According to Kawasaki it is to reduce mechanical noise and improve the looks. Struck me as a bit odd, as I don't know how putting holes in anything could reduce noise. Here's the official 5 page brochure of the bike, and it's worth a look: W800 Features (It downloads - 2mb - rather than display in the browser.) There have been a couple of minor tweaks from the 2011 model, mainly with the electronics I gather. The FI light on the old model sometimes won't go out when the bike is turned on and cycles the gauges etc and there may have been something done with the O2 sensor. The tacho is redlined at 7500 now instead of 7000 like mine. Replacing the dreadful rear shocks would have been a worthwhile improvement. I weigh about 75kg and it is on the highest preload settings and still bottoms out. I'll put a pair of YSS or IKON shocks on it in a week or two. I put the Hepco & Becker racks and bags on the other day - will put some pics up tomorrow. Very well made - and they'd need to be for the near $1300 price here - but the rack is not pretty, fairly heavy and the indicators had to have about 6" of extra wiring and a couple of holes bored in the taillight body to get mounted properly. The topcase is on backorder, so no idea when that will arrive. Rode about 80km home last night in torrential rain which was fun; my clothes are still drying out, but the bags didn't leak. The rain was heavy enough to flood the roads in many places, so I guess the bags are pretty watertight.
Scrivens, Thanks for the W800 brochure. I got wet the other night on the ride home from a bike night in town. It's been dry as a bone here in Southwest Florida so we need the rain. Yep, that rack and bags are kinds dear. I'm debating whether or not to get the LeatherLyke hard bags. Kinda hate to give up my top box. The LeatherLyke bags have been discussed in this thread. https://leatherlyke.com/products/catalog/cruiser-saddlebags-w650
Just got this months issue of 'Cycle World' and the chief editor was lamenting, in fact he said it was "crazy", that Kawasaki won't be bringing the W800 to the US. The editor, Mark Hoyer, in his column talked about how when he first tested the W650 he thought it out vintaged the new Bonneville. He referred to the W800 as a "rolling slice of cool".
Righto, pics of the Hepco & Becker rack 40L topbox and 30L Junior bags. The rack unit and bags are the same model for both the 650 and 800. Excuse the number of pics, but I figure some close-ups of the brackets might help anyone else who has to assemble the rack. Fitting would take about an hour all up including adding the extra wiring and so on and it would be quite simple if there were any useful photos in the German language "instructions". It's hard to get contrast in the pics as there is so much shiny stuff on the bike - albeit covered in mud at present. The bags are exactly as wide as the tips of the mirrors - 31" - so they don't affect lane filtering etc, and my guess is the entire kit weighs around 12kg/27lbs. I bought the 30L rather than the 40L Juniors as they are about 4" narrower and I preferred less width to carrying capacity. The bags taper back slightly from the front. Another benefit is the pillion can use the handles on the bags or the grab rail on the rack instead of the small under seat grab rails. Against that is the reduced foot room for the pillion; I have size 11 feet and can only get my boot on the pillion rest as far as the heel cutout. This is one point I'm not happy about. There is no hinge on these, just the join in the plastic along the bottom edge of the lid. I imagine this will wear out sooner or later and need proper hinges fitted. As you can see from the bike, I've been riding for some hours in *very* heavy rain and the bags have been completely watertight. The tabs for the top rack fit inside the main bag rack mounts and there are 2 plates supplied which fit in the slots where the indicators are fitted for some countries. (Ours are mounted on the rear light. In this pic the mounting bracket is upside down - see the last pic for the proper mounting to clear the locks.) Note the holes bored just above the reflector and the nylon bushings to protect the extended indicator wiring. (You have to add about 6" to the wiring yourself and the 800 uses modular connectors not the old bullet-heads.) You can see the new indicator bracket 'loop' below the reflector - that's correct the way the thing fits in there. (And one thing I should add - the clips for the cases come with the cases, not the rack, and the rack mounting locks on the cases come locked - you need to unlock them first or the clasp will not reach the clip on the rack. Sounds obvious, but trust me, they don't look locked...)
Scrivens, Very nice documentation on your new hard bags. I'm leaning towards the LeatherLyke but hate to give up my top box.
The LeatherLykes look very nice in the pics and I'd like to see some in the flesh but the Hepcos were the only ones I could get. I know there are people over here using the LLs on the current Bonnie, but so far I haven't seen any and couldn't find an Australian distributor. (The H&Bs are common on Guzzis, so I'd seen a few of them before.) The shipping costs to import a full luggage set are too high to consider unfortunately. Givi is in the throes of making a set of racks for the 650/800 - it's on their website - but it doesn't appear to have hit the market yet. Bit of a shame as I already have a full set of Givi E41 luggage and several sizes of top box. On my other bike(s) I tend to use a mid-sized Givi top box most of the time as it fits my work bag and is big enough to dump a helmet in. The 40L H&B top box I have on back-order is big enough to take a pair of helmets, but I don't know how big it is physically, so it might look a bit odd on the little 800. The 30L H&B Junior side cases, while they really suit the bike size-wise are too small for a helmet, but the wider 40L Juniors take a fullface OK. The H&B rack is a very solid, well braced piece of work and the bags appear to be decent quality. Keep pushing Kawsaki about the 800 - that's the way the Versys made it into the US market.
Thanks for the pics, Scrivens. Would you post another when you get the top bag? As a relatively new owner of a 2000 W (4600 miles), I have been lurking this thread and have learned bunches. I've outsmarted myself a few times as well. I bought the LeatherLyke bags and like their looks but then decided to get the H&B top rack. I didn't think there would be any problem since the LeatherLykes come with an extra spacer which is used without a top rack. So I just assumed a H&B top rack would be compatible just by removing the spacer. Not the case at all and I can't run both without some major re-engineering (at least I can't see an easy solution). So I am trying to make up my mind between the two. I would love to see the bike with the 40L top bag. I know The Jerk is running one but I'm not sure the size. Anyway, a pic with the top bag installed would be great. BTW, I also ran into a problem installing a SuperBrace. Seems to be about 1/4" too narrow. I could probably force it but don't think the forks would like it. Installation seems to be a no brainer for everyone else. Oh well... Joe
Joe, Welcome to the thread. Since the LeatherLykes are top opening wouldn't they hit the top box when you tried to open them? I understand that the top box is not mounted but maybe a photo with the LLs installed and the top box just sitting in position would help me. Thanks
Will do. Hopefully the box will be here next week. The remaining two things to go on the bike are a replacement set of rear shocks - probably YSS as they are based here in Adelaide - and a big removable Givi screen for the winter. I was thinking of the A650 but it apparently not made anymore so perhaps the A602 or similar will do the job. And if I can mask off the rest of the engine, those barrel fins are getting some hi-temp black on them, just like a real bike... The fork brace is a good idea; had one on my V-Strom and it made a big difference. Dave.
I have one of these also. It's a great bike, and garners all kinds of looks and comments no matter where I take it. It's amazing how much attention this bike attracts. I have three other real nice motorcycles but if I'm out on this one I get asked all kinds of questions every time I get off of it.
The Superbrace should be an exact fit. Sounds like they might have sent you the wrong one. I believe you're right about not wanting to force it.
I just decided to give it another try but it seems to be 1/8 to 3/16" too narrow -- hard to measure exactly. The part number is correct for the W. I just dropped a note to SuperBrace about it so we'll see what happens. Thanks for getting me going on this again ORexpat. Joe
Hmmm. Any indication that the fork legs might have a problem? Leaky seals, or funny wear on the stanchions? Could a PO have messed up a front wheel installation with a wrong spacer? Just wondering, 'cause mine fit like a glove. Unless SB messed up a CNC run and made the brace wrong! (I doubt that, though). Anyway, good luck. I do think the brace improves handling, esp on bumpy corners.
You are probably right about that, Barnone. Since I don't have the top box yet, just the top rack, I'm not sure. But thinking about it, I'll bet they would hit. You've got to bare with me, I hadn't ridden for over 35 years until I got the W. My last bike was a Mach 3. I was reminiscing with a friend and mentioned that if I ever got another bike, it would probably be an early '60s Bonneville. I never actually owned one but drove one a lot in high school. Anyway, my friend told me to take a look at the W and it was love at first sight. A reliable Bonneville. Botton line is, I think I'll have to make a decision to either go with the LL sides or the Hepco top and sell the other. The 40L top would probably be more practical but I'll wait until I see Scrivens' mounted. Joe
The bike looks brand new and I have the PO's records so I think all is well up front, at least no signs of anything amiss. It actually still has the original tires which will get replaced soon... I just went out and took another close look and don't see a problem. I did put EBC HH pads on but the originals still had a lot of wear left. Hoping SB will send me some dimensions and I can go from there. I'll let you know. Thanks, Joe
Joe, I might be wrong since I sent an email to LL and he said the covers would not hit the top box so I am going to order the LLs in a few minutes.
dominatr37, Same thing happens to me all the time. Guys rolling down their windows and asking what year, giving thumbs up,etc. I put big Kawasaki decals on the tank (tank badges removes by PO) so people would quit asking what year Triumph/BSA. A guy can in the fast food joint and asked who put Kawasaki decals on that old Triumph. I stopped for lunch today at a hole in wall place and a Harley guy asked what year and if the bevel drive tube had push rods in it.
As per the requests, Hepco & Becker Junior 40L top box pics: I couldn't get a decent one from the rear as the perspective is wrong and it makes the case look huge. It is actually a nice compact size but will fit a full face helmet or a laptop bag OK. The Junior 45L is slightly wider and will take a pair of helmets. The top box is very well made - the interior, seals and straps are the same as in the side cases - and all the cases have very good locks compared to Givi gear. I have finally got around to blacking the barrels with 600C heat-proof paint like the 650 (didn't like the all alloy look at all) and fitted a set of YSS shocks which are far better than the standards. YSS Suspension Although it is in Adelaide, YSS ships worldwide. When I was up at YSS, Walter was setting up progressive springs and cartridge emulators for the W650/W800 front for a customer, so they should be available 'off the shelf' soon. (My front is OK for me with a couple of 1/8" spacers in each leg to add just a touch of preload to the single rate springs. The new rear shocks are very smooth over broken ground; quite a remarkable difference.) Only thing left to get is a Givi screen for the winter, either the A602 or the A660. The motor is loosening up very nicely now, brakes are bedding in and the gearbox has finally stopped slipping out of 5th just after the upchange. Should hit the 5000km mark next week.
Scrivens, She is looking good with plenty of carrying capacity. I am trying to do the same with the LeatherLyke bags which I ordered the other day. I added a grease fitting to the swing arm and filled it with grease which seems to help the rear suspension. Might be a placebo but my W is a 2001 and was lacking in grease in the swing arm bearings. So just a few 1/8" thick large washers (2?) helped the front end dive? Thanks for the photos. I'll post mine when the LLs arrive.