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Eagle mike is the GODFATHER OF KLRs. But more than that, a great guy to do business with! Thanks for all your help Mike!

84956 miles on my KLR 650 may take a look

Man, I have a new 2022 KLR650, I love the bike, I worked at auto dealerships in the part's dept. for over 30 year's, any part can take a shit at any time, just my 2 cent's !

Chris here from England. Listening to Mike was just brilliant. More of these techy videos please if possible

Ahh yes the doohickey mod. I remember him on the forums in the early 2000's he's always been the best one the subject!

It's mind boggling that Kawasaki would neglect the most documented KLR issue ever...Imagine how reliable the 2022 could have been. It's absolutely stupid to buy a new bike and have to update the engine to avoid a catastrophic failure. Bad on you Kawasaki. They probably didn't get enough warranty claims because it failed out of warranty, a lot of people ride just 5k per year.

@davidgrunklee8407

2 жыл бұрын

They should in good faith allow any new gen3 owner a no cost to owner upgrade to these parts...of course they won't. Lame Kawasaki.... very lame.

@rhllnm

2 жыл бұрын

Seems like an easy lawsuit. Eagle Mike as your expert witness. Boom!

@P1ayD0hpaul

2 жыл бұрын

@@davidgrunklee8407 that would cost them triple what redesigning would have. It’s not like they just learned about it. Imagine how pissed other Gen KLR owners would be if they offered that to just Gen 3s?

@davidgrunklee8407

2 жыл бұрын

@@P1ayD0hpaul good points

@hell_march6652

2 жыл бұрын

5k is optimistically high. Unless you mean Km.

Thanks gentlemen. So Kawasaki have had many years to fix a problem they knew existed and still haven't done so. Therefore, because I ride in remote areas over vast distances, I will not be purchasing a gen 3 KLR. I feel that I could not trust the KLR. My choice now will be either Honda 500X or a Honda CRF300 Rally.

@titanbum7365

2 жыл бұрын

Im also in the market for a ADV bike and the KLR was inching up to the top of the list. Seeing this it just dropped to the bottom for the exact same reason you mentioned. Aparently it wouldnt matter if I bought a used or a brand new one they all have the doohickey issue. No thanks!

@HooDRidEWhiteY

2 жыл бұрын

@@titanbum7365 same here. DR650 is what I'm gonna go after now.

Great video - thanks for putting this out. I was considering the new gen KLR but have now crossed it off my list. No excuse for not fixing this known issue.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

I hear you

@samuelbellamy4218

2 жыл бұрын

Same here. I was so close to getting one too. Such a shame.

@HooDRidEWhiteY

2 жыл бұрын

Same here. I was going to pull the trigger on one this upcoming weekend. I don't care for the V Strom so I'm going to look at a new DR650 instead. Such a shame.

@danielkramer8586

2 жыл бұрын

I think it gets back to what Ian said. You get a lot for your money with this bike, but there are some corners cut. It' advisable to factor the cost to retrofit this spring into the total cost and decide if it's worth the cost to you. Kawasaki will change the part when it is financially advantageous to do so, and so far it hasn't been. That could change, but, in the meantime, share this information with others so they can avoid costly repairs and ride their KLR more. It is a good bike in many ways if you respect its limitations.

@CCitis

Жыл бұрын

What will you buy?

It’s great to listen to someone who knows what they’re talking about, very interesting. Thank you.

Such a cool video. I've know about the legend of EM for over 10 years but never seen a video of him or his work space. Thanks for posting this video big rock. Fantastic as always!

Thanks very much for taking the time to do this video. It's a great help. IMO this is one of the things that brings the KLR650 community together. Shared information, stuff that can be easily fixed. It gets the owner to know the bike, and become involved with it. We started tech days to help one another, share info, and fix the various flaws. If the bike was perfect, I don't think it would have the same community. The KLR650 people are great!

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you @Eaglemike for helping get this info out there. And for your time.

@Don2006

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you Mike, for what may be the most important video for my KLR. How do I find information on when/where tech day is?

@eaglemikeeaglemike6774

2 жыл бұрын

@@Don2006 We've held tech days at my shop in the past. None since the Covid situation though. Other people have held them around the US too. I helped with several up in Boise, a few in northern Ca, and a few in Az. 20th anniversary of tech days next year! I hope we'll be able to start again at some point. It's a tiring day for whoever decides to host one.

@TheBullwagon

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Mike, where is your shop located? I’d like to bring my KLR to you for a doohickey replacement!!

@Jon87224

Жыл бұрын

So how do you fix this problem with a Gen 3 KLR 650? Did I miss something in this video that tells me how to remedy this? Sorry I have cognitive issues. So of someone could help set me straight on how to fix the issue so that my bike will be fine after 5000km?

I don't even own a KLR and I found this very interesting. Thanks for the teaching moment.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

thanks!

@haroldyazzie3538

Ай бұрын

Go and get one now 😊

Tremendous video. Super interesting. Eagle Mike is brilliant at describing this stuff. I look forward to seeing a bit more - he needs a channel!

I rode a 2008 KLR 650 from Canada to Argentina on the stock doohickey. No problem. 26000kms On a subsequent trip From Key West Florida to Canada I used an oil filler cap from Eagle Mike and it stripped half way through the trip. I had to use vise grips to get it off. Adjust your doohickey as per the manual. No worries. Keep your stock oil filler cap.

@benoitveronneau3538

2 жыл бұрын

I put 109 000 km on the original doohickey without any problems. As you say, just follow your manual and everything should be ok.

@jft7174

Жыл бұрын

Eagle Mile is trying to sell us snake oil

@wicksleysnipes1476

Жыл бұрын

Anecdotal evidence undermines good science. This is well known. A sample size of one is exponentially (irony) insignificant.

This is more about the fact that Kawasaki would have to finally admit the design is flawed, which should have been re-engineered years ago, many thanks Eagle Mike Eng for saving my KLR, with your torsion spring and machined lever replacement, a top engineer of our time.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Well said!

Very generous for Mike to share this info so freely.Excellent video.Thanks.

You sir have done a great service by producing this video. Thank you. And, Mike is great.

This is the best video on the KLR that I have ever seen. So glad Mike is around to help us through the issues with the bike. Thanks Mike and Big Rock Moto

Thanks for the great video with Eagle Mike. That guy has so much knowledge on KLR'S

Thank you for everything eagle mike. You are in my prayers

Wow, thank you for making this video!! I never knew about the rubbers on the sprockets wearing out. Love your channel and all the extra effort you are putting in!! Cheers from South Africa

No doubt Mike is an expert on this topic. I am new to the KLR platform. Its hard for me to understand why Kawasaki engineers have designed a system at such risk. Almost hard to believe.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

accountants don't listen to engineers or mechanics

@dw5523

2 жыл бұрын

@@BigRockMoto as someone who works in engineering, this is absolute truth. If engineers were in charge nothing would break, but everything would cost 5x as much.

@michiganmoto7687

2 жыл бұрын

@@dw5523 true. That’s when they refer to it being over-engineered, or exceeding the cost benefit. They would rather eat the cost of a few warranty claims than retool the entire process.

@sv650nyc7

2 жыл бұрын

@@michiganmoto7687 But how much is there to retool in this case? It seems these are mostly a matter of changing the spring, the machining of the doohickey and extending the shaft. Hardly a prohibitive cost for a company such as Kawasaki and a rather trivial adjustment for a decades old problem. Add $50 to the price of the bike, that should more than cover the cost of adjusting 3(!) parts out of hundreds. This is not a good look for Kawasaki. They're being stingy at the wrong end and I will think twice of buying a Kawasaki.

@P1ayD0hpaul

2 жыл бұрын

@@sv650nyc7 exactly. There must be more to it than cost benefit. Warranty claims is one thing. Having such a well know flaw, damages their reputation. We’re not talking about crankshaft design here, it’s a spring for a tensioner. About as minor as it gets. I don’t buy the average bike is low mileage opinion personally. Yes a lot of them, but there’s a lot with high miles. Accounts don’t run the company. They must have some real data and senior engineers who have valid points.

Great video. Kawasaki took a years long break on production and I can't accept the fact that they did not make a meaningful design change and eliminate this problem. I'm in the market and considering this bike but after a lot of homework, it's a big turnoff to have to make this repair when I get this bike new🤕. Again, you get what you pay for. Thanks for the video Ian.💯

@12DisturbedGuy93

10 ай бұрын

i am in the exact same boat myself. What did you end up with?

@tactical690r2

10 ай бұрын

@@12DisturbedGuy93 Ktm 690R Backup is a CB 500x. Both capable and accomplished in their own right.

@12DisturbedGuy93

10 ай бұрын

@@tactical690r2 awesome thank you! The CB has been on my list too, having trouble finding even a dealer to have one to sit on though. Sounds like you're happy with it?

Great video - thank you both. I did the EM Doohickey mod on my 2013 then did the TAT - safe in the knowledge that the KLRs worst snag had been addressed. (The bike performed faultlessly for the 5,880 miles offroad).

I don't even have a KLR as of yet, simply researching. All I can say is this video & the thermobob one are some of the most informative ones I've seen! Well done, you & Mike are doing some great stuff! The knowledge & headaches saved are invaluable in this community 👍

From the man himself, THANK YOU. I want a 3rd gen and was wondering the specifics. Thank You.

Very informative video. I didn't know anything about this issue and I feel like I learned everything I needed to.

Thank you. Finally a video to explain this to a newby like me. I just bought my KLR which has the DooHickey in it but now I understand what it does

Thanks Mike! Great video. I had an ‘03 with a utility/off road sidecar. It took me to Batopilas Mexico and to a Northern Michigan AMA ice racing championship. Temperatures were in the teens for our week long trip where we also circumnavigated Lake Michigan. I abused this bike terribly and it never failed me. The Mexico trip was run near redline for more than half the trip!

Great video, thanks for getting this information out! Heard of this problem, great to see such a detailed explanation. I'm amazed Kawiasaki hasn't done more to fix this. Even seeing the orientation of the stock doo-hickey spring in this video, I'm even more amazed that the spring is installed open side up versus down. As the spring wears and stretches in the stock configuration, it's appears more likely to drop into the case...

Eagle Mike sent me his Doo Hickey kit when the spring failed on my 2010 KLR when I was in Mexico (doing Alaska down to Argentina). Mike's doo hickey kit worked perfectly. Legend.

The king. This was so informative! Thank you

Thanks Mike and BRM!

Love your work, and appreciate your knowledge and desire to pass this on to us. Brilliant..

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Many thanks!

Mike is awesome! Thank you both.

Ah, finally I see with my own eyes what doohickey is. Thank you!

Great information!! Thanks for posting this. I had a first gen KLR, it was a fun bike . Cheers!

Cool video, great to see the legend talking shop.

What I see and hear is all KLR bikes need to be recalled, The engineers of KLR needs to fall on their sword

@michiganmoto7687

2 жыл бұрын

No. It’s the bean counters not the engineers that prevent this from being a great bike.

FELICITACIONES , MUY BUENA INFORMACION , SALUDOS DESDE CHILE

Great guy! Have personally spoke with him when searching for doohickey fragments on my Gen 1. Found in clutch side in the sump under the transmission. Will do on my 22 at 1000 miles.

Thanks for the great explanation 😊

Great video! Many thanks to you and Eagle 🦅 Mike for putting this info out there for all of the new KLR owners. Accept it, fix it, and ride on.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Glad to help!

Thanks for this video!

GREAT show!

what a legend. before youtube, a guy like me would have a really hard time finding in depth information and tech tips like this, especially being from iceland and not really having any friends into this stuff.

The Thermobob is a wonderful mod. I did it on my 08. I never did the doohickey, but I also sold the bike at 14k miles. I should have done it. Every Eagle Mike item I used was well designed and built.

Excellent informative content thank you!!

Man am I glad I put his parts in on mine early

Thanks for this upload. I'm on my fourth KLR now and have always changed the doohickey after my first KLR chewed up the spring and sent metal parts through the whole motor.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

wow, that sucks!

Great to see the man himself🙌 I loosen that adjustment bolt once a year and give ‘er. 16,000km

Eagle Mike is absolutely the GURU of KLR. Hi Mike! Hey Ian! Wanna do a Tech Day in Julian?????? Great seeing you guys

Very useful video. Looking forward to see the installation video.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Coming soon!

Thanks for the video.Didn't even know this was a thing.

Eagle Mike is the best! Have a ton of his stuff on my 2007. Everything is first class quality! His customer service is second to none. Buy with total confidence! Thanks Mike!

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

The best!

Thanks Mike! You’re the best!

Nice work men.

Brilliant presentation, dude.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you kindly!

Thank you so much you made my decision real easy

Outstanding video! Thanks

Nice video. Eagle Mike is the best, I have many of his parts on my 07. 👍

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Sure is

Awesome info! Thank you so much!

Thank you, really informative video, well done. That said, I failed to see the part giving detailed info on where to buy the tension spring and how to install it properly.

Great video! My 03 only had 3k miles on it and I went to one of Mike's tech days and I was surprised to find the lever broken. Luckily I found the pieces. New lever and torsion spring fixed it. Mike is a great guy and more than willing to help anyone.

My 2008 just flipped 45000 today. Thanks to Eagle Mike and Wattman. Great info for all KLR owners.

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

hi you two!

Lucky for us, Yamaha addressed the permanent doohickey fix with the tenure 700

I Changed mine over to an eagle mike torsion system on my 2018 at 1500 miles,, the stock spring had no tension and was also rubbing a groove in the outer case cover.

I don't have KLR650 but i found this very informative. thanks

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Glad to hear that!

Keep commenting on this are you kidding me 5000 miles I have over 13000 on my 08 and hammer it daily. Never a problem

unforgivable they didn't fix the doohickey.......Eagle Mike helped me and a bunch of others do my 2007.......

Over 90.000 views! What a community this motorcycle has built!

I owed 3 klr650 within the last 31 years , from generation 1 to the latest generation ( riding a 2022 klr650 with now 13000km) never had any problems with the engine , just do the recommended maintenance and oil changes , that's it .

I have the 2005 gen 1 and have never done the doo. It now has 95,000 kms on it with no apparrent symptoms.

Great info as i am possibly about to buy a '23 KLR. Do you need to replace the thermobob immediately upon purchase or after the break in period or does it matter? And at what mileage should the doohickey be replaced? This stuff scares me, having always had Suzuki Yamaha or Hondas that never needed anything major like this.

When I did mine on my 2006 the spring was broken. 11,000km on it back when I did it. Did that and the thermobob mod and couldn’t live without either of those mods!

Thanks from Memphis

I put 27000 miles on my 07 before if was stolen. Do hicky never replaced

My question to you mike if i do the upgrade do you recommend to replace the upgraded parts again after a specifically mileage after upgrade. Ps you passing your knowledge on is priceless and i really apreaciate you doing this. It really is a lost art these days. Cheers!

Great video. Thanks for sharing! Is this out of the gate or after years and miles on the bike?

Great video for the skeptics out there. Too bad they couldn't have fixed this problem with the new bike.

Interesting, and thanks for putting this up. I have to say that for anyone who doesn't own a KLR but is thinking about getting one, this video doesn't make a compelling case for going out and buying one. Why would someone want to pay $7,000 to 8,000 plus for a new bike (those $ might be peanuts to some, not to me) and then have to break into the engine to replace parts? I watched another video on how you go about replacing the balancer and spring and it's not that easy, not for the casual home mechanic anyway. It requires getting a couple of tools that I would probably never use again. In spite of your video, I still have some reservations about the need to replace the parts. More on that later.

@ridenm7748

Жыл бұрын

The problem is all the old school dual sports have serious issues. DRs have nsu issues and 3rd gear pitting, XR650L has design and sprocket issues, kawasaki has doohicky issues. Not a lot of competition happening for big thumpers. I'm sure KTM has issues too.

Thank You Mike

Great video 👍

Well done video.

A brilliant video; thank you!

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Awesome. Mike rules!!

Had a 09 dr650se with 70k miles and hard miles with no problems whatsoever. now I was looking at the klr I liked the look of it figured go with another brand. I’m so glad I watched this video I’ll get another Suzuki. It’s bad that I need so spend 200 bucks to keep a new bike from blowing up

Thank yous. I have no doubt this is true. I had a gen1, A1 (geared it up, less 2 teeth on the rear very early on) I did 102k klm and sold it. Second owner put another 50k klm. Never opened up, top or bottom. Then had a engine failure. Cause?? I guess its only a matter of time. Thanks Mike

This bike may very well be the best bang for the buck, out the door, especially if you watch Dork-In-The-Road's channel, but the fact that the 2022 KLR650 has this same problem, is a headache I just don't want. After watching your KLX300 video, that's probably the route I'm going to go (or possibly the Honda CRF300L) until I can save up the bucks for an Africa Twin. The Honda CRF300L would definitely give me the reliability peace of mind I want, but the suspension sounds like it might be an issue for me. The other issue I'm going to have to compare is the tank size between the CRF300L and the KLX300.

even with both fixes..doo-hicky and thermo-bob..the gen 3 KLR is still a value priced duel sport..I sold my 2014 KLR..looking for less weight ..on trails/fireroads..now on a 2014 DR650 100 lbs lighter..thanks BRM and EM

Thank you big time

Question: How many damaged or broken stock doohickies are due to owners or mechanics overtightening the balancer tension adjuster required to be done approximately every oil change?

Bought my 05 in 09 with 12,500 miles on it; immediately did the EM Doohicky replacement. The stock spring had NO tension on it! Also did the ThermoBob and every other upgrade/fix known then... at 35,000 miles now, and other than the faded pink plastic, I've had no issues. Adjust the Doohicky at every oil change, and ROLL! Big THANK YOU! To Eagle Mike and all the other great guys that contribute their knowledge and expertise... BTW, I paid $2995 for mine 12 years ago; I think it was quite a bargain, LOL!

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

thanks for sharing!

@TheDe1deonly

2 жыл бұрын

@@BigRockMoto Thank YOU for the great vids!!!!

I would have bought a KLR had kawasaki addressed this issue. I have two versys, a 300 and 650 and am looking for a third adventure bike. I really love my versys and have had virtually no problems with either, even with high mileage. I guess I'm going to look elsewhere for a more off road inclined machine. Maybe even a dual sport. Thanks for the great video!

Just done the doo hickey on my 015 camo 20k the adjustment was the same as the video 75% worn . Replaced it with the E/M torsion spring. Do I still need to loosen the adjustment bolt as per the recommended service intervals. Cheers & greetings from downunder.😎

Great video-first rate explanations. I had a 2006 KLR and kudo's to Mike for his replacements parts. That being said, mine was still way too viby to enjoy and I sold it. To think that Kawi did not make the obvious corrections to Gen3 is inexcusable-Hard Pass.

@censored4christ162

9 ай бұрын

Hard to tell what the solution is. I hate vibes too but theres 1 cylinder reliability pros and cons too. Only way youre truely getting rid of vibes is a 4 cylinder man. So thats going to pump up the cost and its going to be hardee to do a valve adjustment in the middle of the sahara or mojave or arabian desert or something

Excelent video. Really, I can't understand those thumbs down on your video ..... this video is priceless. Thank you

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

So nice of you

@DragosRDS

2 жыл бұрын

@@BigRockMoto but is true, nowadays when mechanical knowledge is so rare, a video like this is very precious. We must apreciate experts like your friend and content creators like yourself who publish this gems !

Thank You both!!! Educational :-)

@BigRockMoto

2 жыл бұрын

You bet!

What is the average cost to replace the Doo and Thermobob?