A little background first. When I got Vrooomm, the previous owner (PO) had named her Corky after a slow but lovable character on a TV sitcom I never watched. He'd had many nagging problems he had with her, that the local dealers couldn't fix. The COG mail list was really helpful, but he wasn't interested in the main suggestion. “Wrench on it yourself. The dealers just don't sell that many, or work on them enough to know it very well.” He just wanted to ride it without messing with it. That's not to say the Concours is a bad or unreliable bike, but it surely needs more setup attention than it seems to get during the “dealer prep” or predelivery inspection. Since Kaw wasn't forthcoming with a listing of things that were supposed to be performed, nor was my local dealer, here's MY non-exhaustive list of things you should check upon getting a Concours, new or used.

Clip battery vent tube: Mine was still sealed. The battery not being able to vent is quite bad. Not only can it build up explosive gases right under your “bum”, but it won't charge properly either.

Adjust steering head bearing preload: Too tight, and the bike's front end can't react properly to rain groves, wind, or other disturbances to the bike. Too loose and it feels imprecise, clunks around during acceleration and braking, and can transmit MORE vibration to the bars. Getting it right takes a couple times, at least for me.

Shim and torque engine mounts to specifications: One of the dealer's response to the PO's report of a “loose” feeling, was to over tighten everything on the bike. The engine mounts were torqued so tight, one of them pulled the threads out of the nut, and another was damaged. There is often a shim required to close a gap at the front/upper left engine mount point. If there is more than 1mm space when the mount is loosened, it needs a shim. This is particularly important since the engine is “hard mounted” to the frame and is a “stressed member”. Not only can this excess spacing harm handling, but it can put excessive side loads on the bolt, breaking it. Also seems to affect felt vibration by making it worse when not properly shimmed.

Adjust swing arm bearing preload: In the ever continuing quest to break as many things as possible through over tightening, the swing arm bearings were way too tight. Loosened them up helped the action of the rear suspension greatly. I think they may be notched, so checking them is on the list when the rear tire is changed.

Replace coolant overflow tank: Cracked. Full of muck. Exchanged under warranty by me. I also changed the coolant at this time just in case some of that junk got in. Didn't look like it, but I feel better about it.

Replace #4 spark plug cap: It's supposed to “zip” onto the stud on top of the spark plug, but it wasn't happening. Checked the inside and it was missing the “zippy” part. Exchanged under warranty.

Adjust idle mixture screws: They were all significantly different. The service manual calls for about 1 ¾ to 2 turns out from lightly seated. They ranged from ¾ to 2 turns. UPDATE: I also tried shimming the needles 0.5 mm (0.020”), but all I noticed was worse fuel economy. I've removed them. I'm also convinced unless the idle screws are grossly wrong the probably are ~ok as from the factory, as least until things wear in a bit. Setting them properly requires an EGA (Exhaust Gas Analyzer) or Colortune plug unless you're a pretty good wrench.

Clean carbs: The bowl level in #2 wasn't right, so I disassembled and cleaned them out. If you do it, don't forget the enrichers. Didn't find much in the bowls, but I did find carbon buildup in #4. Maybe related to the spark plug cap or idle mixture screws hosed?

Adjust counter balancer shaft: Should be something done at the first valve adjustment by the dealer, especially if vibration was complained about, but it hadn't moved from it's specified position for assembly.

Reroute vacuum lines: The line going to the bottom of the return pump wasn't routed according to the manual, and kinked at the bottom of the pump. Rerouting it properly and cutting off the now permanently kinked portion seems to have fixed it. I haven't had any fuel starvation problems since. <touch wood> I've seen this on several other Connies with CA emissions, so it might be worth checking yours.

Reroute battery hot lead: The cable to the starter relay was routed funny, so it was applying a “loosing” torque to the battery terminal. It was also contorted strangely. I routed it in more of a straight line and looks like it'll be ok now.

Remove Grease from Vent Fitting of Vapor Canister: While troubleshooting the carbs, aka The Fountains of Gas, I found that the fitting that goes to the carb’s fuel bowl vents was plugged, apparently on purpose, with grease. Since the bowls have to be open to fill properly, I’m surprised it ran as well as it did.