Uneven Front Tire Wear

[TurboNosKawasaki]

Hey guys, my mates encountered this problem on the 2009 ER6n and the ER6f/Ninja 650r. This problem is really quite bad and more than 40 owners in Malaysia have it. In 7000kms (4000-4500kms) from new, all their front tires wear unevenly, all balding badly to the right side. On the left, it all looks good but the right is just down to the wear markers! Even after they change their tires to other brands, it still happens. Many of us are changing our fork oil just in case, but the problem still persists... We went back to Kawasaki Motors (Malaysia) for an explaination but all they had to say was the condition of our roads here in Malaysia. If what they said were true, other earlier models would have the same problem but we don't (Im an owner of the 08 model)... what could cause such a drastic problem? Anyone having this problem besides in my country? Thanks guys in advance...

[2007 650R]

Do other brand motorbikes have the same issues?

[electjohn]

The crown in the road does tend to wear tires unevenly, some tire compounds more so than others.

[Cope]

The crown in the road does tend to wear tires unevenly, some tire compounds more so than others.

+1, which side of the road do you ride on in Malaysia? is it Euro style or Mercan style?

[jdvoss]

Thats funny cause mine is doin the same thing on the left side. Its not bad but you can tell, I think its more cause I lean harder to the left than I do the right.

[Cope]

If you frequently ride with only one hand on the bars as well (no safety advice please) this could possibly cause some slight wear on one side as well.

[coop]

being low or out of fork oil on one side will do this. saw it on a friends bike with a leaky seal

[TurboNosKawasaki]

In Malaysia we ride/drive on the left hand side... and the funny thing is only the ER6f/n 2009 and the GTR 1400 2009 models are facing this problem. All pre 2009 models do not have this problem...other brands(Yam, Gixxer and the Hondas along with other Kwak models) do not have this problem. And some have changed their tires but still facing this problem. If the uneven wear is minor, we could close an eye but this problem is really bad. It all starts with the bars wobbling at a certain speed. Then after 4-5k kms, you can see the tires are all screwed on the right...

[lamy_chop]

check to make sure your forks are even. one may be set higher than the other. if you're all getting your bikes from the same dealer, than that may explain why one make is doing it and the others aren't. it would also explain why kawi isn't owning up to anything.

[electjohn]

I found that the dual compound tires cup bad. The hard center stays while the softer sides wear away. For the way I ride they are no advantage that is why I change tires, the ones I use suit my riding style.

[TurboNosKawasaki]

check to make sure your forks are even. one may be set higher than the other. if you're all getting your bikes from the same dealer, than that may explain why one make is doing it and the others aren't. it would also explain why kawi isn't owning up to anything.

We are getting the bikes from different dealers. But all the bikes are assembled in Thailand, so are all the bikes that is in US... the funny thing is it only happens to the 09 model... Even after doin up the forks, they still encounter this problem. Could there be something wrong with the chassis itself?

[lamy_chop]

there's a very real possibility there could be a problem with the chassis. what that might be i couldn't even begin to tell you.

[TurboNosKawasaki]

there's a very real possibility there could be a problem with the chassis. what that might be i couldn't even begin to tell you.

That is what I suspected but Kawasaki just won't own up...!

[Cope]

Well, your bike comes with a warranty right? take it to your dealer and have them just document it or "take a look" at it. Do it a few times and you have yourself a little bit of back-story to give Kawi when you send them your gripe. Don't get all huffy to Kawi... this could happen to any line of bikes by any manufacturer. Could be something as simple as their assembly line being all wonky and the workers not catching the whole batch that had an error. The people putting it together could have been the same, just depends what shipments went where and when. Out of millions and millions of bikes made... its gotta happen to someone right?

Or it could be the crown on the road...

[2007 650R]

I agree. If there are a few bikes with the same issue and you take them to the dealership it will eventually create a service bulletin in most cases I believe.

[TurboNosKawasaki]

If it was the crown of the road, every model would have it but this only happens to the 09 models... and we have taken back to Kawasaki (Malaysia) and they are ignoring the pleas of 40 people. I know this type of cases won't happen in the States but in Malaysia, they just don't give a @#$% about you and they try not to take responsibility. There are alot of cases where water sips into the 09 model's rear lights. Kawasaki Malaysia did a warranty job on it but guess what they said? "It's gonna happen again and you are welcome to come and change it AS LONG AS YOU ARE NOT OVER YOUR WARRANTY PERIOD". To me, that's just bullshit. So what happens after 10,000kms??? Submarine rear lights? They are not doin anything to rectify the problem. And changing the front tire every 6-7k kms isn't fun and by 2k kms, the bikes start wobbling all over the place...what is the next step we should take?

[Simon]

- get someone with more weight involved; a motorcycle or consumer organisation, newspaper? Don't know your Malaysian scenario, but documentation and continous pressure - I can't think of other ways? Complain to Kawasaki HQ?

[TurboNosKawasaki]

- get someone with more weight involved; a motorcycle or consumer organisation, newspaper? Don't know your Malaysian scenario, but documentation and continous pressure - I can't think of other ways? Complain to Kawasaki HQ?

The problem is Kawasaki Malaysia IS the Head Quarters...shit like that won't happen in America or the european countries...my bike (ER6n '08) was recently nicked by some punks and I wanted to get a 2010 ER6f but after all this complaints, Im thinkin twice... On my side, if the problem was a minor problem that comes from the forks/tires/etc, I wouldn't mind but something wrong with the chassis is @#$% up... Anyone out there has the same problem with their 09/10 model?

[Simon]

^ - I was thinking "Kawasaki Japan", but it seems Malaysia is distributor/subsidary of "Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A".
http://www.kawasaki.com/OurCompany/Othe ... _Asia.aspx
Unfortunately it also says elsewhere on that site that international inquiries will not receive a response... (But who knows....)

[djrussell]

can you find their physical address? go knock on the front door if it's not far. better yet, organize a group ride to do it!

[Simon]

That could be a smashing plan! Send them a letter in advance, saying that on a given day they can expect a visit from 50 bikes at their main entrance, and their Technical Dept. is welcome to inspect the problem. Then invite a local newspaper or motorcycle magazine....
Sorta 'Michael Moore' style...

[djrussell]

from the kawi website....

Kawasaki Sunrock SDN. BHD.
No.12 Jalan Jurunilai U1/20 Sek U1
40150 Shah Alam, Selangor, MALAYSIA

TEL: 603-5566-5688
FAX: 603-5566-5699

[2007 650R]

can you find their physical address? go knock on the front door if it's not far. better yet, organize a group ride to do it!

sweet idea

[lamy_chop]

- get someone with more weight involved; a motorcycle or consumer organisation, newspaper? Don't know your Malaysian scenario, but documentation and continous pressure - I can't think of other ways? Complain to Kawasaki HQ?

The problem is Kawasaki Malaysia IS the Head Quarters...shit like that won't happen in America or the european countries...my bike (ER6n '08) was recently nicked by some punks and I wanted to get a 2010 ER6f but after all this complaints, Im thinkin twice... On my side, if the problem was a minor problem that comes from the forks/tires/etc, I wouldn't mind but something wrong with the chassis is @#$% up... Anyone out there has the same problem with their 09/10 model?

you are quite mistaken. kawasaki still refuses to admit that the idler lever (doo-hickey)
on the KLR 650 is poorly manufactured and almost certain to break on you, potentially causing engine failure at an inopportune time.
kawasaki, just like honda or suzuki or yamaha, do not want to accept that their product could be defective in any way and will deny it until it becomes too big to ignore. 40 or so riders in one locale is not big enough of a group to take notice of.

[TurboNosKawasaki]

from the kawi website....

Kawasaki Sunrock SDN. BHD.
No.12 Jalan Jurunilai U1/20 Sek U1
40150 Shah Alam, Selangor, MALAYSIA

TEL: 603-5566-5688
FAX: 603-5566-5699

Yup, this IS Kawasaki Malaysia's address. It's just less than 10 minutes from where I live. And these fools won't admit to jack s@#t... It's a turn off for me since I have been riding Kawasaki bikes from day one. If 40 bikes having the same problem is not enough, what is? Just bloody hate it when that happens...

[lamy_chop]

i hear ya. the problem is, look how many cars, and consequently deaths as well, that it took for toyota to admit they had serious issues with their throttle's (and now the brakes on the pompous......i mean prius.)
the problem you're having is far from life threatening, so kawi isn't going to take it seriously unless the # of bikes reaches the thousands for a certain model year. it isn't cost effective.
NO manufacturer ever wants to admit they may have a problem with their product from the factory. give kawi a break. if the problem was happening to honda or suzuki or yamaha or bmw or ducati or any of the other bike makers, they wouldn't own up to it any faster. at the same time you don't have any proof that it's a manufacturing defect, it's only speculation right now.
see if you can find a way to prove a manufacturing defect and you may be able to build a case that kawi would listen to.

[Cope]

Sooo... what you're saying is... you don't think its the crown to the road?

[TurboNosKawasaki]

i hear ya. the problem is, look how many cars, and consequently deaths as well, that it took for toyota to admit they had serious issues with their throttle's (and now the brakes on the pompous......i mean prius.)
the problem you're having is far from life threatening, so kawi isn't going to take it seriously unless the # of bikes reaches the thousands for a certain model year. it isn't cost effective.
NO manufacturer ever wants to admit they may have a problem with their product from the factory. give kawi a break. if the problem was happening to honda or suzuki or yamaha or bmw or ducati or any of the other bike makers, they wouldn't own up to it any faster. at the same time you don't have any proof that it's a manufacturing defect, it's only speculation right now.
see if you can find a way to prove a manufacturing defect and you may be able to build a case that kawi would listen to.

You mean they wait till the defected parts take human lives until they are ready to own up? That is up... got half my mind now to gather all the owners and bring em to court...

[lamy_chop]

of course they wait till people die before they even acknowledge the existence of a problem. part of the reason for that though also is they have to have absolutely definative proof that the problem is their doing. otherwise if they jump the gun and it turns out that it wasn't their fault at all the public ridicule hurts the company more than the public outcry if it was their fault.
at least with the public outcry option, when the problem is fixed, by way of recalls and the like, people see them doing something to make things right.
with the public ridicule option, they remain the laughing stock of the automotive/motorcycle world until people finally forget about the time they jumped the gun. it's also harder to regain peoples trust from a "jump the gun" stand point.

[djrussell]

i guess it depends on the company and their ethics.

ideally, they would discover the problem by their own investigation or from a customer and immediately fix it.

i wouldn't be surprised though if some dirty ceos said "how many will die? how many will get hurt? how much to settle those cases? how much to recall thousands of bikes?" and took the cheapest option.

one thing that MAY help you....
in the maintenance schedule (in the service manual) there is an entry for "tire tread wear, abnormal wear - inspect" which is at 12k, 24k, 36k kms. check the owners manual of your specific bike to see what the schedule is but i'll bet it's the same.
since the tires wear badly much sooner than that, you may be able to argue that they are creating an unsafe condition. this could be enough to prompt them into creating a fix or to at least taking a look. they could also just say "screw you" and revise the maint schedule.