2008 Kawasaki KLR650 problems & reliability
116 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2008 Kawasaki KLR650, alongside 1 safety recall campaign. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2008 Kawasaki KLR650 vehicles were involved in 2 fatal crashes with 2 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Exterior Lighting | 85 | 73% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 12 | 10% |
| Structure | 10 | 9% |
| Suspension | 9 | 8% |
| Electrical System | 5 | 4% |
| Equipment | 2 | 2% |
| Power Train | 2 | 2% |
| Engine | 1 | 1% |
| Equipment Adaptive/mobility | 1 | 1% |
| Visibility | 1 | 1% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 2,425 miles (middle 50% between 1,366 and 4,673 miles), based on 96 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Turned in complaint on a few days ago. Received this tracking number 11063172. What's my next step? The complaint was turn signals falling off.”
Exterior Lighting · filed Jan 20, 2018
“Exterior turn signals dryrot,therefore turn signal indicators falling off and hanging on by wire. One in front and one in back. The one in back fell on to muffler melting plastic.”
Exterior Lighting · filed Jan 7, 2018
“The engine burns oil excessively at highway speeds (60 to 70 mph). An engine lockup due to lack of lubricant is a very real concern due to the oil consumption rate. *tr”
Engine · filed Jun 18, 2012
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
1 manufacturer communication (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2008 Kawasaki KLR650.
Service Information about a shipping bracket attaching the motorcycle to the crate can cause damage to the motorcycle fuel tank if removed.
MC24-01 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 25, 2024
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2008 Kawasaki KLR650 has 1 NHTSA recall campaign — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2008 Kawasaki KLR650?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 2,425 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.