I'm the new proud owner of an 08 model any tips or quirks that I should expect previously had a blackbird and bandit
Welcome along, this sis a great forum with plenty helpful advice
Ride your bike and enjoy it is the best advice :yes:
Welcome to the forum. There is a whole load of advice on here if you need it. Just make sure you keep your tyres correctly inflated with it being a heavy bike.
:185: :185: Bikesnake,
She is a fairly reliable beast. No real quirks except for a snatchy throttle (fixed with a decent Flash) and a seat that very few find comfy. I fitted a Corbin saddle.
Early bikes panniers could be lifted off whilst locked on.
Some even fell off whilst riding along.
2010 onward had improved latches but could still be removed from bike whilst locked on. It only takes a thief 2 seconds.
There are 2 simple mods that make them secure but you do need pannier liners. Cheap aftermarket bmw r1200rt ones fit better than genuine Kawasaki ones.
Get a "mountain runner" ecu flash as soon as possible as it hugely improves throttle smoothness/snatchiness and makes it pull like a train from tick over.
Use the gt carcass tyres with a 190/55 profile rear as this makes it much more nimble and as mentioned before keep an eye on those pressures, just 2psi down makes the front want to tuck.
That's the basics, after that just ride and enjoy.
And welcome.