Second-hand advice Kawasaki W 650

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Second-hand advice Kawasaki W 650
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Second-hand advice Kawasaki W 650

Second-hand advice Kawasaki W 650
For nostalgics

The start of the Kawasaki W 650 was rapid. Today the stronger Triumph Bonneville is running away from her. But for nostalgic people who like to enjoy themselves, the W remains the bargain.

Peter Limmert

07/31/2002

At first sight, laypeople consider it to be a wonderfully solidly restored classic car from the sixties. And believe that it is the W 650 to buy brand new at the nearest Kawasaki dealer, you want to be kidding. The simple W as a designation was adopted by the model presented in 1999 from the Kawasaki forerunner twin, which in 1965 had the British BSA A10 as its ancestor as W1.
Copied the design of the British Twins from that time Kawasaki so precisely with the W 650 that even experts shook their heads in amazement. With the vertical shaft attached to the motor housing to drive the camshaft, à la Ducati tradition, the retro bike was crowned, so to speak.
The calculation with a nostalgic look and a modern heart, a robust long-stroke engine and four-valve engine that was not designed for high speeds, worked in the first two years of production. With the appearance of the Triumph Bonneville, the W updraft was over. The tradition-conscious clientele of the retro bike group resorted to the English original ?? for a very mundane reason. Their engine had more displacement and more power to offer.
This of course opens up an opportunity for those interested in the W 650 to purchase one of the more than 3000 registered copies at a reasonable price. In the 50,000-kilometer endurance test by MOTORRAD (3/2001), the Kawasaki impressed with an astonishingly solid appearance. This is astonishing because the two-cylinder engine was faced with a large number of Alpine passes and motorway kilometers on large vacation tours in a relatively short time, a workload that is rather untypical for the intended clientele.
The swaying from 120 km / h that occurred in the first two years with the high original handlebars can be minimized to a tolerable level with the flatter counterpart, which Kawasaki has been mounting alternatively since 2001. The front section reacts sensitively to a worn tire. MOTORRAD had the best experiences with the Dunlop TT100 GP.
One point of criticism with the W is its too long secondary ratio (15:39), which causes problems in fifth gear in particular. A remedy with a 14-tooth sprocket at the front or a rear chainring with up to 43 teeth is technically no problem, but unfortunately illegal without a financially expensive test procedure with entry in the papers.
The slap in the exhaust system when overrun was overcome in a long-distance test with repeated carburetor synchronization. The cause can also be the defective seal in the interference tube between the silencers. Kawasaki warned of a possible malfunction of the carburetor heating, the electrical ground connection of which must be checked. Clattering noises in the headlights disappeared with two rubbers from beer bottles with swing top, which were clamped between the bracket and the housing. To protect the license plate, which tends to crack from vibrations, MOTORRAD mounted a rubber plate on the license plate holder.
Everything small. Overall, the W 650 shows in a convincing way how reliable and durable the dream of a classic can be. In any case, there is no shortage of cheap used offers.

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Second-hand advice Kawasaki W 650

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For nostalgics

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MOTORCYCLE checkpoint – Kawasaki W 650

Buy second hand data box description engine: Air-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke engine, a balancer shaft, an overhead camshaft driven by a vertical shaft, four valves per cylinder operated by rocker arms, displacement 676 cm³, rated output 37 kW, (50 HP) at 7000 / min, maximum torque 56 Nm at 5500 / min, constant pressure carburetor, 0 34 mm, digital transistor ignition, secondary air system (KCAS), electric and kick starter, five-speed gearbox, chain drive. CHASSIS: double loop frame made of tubular steel, telescopic fork, stanchion diameter 39 mm, two-arm swing arm made of tubular steel, two spring struts with adjustable spring base, front disc brake , 0 330 mm, rear drum brake, 0 160 mm, spring travel f / h 130/85 mm, tire size front 100/90 H 19, rear 130/80 H 18. SEAT HEIGHT 800 mm WEIGHT FULLY FUELED 215 kg PAYLOAD 180 kg TANK CONTENT / RESERVE 15/3 Liter0-100 km / h solo (with pillion passenger) 5.5 (7.0) sec MAXIMUM SPEED solo (with pillion passenger) 164 (155) km / h CONSUMPTION 5.7 liters / 100 km Normal SERVICE INTERVALS every 6000 Kilometers CONSTRUCTION TIME (NEW PRICE) 1999 (6130 euros) to today (6850 euros) USED PRICE ACCORDING TO SCHWACKELIST 1999 (24600 kilometers) 3875 euros 2000 (16200 kilometers) 4225 euros 2001 (7800 kilometers) 4675 euros INVENTORY approx. 3500 pieces IMPORTANT TECHNICAL CHANGES: 2001 Steering head angle 63 instead of 62.5 Degree, lower handlebars, modified fork springs, changed air filter, new mirror STRENGTHS- smooth running engine- passenger and long-distance travel suitable- additional kick starter WEAKNESS- weak brakes- too soft telescopic fork- too long translation / 2000Comparison test 2/2001Long distance test 3/2001Spare parts pricesCarro partsCoupler armature 72 eurosHandbrake armature 239 eurosHandlebar 68 eurosRear-view mirror 47 eurosFront indicators 37 eurosRear indicators 36 eurosTachometer / tachometer 776 eurosTank, painted 705 eurosHeadlight 294 eurosFrontpipe -6 141 euros Side stand 53 Euro main stand 118 Euro complete frame 964 Euro wear parts front brake pads (complete) 80 Euro rear brake pads 28 Euro front brake disc 245 Euro clutch friction disks 62 Euro air filter 35 Euro oil filter 8 Euro chain set 144 Euro battery 112 Euro rear suspension strut, 365 Euro Throttle cable 42 Euro, crankshaft bearing set, 365 Euro Throttle cable 42 Euro 69, Cylinder head seal, 9 Euro

Readers’ comments – Kawasaki W 650

“A flat handlebar minimizes fluttering” Trutz Winter, Sondershausen “The Corbin bench improved optics and seating position” Frank Eikelkamp, ​​Recklinghausen “Slimming down the bench would also not allow better ground contact with the feet, because the wide side covers know how to prevent this «Kornelia Borowski» If you don’t have a garage, you have to expect rust on the chrome parts «Werner Nagel, Essen

Insider interview with Wolfgang Drechsler – Kawasaki W 650

Wolfgang Drechsel, workshop manager and Kawasaki dealer for two decades until 2001, about the W 650.

? Do W-650 drivers have complaints about brakes and the telescopic fork? So far, our W-650 customers have not complained about insufficient braking performance. In two cases we put around 20 cm³ more oil in the fork tubes. Line shaft, gimmick with extensive maintenance? A real biker’s heart laughs when he sees the wave and hears it running. I advise every layperson to stay away from readjustment. ? Are there any problems with the carburetor function and exhaust slippage? Of course, there is the everyday problem with fuel deposits. Ultrasonic cleaning, synchronization and reworking of the nozzles reduce exhaust slapping to a tolerable level. Would more displacement and power be an option? A more powerful engine would certainly be even more successful.

Improvement tips – Kawasaki W 650

Chassis Progressive fork springs from Wilbers, Wirth or White Power from around 90 euros soothe the nervous telescopic fork and prevent the bottoming out of heavy riders or when traveling for two with luggage. The rear suspension and damping capacity can also be reduced in three variants with classic struts from Hagon 230 euros per pair can still be improved a lot. The performance of the disc brake can be effectively improved with glazed original pads with specimens from Lucas or EBC for around 30 euros and with steel braided lines from Spiegler or Lucas for around 60 euros with a lower tendency to fade Take into account the single bench from Corbin from 490 euros or the double seat from Louis for 200 euros. For the journey, Kawasaki offers a luggage system with suitcases (36 liters each), brackets and luggage racks from 545 euros. Other tailor-made luggage systems are from Hepco & Becker, Givi and Five Stars (JF Motorsport) available. If you no longer want to be exposed to the wind without protection, MRA offers five different sized windshields with holder set from 83 euros. For changes to the gear ratios (not ABE-compliant), Silverneck-Motorsportein offers a 14-tooth sprockets for around 11 euros and various chainrings (from 38 to 46 teeth) in steel or aluminum from 23 euros Kawasaki W 650 to expand strongly with increasing sales figures. Since the start of the Triumph Bonneville, the supply has tended to decline. For example, the active W-650 specialist Torsten Kramer closed down in Bierbergen, the beautiful conversions by the French VD Classic did not have enough stamina against the TuV hurdle. The Silverneck Motorsport Sales department in Germany is currently offering parts for the conversion to the Cafe Racer version. For example, an 18-liter tank, Gold Star or Le Mans model for 639 euros. Matching sport match clip-ons from LSL (119 euros), Magura or Lucas, manifolds and silencers. Detlef Louis, too, offers relatively inexpensive gimmicks for visual refreshment under the title “The wild one”, from touring handlebars to another headlight, bench, turn signal and a more functional instrument holder plus watch.

Addresses – Kawasaki W 650

Importer Germany Kawasaki Motoren GmbHPhone 06172 / 734-0 www.kawasaki.deImporteur AustriaMoto GmbHPhone 01 / 6992702www.kawasaki.atImporteur SwitzerlandFibag AGPhone 62/7888555 www.kawasaki.chBremsenSpieglerTelephone 0761 / 61101-0www.spiegler.de 02631-0www.spiegler.deLucasTelephone .deEBCTelefon 040 / 23725120www.matthies.deFahrwerkHagonTelefon 05921 / 727170www.wilbers.deWhite PowerTelefon 05924/78360 (This is the new www.so-production.com address !!!) Wilbers ProductsTelefon 05921 / 727170www.wilbers.deWirthTelefon 04189/811020 wirth.deLuggage systemsFive StarsPhone 06002 / 910391www.jfmotorsport.deGiviPhone 0911 / 955100www.givi-deutschland.deHepco & BeckerPhone 06334 / 92160www.hepco-becker.deOtherCorbinPhone 06371 / 18637www.corbin.deLouisPhone 040 / 73419360www.louis.deLSL Phone 02151/555915 www.lsl-motorradtechnik.de Magura Phone 07125 / 153-0 www.magura.com MRA Phone 07663 / 93890 www.mra.de Silverneck-Motorsport Telephone 0541/88800 www.w650shop.de VD-Classic Telephone 0033/388/957596 www.thumperpage.com www.w-650.de Private homepage with lots of information, technology, tips and Parts

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