gpz 400 1986

Begbie

Begbie

Begbie

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Hello,

Old man has just called me saying he can pick up Kawasaki GPZ 400 very cheap and wondering if I want it. Haven't passed my test yet and am looking to do it early next year.

Just wondering what's folks opinions on the bike are, and if its a good first bike?
 
Awful bike, rear tyres are thinner than a modern front tyre, you'll have bugger all choice of rubber and they're lethal in the wet, combine that with the rear drum brake and it's a nightmare. The engine is abysmal even when new, the starter was made of cheese and in all honesty it's not the sort of bike i'd wish on my worst enemy. I could go on to mention the snapping clip on's and shocks but by now you should have abandoned the idea.
 
Avalon said:
Awful bike, rear tyres are thinner than a modern front tyre, you'll have bugger all choice of rubber and they're lethal in the wet, combine that with the rear drum brake and it's a nightmare. The engine is abysmal even when new, the starter was made of cheese and in all honesty it's not the sort of bike i'd wish on my worst enemy. I could go on to mention the snapping clip on's and shocks but by now you should have abandoned the idea.
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Thanks for that mate. That's more than likely why its free, pity as it looks quite sporty!
 
Umm if its free who cares .. Yes the tyres are skiny but so are most 80-90's bikes and im still alive!!

Dunno why you complain about the drum as it has a disc on the back :/
50 hp and 200kg its not gonna be a rocket but enough to cut yer teeth on or even learn some basic bike mechanics if u dont fancy putting it on the road .

Never heard of issues with clipons but i will assume they have but not hard to change . If its complete it would be worth 200-300 or more if you break it .

Worth a punt if its free!!

Persil
 
Nowt wrong with GPZ400s. I think maybe the person complaining about drum brakes etc was thinking of the GPz400 which is a different animal entirely with an awful air cooled engine. Or maybe the GPZ500S which is totally gutless.

Actually, thinking back, there were 3 bikes that had the name GPZ400 and it could be any of them. A sleeved down GPZ550 air cooled 4 (rubbish), a sleeved down GPZ600 liquid cooled 4 (excellent) or GPZ500s parallel twin, again sleeved down (rubbish).

It's more likely to be the 600 sleeved down in which case it's an excellent bike. The GPZ600 is the bike that defined the 600cc class and handles very very well indeed for an 80s bike. The 400 is the same bike with a small engine.
 
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an engine for a GPZ 400 will cost you between £300 and £500 depending on how many are around at the time.

I love my 400's, my first bike was a GSX-R 400 (GK76A), my flat mate has a CBR 400 (NC23), and he also owned an FZR 400.. all three of these were/are great bikes..

i started out on a 400 because i was a little scared of the number '600' for some reason.. i soon found out that the 400 i'd chosen, while having a lower top speed than the 600 variant, was just as quick in terms of acceleration.. it helped me get my foot on the first rung of the biking ladder :)
 
My GPz550 air cooled was a great first big bike, even went to the Bol d'Or on it, did blow the head gasket on the way home though.

The GPZ600 was a lovely beast so if its that version of that then go for it, black and red was awesome.

TBH the whole GPz(Z) range was great in the day. Had a 550, nearly a 750 turbo (whole day test drive with that one), a 900R and 1000RX which got binned up the mountain rode up to Paul Ricard one year!

Posts some pics!!
 
Nice to see the reviews have changed slightly. Its in pieces at the moment, and the paint work is not very good. So its mostly to build up, so I can fix my own in future and to learn on really.

Will post some pics when I go home, another week :(
 
I liked my GPZ600R, my first and only bike! Hmm, coming up to mid-life crisis time, do i dust off the old leathers after a 16yr gap and buy something stupidly fast but ride it like an old man?? :)
 
kefkef said:
I liked my GPZ600R, my first and only bike! Hmm, coming up to mid-life crisis time, do i dust off the old leathers after a 16yr gap and buy something stupidly fast but ride it like an old man?? :)
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Do it. A Hayabusa or ZX10R should do you.
 
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