NSW 1988 Kawasaki KR-1 for sale in Sydney

This is a 1988 Japanese-domestic-market KR-1 (KR250B1), imported from Japan in early 2013. Eligible for Historic Registration in NSW (and elsewhere I believe).

Frame number KR250B-002573

Engine number KR250BE-002040

Odometer indication 36143km.


The JDM KR-1 was near identical to the Australian market KR-1, the main difference being the 14-41 final drive sprockets (Australian market version had 15-40) and the provision of a speed warning lamp.

Despite what some may think, I have found no evidence that the JDM KR-1 was ‘restricted’ in any way compared to export models. As far as I can tell, restriction began with the JDM KR-1S in 1989. Even so, the restriction incorporated into the 1989 JDM KR-1S did not become effective until the road speed reached 180km/h.

I think this KR-1 is in much better condition than one may expect for a 30-year-old bike. The main problem with it is that the right-hand crankshaft oil seal is blown, as confirmed by smoke billowing from the right-hand exhaust with the engine running when I bought it in 2013. This didn’t concern me, as I intended to dismantle the engine for inspection anyway. I also intended to completely dismantle the rest of bike for cleaning and detailed inspection, clean out and seal the fuel tank, replace the vacuum-operated fuel tap with a gravity-feed fuel tap and then reassemble it. In my opinion, the present condition does not warrant full restoration – it is only original once!

This project was never started because I found a near identical, slightly cheaper, lower mileage KR-1 in slightly better condition which I rebuilt instead. Although I would like to keep this bike, it is unlikely I will get around to fixing it up, despite the relatively small amount of work involved.

As purchased in 2013, a previous owner had carried out a ‘fenderless’ conversion by removing the original rear mudguard and replacing it with an assortment of (badly) hand-made aluminium sheets with some bent pieces of steel for mounting the indicators. Luckily, none of the remaining parts were damaged, so I found an original uncut rear mudguard and have now fitted it.

The bike comes with a copy of the import approval document and also a certificate stating that it complies with Australian Design Rules.

Since buying the bike in April 2013, I have not carried out any work on it (apart from removing the fairing and fuel tank for general inspection and fitting the correct rear mudguard) and have not tried to start the engine again. Since then, the bike has been stored in a dry garage under a cover. Two or three times a year, I have ‘turned the engine over’ using the kick-starter.

As far as I can tell, the only major items needing attention are an engine rebuild (to replace the blown crankshaft oil seal) and cleaning out and sealing the fuel tank.
I removed the fuel tap to allow better inspection of the interior of the fuel tank. The fuel tap is included, but it will likely need repair or replacement.
Although the work just mentioned would probably be enough to get the bike roadworthy, I would recommend dismantling everything, cleaning and inspecting for wear or damage before reassembling.


The good features:

1. Two identical keys will be supplied, which operate the ignition & steering lock, fuel cap lock and seat/toolbox lock.
2. All hand and foot controls (steering, brakes, throttle, clutch, choke, gear shift) work correctly – no control is seized.
3. The engine turns over smoothly (no roughness apparent) and has compression and spark on both cylinders.
4. With a 12V DC source connected to the battery terminals, the KIPS valves open and close when the ignition switch is turned on.
5. All six gears and neutral can easily be selected.
6. All the electrics (lights, indicators, horn etc.) work, although the push-to-cancel function on the indicator switch sometimes doesn’t engage after selecting the right-hand indicators.
7. Apart from some aspects of the fuel tank (described later), the bodywork is in very good original condition. The top section of the fairing has two small cracks (one at each of the mirror mounting points), but these do not seem to affect the fit or use. The finish on the front mudguard is slightly faded on the front section. There are a few small scratches, scuffs and chips (and perhaps one or two very small cracks) around the rest of the bodywork, but it is generally in remarkably good condition. The red “KR-1” stickers are missing from the belly pan section.


The not-so-good features:

1. As already mentioned, the right-hand crankshaft oil seal is blown.
2. There is a slight brake fluid leak, which appears to be coming from the banjo connection to the rear brake master cylinder. I daresay that new copper washers will fix it.
3. The fuel tank has surface rust inside, a small dented area on the right-hand side, some light staining to the left-hand side and a small pin hole (about 1mm across) at the top rear. I reckon the internal rust problem could be easily sorted with a POR-15 kit, as I have successfully treated worse tanks than this in the past. The pin hole should also be small enough to be sealed by the fuel tank liner supplied with the POR-15 kit.
The dents on the right-hand side are obvious, but not large – I would leave them as they are if I was keeping the bike. The light staining on the left-hand side could possibly be polished out.


Some other features:

1. The forks, front brake discs and calipers have been replaced by KR-1S parts. The discs and calipers may actually be from a ZXR400 as they are painted metallic blue/grey instead of gold, but they are otherwise identical to KR-1S parts.
The fork stanchions do not seem to have any rust spots and there are no apparent oil leaks. The fork yokes and front wheel are standard KR-1.
2. The brake discs all appear serviceable, each being about 4.5mm thick. Each is marked with a minimum thickness of 4mm. Brake hoses are aftermarket stainless-steel-braided.
3. The tyres are Bridgestone BT92 (110/70-17 and 140/60-18) and appear to be in good condition. If I have interpreted the markings correctly, they were made in 2008 and 2009.
4. Some of the original bodywork fasteners have been replaced with stainless steel Allen screws, but all appear fit for purpose (those for the fairing have plastic washers underneath). As far as I can tell up to now, all other fasteners are of the original type.
5. The pillion seat pad is black instead of white and may have been recovered at some point.
6. I have not inspected the front final drive sprocket, but the chain and rear sprocket appear to be in serviceable condition with minimal wear and no rust.


The bike is in storage at Alexandria 2015. Inspection is welcome by appointment. I will not be attempting to start the engine, but will demonstrate sparks, KIPS valve operation and that all lights work. Prospective purchasers may bring their own compression gauge for checking each cylinder if desired.

The asking price is $3750 cash-on-collection. I may consider very close offers, but will keep the bike in storage for the future if nobody wants it. Any questions or requests for additional photos, please let me know.

If any prospective purchaser is put off by the condition of the fuel tank, I can offer a fuel tank in better condition (also with original paint), as an extra. Although it is much less rusty inside, this extra tank also needs cleaning out and sealing. It has a very small dent at the left-hand rear, near the bottom, along with an adjacent scratch in the paint, which has been touched up by a previous owner. I bought this extra fuel tank second-hand from Japan a few years ago, at a cost of $350. The purchaser will have the option to buy this extra tank for the same price.

If interested, please post a reply here and then get in touch via PM.

Thanks & regards,
James

 

Thanks Chris (and Murdo), but no interest yet .

Regards,
James

 

Unfortunately, the only place it is going very quickly is back into storage! It is thus withdrawn from sale, but may still be available in future. If anyone is interested, please send me a PM.

Regards,
James