Any Thoughts Here On Kawasaki D-Tracker Motard?

[rene123]

I already tried out the Honda 250 CBR and kind of liked it, but thought a semi-off road motorbike might suit me better. I don't want a heavy bike and don't particularly want to speed much over 110 KM/hr. I would like something that gets easily through traffic, but is big and fast enough to be suitable for 650 km rides in the country. I'm not tall enough for the D-Tracker with knobby tires, but the motard doesn't seem bad. And, I'm not skilled enough to go crazy up trails like I see the kids doing. I talked to a couple of fellows who had D-Trackers and they liked them. They also had the narrow seat customized and something done to the electronics and muffler. Would it not be better to leave the electronics and muffler stock? I would imagine that the company have good ideas for producing the motorbike just as it is. Do any of you "experts" here have valuable suggestions?

[yankee99]

I have a dtracker with a moded seat. A 650k trip would suck . I would tell you a minimum mod would be the clutch. This will derestrict the bike and can be done in 5 minutes with a paper clip

[denkiblue555]

Huge topic this one.

This bike has been round for about 20 years - largely unchanged, and I believe it was a 4-stroke enduro champion in the 90's???. It is extremely 'tried and true'.

The Pros:

It's cheap.

It's durable.

It's easy to ride.

It's simple - the EFI has only been in since the '08 generations?

There are a huge amount of aftermarket parts available (BB kits up to 351cc etc.) - Google planet KLX, KLX forums, Thumper Talk, Adv Rider also.

With a few simple mods (I'd advise against the paperclip mod - although it does work) it can produce respectable bang for buck.

Plenty in the second hand market

The cons:

It's heavy.

It's severely underpowered in stock form - still relatively underpowered with only minor mods

The stock seat seat sucks for long trips (same as most bikes in this category)

The suspension isn't the best although it is more adjustable than the CRF

Best thing to do would be to try and rent one somewhere and see how you like it!

Personally, I think they are a pretty good small capacity dual-sport, bettered only by the WR250X/R.

Good luck and let us know how you go!

[martindavies]

(I'd advise against the paperclip mod - although it does work)

Why??