First pre-owned Kawasaki J300 SE?

[gromet]

Ha Ha yeah, the dealer that sold me my Downtown tried to tell me it was ABS until I pointed out it was the speedo ring....lol. Real nice guy and gave me a good deal, but he did not know squat about the Downtown....

[michaelphillips]

Ha Ha yeah, the dealer that sold me my Downtown tried to tell me it was ABS until I pointed out it was the speedo ring....lol. Real nice guy and gave me a good deal, but he did not know squat about the Downtown....

one way to tell on the j300 is... kawasaki only put the petal rear rotor on the abs models in the UK.. straight from the horses mouth this one.. as i emailed them, so all the blurb spec on there .co.uk webite was wrong and still is solid rear rotor on non abs models

[Fizzy Rascal]

Michael,

I know you have a new J300 . . . how are you finding it?

What other maxis have you had that you could compare it to?

Thanks in advance.

Brian

[StephenC]

There's a cheaper one with much fewer miles here...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/ ... ?logcode=p" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No ABS, though they claim it has.

No sign of the ABS warning light on the picture of the instruments.

[bornagainbiker]

There's a cheaper one with much fewer miles here...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/ ... ?logcode=p" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No ABS, though they claim it has.

Just spoke to them and they confirmed to me twice that it definitley is the ABS model, has a rear abs ring, even though there is no logo on the front fender? New at 4449 plus the top box and screen, this is a good heafty saving, however a deposit has already been taken.

Sent from my LG Google Nexus 4

[StephenC]

Snap it up then. There's no sign of any ABS models coming in for ages.

Bargain price too.

[michaelphillips]

Michael,

I know you have a new J300 . . . how are you finding it?

What other maxis have you had that you could compare it to?

Thanks in advance.

Brian

Hi brian, had the nexus 500 for three years previous to the j300, i only do about 3000 miles per year so i have only put 114 miles on the j300 so far, i am retired so dont commute.. if you were doing mega miles per year like Gn2 then the forza would be a better option of ownership. Yet as i dont then the costs of service ownership is identical to me owning a forza, yet i wanted to have a scoot that was not as bland in its looks. The scoot handles very well cant wait till i can use all the engine power, two up with shopping etc weight wise handled with no issues, the tyres are excellent in the dry and warm up very quickly, so should be the same in the wet, the brakes are just bedding in and have lots of feel, even two up i did not have an issue. i had a 125 for two years before the nexus and that was not really good enough for two up, so all things considered the 300cc class of scoot is more than capable of fulfilling general needs, the revy (up to 8000rpm) engine, cheaper to insure and fuel/tax costs makes sense if you are not planning mega yearly miles, having just as much fun if not more than the larger scoot

[bornagainbiker]

Snap it up then. There's no sign of any ABS models coming in for ages.

Bargain price too.

As I said, a deposit had already been taken on it.

Sent from my LG Google Nexus 4

[Fizzy Rascal]

Michael,

I know you have a new J300 . . . how are you finding it?

What other maxis have you had that you could compare it to?

Thanks in advance.

Brian

Hi brian, had the nexus 500 for three years previous to the j300, i only do about 3000 miles per year so i have only put 114 miles on the j300 so far, i am retired so dont commute.. if you were doing mega miles per year like Gn2 then the forza would be a better option of ownership. Yet as i dont then the costs of service ownership is identical to me owning a forza, yet i wanted to have a scoot that was not as bland in its looks. The scoot handles very well cant wait till i can use all the engine power, two up with shopping etc weight wise handled with no issues, the tyres are excellent in the dry and warm up very quickly, so should be the same in the wet, the brakes are just bedding in and have lots of feel, even two up i did not have an issue. i had a 125 for two years before the nexus and that was not really good enough for two up, so all things considered the 300cc class of scoot is more than capable of fulfilling general needs, the revy (up to 8000rpm) engine, cheaper to insure and fuel/tax costs makes sense if you are not planning mega yearly miles, having just as much fun if not more than the larger scoot

Thanks Michael.

I do like the look of the J300.

Health to enjoy!

Brian

[StephenC]

Deposit - sorry, missed that.

I have come to the J300 from several Satelis 250s.

Pluses compared to the Sat 250:
- faster
- handles better
- very smart styling
- ABS on both front and rear (Satelis mk1 is just on the front)
- did I mention faster?

Downsides? Once the running in is done I expect the J300 will prove inferior to the Satelis in these ways -
- foot position, as mentioned above.
- brakes need both levers to operate, not just one
- glovebox not lockable and no handlebar storage
- no integrated ABUS chain system
- no remote control to open and lift the boot
- instruments boring in comparison to the Satelis
- no pull-out seat cover (for wet weather or long term parking)
- screen is lower so I get wind in the chest. But we'll see if that means less buffeting and helmet noise when I can hit the M11
- the Satelis had optional wind deflectors for the legs and so I am getting a draught up the legs. May get full length boots instead of the paddock-style I currently have, next time.

The J300 handles much more confidently but is also much firmer on the suspension. Luckily the seat is comfortable and mitigates quite a bit of the bumpy Essex back roads that I often use. The foot position is more limiting but still comfortable. Storage is pretty good really and I have a top box ready for when I do the short foreign trips that I often have to suffer and need to carry more (I usually park the scoot at the airport or Eurostar terminal for free - saves a fortune!). The engine already shows signs of being much more punchy but the 5k limit on running in is VERY frustrating. Oh well, with my mileage (60 a day) it won't take long to pass. I know about the service intervals and would prefer longer (obviously...) but the other scooters in contention were less attractive to me for a number of reasons.

To be honest, if the Satelis 400 mk2 was on sale here I would have preferred that. but it isn't, so I bought the next best available.