First ride: 2010 Kawasaki Versys

The Kawasaki Versys all-rounder has had a makeover for 2010 and MCN Senior Road Tester, Adam Child, is currently out in Sardinia putting it through its paces.

At a glance, the 650cc parallel twin appears little changed. But on top of a host of subtle cosmetic changes including redesigned head and tail light, plus new engine cases and muffler, Kawasaki has also addressed the one previous main criticism of the old bike – vibration.

New engine rubber mounts plus redesigned foot pegs have made a big difference. The vibration is a lot less than the old model and at cruising speeds of 85mph the bike is now a dream, where at this speed the previous model was bordering on painful.

Nor has the Versys lost any of its character, with the torquey parallel twin making the mountain roads fun and enjoyable. For our full test see next week’s MCN.