Facebook. Where are you at, those look like nice pristine surroundings.

Add a crash bar. Unless you are built like hulk hogan.