Kawasaki Concours

I'll go ahead and put my foot in my mouth now; after taking all this apart...I can't see why everyone says a valve adjustment is so hard...other than All the parts that had to come off, lol.
Granted, I havn't taken the valve cover off, but I know what's in there, and have done several pain in the azz valve adjustments before.
This one however looks easy, lol, seriously, because now there is room above the head, and no frame rails on either side to block cam access.
I guess I'm about to find out.
15k miles is the first valve check, and I'm around 14,300...so will do it while I've got it this far down.
There's usually always one that wants to be out of spec too, so we'll see.
I'm also going to connect and route some hoses on the throttle bodies so I can sync them once I get it running again.
This weekend is looking good to make some progress.
 
sixpack577 said:
And, things are slow here...so even Kawasaki mods and pics are getting views.
Lmao!
Click to expand...
You are inspiring me because my Connie needs a valve adjustment too.

On a much smaller task my right front blinker bulb burned out and I can't access it. One of the fairing bolt / fasteners won't unscrew. It turns but will not unscrew even when pulling on it with needle nose vice grips. I guess I will have to cut it off to remove the fairing to access the bulb. When you remove the top inner panel and look down inside the right side of the fairing you realize quickly... not only are you not going to see the bulb receptacle... you are not going to get your hand anywhere close to where you can access it.
 
Zerks said:
You are inspiring me because my Connie needs a valve adjustment too.

On a much smaller task my right front blinker bulb burned out and I can't access it. One of the fairing bolt / fasteners won't unscrew. It turns but will not unscrew even when pulling on it with needle nose vice grips. I guess I will have to cut it off to remove the fairing to access the bulb. When you remove the top inner panel and look down inside the right side of the fairing you realize quickly... not only are you not going to see the bulb receptacle... you are not going to get your hand anywhere close to where you can access it.
Click to expand...

I'll look at the fastener there later and see how it attaches.
Nothing about taking this apart has been difficult at all either, there's just a few more pieces, lol.
I just havn't had alot of time to work on it, and have been cleaning as I go.
From what I read and hear, the valves usually go out of spec by first inspection/15k.
This engine fires instantly, cold or hot, and runs extremely well, but, I'm right there anyway, I might as well do it.
The only hold up will be ordering shims.
If I order a shim kit, they only come with 3 of each size, so I will just order what I need.
 
Zerks said:
I went through all my exhaust nuts a while back after a pair came loose. It was a pain to do without clearing everything out of the way except the radiator. Removing the bottom bracket bolt made access possible without removing the radiator completely.
Click to expand...

All 8 exhaust bolts on mine were not very tight.
I started with a long handled 3/8 drive ratchet to break them loose, but used a quarter inch ratchet on them all.
I was suprised there was no sound of an exhaust leak.
I haven't looked at the torque spec yet either, or what's in Black Widow's instructions.
Aftermarket headers are usually torque to spec, and snug if they leak.
Oh well, at least it's all new parts going back anyway.
 
sixpack577 said:
All 8 exhaust bolts on mine were not very tight.
I started with a long handled 3/8 drive ratchet to break them loose, but used a quarter inch ratchet on them all.
I was suprised there was no sound of an exhaust leak.
I haven't looked at the torque spec yet either, or what's in Black Widow's instructions.
Aftermarket headers are usually torque to spec, and snug if they leak.
Oh well, at least it's all new parts going back anyway.
Click to expand...
I can almost assure you that at some point one or more would come loose. Thermal expansion and contraction coupled with energy pulses have been known to loosen fasteners. When possible I like to go back and snug stuff up that was recently installed. A few times when changing oil on a vehicle for the first time I have been aghast to find the drain plug with hardly any torque on it... like under 30 lbs. All I could think is I am glad I found out about this loose drain plug.
 
Bobby914 said:
looks great! was thinkin of this myself since I already own the zx14 also. Wanted the power of the big bikes but not a full on cruiser.
Click to expand...

Me too, I wanted a comfortable and powerful bike with adjustable suspension...and no cruisers! lol
The Concours engine is based on the 1352cc gen1 zx14 engine.
It has less compression, cast pistons, different cams, and smaller throttle bodies.
It is a strong engine in stock form, but dramatically better with the Shoodaben full exhaust Hammer tune flash.
The bike is noticeably quicker.
The adjustable suspension is really good to.
Steering is heavy sitting still, but immediately lightens up as soon as you start moving.
I've heard the argument that steering takes effort...boo, it doesn't.
It handles incredibly well...for what it is.
People will make the arguments that there are better sport touring bikes out there...of course there are, we're talking about a 15 year old design.
But, what you get for the money is an inexpensive, very good handling, extremely comfortable bike, that can rail corners and not leave you disapointed for power.
It's a big and heavy old school Kawasaki.
We know what those are like...and they're still pretty awesome.
It also has more parts to take off to work on it, but is also very easy to work on.
It is definately worth a test ride.
If you're ever in Virginia, your welcome to try it out.
 
When our local dealer was a multi dealership (Kawasaki, Suzuki, Honda, HD) they had a 2006 leftover 1000 Concours sitting there they couldn't sell as the gen 2s were out...

I could have got that for a song and dance and sometimes I regretted not getting it but at the time I had 6 bikes in the garage that were spending more time sitting than riding...

The Concours was a stellar concept that has it's roots in 1985...Kawasaki certainly had some foresight to decide to make that bike...
 
sixpack577 said:
Shout out to Steve at Shoodaben Engineering who did the Concours flash.
He's in Florida, does excellent work, from communication, details, return shipping, speed, and most of all...the flash is Great!
He is the type of person and business that you want to deal with!
Can't recommend him or his product enough!
If you have a Concours, he offers several different flashes, depending on riding style, stock, slip-on, full exhaust, remove engine braking, fans on sooner, and more.
Check him out.

www.steve@shoodabenengineering.com
Click to expand...
Glad to hear you had a great experience with Steve, just like I did. :thumbsup:
 
sixpack577 said:
I'll go ahead and put my foot in my mouth now; after taking all this apart...I can't see why everyone says a valve adjustment is so hard...other than All the parts that had to come off, lol.
Granted, I havn't taken the valve cover off, but I know what's in there, and have done several pain in the azz valve adjustments before.
This one however looks easy, lol, seriously, because now there is room above the head, and no frame rails on either side to block cam access.
I guess I'm about to find out.
15k miles is the first valve check, and I'm around 14,300...so will do it while I've got it this far down.
There's usually always one that wants to be out of spec too, so we'll see.
I'm also going to connect and route some hoses on the throttle bodies so I can sync them once I get it running again.
This weekend is looking good to make some progress.
Click to expand...
This is great! Once you can finish yours, you can take a ride to Florida to test your work and do the valves on mine. :hide: :poke: :rofl: ! I’m at 13,500 miles and dreading the dayI have to do that job just because of all the people I’ve heard complain about it.
 
mabupa said:
This is great! Once you can finish yours, you can take a ride to Florida to test your work and do the valves on mine. :hide: :poke: :rofl: ! I’m at 13,500 miles and dreading the dayI have to do that job just because of all the people I’ve heard complain about it.
Click to expand...

Yeah man...I'll stop by after work, 30 minute job, lmao!

I plan to pull the valve cover and check the valves over the weekend...I'll let you know how things go.
 
sixpack577 said:
It would be Great not to!
Otherwise, I'll have to order the shims(unless I can swap a few, and have done that on a couple Ninja's in the past).
Still, it looks much easier than a sportbike with frame rails right against each side of the head.
Click to expand...
I've never delved into adjusting bucket and shim valves...any bike I had that used them went to a dealer for a check...oddly enough not one of them needed adjusting...

I used to check the valves in my oil burners but never had to adjust them even though they were easy to adjust being the screw style adjuster...
 
Bumblebee said:
I've never delved into adjusting bucket and shim valves...any bike I had that used them went to a dealer for a check...oddly enough not one of them needed adjusting...

I used to check the valves in my oil burners but never had to adjust them even though they were easy to adjust being the screw style adjuster...
Click to expand...

I have checked many Suzukis over the years, and they are always in spec, with 20k-30k miles.
Kawasakis have needed adjustments at the same or lower mileage.
I don't know if it's the differences in materials, manufacturing process, or how they've been ridden either, just my personal experiences with them.
But, the Concours seems to be notorious for needing adjustments at the first 15k mile check.
The process is very simple too, the hard part has always been room to work.
 
sixpack577 said:
It would be Great not to!
Otherwise, I'll have to order the shims(unless I can swap a few, and have done that on a couple Ninja's in the past).
Still, it looks much easier than a sportbike with frame rails right against each side of the head.
Click to expand...
I have a list somewhere of all the shims I was going to order. Pretty much every size and just use what I needed. Figured it was better that way than taking the bike apart, awaiting days for shims to arrive and forgetting how to put all those parts back together. Lol
I have to say though, the reason I find it so intimidating, is because I have never done that job. Only valves I have adjusted are the Ones on my DR650, which just requires you to loosen the nut and turn with flat head to adjust and then tighten nut again and done.
 
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