KLR650C Rear Suspension

[MichelleS]

Can anyone confirm that a rear progressive shock from say, Arrowhead, will fit the C model? I'm in Quito with a 'mucho mal' rear shock and no new ones in sight from Kawasaki for over 3 weeks and a stupid amount of money. Arrowhead can get me one in about a week but I need to double check that it will fit the C model.
Thanks,
Michelle

[lecap]

I'm almost 100% sure that the shock fits although the C does not have the quick adjuster for the spring preload.
Will check at my shop tomorrow

[Cinquegrana]

Michelle,

Let me know if you need anything from the US, I have a spare used spring/shock (in good condition) available I could send to you right away. It's off my 90 B2 Tengai, I took the shock/spring off my A model KLR and put it on the Tengai.

Good luck,

[MichelleS]

John,
I've ordered a upgraded shock from Dual Star. Fingers crossed it arrives in Colombia before I leave.

[phoenix]

Michelle,

Let us know how you get on with this. I'm riding a KLR650 C model too, and getting parts for it is always a hassle because of the A/B/C differences, so the more info on compatibility that's available here, the better!

I'm just converting my C to a "Cish" by replacing the 14L "C" tank with a 23L "A" tank. The seat needs to be replaced as well (the C seat goes further up onto the bitty little C tank, so will not fit with an A tank), so I've just picked that up secondhand on ebay as well. Next, I'll probably discover that the whole rear subframe needs to go, or that I need to make a few "tweaks" to the "A" seat to fit it on the "C" rear subframe... one thing at a time though..

Colm

[MichelleS]

Hi Colm,

I bought the shock absorber from Dual Star becasue they had a sale on. Both Dual Star and Arrowhead (Moab) sell the Progressive Shock and are normally the same price. And both were very helpful on the phone. I ordered the shorter spring becasue the guys at Dual Sport thought it would fit better. It fit fine with two little things to be careful of.

First: You'll need to get a longer bolt for the bottom fixing as you'll see just how flimsy the metal work of the stock shock is. I imagine it would be the same for the 'A' Model though and think it should have been included with the shock, mainly becasue they went to the effort of including two sleeves to make the top bolt fit. I ended up having to have bolt made for it.
If you do have to get a bolt made up, make sure there is a little more room to spare when it fits through the hole in the shock as the hole in the bit that attaches it to the bike is ever so slightly smaller. Also make sure the bolt is only as long as required to fit through and have the nut fit on the end. With the extra width of the shock at the base, there isn't much room left between the shock absorber and the two bracket thingys - sorry mental block on all things to do with motorbikes.

Second: The bike wasn't lowered to start with and now with a shorter shock on it, my side stand is more useless than normal i.e. it really needs to be shortened. (My side and center stands are custom built and weren't great to start with, but now they're worse)

Let me know how you get on with the 'A' seat regarding the rear sub frame.

Cheers,
Michelle

[phoenix]

Will do. The seat is currently in the post from Germany. The things I've noticed so far about switching the tank are:

- the fuel valve (on/off/reserve switch) is different on the two models (my "C" tap need to be turned to "On" to close off the supply, unbelievably!), but seems to be compatible (the size of the main stem into the tank may vary, causing reserve to be hit later on the C type fuel valve). In any event, I'll have both values, so I'll use whichever suits best on the A tank.

- The A tank comes slightly more forward than the C tank, so without the side shrouds (rad covers), the rad and stuff are just slightly exposed, but probably not so much so that you would need to get the shrouds as well. I plan on not having shrouds on with the A tank, unless I find that I really need them.

- Engine bars from Hepco and Becker for the C model will not fit with the A tank in place, as the A tank comes lower and wider.

- The seat needs to be switched to an A model (shorter). Whether or not this will work on a C subframe remains to be seen.

- There is slightly decreased clearance from the handlebars to the tank now, so be careful how you mount any accessories on the bar (GPS, aftermarket switch gear, aftermarket choke assembly, in my case) so that they don't collide with the tank at full lock undo all your lovely tank prep work.

- While the tank is off, take the opportunity to run any additional wiring (for accessories, etc) under the tank, from the rear subframe to the headstock area and inside the cable protector thingy at the top.

I get an extra 9L capacity for all this work though.. which means about an extra 150k worth of riding in the tank.. that's worth it, in my view. I'm currently in the process of stripping the A tank back to bare metal with a mini-grinder and a wire wheel to expose all it's flaws, then I dent fix (one minor dent to fix), clean the inside with acid, seal the inside of the tank with flowliner to fix two pinhole leaks caused by some internal rust at the base, and to protect it from further corrosion, then prime the outside, and spray it black, or something equally functional. I've even thought about powder coating it, which i've never done before.

Ah, this is almost as fun as the biking itself!

Colm

[phoenix]

Quick update.. I'm still waiting on the "A" seat from Germany, so I can't yet install the tank, but I since got hold of a KLR650 C1-C5 microfiche (which was very hard to come by), so I can finally tell what the part numbers are without having to contact a dealer. It's also extremely handy for figuring out how things on the bike work, if you're in a spot!

I plan to print out the fiche at my local library, scan the printed version back in (xsane, in The Gimp, on linux), clean up the scanned images a little (The Gimp), and store the soft copy (in JPG format) on an SD card for when I'm travelling (viewable on either my Pentax optio S4 camera, or my ipaq 2210 handheld). I'm not sure if there are copyright issues with sharing this scanned info (I don't see any (C) symbol there anywhere on the fiche), so if I can, I'm happy to share this.

Colm

[RayFarmer]

I'm doing much the same thing - but in reverse. I am currently waiting for the complete new body to arrive from the UK (C-model), and hope to fit it to my 1998 - A-model, here in Spain. I do not need the larger tank, so it will not be a problem, but am not sure if I need to modify the frame to accept the new bodywork. I am replacing the Tank + panels, seat, side panels, rear bit (behind the seat) and the grab-rails. I will probably keep the A-type fairing as it is a bit bigger and fitted in a completely different way anyhow (mounted on the frame - not the forks & the headlight appears to be a different shape).
Any ideas of problems I may come up against.

[phoenix]

Ray,

Are you replacing the entire rear subframe from the A for a C subframe? The 2 are different, mostly in terms of the rear end structure. I think the mount points for the rear mudguard and light unit (as well as the luggage rack / grab handles) are different between the A and the C too, so the C parts will not fit onto the A frame. Your "static" A front fairing (fixed to the frame, rather than to the forks) should not cause any issues with the smaller C tank (as far as I can see), but the other way round ("rotating" C fairing combined with the bigger A tank) causes a few minor problems with the indicators contacting the tank on full lock.

If you don't mind me asking, why are you switching to the C model? There are more parts and accessories available for the A model, and if I were buying again, I would stay well clear of the C model unless it were a real giveaway, for this reason. I've had hassle getting engine bars (narrower tank, and different tank shrouds, so the C bars are styled differently), pannier racks (because of the lack of decent mount points on the C subframe), etc.

I'll be in Spain in about 2 weeks on my KLR C in a roundabout route to Greece, etc.. where are you located? I'd be happy to meet up for a coffee, and to compare the innards of the A and C.

The A seat that i bought on ebay turned out to be a KLR 600 seat (despite being sold as a KLR 650 seat), so I had to abandon the idea of switching to the A tank/seat combo because of lack of time. The entire subframe would have had to be replaced, and it just seemed like a lot of hassle, when I could just stick a couple of jerrycans on the back to solve my original problem! As a result, I have a fully reconditioned and re-sprayed A tank sitting idle (fully sealed internally with flowliner, the whole shebang!).. maybe later in the summer I'll resume that project.

Colm

[RayFarmer]

Colm,
SORRY FOR NOT GETTING BACK SOONER. I DECIDED TO SWAP OVER TO THE 'C' MODEL AS I WAS OFFERED A FULL BODY-REPLACEMENT FOR IT (WHICH I PREFER THE STYLING TO) AND I HAD DENTED THE 'A' TANK (MINOR - BUT STILL USABLE), SO IT SEEMED EASIER TO SWAP THE WHOLE LOT OVER.
I HAVE NOW FOUND OUT (JUST PRIOR TO READING YOUR REPLY IN FACT) THAT I NOW NEED A REPLACEMENT REAR SUB-FRAME ASWELL. I WILL KEEP A LOOK OUT FOR A 'C' SUB-FRAME AND UNTIL THEN, KEEP THE 'A' MODEL AS ORIGINAL.
IF YOU ARE IN THE AREA, I WOULD GLADLY MEET UP FOR A COFFEE OR WHATEVER. MY LOCATION IS IN MIJAS (WHICH IS ROUGHLY BETWEEN MARBELLA & MALAGA - & JUST NORTH OF FUENGIROLA). YOU CAN PHONE ME DIRECT ON (0034) 699 752 919
(OR E-MAIL: rayfarmer2000@hotmail.com ).
ALSO, IF YOUR INTERESTED, I'LL SWAP OVER ANY PARTS THAT YOU NEED FOR YOUR BIKE (INCLUDING REAR 'A' TYPE SUBFRAME IF YOU WISH & A VERY GOOD CONDITION SEAT ASWELL AS ARE ALL THE OTHER PANELS). I HAVE ANY TOOLS REQUIRED AND A NICE GARAGE TO DO THE WORK IN ASWELL (PLUS THE SWIMMING POOL FOR AFTERWARDS).
LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU.
RAY.

[phoenix]

Ray,

Time is no mans friend. I've moved past Spain, and I'm now in Venice. I had to go with the C tank on the bike, and it's an uber-pain because it's got such a small range. I've also been out of contact most of the time, because of the practicalities of getting to an internet cafe when I'm travelling.

I might try to hook up with you after this trip to see if we can arrange something re a switchover. So far, my bike is holding up well on the travel, although I broke the clutch cable in Parma (luckily, I had a spare).

Thanks for the offer, by the way. Muchas gracias.

Colm

[RayFarmer]

Colm,
No problem. Hope the rest of the trip goes well.
I use my KLR for local use only, so the smaller tank is not a problem for me.
I'll keep a look-out for the 'c' sub-frame - but contact me later if your still interested in swapping things around (you can have all the 'A' type panels-lights-racks-tank 'ETC', as I would have no need for any of them after the swap).
All the best for the trip, RAY.

[phoenix]

Ray,

Thanks again. I'll certainly consider it, once I catch up on normal life after this mini-trip.

Colm
(in Budapest)

[RayFarmer]

Colm,
Did you ever replace the bodywork as you intended.