Question About Carb. Rebuild Kit for 1987 KZ1000P

No eBay APP ID and/or Cert ID defined in Kunena configurationMy airbox is filling with gas so I ( and my mechanic) think there might be a needle problem in the float bowls. I checked the float level using clear plastic tubing and checked the "piston", diaphragm and needles on the top of the carbs. One of my rubber boots from the airbox seems to have shrivelled from gas travelling through it. I ordered a new one.

Will this rebuild kit work or not because it says it is the wrong year?
Can anyone point me in the right direction so I can order a rebuild kit?



Thanks in advance!

I would not buy anything until I gutted the carbs to see if anything even needs to be replaced. Most of the time, no. Just cleaned well and lightly polished.
Those carb kits do not look like the right ones for your year. They look like they are for 77' -78'

Forget "rebuilding" the carbs.
Just clean the float valves carefully. That is easy to do, costs nothing, and should fix the problem. Besides, many rebuild kits contain junk that is not precise so you end up with new problems. If for some strange reason they will not clean up (very unlikely), replace them with genuine, not aftermarket, new float valves. Also, if the problem is happening with the engine off check what's going on with the petcock; it should not pass fuel with the engine off and the petcock in the OFF or RUN position (depending on whether it is or is not a vacuum operated petcock.) Ed

The carb kits in the link are probably incorrect, as the 78-81 KZ1000-C Police bikes had mechanical slide VM carburetors.
The 82-on P models had CV carbs. The 82-86 1000-P carbs appear to be the same. The 87-2005 are somewhat different, but they do have some of the same stuff as the 82-86 models.

Just an FYI. The Kawasaki Police bikes can be grouped into two basic categories: the earlier C models (78-81) & the later KZ1000-P police bikes (1982-on). In general & excepting minor differences, I'm pretty sure the P models are basically the same thru the entire model run. For your police bike there's probably a range of years around 1987 in which most stuff is almost identical, including the carburetors. Unfortunately, Kawasaki.com does not have the diagrams for the 87-90 P models, but you can use the diagrams at PowerSportsWarehouse or Partzilla (partzilla requires registration, but it's simple with no email verification to view the diagrams).

Thanks everyone for the replies. Can someone point me in the direction of a stock rebuild kit? I would really appreciate it.

When I first got the bike I took the carbs apart and a lot of the o-ring were in pretty rough shape. I wasn't able to get them completely clean and took them to my mechanic to clean and then bench test them. He has been after me to do a rebuild for a while.

Would it be worth it to cut a fuel filter into my gas line?

Z1Enterprises.com has o-rings & gaskets. A metric nitrile or viton o-ring kit may have some of the needed sizes or sizes that are close enough. Viton rubber would be preferable. harbor freight. northern tools (?). eebbaayy.

Fuel filter. It's pretty common to use an in-line fuel filter. The bike probably uses 5/16" fuel line, so get one that is 5/16" (most of them at Z1Ent are 1/4" & seem to small to me). My next one is probably going to be an aluminum Russell fuel filter with cleanable/replaceable element. eebbaayy. summit racing. etc.

Do NOT purchase aftermarket carb kits. They are marginal at best and at worst, full of junk aftermarket parts.

Z1 Enterprises sells most of the various O-rings you will need. Cycleorings.com sells an O-ring kit that should have most of what you need too. Please read through the linked Mikuni CV carb rebuild tutorial, this will be similar to your carbs and you can hopefully learn what needs to be done from this even if it's not identical to your carbs. www.mtsac.edu/~cliff/storage/gs/Mikuni_B...Rebuild_Tutorial.pdf

It's critical to fully tear down the carbs and soak the carb bodies in carb dip. People that don't ungang the carbs are not properly cleaning them. In my experience the interconnection tube O-rings are some that are in the worst condition too so unganging the carbs should be considered manditory for that reason too.

Here are the diagram and parts list for the 1987 KZ1000P carbs. I believe you will find that the genuine parts are still available from Kawasaki. You may want to check the prices on www.partzilla.com/search/?q=16038-022&x=27&y=16 ; just plug the part number into the search block. Ed

You don't need a mechanic for this. The only thing the rebuild kits have that you likely need is new o-rings. There's no sense in replacing all the brass blindly. It's just pissing money down the drain.

As others have said, get yourself some o-rings. The big HF nitrile metric o-ring assortment has all the o-rings you'll need for these carbs except the idle mixture scerw ones (which although nice to replace, don't sound like your problem.) While you're there, get the little automatic center punch they sell too. It's the perfect tool for removing the float hinge pins which is what allows you to get to the float needle valve. If it's worn severely enough to need replacing, you'll be able to see it. Otherwise, it's probably just dirty and/or in need of a new o-ring. Use WD-40 or similar when reassembling so you don't pinch/tear the new o-rings. Oh, and use a JIS scerw driver! A regular phillips will strip the heads. Use anti-seize on screws when reassembling and it'll be less of a headache next time. Confirm the float heights after reassembly.

Get yourself the little aluminum EMGO fuel filters with the sintered bronze element. 5/16" and splice that into your fuel line. If you put it in the right place (on topish) you can split and clean the filter without having to take the carbs off the bike, which will save you a lot of cursing and bruised knuckles in the future.

Oh, and I almost forgot, the thing you DO need a rebuild kit for is your petcock. It's not supposed to let gas flow into the carbs when the engine is off. The only way you get gas in the airbox like that is if the petcock is bad (or you leave it on PRIME) *AND* the float valves are bad.

Nessium,

I'm talking about one of these: www.harborfreight.com/spring-loaded-center-punch-621.html

Works like magic, no need for a hammer or a socket... Just a well placed paper towel to catch the pin when it rockets out. Can do it without having to ungang the carbs.

jackleberry wrote: Nessium,

I'm talking about one of these: www.harborfreight.com/spring-loaded-center-punch-621.html

Works like magic, no need for a hammer or a socket... Just a well placed paper towel to catch the pin when it rockets out. Can do it without having to ungang the carbs.

Yeah but the carbs should be unganged for reasons mentioned. And I'd rather not put any side stress the post. Way too many people snap off the posts that way.