One test of my 1985 Kawasaki 750 turbo's stability was the time I whacked the wing mirror of an oncoming Transit with the front brake lever. As two of my fingers were holding on to the brake lever and I was doing 70mph at the time, this hurt one hell of a lot. The handlebars twitched a few times but the bike kept to its line with remarkable stability. As I was on the right side of the road at the time I hope the Transit driver had a heart attack.
After a few hours waiting in casualty, my fingers were bandaged, they were merely bruised not broken. You could have fooled me, the throbbing pain took days to go away. The ride home on the turbo was not very amusing either as I found it very difficult to control the throttle. The bike lurched into and out of its power boost as the turbo came in, speed and machine oscillating wildly.
I bought the bike two years ago with 18000, apparently genuine, miles on the clock. It was tatty but original, down to the OE rear shock and rusty silencers. Its only real virtue was that at £1200 it was a very cheap way to get hold of over 100 horses and, besides, big bikes were very rare in my area of Wales. A quick shot of the turbo boost convinced me that all must be well inside the engine covers.
It was a very thrilling bike to ride in a straight line. By 5000 revs the front end was going light and everything was going backwards at a gratifying rate. It must be one of the fastest 750s around, able to burn off things like CB900s and XS1100s with an absurd ease. My friend on a 900 Ninja was a bit disconcerted to find that I was pulling away from him up to the ton. He became a bit happier when he saw how desperately I had to brake for the curves.
The turbo's a bit like the old H1 only a bit more predictable - it's pretty terrible all the time. The bike feels like the swinging arm bearings are shot even after I replaced them at 19000 miles. Even on a smooth bend the bike feels incredibly loose, so I doubt if replacing all the suspension would sort things; I never bothered replacing the shot rear shock, I just adapted my riding technique to suit.
Point and squirt was the name of the game. Riding up to the corners as fast as possible, using a heavy grip on the twin discs to kill speed, making the corner as much of a straight line as possible, twitching the bike upright in a low a gear as possible at the first moment and letting rip with the throttle on the way out.
When the turbo comes in, the back tyre spins a little, the bike squats down and the front end goes light (if you wrench on the bars it's wheelie time), there's this tremendous whine through the silencer and this lovely gut wrenching rush forward. Believe me, once you've experienced a turbo rush you won't want to go back to normally aspirated engines!
As well as the turbo, which requires a lot of extra exhaust tubing, as well as a heavy and expensive blower, the engine is fuel injected with a bank of injectors. Using the exhaust gases to drive the turbo has some disadvantages in that any power output gain is offset by the extra weight of the components....only when an engine is designed as a turbo unit from the drawing board stage can the real advantages be gained. All the Japanese turbos have been grafted on to existing engine designs, not able to take full advantage of the power boosting capabilities of the turbo.
The GPz750 turbo engine has been substantially strengthened internally over the stock unit to withstand the extra horses. In the 22000 miles I've done I have not had to do anything to the engine internals, as such, not even the valves have needed adjustment. In many ways, because the engine develops its power at lower revs, the internals have an easier time than the stock motor which has to be revved into the red to really make it shift.
Unfortunately, the turbo unit itself proved troublesome at 31000 miles. The first evidence of this was the clouds of blue smoke out of the exhaust, by the time I got around to fixing the problem I had a two stroke like pall of smoke following the bike everywhere. The seals in the turbo unit had gone. The unit must run very hot as it seemed to have welded itself together.
As there were strange knocking noises coming from the unit, I was well relieved to pick up a complete exhaust and turbo unit from a breaker for £125. This was extremely knuckle bruising to fit but after a week or so of swearing at it I was back on the road. The turbo unit was noisier than before and power output was diminished, the kick when the turbo came it wasn't half as much fun.
By this time the front discs and forks were showing signs of disintegrating. There were hairline cracks in the discs and a lot of free play in the forks. A GPz1100 front end, for £100, went straight on but, much to my disgust, handling didn't improve, although the braking was much better. Such was my use of the front brake that pads only lasted 3500 miles and the front Metz lasted only 4000 miles. The rear would do about 5000 miles as long as I avoided frequent wheelspin starts. The chain and sprockets didn't last much longer.
The only area where it was cheap to run was on fuel, anywhere between 45 and 60mpg possible, no doubt down to the improved efficiency of the turbo system and fuel injectors. Unfortunately, at 36,500 miles the latter began to cause problems, with lots of backfiring and coughing. Engine starting had become difficult, previously it had growled happily into life first touch of the button.
Being an idiot, I replaced the injectors with a used set from a breakers (£125) only to find that the problem was a loose wire to the black box which the previous owner had relocated to under the seat (from the tailpiece where it was subjected to loads of dirt thrown up by the back tyre).
3000 miles later the black box failed completely leaving me stranded in the middle of the Welsh hills, with only the crazy sheep for company. After whacking a few of these around the head, I started pushing the massive Qwack up hill and down dale, to a small village where I dumped the machine and waited six hours for the mini bus to turn up - about the time needed to recover from the exertion.
I returned to the village with the black box only to find that in addition the fuse box had turned molten and the battery was flat! After much rewiring the bike was jump started off an ancient tractor (the greedy farmer charging me £5 for his time and then complaining about the bloody English). It didn't like running below 2000 revs but apart from that trucked along in normal fashion.
The hairpin bends in these Welsh hills sent the turbo's chassis into a frenzy, but I just hung on for dear life, taking revenge on life's injustices by running down any sheep that got it the way - deciding to exact revenge on Welsh farmers I bungeed one sheep I had knocked out on to the back seat and hurried out of the area, as fast as the chassis would allow.
Coming into Merthyr I was a bit shocked to hear this terrible bleeting noise over the whine of the silencer. The damn animal was still alive and going berserk. I had to quickly pull over, release the thing and watch it career up the High Street. What was that saying about there being no free lunches? As well as cosmetic decay, at nearly 40,000 miles the bike gives every indication of wanting to fall apart. I dare say that the engine is still okay but the rest of it is ready for the rubbish heap. A spate of various chassis bearings failures did not endear the bike to me......when the front wheel bearings went it felt like I riding with a puncture on ice. The Unitrack linkages are loose enough to clang over bumps and the tank appears to have rusted through in places. The bike looks terrible and draws unwarranted attention from the plod.
The temptation is high to tear off all the turbo and injector stuff and see if it will run with carbs, the turbo unit rumbling away like it needs replacement again.....I don't really know what to do with it, spending money on something that's falling apart under me does not appeal but then the turbo kick is still there, a little dimmed, and it's great fun to ride in a straight line. I'll probably just cane it until something goes terminal.
Neil Jennings
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Aaaaargh! The bastard had done it again. And again. It wasn't much of a surprise but it was still like a kick in the balls. A 125 graduate who couldn't be more than 19 kept blowing me off through the bends. He was armed with an early CBR600 that'd done 80,000 miles. All I had was a GPz750 and 20 years worth of low motorcycle cunning.
The GPz was a good motorcycle but not good enough. It wasn't a lack of power for there was scads available. It wasn't poor suspension, either, for both ends were upgraded and in fine state. I wouldn't even admit to any weakness in the frame. By 1986 Kawasaki had come a long way since the wild days of the H1. The double cradle tubular frame, assisted by newish headstock taper rollers and needle bearings in the alloy swinging arm, was plenty tough enough. Where it lost out to the CBR was its extra 50lbs of mass and relatively staid steering geometry.
Where I'd start to run wide in bends the kid on the CBR would just haul over and come past on my inside. When I tried to follow his route through the bends I'd find the GPz falling off its tyres or something digging into the tarmac hard. The bike was much happier accelerating out of bends than coming into them hard on the brakes. I tried to develop a point and squirt technique that would end by passing in front of his wheel, causing him to brake harshly when well banked over. But he'd just hammer through on superior acceleration, making me brake to avoid whacking his back wheel.
I rode like a drunken cowboy, played it cool and tried to imitate Barry Sheene (what do you mean, who he?), all to absolutely no avail. I was totally outclassed. I had a go on the Honda, intrigued to see how good it was and whether the kid was really a boy wonder. Sob! It was wonderful! The handling seemed to straighten out corners and the top end acceleration was intoxicating. The only faults I could find were a notchy gearbox and a lack of sub 7000rpm power, a combination that made long term riding rather tiresome.
The Kawasaki's power flowed with a vengeance from 7000 revs onwards, but from 2000 revs up there was enough power to make life tolerable and the gearchange always engaged with a reassuring click. The only time it was less that perfect was when the chain went out of adjustment or the oil went off. I had to adjust the former every 300 miles and change the latter every 1500 miles. Shaft drive would've been very nice but even more weight would've been big trouble.
I was running on a stock exhaust system, which was both heavy and restrictive of power. Both an Alpha and Motad four into one had messed up the carburation. After one jet changing session I gave up in disgust. This is bad news, though, as the OE system managed to be heavy and rust prone, lasting for less than three years. The last time it happened I attached a pair of universal silencers to the downpipes. They worked okay with just the occasional dip at 5500 to 6500rpm.
Top speed's a splendid 135mph. Not bad for a bike with 38000 miles on the clock with stock internal components, including the sometimes dodgy camchain. The half fairing's more efficient than it looks, I felt quite happy hanging on at 120mph! True, there was a bit of secondary vibration coming out of the chassis at all points of contact but it never really annoyed me and certainly didn't do any harm to any of the chassis components, although it may've affected the electrics. More on that later.
High speed cruising was only limited by seat comfort, the padding going flat after an hour. It dug into my groin in a rather tiresome way but those less well endowed probably wouldn't experience this problem. The pegs were placed perfectly for the flat bars, neither legs nor arms showing any pains after hours of riding.
Oh yes, there was also the fuel consumption. The GPz could be really excellent if ridden moderately, kept under 80mph and a tempered right-hand employed. All a matter of looking ahead and riding smoothly. Worthwhile, when the dosh's dried up, for the 60mpg plus! Ridden at 120mph it'd do about 30mpg. Normally, I'd achieve 45 to 50mpg whilst having lots of fun. It's interesting to note that the shaft drive GT750 can't match the GPz's frugality.
If this series of Kawasaki's has a weak point it's undoubtedly the electrics. The CDI units are infamous for burning out, usually because their rubber mounts go hard, letting the secondary vibes straight through. Try ringing around breakers if you don't believe me. I knew this already from previous experiences with a GPz550, and avoided it by using an extra layer of rubber.
Batteries last for about two years, but back bulbs can blow every week and even the front light's not immune from the odd implosion. No amount of rubber mounting has any effect. The regulator/ rectifier's relatively tough, only likely to go down if the alternator burns out. The wiring loom rots after about eight years or 60,000 miles; any sign of charging difficulties most likely to be down to this. I give the handlebars switches a weekly dose of WD40 and they have always worked well. Any models fitted with a sidestand switch should have them removed, they are notorious for affecting the starting and running of the motor. A dodgy killswitch can have a similar effect.
The only trouble I had was a battery that wouldn't hold much of a charge whilst on tour. The lack of a kickstart made life difficult as it was a bugger to bump start. I usually encouraged a few peds to give me a push but if the motor stalled in heavy traffic, as it tended to do without a decent battery, then I was in deep shit. One time I had to push the bike into the gutter, then waddle along for half a mile to a steep hill. I soon fitted a new battery. I was told that running the GPz on a dead battery would burn out all the black boxes but my bike survived unscathed.
Other tales of disaster concern the clutch, valves and camchain, but in my experience the GPz series is very tough and it'd take some real madness to injure the engine in the first 50,000 miles. GPz750's are becoming a bit rare so whenever I come across another example I usually end up having a chat. The highest mileage I've come across is 160,000, still on the original bottom end, frame, forks and wheels. The guy reckoned he'd do 200,000 miles before retiring the machine. On the other hand, one guy blew his motor up at 26000 miles - but only by running it dry of oil. Some engines do eat oil when ridden hard.
Chassis weak spots are mostly concentrated around the Uni-trak back end which really need six monthly stripdowns for greasing; some back ends last for three or four years without being touched by human hand if heavy winter riding's avoided. An alloy swinging arm's a good investment with sealed bearings and easy chain adjustment via eccentric mounts. But beware, the first one I sent off for didn't fit properly and only some nasty telephone calls secured a replacement. The frame's very accident resistant, the forks aren't.
The only other trouble spot's the brake calipers, with the usual complaint about seizure during winter riding. I strip them in October and again in March which stops any corrosion becoming terminal. I prefer Ferodo pads which last longer and work better in the wet than other makes. The back pads go for over ten thou, the fronts' for 7000 to 8000 miles. That's fine by me, given that I have to indulge in some frantic braking to keep the youths on CBR's in sight.
When the fluid, pads and calipers are in good nick (Goodridge hose is more or less mandatory) the braking's excellent. I don't mind that the lever needs excessive pressure as long as there's plenty of feedback. If any of the variables goes off then the braking becomes either vague or very soggy. I probably spend more effort keeping the brakes up to scratch than anything else on the bike.
I've kept the thing in good shape, the wheels being hardest to keep clean. Engine finish's good, exhaust's terrible, frame paint falls off in places but the cycle parts are fine. I bought the bike as a two owner, 8000 miler, and haven't done much to the engine. The valves are still within the clearance limits and the carbs need balancing every 3000 miles. That's about as good as a CBR600, but it's a lot easier to access everything on the GPz.
I like naked bikes with useful half fairings, which gives the best of both worlds. I wouldn't buy a CBR, about the only modern bike that interests me is Triumph 900 Sprint, but that's too much dosh for me. It'll be nice to have less mass and a little more power without upsetting the fine balance of the GPz, in which scorching performance is mixed with an ease of use more usually found in 400 twins. The GPz1100's far too heavy going to be much fun. In short, the GPz will do anything you ask of it but is a bit limited against the better race replicas.
Charlie Barnett
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A friend getting married meant he reluctantly wanted shot of a very neat looking GPz750. A 1985 model, more or less original, even with a brand new Kawasaki exhaust system (they last three to four years). 24000 miles and five years old, I found the riding position perfect for my 5'10" and the engine dead easy to use below 7000 revs. The weight of 480lbs wasn't reallly noticeable, except when pushing the bike, when its reluctance to move an inch was intensified by three disc brakes with sticking pads.
The past owner had always been a bit of a wheelie merchant. I naturally tried to emulate him. The power really went wild above 7000 revs, so at least that amount needed to be dialed in and the stiff clutch brutally dropped. The front end was pretty heavy, needed a muscular jerk on the bars as well as vicious revs and clutch action. The first time I tried the thing went vertical so rapidly that I lost my balance, coming down sideways.
Having a bloody big Kawasaki fall on my leg was no fun at all. Ouch! The mirror snapped off, the indicator holder and lens cracked and the brake lever bent into a funny shape. My body saved the GPz from any other serious damage. I quickly decided that wheelies were not for me.
Speed testing was next on my list of motorcycle adventures. I awoke at an incredibly early hour to head for the hopefully deserted motorway. The four cylinder engine sounded as upset as I felt about getting going at that time of day, but after five minutes of rattling settled down to a supremely reassuring whirring. I then roared past the only awake police officer in Birmingham who chased after me and nearly blew me off as he sliced past in his wailing plod mobile.
Naturally, he wanted to know what I was doing and where I was going. I didn't think he'd be too amused to know about the speed testing, so I made up some story about coming home from a late night party. We eventually went our separate ways, but by the time I got to the motorway there was already a smattering of autos crowding up my race track.
The Kawasaki was running stock suspension, but with damping and springing turned up to their highest settings. The anti-dive was still functioning and didn't seem to interfere with the suspension, athough the front discs felt a bit mushy. I rolled on to the motorway at about 60mph in top gear, gave it a whiff of throttle, to growl up to 80mph. The power still hadn't started charging in yet, that would need 90mph on the clock. On a bit of suddenly deserted tarmac I let loose on the throttle, got down behind the skimpy half fairing and held on for dear life.
As the power flowed in the chassis weaves increased, mostly around the back wheel. There was a lot of harsh vibration through the chassis, both from the motor and from the chain, which seemed to be objecting to the new found velocity at which it was travelling. I gripped the petrol tank firmly between my legs as the speedo needle made its relentless way around the clock. After a mile there was no more to extract from the motor and the weave was about a yard wide. Even on wild German autobahns, later in its life, it did no better than 140mph on the clock, in reality about 130mph.
That excursion revealed, back at the house, that it was a good idea to keep an eye on the oil, as it had gone down closer to the minimum rather than maximum level. Further sorties revealed a consumption of about 250 miles to a litre. It increased exponentially after the oil had gone off, which took about 1200 miles. I always knew when it needed an oil change because neutral became impossible to engage. I changed the oil every 1200 miles but left the filter for a year at a time without any ill effects.
In second or third the effect of the 85 horses was pretty wild, with arms almost pulled out of sockets and enough G-forces to warp my mind. The GPz was fantastic fun to roar through town, turning a boring commute into a fight against my reflexes. The acceleration was so effective that I could've done with sharper brakes up front. They had Ferodo pads in them, that lasted about 8000 miles, but still lacked the tyre squealing grunt that I would have liked, really needing two hands to produce effective braking. A friend with a similar bike had removed the anti-dive and fitted Goodridge, which whilst it certainly helped with the braking left the front fork leaping up and down like the springs were breaking up. Needless to say, I left my bike as stock.
Tyres are another potential problem area. The bike came to me with Metzelers (ME33 and ME99) but they were soon down to a mere 3mm. By the time another millimetre had gone west the weaves had developed an incredible amplitude even at 70mph. They had lasted about 6000 miles. Dunlop Arrowmaxes were on special offer at the local tyre merchant. He ended up swearing at the 18 inch cast alloy wheels as the rubber proved reluctant to go on. After about half an hour he finally got both tyres on.
I wasn't too impressed with the grip from these tyres, especially when they were cold as they felt more like iron than rubber but they lasted for over 12,000 miles so I had plenty of time to become used to them. At least the big front wheel made it relatively easy to pull back from slides on wet roads, although in slow corners there was always a very strong feeling that the GPz wanted to fall into the curve.
A pair of Avons went on next (AM22& 23). I was impressed with the way the bike seemed to roll a bit quieter and smoother and banked over in a more predictable manner, but, again, they made wet weather riding and white lines rather more precarious than on the Metz's. The rear wore out in 9000 miles, the front had another couple of thou left but I replaced the tyres as a pair, back with the Metz's as I got a set dead cheap. They definitely had the best grip and feel on poor or wet road surfaces but the worst wear.
I know a couple of people who have mixed and matched tyres on big Jap multi's, been rewarded with massive weaves and bowel emptying speed wobbbles. I was behind one guy on a Z1, the back wheel looking like it had come loose from the frame. He ended up off the road in a ditch but survived to ride another day (this time on proper tyres). It's always worth spending a bit extra on decent rubber.
The brakes were a bit of a dead loss. They absolutely hated winter, the calipers corroding up so fast that I was taking them apart every month, buying new seals and pistons a couple of times over the winter. The rear caliper survived longer only needing attention once a year, although the brake was even more wooden than the front. The chain, an expensive O-ring job, only lasted for 5500 miles!
The Kawasaki was an easy bike to get used to, the kind of machine that could be leapt on for the first time and ridden without any hassle, as long as less than 7000 revs were employed for the first couple of days. Any hints of ignition failure will be found by a bit of stuttering around those revs, athough a rotted exhaust will give a similar effect. The engine runs fine right through the rev range when everything is in perfect tune, but any one part going off slightly will fill the rev range full of flat spots. For that reason, it's a brave owner who fits a 4-1, although it's possible to get the engine to run properly, it can only be done after pulling the carbs off several times and changing the jets over.
Don't ask me how I know, after three years the OE replacement was almost falling off, a cheap 4-1 from the breaker seeming to be an ideal substitute. Some hope! The engine eventually came to life at 3000 revs and stuttered up to 7000rpm then going as dead as a 100,000 mile CX500. After much hassle with jet kits I gave up and fitted a new exhaust system, about an extra hundred quid out of pocket.
By the time there was 60,000 miles on the clock, after four valve sessions and a dozen carb tune-ups, the mild buzz that used to come in from 7000 revs up had been replaced by a mirror blurring, feet shaking blitz that threatened to pop the motor out of the frame every time I tried to do more than the ton. I decided that it couldn't be anything serious as below 7000 revs it was as smooth as before.
It was during a cross town commute, with 63000 miles done, that the vibration became incredibly intense and loud knocking noises came from the engine. It got me the five miles homes, smoking like a stroker and not doing more than 3000 revs. It sounded more like a tractor than a piece of sophisticated engineering.
Don't ever try lifting a GPz750 mill out of the frame on your own. Believe me, it hurts! To cut a long story short, the big-ends had gone and I hadn't caught them before they allowed the pistons to waggle about, wrecking the bores and putting bits of piston ring all around the engine. Ahem! I'm now trying to fit a GPZ600 engine into the frame. Don't ask...
James Trench
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The GPz750 has a top speed of around the 130mph mark. I found this out the hard way. An early morning run on a nearly deserted A46. There were enough bends to make winding the GPz up difficult. It definitely needs to be wound up in the lower gears. Before clicking up to the tallish top gear. GPz gearboxes are very variable. Mine was one of the good ones. The slickness of the change not necessarily related to mileage.
115mph came up with great ease. Then wind pressure built up despite the useful half fairing. Breaking through the 120mph mark was hard going. Then it's a matter of a firm grip on the bars and a long, open road. 125mph. 130mph. 131mph...finally topping out at 133mph. A well run-in newish bike would probably do even better.
When trying for a top speed run it's a good idea to make sure that the triple discs are in good fettle. Up ahead the road was turning into a series of 50-60mph switchbacks. The brakes were best described as a bit tired. But they were able to sustain one desperate stop a day. I don't normally like to howl my tyres but it was a superior alternative to leaving a GPz sized hole in the hedge.
Most GPz750's now run non-standard suspension. An Hagon rear shock and fork brace were essential additions to my own machine. Along with newish Metz tyres. Thus set-up I was able to scrape the undercarriage through the bends at 80mph. Not exactly getting my knees or elbows down. The amount of effort needed defined it as great fun!
The bike has too much weight placed too high. Makes it susceptible to losing it all in a big way and needing loads of muscle to hustle. This is common to all the old style Jap fours but the GPz750 seems a bit more extreme than, say, a GS750. It's nothing to get too excited about. Needs a few weeks spent finding the real limits of the handling. Then pushing a touch beyond them to keep the adrenaline flowing. Stops you getting too old too fast!
Where the handling nastiness really shows up is when the tyres or chassis bearings or suspension become a bit worn. The difference between the handling of a GPz750 in fine fettle and one with worn components is the same as that between an able bodied man and someone who's been kneecapped. Two different machines. The latter prone to large wobbles and the back wheel careering around trying to join up with the front. It was so bad that I made damn sure it was all kept up to spec.
Expensive! Tyres needed replacing every 4000 miles. As did the front pads. I changed the chassis bearings every 8000 miles! Even the wheel bearings didn't want to last for more than 15000 miles. The whole chassis was under tremendous pressure when the bike was ridden in tune with the prodigious power of the motor.
Other expenses included an oil change every 1000 miles. Carb balance every 2000 miles. Valves needed attention around the 5000 mile mark. Chain and sprockets were dead meat by 9000 miles - probably explaining the strange popularity of the GT750 version.
The GPz has a much sportier engine than the GT, with 86 horses to play with. The GT's main selling point is that its relative mildness combined with some minor development work makes it much stronger and longer lasting. The GT almost defines the word bland. A sort of big four stroke version of the MZ 250. There are lots of cheap GT's around and they can be thrashed close to death.
I've known a couple of other GPz750 owners. One managed to blow up his engine in 23000 miles. Neglect of oil changes didn't help. Not just because sludge was circulating through the engine but also because of the resulting false neutrals allowing 15000 revs. Another guy treated his bike with kid gloves but still had valve, cam and tensioner problems at 34000 miles. At least these various maladies were easily sussed. Both by the diminution in performance and godawful racket that the top end of the motor put out.
Major engine work's needed after 50,000 miles. As in a dead crankshaft! My own bike ran to 42000 miles before needing a rebuilt top end and rebore. I had a couple of spare engines from which I'd sourced almost a complete set of reasonable spares. By the time I'd done 62000 miles I'd used them all up. The only good thing was that there was always plenty of warning when something was going to go down. I was never left stranded in the middle of nowhere.
Part of the rapid engine wear was down to riding in the company of friends on fast race replicas. The GPz had to be ridden full on the throttle for most of the time. Like an elephant amongst lions. Had to be heaved through the bends on some very unconventional lines. Scared the shit out of my mates.
Some good points. The riding position was more comfortable than the replicas. The half fairing gave more protection in the wet. Fuel was always reasonable at around the 50mpg mark. Riding slowly didn't help it any. The finish was better than most of the modern replicas. They didn't have much chrome to rust but their plastic cracked and alloy corroded with disturbing ease. A mild shunt could write them off whereas the GPz would just leave a large hole in the tarmac.
If the Kawasaki would occasionally throw a wild wobbly it was quite reluctant to follow through by spitting me off. Tarmac rash was largely avoided. One time it caught me out was when I struggled to place the beast on its centrestand. I lost my footing and the next thing I knew was that I was on the ground with 500lbs of prime meat in my lap. Drew a large group of ped's who were perplexed by my screams. Only a fellow motorcyclist had the sense to lever the thing off me! Embarrassing!
In the end I bought a CBR900 but kept the GPz as my winter bike. The Honda was impossible on winter roads. Too much power and too flighty by far. The Kawasaki felt sluggish but safe in comparison. The GPz thrived on damp weather. Even a flat spot around 5000 to 5500rpm disappeared. The power really bit at 6500 revs but there was plenty of punch below those revs. Ideal for riding sensibly on wet roads without being overwhelmed by a sense of boredom.
If you have a limited budget and can only afford one machine, something like the GPz750's ideal. Apart from the heavy running costs but few big fours are much better. Reasonable used ones can be found for as little as £1000 and £1500 will buy a really good one. Unlike the 550 version, they aren't that well thought of on the used market.
The main thing's to make sure that the engine's not on the way out. Difficult with so many high milers out there. If the worst happens, then it's possible to fit one of the tougher GPz550 engines! If you can take the poorer performance, the 750 has that added bit of zest that gives the motorcycling game its kicks.
Dean Shreaver
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Vroom! Vroom! What a strange noise, powerful yet subdued and that whine? Up pulls my mate on his latest bike, massive in red and black, a weird but nevertheless interesting try at a fairing.
'C'mon,' says he. 'Take you for a spin!' After years without a motorcycle, and never having bothered to pass my test, I was a little apprehensive. I borrowed his spare helmet (not a bright idea) and jumped on the back of his Kawasaki GPz750 Turbo. A rather tatty example with a few dents and scrapes here and there.
Off to Epping Forest and the mad mile. This, for those who don't know, is a dead straight Roman road from South Woodford out through the forest towards High Beach and Epping. Lovely. That was until I glanced into the blizzard coming over his head and saw 130mph on the clock! The turbo boost reading in the mad sector, along with neck snapping and arm wrenching acceleration.
I had to have it. Instantly, I was re-addicted to bikes and plotting how to get my hands on the Turbo - fool that I was. I bought myself a KE100 for £300 and set off to pass my test. Thanks to Walthamstow BMF riding school, later that year I was the proud possessor of a full bike licence and a desperate need for something bigger than the KE.
Just at that moment my mate decided to sell his GPz750 Turbo for £600. In leaps foolish me!
'Oh yes, mate, I'll have it,' says I. Handing over the dosh with sweaty hands. To celebrate we went round to the local for one pint, with me riding - solo there and my mate on the pillion on the way back. When we got back, after never exceeding 35mph - I swear - I noticed my mate was a bit green! He got off muttering,
'I must ring our lass.'
I asked why and got the reply,
'Never realised what it was like on the back. I'm not doing that again. Not ever, ever, ever!'
A bit of history about the GPz750 Turbo. Basically, the stock and rather good GPz750 had a turbocharger added to it. What this means is that the bike wasn't designed from the ground up but modified at a time in the early eighties when turbocharging suddenly became popular. At least it was a four, unlike Honda's even sillier effort with the CX650.
The result was a 520lb motorcycle that made 112hp at 9000 revs whilst the torque maxed out at a mere 6500rpm. Compare that with the GPz1100 which weighed 540lbs and made 120 horses at the same revs but developed the same torque 1500 revs higher up the range. Was it worth all the effort? Probably not, read on...
So I was all ready for the land of happy motorcycling. I wish! It's so hard to recall what went wrong first. I had a little get-off in the snow, which cunningly started to fall when I was some way from home. Kind of fun until I came to pick the top heavy brute up whilst trying to gain some purchase on the icy surface. In the end, it took three people and could have been made into a movie, like the Keystone Cops, as we slid and slipped all over the place. Eventually, we got it to the side of the road where it stayed for a fortnight. Obviously a bike made in an era when the Japs had yet to cotton on to the fact that light mass is next to godliness as far as practical motorcycling goes.
The accident was not a good omen. The pick-up coils for the fuel injectors were smashed! A mere matter of £78 plus VAT. Bugger! It also bent one of the clip-ons. My local Kawasaki dealer ordered one for me (they never had anything in stock for it, or any other bike, I suspect) and supplied a French one (which was different). After much muttering and whining they reordered the right one. Only took a month to arrive. Good service, that. Ha!
Then I decided to change the chain and sprockets. When despatchers stop you to comment on the sheer slackness of the chain (with the adjusters as far back as they will go!) and you can't get a link out no matter how hard you try, it really is time to do something about it!
What could go wrong with such a simple job? How about the gearbox output shaft being rounded off! With no intention of stripping the engine and gearbox to replace it, due to the unbelievable cost of seals and gaskets alone, I had a mate tack-weld the engine sprocket on to the old shaft!
With a properly tensioned chain the bike was momentarily transformed. The gearchange was much more positive and not so sloppy as it had been and it had more power making its way to the back wheel. Losses in the old shagged chain had probably been close to 25%! For a while I ran around town, and out and about, enjoying the 4000 to 9000rpm monster power band, with the incredibly lusty acceleration the 750 in-line four and turbo gave. The slight turbo lag seemed to add to the impression of the back breaking onslaught of power!
It had always leaked oil. Now it started to leak petrol. Just a touch, you understand, but enough for me to change all the fuel lines. This didn't cure it. I foolishly rode around for a while like this (actually, for two months) while the leak became worse and worse until I was able to trace it to the petrol tank. Ever tried to get hold of secondhand spares for a 750 Turbo? Breakers laugh themselves silly and then say things like, had one in once but everything went that day.
I found some brave soul who was willing to weld the petrol tank. What with all the fumes it was a wonder he didn't burn down his workshop! Hurrah, back to a wonderfully efficient 25mpg. Turbo's are supposed to be more frugal than straight engines because they use the waste energy of the exhaust to compress more fuel and air into the combustion chamber. Maybe if Kawasaki had started with a clean sheet of paper there would've been more benefits, as it was a lot of the positive virtues of turbocharging were outweighed by the excess mass and complication...
After about three days, it started making a strange noise under the tank. A sort of keening. Little did I know but this was the early warning sign of fuel injection failure! Oh goodie, off to a bike shop and £180 later it was running again, thanks to secondhand parts from a GPz1100, a machine itself not immune to injector hassles.
Just over a week later I had the strangest experience. I was going along the motorway when it started slowing down. With the throttle wide open! Most unnerving. The rear brake caliper had seized full on, due to all the grit off the back end and oil spewing out of the motor. Off to the bike shop again, lots of money later I had a replacement master cylinder, brake light switch and caliper.
Did I mention that the electrics kept giving up? One day the computer kept going through the diagnostic cycle again and again, but refused to let the engine start. I left the bike for two days, much disheartened and confused...the next time I tried it worked perfectly! Well, sort of, if you ignored the dead rev-counter, fuel gauge, instrument lights and tail bulbs. A lot of fiddling around found various breaks in wires, which sorted it. Temporarily. It sort of came and went for weeks. I could never entirely cure it!
In the end, I part exchanged the Turbo for a nice SRX600. I missed the bike's turbo whoosh and wallop, but loved everything about the completely different SRX. I'm now waiting to see if it can be repaired. A lovely, kind, thoughtful cager in her N reg Audi cut across five yards in front of me and broke my leg. Two weeks in hospital, two pins, two screws, six weeks in plaster and a desperate need for my SRX to be okay. The damage doesn't look too bad to me, but I'll just have to wait and see.
Moral? If offered a GPz750 Turbo - run, scream, cut off your own hands if necessary but don't buy it. At any price!
Mike Cater