Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

Hey guys,

So this is my first bike I've ever owned or ridden and was looking at keeping it for the next 15+ years as my only means of transport to and from work. Do you think it would last that long without any serious repairs that would cost more then the bike is worth? And if I took care of it, what are the chances of it breaking down? I don't know my bikes very well or know their brand name reliability.

I ask as I am looking at buying a house in the next year or two. Having to buy a new car or bike would be hard to afford with house repayments.

Thanks for your input!

hey miles!

with proper care and maintenance, there is every reason the bike could last that long. its a fairly simple, not overly strung engine.

Keeping good oil in it, and getting all the major services done would be the two key points

What he said. I had a ER6n (same engine etc) for 5 years and would still have it now if a 4WD hadn't punted us into a median strip. Keep the maintenance up and check the oil fairly regularly. And keep it clean

I own two 06 and one 07 ER6ns- the highest mileage one is 43000km, and it still runs fine. So far adding up all the mileage while I have owned them they have done around 32000km, in driving school use- gotta be the hardest life. The only problems so far-leaking rear brake calliper- tightened bleeder, split coolant reservoir, faulty radiator cap, (these previous problems all on the one I bought new) and a dirty fan connector, faulty buttons on dash and crack in frame.(second hand one) Later model frames don't suffer this. Starter motors make some pretty horrible noises, so I reckon one day I'll be up for some starter clutches. I expect these bikes to keep going the way they do. Being injected they can't be push started when battery is flat so I keep a spare battery in case of failure and will wet it up when needed. These bikes are funny though- shit to ride when new and get better with age. Suspension on my new one was unrideably stiff but settled down. Best one to ride is my high mileage one. Later model ones like yours have addressed the whinges about my model- vibration, seat comfort and brakes.

I still have my 2000 zx6. I just bought a 2013 Z800 and the ZX6 is still my favourite to ride. It currently needs some head gasket replacement, but that is the only major thing in it's 14 year (80 000K) history. I'd say as long as you treat her nice, ride her regularly, get all the servicing done on time, there is no reason they shouldn't last 10 years on average and more quite often.