Kawasaki J300 fails to ignite neighbour's hedge
'Lens effect' warning on tall screen proves alarmist - long-term review part five
I'VE said in previous reports that the Kawasaki J300 does nearly everything a maxi-scooter will for half the price. It's not exactly true anymore.
Visordown's J300 long-termer now beats most maxi scooters, at least for weather protection. I've swapped the standard screen for the optional tall one, and it’s colossal.
It makes the J300 look like a triceratops, with its huge neck frill.
My picture shows roughly this 5'9" rider's view of the road through it.
It’s an official Kawasaki accessory but actually made by Givi. Fitting it was a bit more complicated than I’d anticipated.
It’s doesn’t just bolt on where the old one came off. You have to remove a panel above the J300’s headlights and fit a new bracket.
The instructions consist of sentences like ‘Position the front carter with the hole over bracket no.1 and slide and click into position.’ Which is great if you know what a front carter is.
A sticker on the screen warns that sunlight on the inner curve can create a ‘lens effect’ and denies any responsibility for damage caused by not covering bits up. Handy. On a sunny day, I parked so as to set fire to my neighbour’s overgrown hedge but it didn’t so much as singe a leaf.
The screen’s about as high as a Suzuki Burgman 650’s when the latter is at its highest setting. The difference is the Burgman’s won’t cover your hands and face at the same time because it narrows at the bottom. The J300’s will, thanks to ear-like sticky-out bits in front of your hands.
The Burgman's will lower at the press of a button though, while the J300's won't. In town it feels a bit unnecessarily high, especially in August.
It makes more sense on the motorway, where it quietens the wind. I'm sure I'll appreciate it more as the weather starts to get colder too.
Arguably, it looks ridiculous. A friend who’s into classic scooters told me it was for people who’d ‘given up on style. I'd like to see him commute all winter an ancient Lambretta though. He'll have settle for being stylish on the bus.
A commute through winter is the thing a maxi scooter does better than anything else, and the J300 is now as ready for it as any. Easily capable of decent motorway cruising speeds, there's no reason it wouldn't make a long distance winter commuter, with the possible addition of heated grips.
The screen costs £116. Spend another £195 on the 47-litre top box and carrier bracket and there's no reason the J300 wouldn't make a decent tourer, - and you'd still have spent about four grand less than you would on a maxi scooter.
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I'VE said before that the Kawasaki J300 does nearly everything a full-size maxi-scooter will for half the price. It's not exactly true anymore.
Visordown's J300 long-termer now beats most maxi-scooters, at least for weather protection. That's because I've swapped the standard screen for the optional tall one, and it’s colossal.
It makes the J300 look like a triceratops, with a huge neck frill.
My picture shows roughly this 5'9" rider's view of the road through it.
It’s an official Kawasaki accessory but actually made by Givi. Fitting it was a bit more complicated than I’d anticipated.
It doesn’t just bolt on where the old one came off. You have to remove a panel above the J300’s headlights and fit a new bracket.
The instructions consist of sentences like ‘Position the front carter with the hole over bracket no.1 and slide and click into position.’ Which is great if you know what a front carter is.
A sticker on the screen warns that sunlight on the inner curve can create a ‘lens effect’ and denies any responsibility for damage caused by not covering bits up. Handy. On a sunny day, I parked so as to set fire to my neighbour’s overgrown hedge but it didn’t so much as singe a leaf.
The screen’s about as high as a Suzuki Burgman 650’s when the latter is at its highest setting. The difference is the Burgman’s won’t protect your hands and face at the same time because it narrows at the bottom. The J300’s will, thanks to ear-like sticky-out bits in front of your hands.
The Burgman's will lower at the press of a button though, while the J300's won't. In town it feels a bit unnecessarily high, especially in August.
It makes more sense on the motorway, where it quietens the wind. I'm sure I'll appreciate it more as the weather starts to get colder too.
Arguably, it looks ridiculous. A friend who’s into classic scooters told me it was for people who’d ‘given up on style'. I'd like to see him commute all winter on an ancient Lambretta though. He'll have to be stylish on the bus.
A commute through winter is what a maxi-scooter does better than anything else, and the J300 is now as ready for it as any. Easily capable of decent motorway cruising speeds, there's no reason it wouldn't make a long-distance winter commuter, with the possible addition of heated grips.
The screen costs £116. Spend another £195 on the 47-litre top box and carrier bracket and the J300 could also make a decent tourer - and you'd still have spent about four grand less than the price of a big-capacity maxi-scooter.
Model tested: Kawasaki J300
Price: £4,049
Power: 28hp
Fuel economy (tested): 76.5mpg
Kerb weight: 191kg
Seat height: 775mm
Availability: Now
Colours: black, silver, black/green
Read part six of our Kawasaki J300 long-term review
Read Visordown's first-ride review of the Kawasaki J300
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