What breaks most · 2008 to 2021 model years
Kawasaki Concours 14 problems by year
Owners have filed 52 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Kawasaki Concours 14 across model years 2008 to 2021. Three years stand out: 2008 for brakes (hydraulic) complaints, 2009 for brakes complaints and 2012 for brakes complaints. The quietest years are 2014, 2011 and 2013.
- Years to check closely: 2008, 2009, 2012
- Fewest complaints: 2014, 2011, 2013
- Complaints on file
- 522008 to 2021, all trims
- Worst year
- 200827 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 01 fires · 2 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 12kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 17Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | 0 | 1 | Brakes (hydraulic) (6) | |
| 7 | 0 | 4 | Brakes (6) | |
| 3 | 0 | 4 | Unknown or other (1) | |
| 4 | 0 | 5 | Brakes (2) | |
| 3 | 0 | 3 | Electrical system (2) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Brakes (1) | |
| 4 | 0 | 0 | Seats (3) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Seats (1) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Electrical system (1) |
What fails on the 2008 Kawasaki Concours 14
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 22% |
6 | 0 | Shop all brakes (hydraulic) parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Latches and locksDoor latches and actuators | 19% |
5 | 0 | Shop all latches and locks parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 19% |
5 | 0 | Shop all brakes parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 15% |
4 | 0 | Shop all body and structure parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Equipment and infotainment | 11% |
3 | 0 | — |
| Equipment Adaptive/Mobility | 7% |
2 | 0 | — |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 7% |
2 | 0 | Shop all suspension parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Tires | 4% |
1 | 0 | — |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Left saddle bag fell off motorcycle and was hit by following vehicles. Thankfully no one was injured but the bag was destroyed. Kawasaki refused to accept responsibility even though the bag had last been attached by a trained service tech.
-
During a stop if the rear brake ABS is activated because of loss of traction, the rear brake pedal will become frozen and no rear brake will be available. Additionally no ABS warning light illuminates. System has been checked by qualified technician, states all systems are good and the ABS motor is defective.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Kawasaki Concours 14 years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2008, 2009, 2012 carry the most filings on the Kawasaki Concours 14. The 2008 alone has 27 complaints, led by brakes (hydraulic).
What is the most common Kawasaki Concours 14 problem?
On the 2008 model year, the most-reported component is brakes (hydraulic) with 6 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Kawasaki Concours 14 problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Kawasaki Concours 14 complaints that include mileage is about 12,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.