I looked at Triumph, RE, and the W800 Street. The long stroke, 360⁰ crank of the W800 was my choice. Even after 4 years the more I ride it, the more I love it. Beautifully finished and that striking bevel driven top end is the cherry on the top.
Royal enfield build quality is not a patch on any of the big jap 4, you get what you pay for. This bike sounds like a bag of spanners and makes harleys look like moto gp level tech. And as for the bevel drive old race tech from 1950s ducatis
@@thebingleywheeler having ridden both, so was that a 3 year ride so you could notice what happened to the fit and finish, what rusts and what falls off etc. You get what you pay for, re is effectively selling naff products and a lifestyle. Having ridden an interceptor, it felt cheap and nasty. Btw ebc brake pads are copper plated to stop squeal, ebc do not advise putting grease or copper slip on them. The retaining clip that fell out of the budget brembos is an anti squeal shim.
@jonesvox1 I agree, I've ridden both and really considered the Interceptor because of its price but finally decided to pay a bit more and get the bike that I really wanted. The build quality of the Kawasaki is so much better. It looks better too, the engine is a beauty, very much like the 60's air cooled Bonneville. Getting ready for my third riding season and glad I went for the W800.
Some points that should be highlighted on this bike. It shuns the modern fad of 270 deg. cranks in favour of the old 360 deg. design which makes it stand out a little. Valve adjustment is by way of modern shims but amazingly the rockers slide out the way to remove the shims easily. The gearbox has a positive neutral mechanism. When you go down the box into first as you slow down and stop the gearbox mechanically assures that you change back into neutral only and it won’t pass it by into 2nd. Wonderful bike.
How dare you forget “ slack Alice”. You are spot on with the hard seats. I bought a Corbin for my pan many years ago. When it came I was very disappointed as it was so hard. After about 10 minutes it was brilliant and best thing I’d ever sat on. Not what you would expect from a hard seat
W800's bevel drive OHC set up was 1st used by Ducati in the early 70's . Introduced on the 350cc and 450cc DESMO models. Desmo stands for " desmodromic valve train. Have a 2020 W800 Cafe model w/ 2000 miles on it. Favorite bike ever!
I have a 2022 red W800 Standard and I believe it would pull those hills in fifth gear from anywhere above 30mph. I can pull away from a stop without even touching the throttle. That low down torque is intoxicating and makes the W800 such a joy to ride.
Just for poops and giggles, the throttle bodies have a small and a large throttle butterfly. The small one is controlled by the twist grip (small for low end torque) and large one is brought in by the computer for higher rpm and load demands. The engine really wakes up after 4000rpm and becomes extremely smooth. Very nice at 70mph at about 4200rpm My 2022 standard version with red tank and black side covers can be driven away from a stop without touching the throttle. Very user friendly in city traffic. At speeds 55 to 60mph i have seen 73 miles to the imperial gallon. The fuel light generally comes on at about 250 kilometers leaving about 7 liters in the tank for reserve. It should have no problem making 300 kilometers range and I watched a Japanese video where the rider went 350 kilometers before filling. As with most bikes these days it is a little on the heavy side due to ABS, fuel injection and catalytic converters. I am not surprised that you liked the bike and it is beautiful in the metallic green that you like. It's a very easy bike to live with and worth every penny of the price. Bob in Canada
Yeah spot on these twin kawasaki are a really nice bike ,and I couldn't agree more regarding modern classics just nice real world enjoyable motor cycles ,thanks for the video mate 😁
A great ride and a great bike. Beautiful countryside! Most of the times I say I would never buy a bike that had been reviewed as some reviewers basically ride the bike hard to see what it can do and pass the mechanical results onto the next guy. You ride respectfully and carefully and I would have no problem buying a bike you have reviewed. Thank you.
It costs more to use superior materials and labour costs in Japan are much higher than in India or Taiwan. It is unfortunate but my experience with the W800 is that you get what you pay for. Properly maintained these are easily 100,000 mile plus motorcycles.
I bought a new W800 2 bikes ago. It looked lovely (Cherry Red and Cream). was nicely made, and had that 'old fashioned' 360 degree crank (pistons go up and down together, fire alternately) just like the 1979 Meriden Bonneville T140D I had before it but without the vibes (or oil leaks!). I did find the power inadequate - not for top speed but for acceleration for safe overtaking. Also, the brakes were not very confidence inspiring (it needs twin front discs). Mine used to 'tramline' quite alarmingly, which was probably due to the tyres. So I traded it after a few years for an R9T. The R9T was lacking in neither power or brakes, but it was a bit 'full on' and as I'm now in my mid 70s I wanted something more relaxed. So earlier this year I swapped that for a new Speedmaster, which I love; loads of torque, nice low seat for my 29" legs, loads of power, much more relaxed riding position. on it, it's all about the ride. On the R9T it was all about the bike.
The 2019 and onward W800s have a larger front disc and rear disc brake. My 2022 has excellent brakes for the normal riding this bike was intended for. I have no problem passing with my bike even without down shifting. Perhaps your W800 was not running right or your riding style requires more power and brakes. The tramlining is significantly reduce with the proper pressure in the rear tire. Most people put it at 36psi but for less than 250lbs load it should be 32psi. It's in the manual. In any event, the tires can be replaced with tires that don't tramline. The key to tramlining is to let the bike move around as it wants. Like driving on loose gravel you get used to it and it doesn't bother you anymore. I'll be 70 in August. Bob in Canada
I think the difference in the turning you are talking about may be due to the 19" front wheel. I noticed it too when I first rode the bike but got used to it quite quickly.
With Kawasaki's experience in building motorcycles with belt final drive, it would have been good if they made the W800 with a belt drive. I'm not sure if there's any aftermarket options for a conversion kit.
Really enjoyed watching this to the end ....nice reflection on why modern classic are so good ....- Ive got the opportunity to swap my Interceptor for a W800 - what do you reckon ?
What a lovely review of my beloved W800, albeit mine is the cafe version which I got for £6500 new. You hit the nail on the head, they have SOUL with plenty of shove which feels much more than the figures suggest. There are two downsides though, the Chain is an absolute ball ache to maintain being nigh on completely hidden by the exhaust & a side stand only. The other downside is they are prolific chuckers of crap of the roads. They get absolutely caked in crap so I only ride on dry days. Other than that they are as you say in the video. Lovely Jubbly.
My 2022 W800 standard was just over 6,600 pounds ($11,499.00 Canadian) before taxes and shipping. The Interceptor is not a lot cheaper here in Canada. I've only seen one Interceptor locally and in two years of ownership I have yet to see another W800 on the street. Canadians and Americans seem to prefer much larger and more powerful motorcycles but at nearly 70 years of age I needed something a little smaller and more manageable. The W800 ticked a lot of boxes for me.
My Mrs has one in red. It gets loads of attention and interest ( maybe its my Mrs!!??) Its great fun and a lovely bike for noodling about on. It is reliable too...hers is on the road while my R9T is back in the workshop for the second time in two weeks!
@@thebingleywheeler They are great fun but in less than one year mine has had a fuel pump go bad and last week it was in for a service and they messed it up some how and they don't know if ts engine or shaft drive trouble...I am well miffed. They gave me another for a few days to cover my bikes absence and I took it out today ...for all my frustration with BMW what a great machine it is!
23:16 "neither belt nor chain"... nor PUSHRODS! The R.E. big singles are pushrods, as far as I know. I'm not complaining, they seem very easy to access and adjust. HERE you have something that reminds one of a Ducati or Norton Manx though. It's impressive, I can't ignore it.
My W650 has a bit-more HP , less-torque . I ride-it on-the-cam like my old-Triumphs (long-gone) . You don't have to worry about pushing-it hard all-day , it'll do an easy 200,000k before it might need anything as long as you service-it . Strangely, it doesn't seem to like full-synth-oil much ; gearchanges are very-noticably notchier . The front-end is easy to mod with the old 25mm-spacer and oil to-suit your riding-style . Some people just increase the volume of oil . MInes only done 27-k's (or 21, can't recall ) and the rear-shocks are-fine (I do push-it through the tight winding-stuff (which most of my-riding Is ) and I haven't felt any-need to fit the new-shocks I bought . I hear that 'fork-kits' transform these-bikes but if you're on a-budget and used-to wrangling-old-machines (part of the fun ) you'll still find it handles-better than most 70's bikes (Dukes-aside) .You also get to tell-people you 'Restored-it' yourself
My mechanic has a 650 that he's never taken more than the valve cover off. He has serviced a customer's W800 since new. One hundred miles, and the same thing. My bike had a mere 1,000 miles on it when I took it too him for a roadworthy certificate and a quick check over. When I picked it up, I asked him if he had found any problems, what recommendations he had etc. I was a bit taken back when he said it goes exactly the same as his customer's bike with 100k miles on it! His opinion of these machines was just ride them, change the oil and filters at half intervals and check the valve clearances once in a while.
The Kawasaki W800 is by far the best quality modern retro motorcycle available. In 2020, it was available in a beautiful red and chrome color scheme, with almost no flat black. Unfortunately the 2023 model is ONLY available in flat black, though it still has chrome fenders and exhaust, and bright shiny wheels. Sadly those wheels have tube type tire on them, which makes the W800 a no go for me.
W 800 is a great bike IMO. Beautiful finish. I went for the Interceptor because It is significantly less expensive, less vibration, better fuel consumption (Av 25 v 21 km/l), longer warranty, more colour choices, depreciate less here, and more plentiful and cheaper parts and accessories. On a personal level, the interceptor is a bigger but 20kg lighter bike with a higher seat, which suits me.
The W800, to me, is the most aesthetically pleasing of the new retro bikes. I have an Interceptor 650 and it has a beautiful engine, clutch and gearbox.. I hate the upswept exhaust, the straight peashooters on the W800 are right on target. . The 650's riding position is out of sorts, The bars too low/forward.. the pegs too far back and I am forever getting tangled in them at a stop, the overall riding position leaning more to a sport bike than a classic... which I do Not like. Too bad about the price and unavailability of the W800.
@@thebingleywheeler Not necessarily better value. Bike was well over priced, so didn't move off showroom floor. Dealers giving massive discounts. I bought a 2020 pre registered w800 cafe, with 0 miles on the clock, had been in showroom for 11 months, so had already used almost 1 year of 2 year warranty, but here is the kicker, it had a 2 year extended warranty, so in reality just over 3 years warranty left. What did I pay? £6500. So now it gets much closer to the interceptors price, with in my opinion a more premium fit and finish, and longer service intervals. You can still if you are quick, buy a New pre registered bike 0 miles for the price of the interceptor. Sorry for the long text.
North American literature for the W800 lists the horsepower as 51hp. In the Europe and the UK I think the horsepower is rated a a slightly lower rpm to get around the A2 license issue. I have seen videos from Taiwan and Indonesia where they advertise 52hp. I watched a video where a father and son team had an newer Interceptor and an older W650 and the W easily out pulled the RE. For me it came down to looks, sound, availability, proven reliability and access to a much larger dealer/parts network. For me the W800 was worth every penny it costs over any of the competition. I'm not saying that other motorcycles are no good just that I like the W800 better. Personal preference only.
W800 is the best looking BSA and Bonneville ever' re-created'...its got one of the best looking engines in present times....how does it compare to the interceptor 650 apart from the fit and finish in terms of performance...which one has more character closer to the older retro motorcycles of 60s and 70s...and which one would you choose....Sorry too many questions😬
Hi it's a close call but ignoring the price difference to my mind the Interceptor is the most akin to the old classics. It has a much more "rock and roll" engine than the W800 (which is rather refined once on the move). Replace the oem pipes on the Interceptor for a proper 60s vibe. Interceptor handles better I think but W800 slightly more comfortable over distance. Performance pretty much identical..... I would have the Interceptor all day long for the looks (in chrome)
@@thebingleywheeler Thanks for the response...last question please ...if you had to keep just one motorcycle between the Interceptor 650, Kawasaki W800 and Classic 350 which one would you have ignoring the price and cost of service.
@@thebingleywheeler Please do keep making such lovely videos especially comparison between motorcycles....helps a lot to make the right choices...Thanks again ..Ride Safe
@@blrmotorcyclesinc. well at the moment it would be my Scram 411 for this time of year but ultimately it would be my Interceptor even though I love my Classic 350 the Interceptor I’d a more complete package
I love that road up the hill by Stainburn forest, the view that opens out once you hit the top is one of the best around. Did you pop into the Sun Inn for a swift pint before you carried on?
@@thebingleywheeler I don’t think so cause from 2019 onwards is the generation 2 with the rear brake disc and a couple other mostly cosmetic upgrades etc but they were on sale here until about 2021 in a couple of different styles, classic and cafe racer I think. I bought gen 1 one new in 2012 and ran it about 5 years and put about 20k miles on it. I loved it. Wouldnt mind getting another one but seems I cannot. Thats a shame. Sure they were a low volume sales bike but I dunno why they would withdraw it from UK when it is available everywhere else!
Anyway, just as a follow up I emailed Kawasaki UK yesterday to ask them why the w800 is not currently available in the uk and their response was; “Unfortunately the 2024 model year Kawasaki W800 is not imported into the UK. You may be able to import a European one yourself by contact a Kawasaki dealer in Europe. Unfortunately no announcements have been made regarding the 2025 model range within the UK. There can be many reasons why a machine is no longer available in a specific market including sales demand and meeting Euro regulations.” Well that sucks doesn’t it!
The Kawasaki W800 is way way too expensive for a replica of the older bikes that weren't very good themselves. In Ireland they are nearly 12,000 Euro, New, and nearly expensive Used. There are far too many better bikes to be bought far cheaper, used and hardly broke in. Crazy, Crazy, they will never be a success.
@@thebingleywheeler I can see why they're not made anymore, too expensive. but still can be bought as a New bike in one colour in Ireland, red I believe. 11550 euros There are two secondhand bikes 2011 6k, 2015 7750 euros. Who would buy these overpriced replica bikes??
@@thebingleywheeler far better bikes on the market much cheaper. Of course Irish New Motorcycle prices are too high in General, and VRT on used exports make it not worth the hassle. Safe Riding.
