Faults:

Carburettors prone to blockage if not regularly used.

Cold blooded, needing a long warm up from cold.

General Comments:

The best bike I have ever owned for riding sedately.

The torque at low revs makes town use an absolute pleasure, as is riding on minor roads.

Yet the bike is deceptively fast. You can rocket back home from a country ride at higher than legal speeds on fast A roads, knowing that the engine is bulletproof and will never leak oil or blow up.

Tinware, rots from the inside, and I'm now on a second rear mudguard, and a universal front mudguard.

Original exhaust and silencer are integral, and very expensive. I bought a complete replacement system off eBay at half price, but kept the old system, which still works but is slightly scruffy.

Economy is very good, but I rarely ride over 70mph.

Running costs are very reasonable, and I service the bike annually.

As a daily runner it may frustrate, as it is cold blooded, and needs to run on the choke for quite a while.

But as a leisure bike, it takes some beating.

Faults:

Absolutely nothing. The only remark is that the headlight makes a noise at certain revs which can be annoying.

General Comments:

I have had - Fireblades - umpteen Guzzi's (only after the 8th or 9th Guzzi I gave up on their unreliability?) FZR - Triumph Bonneville - Matchless - CBR750 and 400 (still have a sandcast to admire) but to ride, the Kawasaki wins because it rides exactly like a Guzzi without the issues. Compared to the retro Triumph, it wins as it is less dull and the frame is more stiff.

Faults:

Nothing up to now.

General Comments:

Replaced standard exhausts with Posh straight-throughs.

Airbox gone, pods instead. Up jet of carbs, sounds and goes like a 60s BSA Thunderbolt. Real nice.

One inch longer spacers in the front forks. No more bottoming on bumpy rides.

Replaced standard size tires with: front 110/90-19, rear 140/80-18; looks and handles better.

Fitted grease nipples to the swing-arm centre and foot brake pivot at the frame join.

Faults:

Carburetion issues.

General Comments:

I enjoy riding the bike, but it's not all I hoped for. It's heavy, though acceleration is adequate for my needs. It does not handle well at low speeds, with excessive steering 'flop' when maneuvering in tight spaces. I swapped out the US high and wide handlebars for a 'Euro' style bend and mounted a custom seat. Those help.

The suspension is indifferent, even with progressive front springs and aftermarket rear shocks. Brakes are not adequate for high speed riding. The rear drum is sub-par, as is the single disc front. If there was an easy fix for the brakes, that is the next place I would invest in the bike. Stainless steel hydraulic brake line?

I enjoy the power curve and rarely exceed 4,500rpm since vibration increases above that point. I put on some weighted bar end/sliders, but if they made a difference it's negligible. I get some hand tingling and fatigue. But I rarely ride for more than 2 hours at a stretch so, with a custom seat with gel insert, it's just mildly annoying. I would like to use the bike for some longer rides, but I wonder if it's in the cards. I sometimes reach for another gear and may replace the drive cog with a tooth up when the original starts to show signs of wear.

Stock mirrors gave me a great view of my elbows, and not much else, so I replaced them with long stem circular units, which are smaller, but still a big improvement. The side stand has a too small 'footprint' and invites disaster when parking on a loose surface.

If I keep the bike, I may try different tires without such a big difference in cross section between front and rear. I may also try a fork brace to see if that results in more confidence inspiring handling.

All that said, I do like the bike and mainly wish it was lighter weight and had better sorted steering.