Hey guys, is this normal—do you experience this too? After riding with the fan running, I turned off my 2009 ZX-14 (the display showed 4 bars at the time). A minute later, I turned the ignition on just to check the time. The display showed the maximum number of bars—6—along with a flashing light. When I started the engine, the temperature dropped to 4 bars; it went down to 3 bars during faster riding and stayed at 4 during slower riding. Is it normal for the temperature to show the maximum level after turning off a hot engine?

Is it normal for the temperature to show the maximum level after turning off a hot engine?

Gen1, bars. My Gen1 got to four bars when new. I'm sure it got to five bars when stopped and i believe I saw six bars after keying ON right after shutdown on a hot engine. I never saw a flashing light. I seem to recall there was a coolant overflow warning icon that flashed on the meter screen. I never had an overflow. Coolant overflows were something we occasionally heard about in the early days of the forum. Virtually everyone griped about how hot the bike got.

Getting back to the question, yes, if your engine is hot while running and coolant is circulating, it's going to get hotter immediately after shutdown because the coolant stops circulating. Whatever coolant is in the water jackets is already hot and all it can do is sit there and soak up more heat instead of flowing to the radiator to dissipate some heat.

My 08 ran extremely hot on a summer day. My brand new Gen3 does too and it shows the actual temperature instead of bars. I saw 220° a few times and I believe that's getting to about the limit where coolant starts to boil, then you have an overflow. Maybe the reservoir fills and then you have a spill. If you're bike's low miles, it should get a little better with break-in. I put a lot of miles on my 08 in the first year and it still ran very hot at the height of summer the following year. I even had a backfire once. I was traveling at a crawl making a U-turn and the stock exhaust let out a bang that sounded like a shotgun. I remember the engine actually hesitated a fraction of a second. I suppose the exhaust got so hot it ignited some emissions and the pulse travelled backwards to the engine. No harm done but something I don't want to deal with.

After putting a full system exhaust on my 08, it ran at three bars, four bars max. It might have went to five at low speeds on a real hot day. Ninety to 100 degrees is a real hot day around here.

I don't think you have a thing to worry about but I'd seriously consider going to a full system exhaust. The weight reduction and sound are great too.

Now I recall that after turning the ignition off and then back on a moment later, I saw those six dashes, though I don't think they were flashing. The only thing flashing rapidly was the red immobilizer light. I sometimes get an immobilizer error, so it might have appeared right then. Does the immobilizer light also flash if the temperature rises to a critical level?

might be worth upgrading to the second fan. and/or running better coolant.

I have a second fan from a ZX-10R. What do you mean by better cooling?

* Last updated by: JohnBrock on 8/11/2026 @ 1:07 PM *

When riding, I see 3 bars. During slower riding—in traffic or up to 50 mph—it shows 4 bars, so that’s normal. The bike doesn't overheat while riding. I just wanted to ask: if you turn off the bike while it's hot and the fan is running, and then switch the ignition back on a moment later, do you sometimes see 6 bars? P.S. Sorry if I’m writing anything incorrectly; my English isn't very good.

The only thing flashing rapidly was the red immobilizer light. I sometimes get an immobilizer error, so it might have appeared right then. Does the immobilizer light also flash if the temperature rises to a critical level?

I'm sure US ZX-14s don't have immobilizers. The immobilizer is a box in front of the instrument cluster, isn't it? We don't have that in the US.

We do have six dash lights like everyone: LH turn, RH turn, high beam, launch/shift lamp, oil pressure.......and the sixth light must be what you call the immobilizer light.....upper LH light, isn't it? I was told you neer want to see that light go on. It's basically a check engine light. If yours going on coincides with the engine temp at six bars, I'd assume it's a warning that you're very close to overheating the engine. US or Euro spec, I'd also expect to see the engine overheat icon on the multifunction meter. I remember now, the icon resembled a thermometer and I think there was something like a cloud of steam? It flashed on the meter LCD.

I don't recall ever seeing that sixth light come on my meter unit, not even when the overheat warning icon was flashing on my multifunc. It's been 18 years since my Gen1 got to 6 bars though. I think I would have remembered if the notorious sixth light came on but I can't say...it's been so long since my engine got that hot. Anyway, if you only see the immobilizer light come on when the engine temp is at six bars, I wouldn't worry.

I have a second fan from a ZX-10R. What do you mean by better cooling?

Wow man, you must live somewhere with a very hot climate. Second fan and still approaching overheat. Good mod, the Gen2 has two fans as well. My 08 ran with the stock single fan but it ran one bar cooler with the aftermarket exhaust. We're extremely fortunate to be able to ride with aftermarket exhausts in the US. It's illegal but police never enforce that law unless they really want to throw the book at you. I've never known of a person being prosecuted for running a full race system on the street in the US. It happens extremely rarely.

If I may answer for my buddy danmin, I believe he is suggesting using a coolant additive such as Water Wetter or Engine Ice. If you are required to use the stock exhaust, you might give one of those a try. If you don't like it though, you will need to thoroughly flush the cooling system with distilled water to get rid of every remnant. It would be impossible to reliably test your coolant strength if it's contaminated with something that isn't ordinary coolant. ...also, are these products absolutely compatible with aluminum engines? Motorcycle coolant is. I always use motorcycle coolant in my motorcycle. Kawasaki Aluma-Cool. For my busas, I use Suzuki coolant. I have no anxiety about what the coolant is doing to the engine that way. It's not worth it to use something cheaper that might cause even the slightest harm to my engine, in my opinion. But if I were to be approaching overheat on the regular, I would try one of the extra-cooling coolants like Water Wetter or Engine Ice.

"When riding, I see 3 bars. During slower riding—in traffic or up to 50 mph—it shows 4 bars, so that’s normal."

Yes, even for Wisconsin or Michigan USA where we only have a few 100° F days in summer. Three bars while riding is very good. Heck, my 08 went to five bars quite often in stop and go traffic. Even with the full system, I would hit five bars if I sat at a stoplight for a long time.

I just wanted to ask: if you turn off the bike while it's hot and the fan is running, and then switch the ignition back on a moment later, do you sometimes see 6 bars?

Yes. Normal. The engine temp sensor is sitting in coolant that is stagnant. The coolant isn't circulating from the radiator. The coolant isn't circulating anywhere. Turn the engine off, you also turn the cooling system off. Hot engine parts no longer transfer heat to coolant that is less hot, they transfer heat to motionless coolant that can only get hotter. The coolant in your thermostat isn't circulating to the radiator to get cooled so it just sits in the thermostat and gets hotter. The entire bike is being air cooled at this time and it's not even air that's moving over the bike, it's stagnant air that passively drifts off the bike. The engine coolant can't even drift off the bike. It just sits there and gets hotter until the extremely inefficient process of ambient air carries away the heat.

P.S. Sorry if I’m writing anything incorrectly; my English isn't very good.

My friend, your English is excellent. I am certain I understand your English as well as a native speaker. Thank you for speaking English with us. It's the only language most of us in the US ever learned...so again, thanks.

Thanks, Rook, for the comprehensive answer. It’s good to know it’s normal to see 6 bars sometimes when turning the ignition back on after shutting off the engine while the fan was running. As I mentioned, the reading is fine—3 or 4 bars—while riding. Regarding the immobilizer light: you're right, US models don't have one because they lack an immobilizer system. I should add that the 6 bars I saw weren't flashing. Is it true that the 6 temperature bars flash when the engine overheats?