77 kz650c pre-purchase inspection.

A friend of mine found a 1977 kz650c for sale that he would like. He knows nothing about bikes and hasn't been on one for 30 years so he asked if I would look it over and take it for a test ride. I know BMWs, but nothing about Kawasakis. What are the problem area for this bike? What should I look for? Any advice would be extremely helpful.

Thanks!
Mikey

I've owned my 1977 KZ650-C1 since it was new (April, 1977); my bike is stock for the most part. It has more than 60,000 miles on it and has never needed any engine work or other serious repairs. I did replace the steering stem bearings with tapered roller bearings and the swing arm bushings, but that was not really a big deal. The original shocks were never great and they wore out rather quickly, but again replacing them with better shocks (I have Hagons) is not big deal. If the bike in question is stock, has not sat unused or neglected for an extended period, and has received normal maintenance it should be fine. If, however, the previous owner has made changes to the bike it may be unreliable. I suggest you take it for a ride and see how it performs. Ed

Is the motorcycle in good running condition or what? registered & titled?

An old motorcycle can be a big pain, especially if you do't now anything about them. Refurbishing costs can be anywhere from $500 to $1000 or more. or less if he's the industrious type & it isn't in very bad condition. Add another $250 or more for tires.

This is as much as I know about the bike. I be looking it over and test riding it in a few hours.

"Fun bike to ride great gas mileage with plenty of power. perfect for a beginner. 18000 miles roughly, speedo cable broke recently. New battery, like new tires, new set of coils, points, and condensors for ignition, new clutch cable. Has king and queen seat with sissy bar and luggage rack. $600 obo, motivated seller."

Mostly what I'm looking for here is what are the common problem areas with tjis bike that I should make sure to look over. As far as wrenching on it I'm not afraid (I've got a 77 bmw r100/7, 77 bmw r100s, and a 95 bmw r1100gs that I do the wrenching on from major to minor work). Mostly just want to make sure that he is getting a good solid bike to reaquaint himself with so that next year he can tag along on some touring trips with me. By the sounds of it this year and model is a good solid reliable bike. So what areas should I look at a little closer?

It sounds like the previous owner made some changes to it. Can you post any pictures of the bike? Ed

Egads - I would NOT buy that bike.

Both wheels, disk rotors, exhaust, and front fender have been changed to non-original items (why - was it in a wreck?); those silly velocity stacks on the carbs mean it has been sucking unfiltered grit, road grime, etc., etc. into the engine through the carbs so the engine most likely has a lot of premature wear (notice the bike is on a dirt/gravel road so lots of opportunity to suck in grit); the carbs are leaking like mad; that black paint job on everything including the fenders, shocks, exhaust, gas cap, etc. is a mess; etc.

Unless the buyer plans to spend a LOT of bucks and time turning it into a safe, reliable bike I suggest he look elsewhere. Ed

AS 650ed say, stay away from this bike. It is a never ending story
Buy a near stock bike!!!!

I agree, that thing needs to go to sleep like a sick cat. Seen it's better days. For the most part, the biggest problems, in my opinion, of the KZ650 are the points ignition, and the frequent oil leaks from use of 500 rubber orings in the engine that all go bad one at a time.