My bike is brand new, 1250 miles. Since I've had it the clutch seemed a little inconsistent, mainly N>1. Sometimes it would crash into gear, most of the time lurch pretty heavily, occasionally smoothly. I've always known about the "Kawasaki Clunk", which I thought could be the issue. It shifts up/down through the gears positively. Kawasakis were never known for great shifting trans, or fit & finish. At any rate, I thought I would try this. I was quite surprised to see how discolored/contaminated the original fluid was once I opened the reservoir. Keep in mind it is a '13, so although new the fluid has been in there a while.

So I got it done, and 2 test rides (brief low speed/close to home then a longer jaunt around town). This seems to have fixed the problem, at least today (you know how this stuff goes sometimes, goes away and comes back). Never had a crash into first, not really any lurching, but just a slight amount of drag going N>1 (this I call "smoothly").

Yes, I know I could've probably had this looked at, and maybe something done under warranty. However, I didn't feel like dealing with the hassle of a dealer apt and probably losing loss of the bike for 2-3 days.

Never take the bike to the dealership unless you are absolutely positive they do good work ALL THE TIME. If you don't have references, don't bother.

You can also set your idle down to 1000rpm and that will soften the clunk. Grn set his at 900 on his Gen1. IDK how he set his Gen 2.

Thanks Rook. The fluid change seems to have really addressed the issue, it's consistently shifting smoothly from N>1. At this point it was the clutch not fully disengaging due to contamination in the line. I'm working on a how-to vid for it, if you watch it you'll see how discolored and cloudy the fluid was (or I might post some stills).

Might just give it a try.. Since mine does that what You described....

It's been 350 miles and this has made a big difference. I'm going to do my brakes probably this weekend. My rear has always felt spongy although I think it's just normal. If I can crisp it up just a little, it'd be perfect just about like the clutch. Front brakes are fine, lots of pedal.

Never take the bike to the dealership unless you are absolutely positive they do good work ALL THE TIME. If you don't have references, don't bother.

The dealer I bought my bike from seemed friendly enough. However your point is important. A friend had his bike in for service there, fixed "problems" that weren't problems and were not asked to be looked at or fixed. He also had them check his valves, said his vc gasket is now leaking and it didn't before. I know this guy he's basically a friend and also very mechanical (pretty serious backyard mechanic but mostly cars).

Not really quite sure how I might find a good, reputable dealership to get warranty work done. Don't really trust the other big dealer in my area either.

I was quite surprised to see how discolored/contaminated the original fluid was once I opened the reservoir. Keep in mind it is a '13, so although new the fluid has been in there a while>>>>>

only a little while and what color was the fluid...I wonder how can it deteriorate so fast

only a little while and what color was the fluid...I wonder how can it deteriorate so fast

When I bought the bike, I inquired with the sales manager about the first service and what they would do. Mostly this was just probing to see how much they understood, as I intend to do the services (and have done all so far). It was kind of strange, because she said they'd (along the lines of) "change all the fluids in the bike". That kind of caught me off guard, afaiknew the only thing that gets changed is the oil! (and the service schedule reflects this). So, I just figured she didn't really know wtf she was talking about, which wasn't a good sign. But maybe she knew more about it than I know? I doubt it, but who knows.

Any way, I was going to make a how to vid, but probably won't end up making one. Here's a 6 second video I shot for the video. YUCK!
Vic's Bike - Why I bled my Clutch fluid

looks like mud water

* Last updated by: SlowmoZX14 on 9/1/2014 @ 11:53 AM *

It was so hideous I sucked it out of the reservoir. As I got to the bottom of the reservoir it was green and milky. Completely surprising for a brand new bike, my only thought is there must've been something in the lines when they filled them, or in shipping the cap was very loose or something.

Hope this helps explain things as to why it really did make such a difference.

I'm also very happy to report after a great 100 mile ride today I'm much happier with my back brake too (after bleeding it last night). I'd still prefer just a touch more pedal mid-range, but just that I can get a little braking out of rear with out jamming the damn thing is great.

* Last updated by: VicThing on 9/1/2014 @ 1:16 PM *

the back brake is not going to change, they only seem to be good if you are going 20-30mph but that's for all bike I guess

the back brake is not going to change, they only seem to be good if you are going 20-30mph but that's for all bike I guess

Gotta disagree with you here bud. It's definitely got more pedal now (by more I mean maybe 10%). When I did my test ride, it was all at 30 mph (around my neighborhood) for about 10 minutes. It really made it hard to tell any difference, now that I've really had it out, definite difference.

oh, ok......good job

Kawasaki uses overkill on the brake pedal return spring. This is my 3rd 14 and I have changed the pedal return spring on all of them, how strong of a spring do you need to pull the pedal back up?

I went to the hardware store and was able to locate a spring the same length with a wire diameter of half what the original spring has, probably about 1/3 the tension Two bolts to remove the pedal assembly, 30 seconds to swap the spring. a little white lithium grease on the pivot, and reinstall the assembly.

The difference in pedal feel is fantastic, you actually can feel the pads engaging the disc and the control is 100% better. Less than 5 min and $2.00 to get a better and more usable brake.

I use my rear brake, but don't really count on it doing much.

Wouldn't want to lowside.

Tweak the turn some,but not slow the bike down much.

Just saying.

Kawasaki uses overkill on the brake pedal return spring. This is my 3rd 14 and I have changed the pedal return spring on all of them, how strong of a spring do you need to pull the pedal back up?

I went to the hardware store and was able to locate a spring the same length with a wire diameter of half what the original spring has, probably about 1/3 the tension Two bolts to remove the pedal assembly, 30 seconds to swap the spring. a little white lithium grease on the pivot, and reinstall the assembly.

The difference in pedal feel is fantastic, you actually can feel the pads engaging the disc and the control is 100% better. Less than 5 min and $2.00 to get a better and more usable brake.

Thanks on another forum someone mentioned trying different springs too. Also some bikes appearently have springs in the master cylinder, not sure about 14s though. I'm also going to explore milder brake pads as others have suggested.

Probably try the spring thing first though!

The brake pressure should keep the pedal up all on it's own. I don't have a spring on mine. Saved me .2 oz of weight. LOL I have rearsets and they don't come with a spring.

I'm not seein the relevance of 'stiffer' return springs here?How fast or hard do ya want the pedal to return after pushing on it?It won't affect the calipers at all.Nor the application force while braking.If you want harder braking...why go with a 'milder' pad?Seems you'd only exacerbate a braking grip issue more....it's the pads that stop the wheel...not the return of the pedal....course,you knew that;)

"Kawasaki uses overkill on the brake pedal return spring. This is my 3rd 14 and I have changed the pedal return spring on all of them, how strong of a spring do you need to pull the pedal back up?"....perhaps they did this so the pedal would not be applied so easily...like with your toe or something possibly resting on it.The pistons start working with the smallest of pressure...they already skim the rotors anyway...

No springs in that rear caliper...so that's out(trying to stiffen those up).

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 9/18/2014 @ 9:03 PM *

"Kawasakis were never known for great shifting trans, or fit & finish"...who said this?.Malarky...Geez...sorry...you musta got one from a Monday Morning shift at the plant;)

I don't think VicThe___Fill in the blank hasn't owned too many bikes. I could be wrong, but maybe he handed those (jobs) off and now is attempting things on his own now? Look at my oil? He doesn't read my shitso does that guy even know how to read an owner's manual?

Lettuce wrap this up with who is pressuring whom?

1. Disc = True as if its runout is @ .002" it comes around. But what say there is .001" to the one side and how far did that pad push away? For argument sake, .001".
2. Pad = This is riding on two pins. This is static, therefore no movement. Say the push was .001" each no drag.
3. Piston = This moves if the next part moves back to static. The piston keeps pushing out as that other part constantly returns back to static.
4. Quad Ring = This is where Vic stuck his dick in the master, the crap settles under the quad ring and low and behold a piston that is held stuck with the muck under the quad-ring, no longer returns to static in that machined ring it sits in. Discs drag heats up and warp is one squid move go blaming parts after 2yrs or less of neglect to a new bike... 'Whichever comes first.'
5. Oil = You can't squeeze a liquid per say, so argue away we are now hitting another static as in, no movement until the other part kicks in.
6. Spring = Inside that master is a loaded up spring holding something away from the action. With this spring, you want to play with control of return or else.
7. Plunger = This is the puppy that keeps the compressed liquid from returning. It closes off the passages and now all holes are no loner in return mode gushing out the rez, nor feeding from the rez.
8. Brake spring = It's as if you want to keep that lever from loading the plunger or the brake lever drag is pushing fluid by static alone.
9. Holes = I want that plunger back and away from the holes to both relieve the pressure back to static, remove any bubbles from the heat made, feed that master so the bubbles purge from the hole(s).
10. Pedal = Lube the pivots because they are going to vibrate without that spring grabbing some of that static so as not to move so much...Or...
11... No rear brakes Used = A loss of 4lbs + weight of disc removed.

"Less than 5 min and $2.00 to get a better and more usable brake"...HUH?.Maybe someone could explain this to me...dumbshit that I am;)There IS a possiblity that the firmer spring on the factory pedal setup actually HELPS apply the brake in a more controllable fashion...?????

There IS a possiblity that the firmer spring on the factory pedal setup actually HELPS apply the brake in a more controllable fashion...?????

There's no return spring on the front brake lever. Not needed, not really useful.

* Last updated by: Rook on 9/19/2014 @ 8:05 AM *

[The brake pressure should keep the pedal up all on it's own. I don't have a spring on mine. Saved me .2 oz of weight. LOL I have rearsets and they don't come with a spring]

No springs in that rear caliper...so that's out(trying to stiffen those up).

I'd never heard of it either. Someone said this on another forum that z1000 had spring in the rear master cylinder. For the retards who want to make a big deal about this, it's on riderforums.com go find it yourself. Hell if I know or care if a z1000 has a spring in it's rear master cylinder...just what someone that owns one said.

"Kawasakis were never known for great shifting trans, or fit & finish"...who said this?.Malarky...Geez...sorry...you musta got one from a Monday Morning shift at the plant;)

If nothing else, there definitely seems to be some consistency issues. I'm satisfied with my 14's transmission. However, I will say it doesn't shift as smoothly as my VF1000 did. Which would I rather have? the Big 14 of course!

As far as kawasaki clunk, maybe you've never owned other motorcycles or something but if you've never heard of it https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=%22kawasaki+clunk%22

Look, if you want to just be cocky assholes don't even bother replying.

i felt that my busa was a smoother shifting bike than the 14 for the first couple years i owned both, now they are about equal, i think. the kawasaki will always have the N to 1 clunk but mine had a small clunk 2 to 3 at high rpm shifting fast. I don't notice it at all with the quickshifter installed to the bike.

i felt that my busa was a smoother shifting bike than the 14 for the first couple years i owned both, now they are about equal, i think. the kawasaki will always have the N to 1 clunk but mine had a small clunk 2 to 3 at high rpm shifting fast. I don't notice it at all with the quickshifter installed to the bike.

I just hit 3059 miles today This bike is unbelievable. I don't care that parts rattle and it's got some other imperfections. This thing is just so fun to ride. It handles very well if not great. I'm pushign it pretty hard a few places and I know I'm no where near the bikes limit. It's fast as hell, it's just so fun to be droning along and blip the throttle in 6th and be upt o 120-140 in no time at all. Just power on tap any time, it's just insane. I ride it, and for an hour after I'm done I've still got a smile on face ear to ear.

I cannot believe there's any bike that's more fun to ride than this thing.