Turning 100

Sat Oct 7 09:01:10 PDT 2017

Ped,

Your original fan could be warped, I put one of these on mine and never had
any issues.

http://www.oemcycle.com/Item/product/900019467

On Sat, Oct 7, 2017 at 10:08 AM, Ped <gpz1100abs at gmail.com> wrote:

> I totally agree, Bill. What a bike. I've owned mine for 20 years now, and
> next year I'll have to add the digit '2' in front of the others
> (kilometres, of course). Just 4 days ago I returned home from this year's
> longest trip - 2900 kilometres (1800 miles) in 5 countries over 10 days,
> and not one single kilometre on motorways!
>
> http://www.pedmail.dk/efteraarstur.jpg
>
> I had a meeting in Belgium on Tuesday and Wednesday last week and a
> motorcycle event in Austria Friday to Monday, and since I had the time to
> do it, I decided to go the whole way without riding the 'Autobahn'. All of
> the countries are very nice outside of the motorways, but especially the
> trip from Leuven (Belgium) across the northern part of the Ardennes, across
> the northern part of Luxembourg, across the Eifel area, over the Mosel and
> the Rhein was a wonderful ride. Not to mention the Austrian Alps, of
> course. Now it doesn't matter so much any more that winter is approaching,
> and the GPZ will spend some months in the garage.
>
> There is a segment missing on the map - the segment from Vienna to
> Hamburg. I cheated and took the Autozug (Auto train) instead. A good
> choice, because the day the home trip started was the day that Autumn came
> to Europe. Generous amounts of rain and storm on the way to Vienna, and the
> same from Hamburg and the rest of the way the day after. Other than that I
> had dry and warm late summer weather throughout the trip.
>
> I did notice on this trip though, that it tended to run a little bit
> warmer than usual. Every time the traffic slowed down the temperature meter
> would go up, and the fan would kick in and run for much longer than usual.
> This is normal during summertime, but it doesn't normally do that in autumn
> temperatures. It also smelled hot a little bit. At normal speed there were
> no problems, and the temperature meter stayed where it's supposed to. I
> checked the coolant level, which is okay. The radiator doesn't seem to be
> clogged either. This weekend I will inspect the thermostat and hope to find
> that that's the culprit. If it turns out to open normally at the right
> temperature, any ideas as to where I should look next?
>
>
> Ped
> '96 "Black Stealth" GPZ
> Denmark
>
>
>
>
> Den 07-10-2017 kl. 16:07 skrev William P. Zeller:
>
>> A week or so ago, my ZX <https://www.facebook.com/phot
>> o.php?fbid=912181732177275&set=a.181762335219222.46473.10
>> 0001563719117&type=3>clock <https://www.facebook.com/phot
>> o.php?fbid=1540136146048494&set=a.181762335219222.46473.10
>> 0001563719117&type=3>turned past 100K miles (160K km). (photo <
>> https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=912181732177275&
>> set=a.181762335219222.46473.100001563719117&type=3> from '15)
>>
>> One of the disappointing things (!) is that Kawasaki neglected to include
>> the sixth digit so now my bike appears to be nearly new, with only 430
>> miles (692km) on it.  I suppose at some point I'll be compelled to open up
>> the speedo case and paint a numeral "1" on the face.
>>
>> It so happened I was able to visit MCC Motorcycle Center in Villa Park,
>> IL yesterday on my errands.  It's a very large Ducati-Triumph dealership
>> that's been around forever but just built up this new location.  There were
>> so many Bonnevilles on the floor I could hardly count them all, and the
>> rows of Ducatis were downright intimidating.
>>
>> In conversation with the salesman, I had the opportunity to recall my
>> ZX's service history over the sixteen years I've owned it. (For reference,
>> it was a "crate bike" sold new in March, 2000 to a guy in Downers Grove,
>> IL, from whom I bought it in August, 2001 with 2230 miles (3600km) on it-
>> he couldn't stand the ergonomics, specifically the ridiculous handlebars.
>> The price was $4400).
>>
>> Basically, I've changed the battery twice, the OEM having gone some nine
>> years at least, and the chain once, at 48,000 miles (77,250km).  It's
>> still, heaven help me, on the second chain.
>>
>> I replaced the okay-condition rear shock with one off a crash bike
>> obtained from a lister here in order to get a shock with 20,000 fewer
>> miles.  I am on the third headlight bulb and replaced on taillight bulb,
>> although all have been since replaced with LED types.
>>
>> The steering head bearings have been replaced twice, most recently about
>> two years ago when the bike was rescued from a post-divorce storage
>> situation that was none too favorable.
>>
>> That's it for service.  I know I've never owned another bike so reliable
>> and trouble-free.  Even my GL1800, which has a few more thousand miles on
>> the clock owing to its considerable service in two-up travels, has been a
>> little more demanding.
>>
>> Back in August '00, I was thinking the ZX was a holding bike til I got
>> replacement for my traded-off Concours, but such turned out not to be the
>> case.
>>
>> Nowadays I have to confess to thinking about getting another bike for the
>> ZX's uses, because, after all, it can't last forever, and besides, there
>> have been one or two technological advances in the last 21 years (modern
>> suspension, anyone?) and I have to confess to giving thought to the Honda
>> DCT automatic transmission as the arthritis of my many years of being a
>> carpenter makes clutching sometimes unpleasant.
>>
>> But still... nothing seems as comfortable or as suited to as many
>> purposes as this thing and it still goes along pretty well.  Given the mods
>> making it more to my liking, full Givis, Heli handlebars, and dozens of
>> little touches, how could a new bike really replace it?
>>
>> And, cost so little over time?
>>
>> What a bike.
>>
>> Bill Zeller
>> Lemont, IL
>>
>> P.S.- I still have the valve shim kit here, although Art Johnson
>> requested a half-dozen.  The kit is low on 2.30 and 2.40 but otherwise
>> intact.
>>
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