RUSTED CHROME
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1978 Kawasaki KZ650

Purchase Date: Spring 1992
PictureThe black Z1 was my brother's, the blue bike was my KZ.
I had been sixteen years old for a few months, spring was arriving and I didn't have a street legal motorcycle to drive. My father and brother had Kawasaki motorcycles and I wanted one as well. My father found me a '78 KZ650 at a reasonable price through an acquaintance and I paid for it with some saved up money. This was my first street motorcycle.

The 1978 Kawasaki KZ650 has a dual overhead camshaft, inline four, air cooled 652 cc engine. The 8 valve (4 intake / 4 exhaust) engine produces 64 hp @ 8,500 rpm with a torque of 41.9 ft/lb @ 7,000 rpm. Bore and stroke is 62 x 54 mm with a compression ration of 9.5:1. The Kawasaki has a five speed transmission, wet multi-plate clutch and a final drive chain. For braking, the bike has a single disc in the front with drum rear brakes. The KZ is heavy for its size with a dry weight of 465 lbs. Fuel capacity is 4.4 gallons.

I didn't have the motorcycle endorsement on my license at the time of purchase. Excitedly, I studied over the handbooks and passed the written/driving tests as soon as I could. The Laconia bike week in New Hampshire was exactly one week after I passed my exam. My father and brother planned a 10-hour motorcycle drive to the event and I was to come along. This adventure quickly broke me in with driving in the rain, long distance traveling, high speed driving, freezing cold morning riding, and slow and heavy traffic driving. The trip was a memorable ride for me, making a grand impact on my future.

The Kawasaki was mostly stock. The seat was replaced at some point in its life for a king and queen style seat. The exhaust headers were also replaced with short slash cut pipes. During my ownership only the sparkplugs, rear sprocket and drive chain were replaced. My father also helped paint the motorcycle from a faded red to powder blue.

The bike ran well with the exception of electrical problems. At some point in the motorcycle's life, one of the previous owners had spliced some wires into a faulty auxiliary connection and it created a chain reaction of poor wiring. I didn't know anything about wiring at the time and didn't care to learn. My father was not a wiring expert either although he was comfortable experimenting. I broke down on the side of the road about a dozen times due to faulty wiring before it was finally straightened out.

The KZ was decently powered, not too fast and not too slow. It was the perfect bike to break me into street riding. I drove the Kawasaki all over the place in our small town and surrounding area. I would like to find another KZ650 someday for a refurbish project.

Sale Date: Spring 1994
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  • Home
    • About Rusted Chrome
    • Contact Rusted Chrome
  • Motorcycles "Current"
    • 1953 AJS 18S
    • 1978 BMW R100S
    • 1984 Moto Guzzi 850T5
    • 2015 Moto Guzzi Griso 1200 8V SE
  • Motorcycles "Past"
    • BSA >
      • 1968 B25 Starfire
    • BMW >
      • 1974 R60/6
      • 1985 K100RS
      • 2000 R1100S
    • Ducati >
      • 1999 900SS
    • Moto Guzzi >
      • 1968 Moto Guzzi V700
    • Gilera >
      • 1966 Gilera 106SS
    • Harley Davidson >
      • 1974 XLH 1000
      • 2008 Street Bob FXDBI
    • Honda >
      • 1962 Honda Dream CA77 305
      • 1969 CB350
      • 1974 CL360
      • 1984 Magna VF750C V45
      • 1986 VFR 750F
      • 1992 CBR 600F2
      • 2001 CBR 929RR
    • Kawasaki >
      • 1975 H1 500 Mach III
      • 1975 KZ/Z1 900
      • 1978 KZ650
      • 1979 KZ400-B2
      • 1980 KZ1000
      • 2001 ZRX 1200R
    • Suzuki >
      • 1989 Katana GSX750F
      • 1992 Suzuki Bandit GSF400
      • 2001 SV650S
    • Triumph >
      • 1965 Trophy TR6SR
    • Yamaha >
      • 1980 XS650
      • 1981 DT175
  • Events/Rides/Misc.