Fall 1992 T h e Kawasaki T e c h n i c a l M a g a z i n e Vol. 5 No. 3

ROUTE LIST: o SERVICE o PARTS o SALESP L E A S E R E T U R N T O S E R V I C E L I B R A R Y

by Patrick KellyInstructional Designer,Instructor

Where do we start whendescribing Kawasaki’s lat-est off-road wonder? Thisnew machine is so innova-tive it’s hard to pick oneitem that is more impor-tant than another. From itsall new engine to its state-of-the-art perimeter frameto its sophisticated suspen-sion, the new KLX650-A1has it all. And let’s not for-get about its equally so-phisticated street legalbrother, the KLX650-C1.

Since it has the same100mm bore and thesame 83mm stroke for adisplacement of 651cc,some people may pre-con-ceive the new KLX engineas simply an updated KLR650 engine. However,nothing could be furtherfrom the truth since manynew design features putthis engine in a differentclass. This new engine ismore compact in all dimen-sions, being 13mm nar-rower side to side and30mm shorter front toback. And, while the torque

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Inside!n Service tips & more!

The massive cylinderbreathes through twolarge 38mm intake valves.These valves are fed by a40mm semi-flat slide Kei-hin CV carburetor, whichfeatures a coasting enrich-ener system to preventbackfiring during enginebraking by supplying arich fuel mixture to the en-gine. The carburetor is fedby an extra large airboxfor crisp throttle response.Air enters this large airboxfrom under the front of thefuel tank. This system, theFresh Air Intake System(FAIS), helps reduce main-tenance and keeps per-formance up in dusty andwet conditions.

The exhaust gasses exitthe cylinder through two33mm exhaust valves intoa stainless steel exhaustpipe. Dual overhead camsact directly on the buckets

2 l K-Tech News

KLX650CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

output of the KLX650-Aengine is up 13 percent,its weight is down over 20percent when comparedwith the KLR650 engine.

with outer shims, thesame as used on theKL650-A/B, to open thevalves while dual springsclose the valves. Thecams are driven by Kawa-saki’s unique dual-stagecam-drive system, similar

der but also transfers heatmore efficiently. The moreefficient heat transfer al-lows the piston to cylinderclearance to be tightenedas well.

The bottom end of theKLX engine is also all

completes the KLX650-Alpowerplant. It incorpo-rates a rev limiter to cutthe ignition intermittentlyat 8500 rpm and com-pletely at 9000 rpm, pre-venting damage fromoverrevving.

The new KLX650 engine (LEFT) is “‘in a different class” from the familiar KLR650 unit (RIGHT). Over an inchshorter and half-an-inch narrower, it weighs 20 percent less and produces 13 percent more torque!

to the system used on theVN750. Dual-stage camdrive allows the top of theengine to be more com-pact, and also allows thecamshafts to be closer to-gether for an includedvalve angle of a mere 20°.This extra-narrow includedvalve angle allows the useof a pentroof type combus-tion chamber for excellentsurface-to-volume ratioand exceptional thermal ef-ficiency. This combustionchamber combines with aconcave piston crown toprovide a 9.5:1 compres-sion ratio.

One of the most excep-tional features of theKLX650-A, and a first forany production four-strokeKawasaki, is its electrofu-sion cylinder. The electro-fusion cylinder not onlysaves 2 Ibs. over a con-ventional wet-lined cylin-

new. It features a singlecounter-balancer to helpcancel out engine vibra-tions. Compared to theKL650A/B’s dual counter-balancer, the single bal-ancer has a lighter mo-ment of inertia for quickerrevving and acceleration.The crankshaft also has alighter moment of inertiabecause the flywheels arethe half-circle type as com-pared to the KL650A/B’sfull-circle type. In addition,the crankpin diameter hasbeen reduced to limitpower- robbing friction.Dual oil pumps also dotheir part to reduce para-sitic power losses. Onepump scavenges thesump to prevent the crank-shaft and magneto from ro-tating in a bath of oil whilethe other supplies fresh oilto vital engine parts.

A digital CD ignition

The chassis on the newKLX650 has been de-signed to the same highstandards as Kawasaki’sKX line. Topping the list isa box-section steel pe-rimeter frame. This framegives the KLX excellent ri-gidity for superior handlingcharacteristics combinedwith superior mass cen-tralization.

The front forks are in-verted, with 43mm innertubes and 16-way com-pression damping adjust-ment. They provide 11.8inches of plush front-wheel travel.

The Uni-Trak rear sus-pension utilizes a nitrogen-charged piggybackreservoir shock with 16-way compression-damp-ing adjustment and16-way rebound-dampingadjustment. This sophisti-cated shock is combined

with an aluminum swing-arm to provide 11 in. ofrising-rate rear-wheeltravel.

Braking chores are han-dled by front and rear discbrakes. A floating frontdisc, the same as used onthe KX125/250/500, iscombined with a twin-pis-ton caliper in the frontwhile a rear disc with sin-gle-piston caliper takescare of the back.

Twenty-one-inch frontand 18 in. rear aluminumwheels with straight-pullspokes complete this all-new off-road powerhouse.

Dual-purpose enthusi-asts will be pleased toknow there is a street-legal version of the bikedescribed above: the KLX-650-C1. It’s made to thesame exact standards, butwith some changes tomake it more street com-patible.

The KLX650-C enginehas slightly less intakecam duration for more low-end and mid-range torque.This combines with moreflywheel mass to smoothout the power delivery andprovide a stable idle.

The electrofusion cylin-der is replaced with a con-ventional wet-linedcylinder. This, along with alarger capacity silencer,helps to lower the noiselevel to street-legal levels.

The KLX650-A’s alumi-num kick starter is re-placed with a electricstarter to make starting aneffortless task while athermostat and electriccooling fan are added tothe cooling system tokeep the engine’s operat-ing temperature stable atall times.

To better suit the widerrange of speeds deman-

ded of the KLX650-C, thetransmission gear and finaldrive ratios are changed.

Although the frames arevery similar except forbrackets and gussets, thewheelbase of the KLX650-C is extended 22mm, andthe rake is changed from27° to 28.5° for improvedstraight-line stability.

Because the suspen-sion will not be stressedas much and to help keepthings simple, the frontand rear suspensions donot have adjustable damp-ing force. Front wheeltravel is 11.2 in. and rearwheel travel is 10.2 in.,helping to lower seatheight 2.6 in. from the “A”model.

The front brake disc isincreased in size by40mm to 290mm to in-crease stopping powerand heat capacity of thefront brake. The rearbrake is unchanged.

Other changes to makethe KLX650-C more com-patible with street use area locking fuel tank cap,tool kit mounted next tothe rear shock, mainte-nance-free 8 AH battery,speedometer and tacho-meter, temperature warn-ing light, O-ring drivechain and handlebar-mounted end weights todampen vibration.

With the introduction ofthe KLX650-A1 andKLX650-C1, Kawasakihas raised the stakes inthe big bore off-road anddual-purpose classes. Andthe competition is about tofind out that we’re not bluff-ing! o

(RIGHT) Modern instru-ment cluster on thenew KLX650-C is a

real eye-catcher.

(LEFT) Front forkson the KLX650-Aare inverted, fea-ture 16-way com-pression dampingadjustment andprovide nearly 12”of front-wheeltravel.(BELOW) 650-Cengine has morelow-end and mid-range torque anda conventionalwet-lined cylinder.Larger side coverhouses the elec-tric starter.

The Technical Magazine l 3

Fall 1992Vol. 5 No. 3©1992 Kawasaki MotorsCorp., U.S.A. (KMC).All rights reserved.

K-Tech News Staff

PublisherKawasaki Tech Services

Publications ManagerDon Church

Executive EditorGary Herzog

Editor-in-ChiefGregg Thompson

Communications EditorPatrick Kelly

Regional Editors

North and EastFred DeHart

Central and SouthWalter Rainwater

Contributors

Dave Behlings, Jerry Heil,Keith Pestotnik, JohnPorno, David Pyle, SteveRice, Ray St. John,Sharon Willeke

Graphics/Production

Graphic ArtGregg Thompson

Copy EditorPat Shibata

ProductionNickless Communications

Published by Kawasaki.All suggestions becomethe property of KMC.Sending a service sugges-tion gives Kawasaki per-mission to publish and/oruse it without further con-sideration.Specifications subject tochange without notice.

4 l K-Tech News

Challenge your service IQ—and win new tools too!by Fred DeHartTechnical Services Instructor

Kawasaki will begin anew Service Contest withthe next edition of K-TechNews!

Three tests will arrive atyour dealership via thenext three issues. Eachtest will consist of 100 mul-tiple choice questions.

Don’t know the answer?Look it up in your service

materials-this is an openbook test! Scoring an 85or better on any of thethree tests will get you aprize. A grand prize will beawarded to the highestoverall scoring contestantthat completes all threetests.

This contest is open toall full-line dealership serv-ice personnel. It’s achance to test your serv-ice knowledge, learn while

you search for answers,and win some extra toolsfor your own tool box!

No matter what youscore, you come out thewinner by increasing yourknowledge as you takethe test.

So accept the chal-lenge: Enter the KawasakiService Contest. Look forcontest rules and the firsttest in the next issue ofK-Tech News. o

Micro- : ABCs, VlNs and RFCsby David PyleParts Publications Specialist

Lately I have receivedmany calls regardingpainted parts and decals.There’s no question thatlooking up part numbersfor painted parts can beconfusing. To make mat-ters worse, many timesyour customers rememberthe year they purchasedthe vehicle not the actualmodel year.

Ordering the wrong partcauses many problems.There’s the extra timespent re-ordering the part,filling out the RFC and re-stocking, and there are ad-ditional charges. Andmeanwhile your customeris waiting for the correctparts.

The best way to elimi-nate these headaches isto verify the VIN numberson the customer’s ma-chine. The VIN number in-formation can be found onevery microfiche on GridA-l, and also on theModel ID Grids on the

A-row on every fiche card.After verifying the model

year with the VIN number,pay close attention to thereference number specifi-cations code and year and

model column. Taking afew extra minutes before(and while) ordering willsave you more time in thelong run—and you’ll havea happier customer, too. o

Vulcan™ 700/750 hardstarting and misfiringby Keith PestotnikRocky Mountain Kawasaki

Complaints of random hard starting, poor idling, poorthrottle response, misfires, and sometimes carburetorbackfire or exhaust afterfire on Vulcan™ 700 and 750models can often be eliminated or reduced by reducingthe pickup coil air gap.

The pickup coils are mounted on the left hand side ofthe engine behind the outer alternator cover. The air gapfrom the factory is set at 1.0mm and is not adjustable be-cause of small cast bumps on the mounting screwbosses that hold the coils in place.

You can make this gap adjustable, however, by takingthe coils off the mounting plate and then knocking offthese little locating tabs. Put a dab of grease on a smallsharp chisel and just shear them right off.

Now, install the coils with a 0.5mm gap instead of thestandard 1.0mm gap. This modification has been ap-proved by the manufacturer and is not considered tam-pering (emissions). It’s fairly easy to do and is worthtrying for just about any starting or low-speed runningproblem on the Vulcan 700/750 series.

TECHNICALITIES

“Dualing” drain plugsThe ZR1100 engine looks a lot like the old KZ1100 engineson the outside, but there's one important difference youshould know before you do a service on one: As in the 900,1000, and 1100 Ninja® engines, the ZR1100 engine has adual oil pump, two oil sumps and ... that's right, two drainplugs! One is in the RH side of the oil pan below the primarygear facing down, and the other is in the deeper main sumpbelow the transmission facing forward.

Don't forget this when you do your next oil change on theBig ZR. - Gregg Thompson

Don’t bother with this modification if you are not tryingto solve a problem; it doesn’t increase performance inany way. o

Crankshaft bearings: Speeding up the repair process ...When replacing a four-stroke crankshaft, youhave to select the properbearings according to themarkings on the crank-shaft, crankcase, and con-necting rods. There arethree sizes of “standard”bearings to accommodateclose production toler-ances. In each model’sservice manual, there arecharts that help you selectthe proper bearing foreach journal according tothe marks.

Because you can’t orderthese parts by size, youwon’t know what size bear-ings to order until youhave opened the box andexamined the new crank-shaft, cases, and/or rods,

adding considerable timeto the repair process.

The bearing selectionprocess also holds true forsome engine balancershafts.

To prevent these delaysin the parts order/repairprocess, you can now orderall bearing sizes (threecomplete sets), use thebearings you need and re-turn the unopened and un-used bearings to thedistribution center. Put onthe “Return for Credit”form that you need to re-turn the unused bearingsordered for a crankshaftrepair. There will be no re-stocking fee in these situ-ations.- Walter Rainwater

The Technical Magazine l 5

750 ignition testsby Fred DeHartTechnical Services Instructor

Have a 750 JET SKI®

with no spark? Here are afew quick checks to helpyou find the problemquickly and easily. Youcan use your multimeterand, if you have one, theold Kawasaki CDI tester.Test I: Output from thepick-up coil1. Disconnect the 4-pinconnector coming fromthe magneto.2. Connect the multimeteror tester leads to thegreen and the blue wires.3. Set the multimeter tothe 10 AC volt scale or thetester to low 15.4. Crank the engine overwith the spark plugs re-moved.5. Voltage output shouldbe about 0.5 VAC.Test II: Output from theexciter coil1. Disconnect the 4-pinconnector coming fromthe magneto.2. Connect the multimeteror tester leads to the pur-ple and the red wires.

3. Set the meter to the250 AC volt scale or thetester to high 30.4. Crank the engine withthe spark plugs removed.5. Voltage output shouldbe about 75 VAC.Test Ill: Output from theCDI unit to the ignitioncoil (Note: For this test,you must use the Kawa-saki CDI tester)1. Disconnect the orangeand the black/white wiresfrom the ignition coil andconnect the tester leads tothem, paying attention topolarity. Connect the loadcoil (that comes with thetester) to the leads also.Leave the magneto wiresconnected.2. Set the tester on high60.3. Crank the engine withthe spark plugs removed.

Be sure to disconnectthe stop switch wires andcheck for spark before be-ginning the tests. If thesetests do not indicate thesource of the problemthen additional trou-bleshooting of the ignitioncoil and wiring will be re-quired. o

Impellers: Do they need ...Every now and then, the Hot Line will receive a call from adealer who is baffled by the fact that a 650 JET SKI® pumpimpeller has come right off the threads of the pump shaft andchewed itself up along with the housing. The most commonquestion is, “Doesn’t it tighten itself onto the shaft while it’srunning?”

Technically it does, but on the 550-B and -C, 650, and 750models, the torque that is applied to the threads by running itin the water is very, very slight.

On the older style pumps (including all 440s and 300s) allthe torque it takes to turn the impeller in the water (and that’sa lot!) is transferred to the impeller through the threads be-cause the impeller is threaded right onto the driveshaft. Thedriveshaft turns, the impeller resists, the threads get tight.

On the 550-A models, the impeller is threaded onto thepump shaft instead of the driveshaft, but the driveshaft turnsthe pump shaft which turns the impeller (LH thread), theimpeller resists ... and, yes, the threads get tight.

6 l K-Tech News

JET SKI® 750SX watercraft: Don’t overrev ’em!by Gregg ThompsonSr. Product Support Specialist

We have had many callson the Hot Line about thenew JET SKI® 750SXwhere the flywheel bolthas come loose or the oilpump shaft has broken in-side the pump body. Be-lieve it or not, we thinkboth these failures can becaused by one thing: over-revving the engine. Theway the oil pump shaft isshearing inside the pumpbody indicates it is simplybeing subjected to toomuch torque. That torqueis also applied in the direc-tion that would unscrewthe flywheel bolt. But thetorque needed to shearthe oil pump shaft orloosen the flywheel boltcan only be created atrevs well above the nor-mal operating range ofthis engine.

The ignition system hasa rev limiter to prevent

overrevving, but it is notoperational for about thefirst minute after start-up.It is during this first minutethat we believe the dam-age is occurring. Manypeople (especially peopleinvolved with motocross)are used to starting a two-stroke engine, holding thethrottle wide open for afew seconds and then“blipping” the throttle athigh rpm for a short whileto “clear out the engine.”This procedure doesn’tnormally cause any dam-age to a single cylindertwo-stroke engine sincethey won’t free-rev fastenough to hurt the internalengine parts. But spinninga positive displacement oilpump at 9000 rpm is an-other story!

Kawasaki has made anew flywheel bolt avail-able (P/N 92150-3813)which can be torqued to94 ft/lb instead of 72 ft/lb(the torque value for the

original bolt). Installing thisnew bolt at the highertorque spec. should pre-vent the bolt loosening,but it cannot prevent over-stressing the oil pumpshaft when the engine isoverrewed. So educateyour customers not to revthe engine very high whenthe boat is out of thewater-and not to ride thevehicle at wide open throt-tle for the first minute aftereach startup!

(Actually, the enginewill not overrev as long asthe pump is in the water,but if the customer takesoff at WOT (or WFO, de-pending upon what sportyou come from!) and 100yards out jumps a good-size wake without lettingoff, he/she could easilyspin the engine beyond itssafe rpm range.)

Bad habits are hard tobreak-start telling yourcustomers today. o

... to be torqued?On the pumps used in the 550-B and -C, 650, and

750 models, the impeller is threaded onto the pumpshaft like the 550A. But in these pumps, the driveshaftdrives the impeller directly through splines inside theimpeller. The pump shaft just kind of goes along forthe ride. The only torque applied to the threads is whatit takes for the impeller to drive that little pump shaft.All the torque it takes to drive the boat is carried bythe splines.

You will notice in the service manuals for thevarious 550, 650 and 750 models that the torquevalue given for the impeller is 72 ft/lb. Whenever youare installing an impeller on one of these watercraft,make sure you use a torque wrench. It’s pretty toughto apply 72 ft/lb with your handy adjustable crescent.

You will also need an impeller wrench to do thisjob—P/N 57001-1228 or you can make one: Just cutthe splined end off of an old 650 driveshaft and brazea half-inch-drive socket to it. - Gregg Thompson

The Technical Magazine l 7

TECHNICALITIESWatercraft test tank ...ready-madeby Gregg ThompsonSr. Product Support Specialist

Several times in the pastwe have published infor-mation to help you buildyour own watercraft testtank. However, we realizethat building your own testtank can be both time-con-suming and expensive,and in most cases the fi-nal product is a perma-nent fixture: Where youbuild it is where it stays.

filtration system. Test tankwater gets very murkyvery quickly, so this filtra-tion system is a welcomeaddition.

I had a chance to ob-serve this tank in use at alocal dealer and, in myopinion, it works excep-tionally well. It handles thepump wash so effectivelythat virtually no watersplashes out of the tankduring use. And clean,smooth water is always

Recently, I had an opportu-nity to take a look at aready-made test tankmanufactured by a small,Southern California-basedcompany called BreseeManufacturing. This verycompact all steel tank hasa water surface largeenough (5 ft. x 11.5 ft.) toaccommodate personalwatercraft as large as our650 “SC” Sport Cruiser. Itis designed so that the out-side dimensions are notmuch larger than theuseable water surface.

The tank comes with adavit for loading and un-loading, and a thrustgauge as standard equip-ment. An electric hoist isoptional as is a pump and

delivered to the pumpfrom the front so “cavita-tion” from air in the wateris not a problem.

We at Kawasaki have always strongly recom-mended the installationand use of personal water-craft test tanks by ourdealers, but this is the firsttime we have been able torecommend a finishedproduct that you can pur-chase ready-to-use.

For more technical information plus prices andavailability, contact themanufacturer directly:

Bresee Manufacturing14302 Plantana Dr.La Mirada, CA 90638(310) 944-7339

As JS300 model JET SKl® and then tap the race ontowatercraft begin to age, we the crank with your hand.get more calls concerning The tapers should grip andwhat seems to be slipping be very difficult to separatestarter motors. The starter by hand.motor runs, but the crank- Next, inspect the reduc-shaft and driveshaft are tion gear. On 1986 and 1987turning intermittently or not models, this appears to beat all. a one piece assembly. It is

Look for the solution to actually two separate gearsthis problem inside the gear pressed onto the shaft. Testcase on the rear of the en- it by clamping one gear ingine. The first area of con- the soft jaws of a vise, andcern is the one-way clutch trying to turn the other gearwhich is pressed onto the with large slot-jaw pliers.crankshaft taper by the drive (Be careful not to damage ashaft coupler. Remove the good gear.) Any movementclutch and inspect both in either direction betweenraces and the rollers in the the gears means its time forsprague assembly for wear. a new one.Any visible wear on the On 1988 and later mod-races or rollers can cause it els, the reduction gear in-to slip, and the worn parts corporates a torque limitermust be replaced. to increase durability. This

Next, inspect the tapers part does not directly inter-on the crankshaft axle and change with the earlier part.inside the large clutch piece It works well, but can also be(called the “race” in our overworked from hard start-technical publications). If ing engines and modifiedthere are signs of slippage, compression ratios.the two tapers must be Don’t forget to torque thelapped together to ensure a driveshaft coupler to 72 ft-proper fit. Lap them until Ibs. during reassembly. Ifboth tapers are making you don’t, the one-waygood contact their full length clutch will slip on the taperall the way around. To con- again.firm the fit, clean the parts - Keith Pestotnik

8 l K-Tech News

Hot Tip: A cool way toinstall bearingsby Steve RiceProduct Support Specialist

When installing ball bear-ings into a vertically splitcrankcase or onto a crank-shaft, things can get a lit-tle tight. It’s supposed tobe that way: The bearingsare designed to have aninterference fit in thecases and on the crankaxle. But just pounding onthe parts harder to get thebearings all the way in-stalled is not real good forthem.

So, how doyou get the partstogether withoutbeating on them?Well, youc o u l dmake theoutsidepart big-ger andthe in-side parts m a l l e r !That’s a simple solutionand, luckily, the procedureitself is almost as simple.

When installing a bear-ing in the crankcase half,put the bearing in thefreezer long enough for itto get real cold. Then,heat the cases to about200° F. (If there’s a sealthere, be careful not tooverheat it.) When alignedwith the bore properly, thefrozen bearing should justdrop right in.

When installing thecrankshaft into the bearingin the case half), the bear-ing has to be heated be-cause this time it’s theoutside part. The crank-shaft is the inside part, sofreeze it.

If you use a torch toheat your parts, here’s atrick for heating the bear-ing without damaging theseal: Warm a bearing

driver (or someother appropriately

sized piece ofiron or steel)with your torch,

and just beforetaking the crank-shaft out of thefreezer set yourvery hot slug ofsteel on thebearing. The

heat willtransferto the

bear-ing,

expan-ding it

nicely, and thecrankshaft will drop

right in.Do the same thing to

the LH main bearing be-fore dropping the LH casehalf onto the crank axle.Presto! The engine is to-gether and there is nohammer in sight. o

KE100-B fork sealsI f a customer comes in with a leaking fork seal on hisKE100-B, do you know how to change it? After you getthe bike on your lift and the fork tube off and in yourhands in record time, the big question comes up: Whatholds this thing to-gether? There is nodamping rod bolt at thebottom to take out andno tension rod at thetop.

What is holding it to-gether is a bushing,seal, and snap ring.That’s all. Remove thetop cap and spring, anddrain the oil. Slide thedust boot off the stan-chion tube and removethe snap r ing andwasher that are on topof the seal. Now, clampthe slider in your vise[with soft jaws) at theaxle boss and slide-hammer it apart. Pullthe stanchion tube uphard against the bush-ing several times until itknocks the bushingand seal out the top ofthe slider.

Before installing thebushing and new seal,check the snap ringgroove for burrs. Ifneeded, de-burr it witha three corner file.- John Pomo

TIP

Jet Mate™ stale mate: Check the switchesEvery now and then we geta call on the Hot Line abouta Jet Mate™ watercraft thatstarts and idles fine, butwon’t take any throttle.W h e n t h e c u s t o m e rsqueezes the trigger to ac-celerate, it shuts off as if thekill button was pushed.

usually gone through thefuel and ignition systemsand found nothing.

Unfortunately, by the timethe dealer calls us, he has

If you have a Jet Mate withthese symptoms, the prob-lem is most likely water inone of the three ignition stopswitches. To check for this,disconnect the white wirefrom the igniter going to thestop switches. Each of the

stop switches grounds thatwire to shut the engine off,and if you disconnect this,they can’t do that. If the en-gine runs fine with the whitewire disconnected, then trythe white wire at each switchindividually and see whichswitch(es) has the problem.- Dave Behlings

The Technical Magazine l 9

Service Training ’93: Motorcycle Tech Week and moreby Jerry HeilTraining DevelopmentCoordinator

All of us in Kawasaki’sService Training Dept.have been busy gettingready for the new trainingseason. And in January,several new service train-ing classes will be avail-able to Kawasaki Dealertechnicians.

For sure, you won’twant to miss “MotorcycleTech Week”- four relatedcourses back-to-back inone week. The first day(“Precision Measurementand Diagnostic Tool Us-age”) is spent learningabout the tools used forquick and accurate enginetroubleshooting and re-pair. Day two (“Tune andService”) goes over themost common work takenin by the Service Depart-ment. Days three and four(“Engines”) cover tear-

down and rebuilding of in-line and V-twin engines.Day five (“Modern EngineTheory”) is a half day de-voted to modern enginetheory, with formulas andmiscellaneous informationfrom your instructor.

Each of these coursesmay be taken separately,

if desired.Look for new model Mo-

torcycle Update Classesthis season. There’splenty to talk about; weeven sent a training in-structor to Japan specifi-cally to get information forthis important class. Youwill receive special notifica-

tion soon with the Updateclass schedule.

Come ready to get yourhands dirty in our MULE™class. All models-includ-ing the new products for’93—are presented in thistwo-day class.

Don’t forget about theCONTINUED NEXT PAGE

A student diagnoses alternator problems at the West Training Center.

Same day parts shipment: Order today, install tomorrow!D id you know that in mostcases you can get partsshipped from your masterwarehouse the same dayyou order them? It’s true:Emergency orders placedthrough your K-Share ter-minal before 2 p.m. (yourmaster warehouse time)should be shipped thatsame day! Although sameday shipment is not a guar-anteed service, our ware-houses have shippednearly 100 percent ofthese orders since first of-fering this service almostsix months ago.

accordingly. All premiumfreight charges will be billedto the dealer. Also, thereis an 8 percent handlingcharge on all emergencyorders whether they areshipped same day or not.

Federal Express since itsprices are the lowest atthis time. And, since Fed-eral Express offers a morn-ing delivery next day airservice (at a higher cost)in addition to its regular af-ternoon delivery, it is possi-ble to emergency order a

part today and install it to-morrow. Amazing!

Most premium freightrequests are shipped via

Don’t forget that in or-der to be eligible for sameday shipping, your emer-gency order must bemade before 2 p.m. yourwarehouse time.- Gregg Thompson

If you want first- or sec-ond-day air shipping, don’tforget to code your order

10 l K-Tech News

PARTS

New parts!The band or clamp for thestop switch on almostevery KX/KDX has been asore spot with customers.This part was only avail-able with the switch as-sembly—until now! TheBand Assembly (P/N39183-1059) is now avail-able and is included on thelatest parts microfiche.- David Pyle

Training ’93CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10

“Electrical Troubleshoot-ing” class. This class is allhands-on testing of Kawa-saki parts, systems andvehicles with lots of shortcuts to help save timewhen you perform electri-cal diagnostic work.

“Ignition Systems” and“Charging and StartingSystems” video trainingpackages will be availablesoon. These new home-study courses will join thealready popular partssalesperson’s trainingpackage, “At the PartsCounter, You’re the Key.”

As you can see there’slots of excitement in theService Training Dept.You can be part of it: Signup for a class at your re-gional training center orsend for one (or all) of thehome-study training pack-ages. o

any extra for all those extra hours? Ofcourse, this is not a human employee,but rather a communication device usedby humans.

The hard-working employee is your tele-phone. When everyone else has locked upand gone home to relax, your telephone isstill there, waiting to be of use.

Well, get a recorded message on yourtelephone and take advantage of this situ-ation. Many dealers have excellent re-cordings which let the customer (orpotential customer) know what days andhours the dealership is open for busi-less. Several dealers’ recordings list thetypes of products and service the dealer-ship offers. It can be frustrating for yourcallers to listen to several telephonerings, not knowing whether the store isopen or if anyone there cares.

by Sharon WillekeCustomer Service Representative

D id you know that you have an em-ployee capable of working twenty-fourhours a day, seven days each week, in-cluding holidays? And, did you know thatyou do not have to pay this employee

Get the most fromyour around theclock employee!

These recordings can be clever, hu-morous, professional, and best of all, cus-tomer oriented. Recordings can bechanged frequently to include some as-pect of current events, like racing resultsor exciting new product releases. Manyrecordings offer extensions to various de-partments and allow the caller to leave a

message. Customer oriented recordingsmay give the caller information on serv-ice specials or model close-outs, whileletting the customer know his call is im-portant and making him want to come toyour store. My personal favorites areoften the humorous ones. Bob ThomasKawasaki in Irwin, Pennsylvania, makesvery good use of the humor in their re-cordings. They have an animated an-nouncer with a folksy tone who reallymakes their store sound like a fun placeto do business. Let me know if you havea good one.

You do not know when a customer isgoing to try to contact your store. Doesn’tit make sense to put your recorded em-ployee to work so that you do not missthe opportunity to reach everyone whocalls your store? o

The Technical Magazine l 11

R E G I O N A L N E W S

WEST

It’s time tolearn!by Patrick Kelly9950 Jeronimo RoadIrvine, CA 92718(714) 770-0400

I t is that time of yearwhen all the kids are backin school to learn. And it isalso that time of year foryou to start learning! Well,hopefully you never stoptrying to learn, but now isthe time of year when it iseven more important tolearn something new. It’sthat time when all the newmodels are introduced,and time to get up to speedon any new technology orservicing procedures.

Where, you ask, do Ilearn about all this newstuff? Well, there aremany sources that youcan take advantage of.One of them you are read-ing right now: K-TechNews. Another greatsource is the productsales guide: It’s not justfor salespeople, it alsocontains technical stuff,too! And keep your eyespeeled for the service

12 l K-Tech News

manuals for the new mod-els. Take some time to sitdown and review themwhen they arrive. You willbe surprised how muchyou can learn!

Of course there is an-other great place to golearn, and that is your re-gional training center. Thisis the month when westart training classesagain, so review theschedule and make someplans to attend! o

SOUTH & CENTRAL

Now I'm get-ting ready ...by Walter Rainwater6110 Boat Rock Blvd. S.W.Atlanta, GA 30378(404) 349-2000

For most of the summer Iworked on the Hot Line,helping dealers with tech-nical problems. Now, I amgetting ready for the newtraining season.

We mail training sched-ules every month with twomonths’ schedule on it. Ifyou miss it, check out theback page of K-TechNews. You can enroll inyour choice of classes and

the training center you de-sire to attend anytime. Iwill be glad to explain thecontent of the classes tohelp you decide which aremost helpful to you. Mosthave been revised to in-clude material on the 1993models. Enroll early, asthe classes fill quickly.

It is always a pleasureto meet the people in per-son that I talk with on thephone throughout theyear. Hope to see you inmy classroom soon! o

NORTH & EAST

Would youlike to win?by Fred DeHart201 Circle Drive N., #107Piscataway, NJ 08854(201) 469-1221

Kawasaki Technical Train-ing classes will resumeshortly, so make sure yourservice manager showsyou the new trainingschedule when it arrivesat your dealership.

Would you like to winsome tools? Then enterthe service contest whichwill begin in the next issueof K-Tech News. If you

can score 85 percent youare guaranteed a prize.Finish all three tests at 85percent or better and youhave a shot at the grandprize!

I would encourage all ofour dealership service per-sonnel to participate; Inever met a mechanicwho had enough tools!

A lot of readers haveeither misplaced or neverseen some back issues ofK-Tech News. Well, incase you haven’t heard,all previous issues havebeen copied on microficheand should be in your deal-ership’s microfiche deck atthis time. If you need infor-mation from a past edition

TrainingScheduleEast RegionNorth RegionCentral RegionSouth RegionWest Region

The ’92/’93 training sea-son starts soon. Watch forthe schedule; it looks differ-ent this year. Also, look forthe new model motorcycleupdate class announce-ments.

Be sure to attend—there’s lots to talk about!

... go fiche!You can get more cop-

ies of the K-Tech News mi-crofiche by ordering P/N99961-5007-01.

Look forward to talkingwith you this fall ! o