RoadVitals

1997 Kawasaki KLR650 Problems

Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
1
Latest Dec 5, 2012
Components namedHow many of our component categories appear on at least one report for this model year. One report can name several.
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Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
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What this page shows

Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 1997 Kawasaki KLR650, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Reports by component

Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category

  • Engine1100.0%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Each component in detail

What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words

Engine

Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

I JUST WISHED TO REPORT SOMETHING I FOUND OUT BY CHANCE, UPON INSPECTING THE INSIDE OF MY ENGINE, AND WHICH COULD HAVE POTENTIALLY CAUSE MY ENGINE TO STOP FUNCTIONING/SEIZE AT SPEED, WHICH IN TURN WOULD HAVE LED ME TO CRASH. THE IDLER SHAFT LEVER & SPRING IN MY ENGINE WAS DEFECTIVE. UPON FINDING THE BROKEN PART I WENT "FISHING" FOR THE MISSING PIECES ON THE BOTTOM OF MY ENGINE USING A MAGNET, AND FOUND ANOTHER BROKEN SPRING! MY TAKE IS THAT THE DEALERSHIP HAD REPLACED THE BROKEN SPRING ONCE ALREADY.. WHICH IS WHY I BELIEVE THERE IS DEFECT ISSUE WITH THIS PART THAT SHOULD BE ADDRESSED. NOTE THAT THE BROKEN PART MOVING FREELY INSIDE MY ENGINE COULD HAVE EASILY CAUSE DAMAGE GETTING TANGLED SOMEWHERE, FOR EXAMPLE IN MY TRANSMISSION GEARS.. THIS COULD EASILY HAVE BEEN A HORROR STORY. HERE ARE PICS I TOOK OF MY ACTUAL BROKEN PARTS AS THEY WERE IN THE ENGINE, AND AFTER REMOVAL (WITH THE ADDITIONAL BROKEN SPRING I FOUND..): PIC 1: HTTP://I97.PHOTOBUCKET.COM/ALBUMS/L229/KATONER/2012-12-05_14-31-39_774.JPG PIC 2: HTTP://I97.PHOTOBUCKET.COM/ALBUMS/L229/KATONER/2012-12-05_18-38-36_487.JPG THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION AND I HOPE THIS CAN HELP OTHERS. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

NHTSA ID 10487513 · filed Dec 5, 2012

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .