I thaught i,d write a review on the GPZ500 as i have owned one for 15 months now, untill it was stolen 3 weeks ago! :( allthough it has since been recovered and im hoping to buy it back off the insurance company.
(hence my review on the vfr400 nc24 which i braught to replace it)
My ... Read review
Advantages: Reliability, cost, engine. Disadvantages: Brakes,front end handling.
...rear silencers are fine, but kawasaki (in their wisdom) decided to make the downpipes out of mild steel, (on a comuter! GRRR) which rust massively, i have had my exhaust off twice so far and rubbed it down, then treated it with rust-off then sprayed it with high temp paint.
If you decide to get one, invest in some stainless downpipes, there about 70-80 quid and well worth it!
So there you have it, i think this an honest ... more
I thaught i,d write a review on the GPZ500 as i have owned one for 15 months now, untill it was stolen 3 weeks ago! :( allthough it has since been recovered and im hoping to buy it back off the insurance company.
(hence my review on the vfr400 nc24 which i braught to replace it)
My bike is an 96 reg on an N reg, and had 10,000 miles when i braught it, and i have covered 7500 miles on it.
Ok as with the NC24 review i,l start from the front and work my way backwards!
Front tyre is 17 inch and lasts a while, it had an original front tyre on it when i got it, and only cost me £60 to replace it, so if youre gentle with the braking etc you can expect 7-8 thousand miles from a front tyre maybe more!
The forks are good enough, i havent had to replace fork seals yet, but they are pretty soft, which is a god thing for this style of bike.
Breaking is frankly shocking! its barely adequate if im honest, and if you need to stop in a hurry you need the grip of a dying man! i replaced the break fluid and pads on mine and this made a big difference, allthough i will be putting a braided hose on when i do the bike up after the thieving scumbags trashed it! :(
Switchgear is typical japanese, easy to use, reliable, and natural in its position.
Clocks are good, easy to read and well lit at night.
The clutch it light/medium in its action and has adjustable span settings which are helpfull. I found the action was getting stiff after 2-3 months and gave it a good spray with some teflon lubricant down the cable and it helped massively!
The same can be said for the throttle, it is light/medium in its action and liberal sprays of lubericant helps to keep it slick and smooth!
The handle bars are upright and feel good to use offering plenty of leverage.
The front fairing is a bit lacking in wind protection, it looks like it will do a great job....but sadly it doesnt! and seems to direct wind to my face!
The tank is a decent size and holds about £14 of petrol, and is a good shape allthough the reserve tap is very fiddley and hard to turn whilst riding.
The seat is pretty comfortable and i have managed 300-400 miles easily, and my girlfriend is more than happy to sit on the back, as the seat and footpegs are good.
The rear shock is average, the action is good and it has proven to be reliable.
The rear wheel is 17 inch and tyres can be braught for as little as £65 new.
The chain and sprockets last approximately 12,000 miles if youre fairly easy on them, and there pretty hard to change if im honest as the chain is endless, so the rear shock has to be removed to get it on. allthough easy to do when you know how!
The electrics are fine, i have never had any problems and i ride in all conditions.
The handling is very strange on the gpz....... the front end seems really detatched from the bike...and doesnt inspire confidence at all, with some decent tyres on it would probably be a lot better...but then this is a commuter and sticky expensive tyres are not really cost efective! Once you realise the front end isnt going to wash out, you can hustle the bike along at a good pace, and really have some fun.
Having said that i did have a slight off at a roundabout in the wet when the front washed out from underneath me.
The engine is a good reliable unit, a parallel twin with 8 valves, its ultra ultra reliable as long as the oil is changed regularly (every 5k miles) as if not the cams can go wrong after as little 20k miles. It pulls very well about 3k and has a deffinate surge at 6k and can propell you along to about 120mph. Everything is easy to access and changing oil/filter/plugs can take as little as 30 minutes!
Economy is great, and if you take it really easy, changing gear at about 5k you can get 55-60mpg.
The exhaust is shocking, the rear silencers are fine, but kawasaki (in their wisdom) decided to make the downpipes out of mild steel, (on a comuter! GRRR) which rust massively, i have had my exhaust off twice so far and rubbed it down, then treated it with rust-off then sprayed it with high temp paint. If you decide to get one, invest in some stainless downpipes, there about 70-80 quid and well worth it!
So there you have it, i think this an honest overal review. A great bike, a really good commuter or first bike, cheap, reliable, fun.
Advantages: Cheap enough to get you started Disadvantages: Not the best for handling
...opted for a T reg Kawasaki GPZ500s. It was cheap enough to buy considering a lot of other makes and models of a similar size and age were more expensive.
Then I found out why.
The 17" wheel does absolutley nothing for handling. It was not the kind of bike to drop to the knees on an open bend, it was the type of bike to slide where it wanted to.
She started first time though I did find the starter switch slightly sticky,perhaps a common fault with ... ...an average car. I felt I had to put in as much petrol as I did if I used my car to travel to and from work.
Her one advantage was comfort. I could of ridden it all day. The seat was well shaped and I found my botty fitted snuggly. The handle bars were not too far apart which I have found with other models.
With this in mind my relationship with this model was short.
The style was good, looked a sporty kind of bike but lacked acceleration, constant ...
ladyrider 23.02.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Kawasaki GPZ500s
Advantages: fast, light, cheap to insure and run Disadvantages: lumpy at low revs, needs good tyres and regular servicing
...by swapping the two standard Kawasaki exhaust cans with two Sarachu cans. Choosing the carbon fibre Sarachu can will also shave 4kg off the bike.
* A fully adjustable rear shock and progressive front springs are available from Hagon Shocks.
* Braided hoses combined with EBC sintered pads all round - available from Wemoto.
* To improve the feel of the clutch and eliminate clutch slipping at very high speed (110mph +), EBC heavy duty clutch spring ... ...come to an end - Kawasaki have discontinued the GPZ500S in the UK. It was replaced by the unfaired ER-5, which uses the same engine. Recenty they brought out the ER-6 with a more beefy 600cc parallel twin engine. The GPZ500S is still being sold in the USA under the "Ninja500R" name.
I managed to pick up a brand new GPZ500S E10 (2003 model) in early 2005. It must have been one of the few remaining new GPZ's available. My E9 (2002 model) -which this ...
tomsmith500 21.01.2004 (09.08.2006)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Kawasaki GPZ500s
Advantages: Durable, reliable, low centre of gravity Disadvantages: fairly high seat,
I have had two of these.
Well I have ridden one and I have just bought a damaged repairable from eBay, it's not on the road yet.
The one I HAVE used is the one I bought just after I passed my test.
I had a Honda NSR125R and felt quite comfortable on that, so I wanted a similar bike with a bigger engine.
I had only passed the restricted test so I could only have a bike of 33BHP or less. I scoured EBay and all the local papers but I couldn't find ... ...33bhp.
I put a search in for under 33bhp on eBay and an auction for a gpz500s came up.
It had been restricted to 33bhp, had a custom paint job, looked quite tidy and was within my budget.
Unfortunately it was located in Bedford and ended within a day - no time to go and see it, I am in Manchester.
The bike was at £350 and it was on a K plate. It looked very nice in the pictures but a picture can hide a lot of flaws. However the write up seemed ...
thundersmurf 05.11.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Kawasaki GPZ500s
Advantages: Good for the novice Disadvantages: looks like a toy next to modern bikes
If you are new to the bike market and want a good all rounder with good looks then this is the one for you.
It has enough power to see of the average family car and it looks like a super bike (at a distance) 600 bikes will leave you standing in third gear but if you want to race this is not the one for you.
You do not have to bend to far to reach the throttle so your back won't snap after 3 miles.
The sales suggest it is still one of the best ...
persiankitty 24.09.2000
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Kawasaki GPZ500s
Advantages: Low running costs, excellent handling, fast. Disadvantages: Suspension a bit soft if two up.
...looking for a cheap to run bike with stamina and that won't make you look like you are riding a moped when it comes to giving it a bit of welly. Excellent town handling, nimble, narrow, nippy, comfortable and very safe. im very happy with mine. well done Kawasaki ... ...
minilandrover 04.07.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Kawasaki GPZ500s
Comfort
Handling
Looks
Features
Fuel consumption
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