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Preventative maintenance

onpman4402

onpman4402

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Since I've got 2 feet of snow with no end in site I was wondering what things I should take advantage of on my 08. Since plastics are off i was wondering are there known issues that i should fix or just do them as they happen? For example O ring cam sensor.... Is this this something that happens on most bikes or random. Bike only has 7k miles and I've flushed all fluids including shaft drive oil change. Just trying to plan ahead.
 
onpman4402 said:
Since I've got 2 feet of snow with no end in site I was wondering what things I should take advantage of on my 08. Since plastics are off i was wondering are there known issues that i should fix or just do them as they happen? For example O ring cam sensor.... Is this this something that happens on most bikes or random. Bike only has 7k miles and I've flushed all fluids including shaft drive oil change. Just trying to plan ahead.
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Do the ORing cam sensor, it will leak - period.

Also check all the hoses and hydraulic lines, 15 YRS is ample time for some degradation.

Lube your throttle cables.

11K is Air Filter have a peek at it.

Are tires fresh? Check for any cracking from age if they’re up there...

Wayne, Carol & Blue
 
This lubricator looks just like the Motion Pro cable luber I use, Motion Pro's has a little more flash, color and probably price... :rolleyes:

I also use Motion Pro's lube and this is a case of a little goes a LONG way, you will get the lubricant pressurized through the cable and one end to the other real quick.

You DO NOT want to use just any lube, some (I have not experienced but heard of others) will gum up the cable and liner.

Most cables these days last forever (the smoothness does) there's a Teflon coating on the sheathing that cables run through. So I think lubricating is something many people skip since the Teflon sheathing maintains a smoother action longer...

Kawasaki's C-14 FSM recommends yearly or every 12K miles this procedure is followed which does require removing the cable from both ends to properly grease ends and lubricate entirely the cable / tubing.

1673119298773.png
 
I have used sea foam deep creep for cable lube a long time. snowmobiles, dirt and street..stays fluid and really gets in the cable. I have a few big gauge syringes and i just let it run down the line. Ill spray some in a shot glass and let it settle, suck it up with the needle. Nice little spot oiler too.
 
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This is a little off topic, but I had to share. I'm part of the Kawasaki forum on Reddit and someone asked of 50K on a 2012 Connie was a lot of miles. I said no, if periodic maintenance was done, if the valves hadn't been touched I would be worried. Another guy jumped in and said preventative maintenance is over rated and that he had 60K on his 2009 with the original air filter and untouched valves. He said as long as it sounded good and ran good he wasn't going to touch it!
 
horsenuts123 said:
This is a little off topic, but I had to share. I'm part of the Kawasaki forum on Reddit and someone asked of 50K on a 2012 Connie was a lot of miles. I said no, if periodic maintenance was done, if the valves hadn't been touched I would be worried. Another guy jumped in and said preventative maintenance is over rated and that he had 60K on his 2009 with the original air filter and untouched valves. He said as long as it sounded good and ran good he wasn't going to touch it!
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I read that one too!
 
It must depend a lot on where the valve clearances are when new. I had my valves done at a local shop at 17,000 miles and about half the exhausts were out of spec tight.
 
horsenuts123 said:
It must depend a lot on where the valve clearances are when new. I had my valves done at a local shop at 17,000 miles and about half the exhausts were out of spec tight.
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Mine performed at 30K - 15/16 valves were out of spec (tight).

Others I’ve done also the same 10-15 valves tight at 25K or more miles.

Wayne, Carol & Blue
 
onpman4402 said:
Since I've got 2 feet of snow with no end in site I was wondering what things I should take advantage of on my 08. Since plastics are off i was wondering are there known issues that i should fix or just do them as they happen? For example O ring cam sensor.... Is this this something that happens on most bikes or random. Bike only has 7k miles and I've flushed all fluids including shaft drive oil change. Just trying to plan ahead.
Click to expand...
Pull the battery and abrasively clean all connections including the ground at the frame. I did that today and it was badly needed. Poor connections bring out the electrical gremlins.
 
horsenuts123 said:
This is a little off topic, but I had to share. I'm part of the Kawasaki forum on Reddit and someone asked of 50K on a 2012 Connie was a lot of miles. I said no, if periodic maintenance was done, if the valves hadn't been touched I would be worried. Another guy jumped in and said preventative maintenance is over rated and that he had 60K on his 2009 with the original air filter and untouched valves. He said as long as it sounded good and ran good he wasn't going to touch it!
Click to expand...
I picked up my 09 last year with 9,000 miles on her. When I pulled the air filter, the sealing foam gasket had been reduced to crumbs. I cleaned up all surfaces and installed a new K&N. The brake and clutch fluid were as dark as tea. I replaced all rubber lines with stainless units then cleaned and flushed out the systems with ample amounts of new fluid. I immediately received the rewards of better throttle response and greatly improved feel of the brake and clutch.

For my next trick…. I am going to use a rotor hone to clean off all 3 rotors and add semi-metallic pads. The stock, organic pads are not the greatest. A valve job, complete fluid change, new header, and ECU flash are on the docket for the spring work this season.

Anyone who ignores preventive maintenance, especially on critical systems, is taking on a fools gamble. I want everything at top performance when I sling my leg over for another ride.
 
Good job Rlievenski. You have to keep the maintenance up on all things, to include our bodies. Some parts that state they have longevity on a motorcycle, do not. I replaced a BMC high performance air-cleaner in the Connie after several years. When I was removing it, it fell apart ! This component was supposed to last. If I would not of replaced this, the material would of ended up inside my throttle bodies and possibly killed the motor. Don't forget the fuel filter (sock) replacement. This component gets clogged very quickly with the low grade fuels from the gas stations...Sean
 
sean97123638 said:
Good job Rlievenski. You have to keep the maintenance up on all things, to include our bodies. Some parts that state they have longevity on a motorcycle, do not. I replaced a BMC high performance air-cleaner in the Connie after several years. When I was removing it, it fell apart ! This component was supposed to last. If I would not of replaced this, the material would of ended up inside my throttle bodies and possibly killed the motor. Don't forget the fuel filter (sock) replacement. This component gets clogged very quickly with the low grade fuels from the gas stations...Sean
Click to expand...
I also plan on replacing all coolant hoses when I do my first valve adjustment when she gets out of storage. Santa left an awesome set of heated grips for me for Christmas. I look forward to adding them for those cool spring mornings!
 
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