what gear oil are you guys using?
I dont like the Kawi oil i just put in it, im having trouble down shifting when the bike is hot. come to a stop and i have to really play with the clutch and shifter to get to first. very chunky lately.

 

Maybe try a synthetic. I've been using Mobil 1 and I'm pretty happy with it.

 

I bought my bike used at dealer and he told me to only use Kawi oil. He told me thats all I should ever use and gave me some reasons why, something about other oils will cause problems due to additives but I don't recall exactly what he said. I just remember him saying its only ever had Kawi oil in it and it just was changed and to continue only using Kawi oil to avoid problems down the road. How true that is I don't know. I just got my bike recently.

Maybe you need to adjust the clutch?

 

don't think you need to waste your money on mobil 1 synthetic...after a lengthy talk with the master tech at dealer, he convinced me that klx250 does not need fancy oil...he could have sold me any oil he recommended...he pointed me to 10/40w regular yamalube he can give me cheap by the gallon..i just decide spend couple extra dollars on the semi-syn since it was so cheap..14,000+ miles and my bike is starting and running smooth...decided to try out the rotella t6 full syn oil 5/40w next...jaso-ma rating for motorcycle...

 

How long since the last oil change? Clutch freeplay correct?

My '09 gets Castrol 10-40 motorcycle oil.

 

I agree, these aren't high performance engines by any means. But I like that synthetics take longer to breakdown than petroleum oils. For someone who changes his oil once a year it's worth the extra expense.

 

It's honestly a myth and just a Kawi sales guy selling Kawi products. I've been riding for nearly 10 years, everything from Sport, super sport, DS, and cruisers. I've never bought the "pure motorcycle" oil. Though I do use the full synthetic oils.

I've been using Castrol full syth 10w/40 for the last two years across 4 bikes I own and I enjoy the lifespan of the oil.

 

Have you checked/changed your shift star? My 09 shifts ALOT better, especially around 1st and 2nd gear since I replaced mine with the old style.

 

Ok on the shifting, if you come to a stop in 2nd or 3rd, then yes it will be hard to get it into 1st gear. You have to graduate the shifting down as you come to a stop. However if you find yourself having stopped in any gear, even 6th gear, all you have to do is hold your foot on the shifter with some... not a lot of pressure and feather the clutch in and out and you will cycle through the gears real quick. This will become second nature. Its just how it is, and its the same on my wife's Yamaha XT 225.

 

Oil, if you change on a timely manner, like once every 2 months or every 2k miles, then it really doesn't matter, go buy the cheap stuff. But as Brien said, if you store it or change it once a year. Go synthetic.