Are you eagerly awaiting the 2022 Kawasaki KLR650? It seems like it’s taking a while for the bikes to show up in North America, but they are starting to show up at dealers now. And, that means we can finally see an assembly video for one of the new machines.

Even if there wasn’t a new ADV bike involved here, this would still be of interest to many riders, who aren’t familiar with the dealership assembly process out of a crate. As this is the Adventure model, with factory luggage, there’s a bit more paraphernalia to bolt on, of course.

Kawasaki canceled the previous KLR650 model in 2018. The carbureted design was starting to show its age, and it seemed unlikely there would be a replacement. But, in winter of 2021, we saw just that: An updated KLR650 with EFI and optional ABS. It’s very similar to the old 2008+ model, with much more bodywork than the original Gen I models. However, Kawasaki has reportedly upgraded the Balancer Chain Adjuster Lever design, aka the “Doohickey.” This change alone will make the KLR a much more attractive machine to many buyers, as buyers frequently changed the Doohickey as soon as possible after buying previous KLR models.

Supposedly, the new KLR makes 40 horsepower at 6,000 rpm, and 39 lb-ft of torque at 4,500 rpm. Hardly face-melting torque, but basically the same as the outgoing model, and Kawi sold a lot of those. With current demand for dual sports the highest it’s been in years, no doubt Kawasaki will have plenty of buyers lined up for the new machines as they arrive at dealers—if they aren’t sold out already.

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