Just bought a used GZ, what checks?

[varangianknight]

Gday, a week ago just bought(what i think) is a good GZ from a dealer. Its got 40,000kms (24,000 miles) on the odometer. ive ridden it about 500 kms since then and i was just wondering what i should be cheking on now. Ive got the owners manual, thanks for posting that jonathan180IQ, so i should be right to DO it. I was just wondering what basic maintenance i should do for a (sort of) new bike?

[blaine]

I would do a oil change & valve adjustment.Clean and adjust chain.Make sure tires are good.Adjust clutch & throttle free play,if needed.Clean & lubricate all pivot points.Good luck.
:cool:

[alantf]

Plus - check air filter & clean/swap if necessary. Also look under the bike for the air box drain tube. It'll have a plug in the end (held by a circlip). Remove the plug & drain the tube, then replace the plug & circlip.

[Water Warrior 2]

You might want to install an inline fuel filter to the carb. Cheap and easy way to avoid potential problems in the future. Almost any small engine repair shop will have some.

[lenkf]

1) I checked my GZ today and there's not much of a tube to put an inline fuel filter between the petcock and the carb. Further, what tube is there is all downhill to the carb. Does it hurt if I add extra tubing to accommodate a filter and the filter is below the carb? Will that affect the reserve fuel capability?

2) I'd also check the brakes. You can see the thickness of the front disk brake pads. Front disk brake on my "new" GZ always squeaks so the noise is not a reliable check. Also check the rear brake to make sure the the marker on the actuating mechanism (brake spreading cam) is within bounds of the marks on the rear hub.

3) next figure out a way to jack up the rear wheel so you can apply proper oil on the "o-ring" chain. The US GZs do not have a center stand that would make that job easy. My motorcycle stand doesn't work without extra blocks of wood due to sadly designed undercarriage of the GZ on California legal bikes. Check to make sure the drive and rear wheel chain gears are still in decent shape (even peaks). When adjusting chain, make sure you're sitting on the bike as the chain is tighter with weight on the bike.

4) When checking oil in the sight glass on the right side, make sure the bike is balanced. If it's not balanced when adding new oil, you can overfill the engine causing performance problems.

Good luck.

[blaine]

Originally Posted by lenkf

1) I checked my GZ today and there's not much of a tube to put an inline fuel filter between the petcock and the carb. Further, what tube is there is all downhill to the carb. Does it hurt if I add extra tubing to accommodate a filter and the filter is below the carb? Will that affect the reserve fuel capability?

You can add extra fuel line.But you must avoid sharp bends & make sure the filter is above the carb.I made this mistake the first time I installed a filter.I tried to use a bigger filter,and let it rest under the carb.The bike will starve for fuel at road speed.You need to install a small filter and keep it between the petcock & the carb.This one fits nicely. :cool:

[mrlmd1]

You can also find a small filter like that with one of the connectors coming off at a 90 degree angle which makes the whole thing easier to install. You may have to look around for it but it's not that hard to find.

[mole2]

Originally Posted by mrlmd1

You can also find a small filter like that with one of the connectors coming off at a 90 degree angle which makes the whole thing easier to install. You may have to look around for it but it's not that hard to find.

Some of the lawn equipment filters might work real good so he should check his local home improvement or lawn equipment stores.

[jonathan180iq]

Change your oil - viewtopic.php?f=8&t=566

Valve Adjustment - viewtopic.php?f=8&t=5061

Spark Plug change - viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1715

Add a Tachometer - viewtopic.php?f=8&t=533 (I consider this necessary if you plan on keeping this bike for a while. Immensely helpful when diagnosing problems and performing maintenance.)

[mrlmd1]

How old is the bike? How old are the tires (there should be a date stamp on the sidewall in a rectangular box with the week and year of manufacture). If the tires are more than 6 years old they should be replaced as the rubber gets hard and brittle and the tire loses traction, even with good tread on it.