Sold my GSA and am back on a KLR !!!

Took my first ride today on my new to me 2008 KLR 705.

This KLR and cash was recieved for my 2007 BMW 1200 GSA. That was my 5th GS. Maybe my last. I have owned a 1150 GSA, a 1995 and a 1998 1100 GS and 2009 and a 2007 GSA.

I received it Thursday but put it on the lift table to sort out a few little issues it had before I rode it.

I have had a few gen 1 KLR's before, but never a gen 2, and they have appealed to me since they were introduced.

The GSA is an amazing road bike but I want to slow down and ride more dual sport and whenever I was on the GSA I always just ended up pounding pavement.

Secondly, I am paying down debt.I am tired of bills, and just want some simplicity in my life.I am going to leave the high tech, expensive bikes for the wealthy.

So, this is the start of a new adventure and lifestyle. "Less is more"

The first shake down ride went well and I am happy with the bike.
It will take a little while to adapt back to the thumper but I plan on dedicating to it as my everyday bike.

A pic from todays first ride.




UPDATE - 12/16/2013
This thread has developed into something a little different,as I just continued to post here, live from the road as I started to go on rides with the KLR.
Posting from the road is tough.You can't be as complete or creative due to time restraints,but posting from the road is exciting because it is real time.
So,now that this years rides are over I am going back over the reports and adding some pictures,thoughts I remember,and maps.
Hopefully I will get better and more creative at all of this as I go,and get more pictures in the future.
I am going to create a Index below(with a link to the page it starts on and the post # it starts on) with the Reports listed as I polish them up to the best of my ability so I can reflect back on the trip and hopefully you will enjoy it also.


2013 RIDE REPORTS

• DETROIT -TO- JAMESTOWN Starts on page 25 and post #374 http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=828655&page=25
• MICHIGAN CROSS COUNTRY CYCLE TRAIL Starts on page 33 and post #486 http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=828655&page=33
• DETROIT -TO- SMOKY MOUNTAIN N.P. Starts on page 35 and post #511 http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=828655&page=35

Something many of us should do. Good on you.

Best of luck with it. I hope it does not turn out to be an oil burner, but it seems most of the '08s were. I have avoided them for that reason. I don't want to buy a bike and immediately have to put a new top end on it. It is tempting though, most of the '08s on Craigslist are cheaper than the earlier models. Seems Kawasaki built an almost entirely new bike, but did not fix the doohickey issue, or the frame bolt issue, which they HAD to have known about, and then added top end problems to go along with them. Being an auto mechanic and a tinkerer, I may just go ahead and do it though. How many miles does yours have?

I have always gone cheap with bikes. The most expensive bike I have ever bought was a brand new '02 Vulcan 750 cruiser, for $6499. My '95 Goldwing was given to me, but I did put a LOT of work and almost $3000 into it. I have an XT225 that I built out of 3 XT225s, plus some aftermarket parts, and a few new oem parts. Runs/rides like new, and I have a lot of spare parts.

JerryH,

This bike has around 12 k miles on it, but at about 1,600 miles it received a 705 kit with head work from KLR CARY (RIP), so this bike should not have a oil burn issue.

I am a Auto Mechanic also, so any issues the KLR has are very minor, because parts are very reasonable and the bike is so easy to work on.

This may help confirm your choice. I rode with a fellow once who was on an F650. He dropped it, and broke the clutch lever. My recollection is that the replacement BMW clutch lever was $37 or thereabouts. So I decided to get an extra to carry on my 08 KLR. New, it cost something like $5.49.

I suspect your P.O. fixed the oil issue by going to the 705. RIP, KLR Cary ...

That won't be too hard now...

The colors are changing.

Good Job!
I rode a 2012 KLR a few weeks back and after I sold my Ducati
I picked up an 09 g650 X country and what an awesome machine.paid down some debt and have been enjoying the machine and less paved rides.

Looks to have an IMS 10 gallon tank, aftermarket front wheel, mirrors, handguards, seat, supermoto fender, exhaust, aluminum skid plate, highway pegs, and pannier racks. Add those to the 705 with head work and you picked up a very nice bike! Has the suspension received similar treatment?

Cary's head work is gold.... lucky guy. RIP Cary.

Looks like a nice bike. I've never ridden the 705 but, I hear they actually vibrate less.

Living debt free is the only true freedom! Everything I own is paid for & I could probably survive (& still eat meat) on $600 a month. Here in rural Tennessee the cost of living is very low, just gassed up @ $3.59. My blood preassure would be through the roof if I had a mortgage to pay. Credit is a trap. I never had a credit card till I was 39 & I only got that so I could buy things cheaper on the inter-webs. Proptly pay the card in full each month.

I love my KLR, it's a bike that puts money in my pocket.

Amen to that !!!

Yeah, the forks have Progressive springs and Racetech Gold Valve Emulators and a fork brace and the rear shock has a custom two stage valve stack and a 550 inch pound Eibach spring.

The bike is from out your way in Idaho, then the prior owner moved to South Dakota, and then he delivered it to me Thursday in Michigan.

Looks like you have quite the bike there...not your average KLR thats for sure!

I will be just North of you this weekend!

Since it has a 705 kit and is jetted accordingly, I have been curious as to the mpg.A few days ago I filled up the massive 10 gallon tank and reset the trip odo.

So I have been commuting to work, and running around doing some photo tag on dirt roads and maybe 20 miles of freeway and stopped today to top off the tank and get some numbers.

The trip odo had 202 miles on it and the tank only took 3.779 gallons to top it off.
So thats like 53.5 MPG.
I don't know how accurate the trip odo is (I know it is close though judging by the ride to work)yet, as I have not checked it against the Gps.But even if it is off a little I figure I am at least getting 50, so I am really happy with that.

Here is a picture from todays ride.

Its pretty much winter here in Michigan, so its time to start performing all the maintenance and mods I want to do so the bike is ready for spring time.

The first thing was the seat.The bike came with the stock and a Rick Mayer.

The Rick Mayer was nice but way too soft for me (I'm 230 lbs) and it locked me in one position, so I sold that.

Next up, I ordered up the Seat Concepts kit to put on the stock pan.It is much better and I could probably live with this but I don't like the fact that it is still sloped forward like the stocker.

The most important thing to me in a seat is that it be flat and firm.I never seen one, but always had a feeling the Corbin flat would be a good seat for me.(Part of this suspicion came from owning a Corbin on a BMW 1100 GS and liking that seat)

The other day another inmate posted a Corbin Flat on the flea market for a good price so I bought it.

I received it today and installed it on the bike and guess what ? PERFECTION !!! For me, anyway.

I am really relieved because I was worried I would not find a proper seat, but from here on out its a Corbin flat for me and maybe I will throw my Alaskan leather sheepskin over it also.

very cool bike, why ? because you like it!!! that is the best part. I have a KLR and love it, some friends have GS's and don't get it why I love my klr, but I tell them, when you are worry about scratches I am not, if I drop it well nothing bad or too expensive will happened, if you drop it, it will cost you so until I am rich this is the bike I have! and funny thing one day on a 5 day trip, the guy with the 2012 GSA said to his brother, well look at damasovi he is coming along on that KLR and is having as much fun as we are!

Damasovi

PD ALso my bike is paid for since day 1,

I got into my F800gs because the only people that would take my Electraglide in trade were the BMW people and it is impossible to sell a geezer glide in CA without taking it in the shorts. The beemer is a great bike, but I wish I still had my paid off Wee Strom and my $600 XT600 combo.

Won't the front wheel cause the odo/speedo to be off by 20% ...so 10mpg?