1983 kz550 M1 gasket kit, can't find one.

Ok, I have a 1983 Kz550 M1 Shaft. It has the 1984 style electronic tach and all that (no tach cable). I have been looking for either a head gasket, or would rather find a complete gasket kit. It's leaking a ton of oil down the head from the gasket area and needs it badly. I cannot find any kit that specifies the M1, or any of the 1984 bikes. Does anyone here have any suggestions? Would a 79 through 83 kit from Z1 enterprises work? It only specifies the A and C models for fitment. Thanks for your help advance.

According to the OEM parts fishe the same head gasket was shared through pretty much the entire history of the 550 engine.

www.partzilla.com/product/kawasaki/11004...6d84ea707b3fa53c8773

Just in case. Are you sure the leak isn't at the valve cover gasket?

Also common is a leaky tachometer drive. If he engine was built for a cable drive, the seals on the drive, or on whatever was used to plug the hole if the entire drive was removed, could be leaking. Maybe all three.

Thank you for looking that up! I don't know why every parts site cuts off the kits at 83, but I suppose I will get one and it should be fine.

martin_csr wrote: Just in case. Are you sure the leak isn't at the valve cover gasket?

Yeah, it's definitely leaking from the head gasket, oil running down the fins, but no oil above that.

TexasKZ wrote: Also common is a leaky tachometer drive. If he engine was built for a cable drive, the seals on the drive, or on whatever was used to plug the hole if the entire drive was removed, could be leaking. Maybe all three.

This engine is electronic tach from the factory. No tach drive on the cam, no hole to plug, just like an 84

Aftermarket gasket kits are a big crap shoot. All are inferior to OEM Kawasaki gaskets, and some tragically so. Stay clear of Athena for example. I'd much rather piece together what gaskets you need from searching ebay and/or ordering online through a dealership source.

440zrider wrote:

TexasKZ wrote: Also common is a leaky tachometer drive. If he engine was built for a cable drive, the seals on the drive, or on whatever was used to plug the hole if the entire drive was removed, could be leaking. Maybe all three.

This engine is electronic tach from the factory. No tach drive on the cam, no hole to plug, just like an 84

My apologies, I thought it had been converted from cable to electronic.