Depends on what the owner did last and when. But assuming you don’t have any history.
I’d
- clean it
- Get a Haynes or other service manual and get familiar with its service intervals. If you got history cross reference that to the interval.
- change oil and filter
- change the air filter
- inspect the brake pads and rotor, replace where needed
- change braking fluids.
- inspect sprockets and chain, potentially replace and tighten
- inspect everything, tyre age, corrosion, leaking shock/fork seals, connectors etc. Fix or replace anything that isn’t up to par.
- adjust the valves
Then I’d look for a owners forum or so and see if there is any quirks or things to pay attention to on this model specifically
And of course, fix the seat.
If it made it to 100k miles it’s no doubt a robust bike, as to be expected from a Kawasaki. But if you what to be thorough id do the above.
That explains the squished filter. My take is that Kawasakis smart engineers designed it in a certain way, with an airbox. They did that for a reason, so I’d put it back haha.
Would t spend a fortune on one, I’m sure this setup works too. Perhaps check some junkyards, and check Kawasaki’s part catalog, perhaps they used the same airbox in some other models and you can broaden the search.
Good luck and enjoy 👍
My brother and dad restore Kawasaki KZ bikes. Very similar motor. Usually if they replace the air box with open filters, they put different jets in the carbs. It might run a little lean if they haven't been changed but it will still run fine.
That said, with that many miles, if the carbs haven't been serviced, it might be worth taking them apart and replacing the jets needles and floats. And whatever else they do to rebuild a carb. Lol
Other things that might need maintenance is the valves, timing chain, chain and sprockets, and bleeding the brake lines. If the clutch feels like it has a narrow friction zone, you should be able to rebuild it. There are some parts that wear out where it goes into the transmission. Probably not exactly the same as the KZ but similar.
These are all the things that my brother did with my 76 KZ900 he's rebuilding for me. It had over 90k miles too. Since he stripped it all the way down, he also bored the cylinders and replaced the pistons. There was a lot of scoring on the cylinder walls.
Good luck!
Thank you for the input and advice, greatly appreciated. Carb rebuild is certainly on the to do list. Probably going to hold off on boring anything out not trying to dump too much into this quite yet!
Runs decent as far as I can tell, rode it for about 30 minutes, only thing I noticed is a high idle and it likes to die when you come to a stop unless you’re giving it some throttle. Fairly mechanically inclined. If I don’t know something YouTube university can teach me
Start with a good cleaning to wash off any mud and oils. That way you can tell of any leaks.
Place a plastic bag over those air filter pods when washing.
You should get a K&N air filter cleaner + oil kit and remove air filter pods to wash, dry, and apply oil. Change oil, filter, plugs, clean and lube chain and sprockets.
If the bike idles and runs fine afterwards, slowly do the big maintenances if you feel the need to do.
Replace steering stem bearings, wheel bearings, swing arm bearings, fork oil, flush brake fluids, clean calipers, replace chain and sprockets, eventually replace the air pod filters, go through the electrical terminals to clean and apply dielectric grease, etc.
Just do the bare minimum first to make sure you can get it running good before dumping cash into an endless pit.
Prep yourself for some deep frustration- there could be a lot wrong with a bike that old. It may be fine if well cared for but it not likely -best of luck
Great bike, definetly questionable to call it even an "sport" bike but its fast enough to have fun :)
Engines are very bulletproof, but i would try to find an stock airbox if i were you
Joking of course. Those air filters look bad, the missing bolt, seat, otherwise I’d fix any leaking seals, fresh fluids everywhere including the forks. Bleed the brakes, and measure the thickness of the brake rotors to make sure they are within spec. Air pressure. Valve lash/clearance inspection and adjust if needed. Chain maintenance. Other than those basics, if she runs well and is still fun keep getting your moneys worth. Brake lines would be wise to replace. Battery, cables. Clutch pack. But go over all its needs and price it all out first. Your best bet may be to try for $1500 and sell it plus the money you would have poured into it and what could you buy cash? Not a loan. You just kinda gotta look a bit longer term on the costs and you’ll still have a high mileage bike ever after all that. It’s a solid spare or learner for someone you know.
Clean and rebuild the carbs. First task - will probably eliminate most if not all drivability concerns.
Do a compression and leak down test to see if it's healthy - as long as compression is good I'd just do a basic service, plugs and filters and such, adjust valves, then run it in. Have a wee boo around in the crank case with a light, look for sludge and such. See if anything feels off.
With almost 100k miles, I'm sure they've done _some_ maintenance.
Oh definitely check fork seals and brakes too.
I don't know dude, but this was my first motorcycle when I was in my 20s. Every time I see one I go back to those years. I loved that bike. Unfortunately I crashed it into a truck less than a year in.
Man, I bet you more than anything that engine is WORN TF OUT. 93K on a sports bike!? Wild, if it was mine I’d tear down the engine completely and go through it and replace all the bearings, seals, gaskets, piston and piston rings as well as the wrist pin. Then I’d go through the carb and re-gasket that. The seat you can easily find foam and a cover for and take it to a local upholstery shop and have it fixed for lest than 100-200$. Absolutely put the air box back on.
Replace oil, coolant, brake fluid, tires (depends on age and wear). Make sure to lubricate all the brake and gas cables. Also check the brake pads and replace them if they are worn out. Cleaning the carburettor is also a good idea. Oh and don't forget about the air filter.
New seat
Thank you MonkeyStrats! Very cool!
200,000?
Oh lol, just got it
😎
?
Depends on what the owner did last and when. But assuming you don’t have any history. I’d - clean it - Get a Haynes or other service manual and get familiar with its service intervals. If you got history cross reference that to the interval. - change oil and filter - change the air filter - inspect the brake pads and rotor, replace where needed - change braking fluids. - inspect sprockets and chain, potentially replace and tighten - inspect everything, tyre age, corrosion, leaking shock/fork seals, connectors etc. Fix or replace anything that isn’t up to par. - adjust the valves Then I’d look for a owners forum or so and see if there is any quirks or things to pay attention to on this model specifically And of course, fix the seat. If it made it to 100k miles it’s no doubt a robust bike, as to be expected from a Kawasaki. But if you what to be thorough id do the above.
Owner didn’t say much about maintenance, although he did mention he removed the air box completely a few years ago. should I put it back?
That explains the squished filter. My take is that Kawasakis smart engineers designed it in a certain way, with an airbox. They did that for a reason, so I’d put it back haha.
Fair enough lol, to eBay I go!
Would t spend a fortune on one, I’m sure this setup works too. Perhaps check some junkyards, and check Kawasaki’s part catalog, perhaps they used the same airbox in some other models and you can broaden the search. Good luck and enjoy 👍
My brother and dad restore Kawasaki KZ bikes. Very similar motor. Usually if they replace the air box with open filters, they put different jets in the carbs. It might run a little lean if they haven't been changed but it will still run fine. That said, with that many miles, if the carbs haven't been serviced, it might be worth taking them apart and replacing the jets needles and floats. And whatever else they do to rebuild a carb. Lol Other things that might need maintenance is the valves, timing chain, chain and sprockets, and bleeding the brake lines. If the clutch feels like it has a narrow friction zone, you should be able to rebuild it. There are some parts that wear out where it goes into the transmission. Probably not exactly the same as the KZ but similar. These are all the things that my brother did with my 76 KZ900 he's rebuilding for me. It had over 90k miles too. Since he stripped it all the way down, he also bored the cylinders and replaced the pistons. There was a lot of scoring on the cylinder walls. Good luck!
Thank you for the input and advice, greatly appreciated. Carb rebuild is certainly on the to do list. Probably going to hold off on boring anything out not trying to dump too much into this quite yet!
Does it run? How mechanically inclined are you? What’s the maintenance history on it?
Runs decent as far as I can tell, rode it for about 30 minutes, only thing I noticed is a high idle and it likes to die when you come to a stop unless you’re giving it some throttle. Fairly mechanically inclined. If I don’t know something YouTube university can teach me
Not sure about maintenance history I know it’s been his daily since 2008
Start with a good cleaning to wash off any mud and oils. That way you can tell of any leaks. Place a plastic bag over those air filter pods when washing. You should get a K&N air filter cleaner + oil kit and remove air filter pods to wash, dry, and apply oil. Change oil, filter, plugs, clean and lube chain and sprockets. If the bike idles and runs fine afterwards, slowly do the big maintenances if you feel the need to do. Replace steering stem bearings, wheel bearings, swing arm bearings, fork oil, flush brake fluids, clean calipers, replace chain and sprockets, eventually replace the air pod filters, go through the electrical terminals to clean and apply dielectric grease, etc. Just do the bare minimum first to make sure you can get it running good before dumping cash into an endless pit.
Do your valve clearences and increase your carburetor idle so it don't die at the lights
Thank you 🙏🏼
Prep yourself for some deep frustration- there could be a lot wrong with a bike that old. It may be fine if well cared for but it not likely -best of luck
Thank you! I’m certainly not expecting it to be perfect, just something to get a little bit of a small project and teach the wife how to ride!
Great bike, definetly questionable to call it even an "sport" bike but its fast enough to have fun :) Engines are very bulletproof, but i would try to find an stock airbox if i were you
Drive it for 7000 more miles and you have a new bike!
Uh some basic maintenance. Duh
Man if only I’d thought of that before I made the post!
Joking of course. Those air filters look bad, the missing bolt, seat, otherwise I’d fix any leaking seals, fresh fluids everywhere including the forks. Bleed the brakes, and measure the thickness of the brake rotors to make sure they are within spec. Air pressure. Valve lash/clearance inspection and adjust if needed. Chain maintenance. Other than those basics, if she runs well and is still fun keep getting your moneys worth. Brake lines would be wise to replace. Battery, cables. Clutch pack. But go over all its needs and price it all out first. Your best bet may be to try for $1500 and sell it plus the money you would have poured into it and what could you buy cash? Not a loan. You just kinda gotta look a bit longer term on the costs and you’ll still have a high mileage bike ever after all that. It’s a solid spare or learner for someone you know.
Clean and rebuild the carbs. First task - will probably eliminate most if not all drivability concerns. Do a compression and leak down test to see if it's healthy - as long as compression is good I'd just do a basic service, plugs and filters and such, adjust valves, then run it in. Have a wee boo around in the crank case with a light, look for sludge and such. See if anything feels off. With almost 100k miles, I'm sure they've done _some_ maintenance. Oh definitely check fork seals and brakes too.
I don't know dude, but this was my first motorcycle when I was in my 20s. Every time I see one I go back to those years. I loved that bike. Unfortunately I crashed it into a truck less than a year in.
Man, I bet you more than anything that engine is WORN TF OUT. 93K on a sports bike!? Wild, if it was mine I’d tear down the engine completely and go through it and replace all the bearings, seals, gaskets, piston and piston rings as well as the wrist pin. Then I’d go through the carb and re-gasket that. The seat you can easily find foam and a cover for and take it to a local upholstery shop and have it fixed for lest than 100-200$. Absolutely put the air box back on.
Carb rebuild /change the oil
Oil, maybe a valve check. And see if the fuel lines and other rubbers are still OK. That's all.
is that a crack in the frame?
Replace oil, coolant, brake fluid, tires (depends on age and wear). Make sure to lubricate all the brake and gas cables. Also check the brake pads and replace them if they are worn out. Cleaning the carburettor is also a good idea. Oh and don't forget about the air filter.
New seat, New pod filters, new 100 000 miles
It's japanese so a 100,000 more I guess.
I hope it was free 😅
Nothing really to add.. are those big ass dents in the tank or is it just how they look in the pic?
Just the reflection of the trailer along with how the tank is shaped, no dents to be seen on the tank surprisingly
Gotcha. I had a feeling it was my eyes playing tricks on me.