Kawasaki Er6n

[Nickymaster]

Hi Guys,

After having read most of the comments (62 pages) I thought it should be nice to be part of the kwacker club.

I own a ER6-N(green) since 2 months. Before I had a KLX 250 and Ninja 250. Both a bit small for my 100kg butt. Bought them all in Pattaya.

Very pleased with my ER6. Still standard and looking for a slip on. Any suggestions (Tony, Norman..just to name a few hard core bikers).

Cruise safely!

Nicky

[NormanW]

Hi Guys,

After having read most of the comments (62 pages) I thought it should be nice to be part of the kwacker club.

I own a ER6-N(green) since 2 months. Before I had a KLX 250 and Ninja 250. Both a bit small for my 100kg butt. Bought them all in Pattaya.

Very pleased with my ER6. Still standard and looking for a slip on. Any suggestions (Tony, Norman..just to name a few hard core bikers).

Cruise safely!

Nicky

Welcome to the club Nicky.

Tony is the expert when it comes to mods.

I think he has put on a two bros when he had his er6n and now he has got a er6f with an arrow I think, is that right Tony?

You can see his efforts on YouTube as well as him doing 200kmh on his f.

Keep those good times rolling!

Congrats.

[Nickymaster]

Tony,

I still have the Yoshimura slip on from my Ninja 250. I have looked at the one for my ER6 and the can seems to be identical. I was thinking that maybe when I modify the connection pipe and the hanging lug it might work on my ER6.

What do you think?

Cruise safely!

Nicky

[Desertexile]

Tony,

I still have the Yoshimura slip on from my Ninja 250. I have looked at the one for my ER6 and the can seems to be identical. I was thinking that maybe when I modify the connection pipe and the hanging lug it might work on my ER6.

What do you think?

Cruise safely!

Nicky

Brilliant - found the thread!

Any ideas where the nearest dealer is to Rayong? If its pattaya , does anyone have the number? thanks

[husskydog]

Hi Guys,

After having read most of the comments (62 pages) I thought it should be nice to be part of the kwacker club.

I own a ER6-N(green) since 2 months. Before I had a KLX 250 and Ninja 250. Both a bit small for my 100kg butt. Bought them all in Pattaya.

Very pleased with my ER6. Still standard and looking for a slip on. Any suggestions (Tony, Norman..just to name a few hard core bikers).

Cruise safely!

Nicky

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Kawasaki-Er6...78#entry2992478

This is what you`re after Nicky, Scorpion,no remap req`d for this quality great sounding uk made pipe, and if you want more fit the pcv+auto tune as i have done....and no repacking req`d, and as yet no signs of the rivets failing like reports on the 2bros...regards

[NormanW]

Tony,

I still have the Yoshimura slip on from my Ninja 250. I have looked at the one for my ER6 and the can seems to be identical. I was thinking that maybe when I modify the connection pipe and the hanging lug it might work on my ER6.

What do you think?

Cruise safely!

Nicky

Brilliant - found the thread!

Any ideas where the nearest dealer is to Rayong? If its pattaya , does anyone have the number? thanks

Hello Nicky,

There are dearlers in Rayong but I don't know where they are. What I did though was buy mine in Pattaya (0899383678) and then got them to register it in Rayong.

All the best.

NormanW

[MattCinderey]

Can anyone recommend a good quality mineral oil for the ER-6N?

Matt.

[ontherock]

Does any one know where i can get a Puig scrren fro my ER6-n (smoked transparant colour). At the moment Surat is out for 3 months and i am having trouble finding anyone who is carrying one in stock.

Cheers Kev

[CroBiker]

Does any one know where i can get a Puig scrren fro my ER6-n (smoked transparant colour). At the moment Surat is out for 3 months and i am having trouble finding anyone who is carrying one in stock.

Cheers Kev

Guess you will have buy one at ebay. I got my there too.

EBAY STORE

[ontherock]

Thanks for the info

i think sorcing one here is no go at the moment.

Cheers Kev

Does any one know where i can get a Puig scrren fro my ER6-n (smoked transparant colour). At the moment Surat is out for 3 months and i am having trouble finding anyone who is carrying one in stock.

Cheers Kev

Guess you will have buy one at ebay. I got my there too.

EBAY STORE

[BigBikeBKK]

Kawasaki recommends Shell VSX 10W40.

Can anyone recommend a good quality mineral oil for the ER-6N?

Matt.

[BigBikeBKK]

Last I heard Kawasaki Chiang Mai has Puig screens in stock for the ER6n. May be cheaper to buy on eBay though...

Good luck and happy trails!

Tony

Thanks for the info

i think sorcing one here is no go at the moment.

Cheers Kev

Does any one know where i can get a Puig scrren fro my ER6-n (smoked transparant colour). At the moment Surat is out for 3 months and i am having trouble finding anyone who is carrying one in stock.

Cheers Kev

Guess you will have buy one at ebay. I got my there too.

EBAY STORE

[MattCinderey]

Kawasaki recommends Shell VSX 10W40.

Can anyone recommend a good quality mineral oil for the ER-6N?

Matt.

Hey Tony, Shell VSX is semi-synthetic oil (?). I thought I read an article someone had posted on here a while ago stating that even semi-synthetic oil wasn't good for engine break-in and that you should sure pure mineral oil. I'm sure the shell or castrol guy interviewed recommended using semi/synthetic oil from around 10,000km plus...

Can anyone recommend a pure mineral oil that is suitable for this bike? What about Shell Advance SX 4T (15W40)

Or am I worrying too much!?....Oh dear, my OCD is kicking in again..

Matt.

P.S. Changed my mind, cancelled the ER-6N and went for the 650R after seeing one in the flesh yesterday. 15 days to go...

[BigBikeBKK]

Kawasaki recommends Shell VSX 10W40.

Can anyone recommend a good quality mineral oil for the ER-6N?

Matt.

Hey Tony, Shell VSX is semi-synthetic oil (?). I thought I read an article someone had posted on here a while ago stating that even semi-synthetic oil wasn't good for engine break-in and that you should sure pure mineral oil. I'm sure the shell or castrol guy interviewed recommended using semi/synthetic oil from around 10,000km plus...

Can anyone recommend a pure mineral oil that is suitable for this bike? What about Shell Advance SX 4T (15W40)

Or am I worrying too much!?....Oh dear, my OCD is kicking in again..

Matt.

P.S. Changed my mind, cancelled the ER-6N and went for the 650R after seeing one in the flesh yesterday. 15 days to go...

You are correct - you should avoid using synthetic or semi-synthetic oil for the break in. For the first 1000 km use any good quality mineral oil. Most wear happens in the first 20-50km so recommend picking up the bike and taking her for a a spin then coming back and changing oil and filter before riding home to Samui. Continue break-in to 1000km then switch to the Kawa recommended Semi-Synthetic. Don't forget your bike has a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty and Kwackerzaki make some pretty tough engines. Ride It Like You Stole It!

[MattCinderey]

You are correct - you should avoid using synthetic or semi-synthetic oil for the break in. For the first 1000 km use any good quality mineral oil. Most wear happens in the first 20-50km so recommend picking up the bike and taking her for a a spin then coming back and changing oil and filter before riding home to Samui. Continue break-in to 1000km then switch to the Kawa recommended Semi-Synthetic. Don't forget your bike has a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty and Kwackerzaki make some pretty tough engines. Ride It Like You Stole It!

Thanks for the info. Does the oil have to be a certain spec for the bike due to wet clutch or something?

Or should I just grab any good-brand mineral motorbike oil?

My girl rang the dealers today to ask if it is filled with oil at the factory or by themselves with oil? They replied "we put gasohol in it" - Oh Dear!....

Matt.

[12DrinkMore]

Religion comes in many forms including Man Made Global Warming and Motorcycle Oils. I posted something on oils a while ago, but the information is all over the internet anyway.

You need

1. SAE 10W-40 (for temperature and viscosity)

and

2. JASO MA (to prevent clutch slipping problems)

I think that the general recommendation to change the oil after the first 50 or so kilometers is valid, as this is the main break-in period. After that I really cannot see any reason to not use 100% synthetic oil, which is engineered to provide superior performance and last longer without all the performance additives found in standard oil, which tend to break down relatively quickly, particularly in high performance engines.

But maybe those proponents of using standard oil for the first 1,000 kms can explain which particular property standard oil exhibits which is superior to synthetic oil for this distance?

And why bother using semi-synthetics unless you are bothered about the extra 150 Baht/litre?

Anyway, I changed oil at around 100 kms, 500 kms, 1000 kms and then every 3,000 kms, using 100% synthetic oil (Motul Hitech 100 10W-40 except for the oil that Kwackers Chiang Mai put in, which I think was a Yamaha oil), which costs around 300 Baht/litre.

[BigBikeBKK]

Religion comes in many forms including Man Made Global Warming and Motorcycle Oils. I posted something on oils a while ago, but the information is all over the internet anyway.

You need

1. SAE 10W-40 (for temperature and viscosity)

and

2. JASO MA (to prevent clutch slipping problems)

I think that the general recommendation to change the oil after the first 50 or so kilometers is valid, as this is the main break-in period. After that I really cannot see any reason to not use 100% synthetic oil, which is engineered to provide superior performance and last longer without all the performance additives found in standard oil, which tend to break down relatively quickly, particularly in high performance engines.

But maybe those proponents of using standard oil for the first 1,000 kms can explain which particular property standard oil exhibits which is superior to synthetic oil for this distance?

And why bother using semi-synthetics unless you are bothered about the extra 150 Baht/litre?

Anyway, I changed oil at around 100 kms, 500 kms, 1000 kms and then every 3,000 kms, using 100% synthetic oil (Motul Hitech 100 10W-40 except for the oil that Kwackers Chiang Mai put in, which I think was a Yamaha oil), which costs around 300 Baht/litre.

From what I've read yes, most of the wear during break in occurs during the first 50km or so, but break-in continues, to a lesser extent, for the first 1000km, which is why regular mineral oil should be used to that point.

Use of synthetic oil before break-in is complete will not allow the engine to break-in completely. That's just what I've read, but it makes sense if you think about it.

Oil is certainly not a religion for me and I know that Kawasaki makes some incredibly tough engines. I've done the hard break-in with my last 3 Kawasaki bikes and ridden them all very hard and they've all performed wonderfully with no mechanical issues whatsoever (other than the very poor quality chains on the ER6n and Ninja 650R- but that's another story). IMO if you don't ride your bike hard, then there's really nothing to be concerned about and you can use any decent 4 stroke motorcycle oil and forget about it.

As far as using semi-synthetic vs pure synthetic... If you change oil and filter per the service manual I really can't say why one would be better than the other- the benefit of using pure synthetic is you can go farther without an oil change since pure synthetic will not break down the way mineral oils will. But I change my oil and filter frequently and Kawasaki recommends semi-synthetic so that's what I'm using. I change oil and filter every 3000km and trust that the Shell VSX Semi Synth oil Kawasaki recommends is more than adequate.

Ride On!

Tony

[12DrinkMore]

From what I've read yes, most of the wear during break in occurs during the first 50km or so, but break-in continues, to a lesser extent, for the first 1000km, which is why regular mineral oil should be used to that point.

Use of synthetic oil before break-in is complete will not allow the engine to break-in completely. That's just what I've read, but it makes sense if you think about it.

But why? I've thought about it and can't think of any answer.

The break-in is basically removing a microscopic amount of metal from the piston rings so they match the cylinder walls. With a new bike the cylinder walls are given "scratches" (scratches being a massive exaggeration) to aid this process.

I can go along with the "hard break-in" idea, but am not convinced about the use of mineral versus synthetic during the first 1,000 kms.

But as you say, Kwackers engines are very robust and I expect a long life from my machine. I do note that you are changing your oil at twice the recommended interval, something I do as well, in the hope that this will have a long term advantage. I imagine that any difference in oil type usage will only manifest itself over many tens of thousands of kilometers, and possibly only be noticeable on a test stand anyway.

Also if you ride around with an average of say 5,000 rpm, then after just one hour the pistons have been up and down over 300,000 times and after 10 hours, possibly a reasonable time for 1,000 kms, the pistons will have been up and down those cylinders around 3,000,000 times. Can't image there is very much break-in left after the first hour even.

So far no problems with the chain on my ER6N, very little stretch after 14,000 kms. But I do not put in any track time, although do give the right (and indeed left) wrist some work to do where possible.

Ride on indeed! Hope to get down to Singapore this year. Malaysia is great for biking.

[BigBikeBKK]

Also if you ride around with an average of say 5,000 rpm, then after just one hour the pistons have been up and down over 300,000 times and after 10 hours, possibly a reasonable time for 1,000 kms, the pistons will have been up and down those cylinders around 3,000,000 times. Can't image there is very much break-in left after the first hour even.

So far no problems with the chain on my ER6N, very little stretch after 14,000 kms. But I do not put in any track time, although do give the right (and indeed left) wrist some work to do where possible.

Lucky you! The chain on my ER6n was dead at about 18,000 km and the chain on my Ninja 650R only lasted 16,000km and really should have been changed before that.

I've taken video and pictures of the chain on my 650R and complained to Kawasaki about the poor quality of their Thai-made DID chain. I've asked Kawasaki to tell me how long their chains should last (minimum). While the staff at the Rama 9 service center have been apologetic and have acknowledged that the chains on the EX650's don't seem to last as long as they should I have yet to get an 'official' answer from management... Ah well... I'm sure I'm partly to blame for thrashing the bikes and probably shouldn't complain too much for 257k

Still, I think a decent quality motorcycle chain should easily last 30,000km...

Ride On!

Tony

[neverdie]

Had my first run with a er6n and blew him away.....at the next set of lights he was like ....me suspecting he didnt have much experience nor much ticker, great looking bike tho

[Richard-BKK]

I get it...what you mean with blew him away... the ER6N rider was smoking a cigarette and you where in knees together and head between the handlebar on your underbone Suzuki Raider R150. I see a lot of Thai boys riding like that, I normally let them win because I feel bit sorry for them, and not want to create dangerous situations for them...

Of course it's possible that the Kawasaki is indeed less powerful then the Suzuki Raider R150... I currently not have a ER6N so I have to see what others say, but I find this story a bit of something for around the camp fire with a six-pack...

Edited March 12, 2010 by Richard-BKK

[neverdie]

I get it...what you mean with blew him away... the ER6N rider was smoking a cigarette and you where in knees together and head between the handlebar on your underbone Suzuki Raider R150. I see a lot of Thai boys riding like that, I normally let them win because I feel bit sorry for them, and not want to create dangerous situations for them...

No Richie, he was like alot of guys around the place, got himself a nice new flash m/cycle (and it was nice) but obviously lacked goolies to use it properly. He was kind of tooled up but too afraid to use it .

Too fat in the traffic Richie, ive said it before and I guess I will say it again, but for moving around the inner city etc, i want something thin.

[neverdie]

you where in knees together and head between the handlebar on your underbone

Ritchie, I like to sit upright and ready to make legstikes at knobs going past on their overpriced ducatis

[Richard-BKK]

Good point the Suzuki Raider R150 is 652mm width and the Kawasaki is 760mm width, just over 10 centimeters (less then 3 inch)

[neverdie]

Good point the Suzuki Raider R150 is 652mm width and the Kawasaki is 760mm width, just over 10 centimeters (less then 3 inch)

Richie, math isnt your strong point is it. If the kwaka is 760 and you take away the 652 Raider (and im assuming uve got correct widths) then you actually end up with 108mm (nearly 11cm) which is actually 4 inches & 3/10ths. (And those figures probably remind you of something else richie)

[Richard-BKK]

Yes you right, 11cm indeed reminds me of something relative to your reply. 7Eleven sells a extra long Smokey bite sausages, the name of the 7Eleven sausages is used by Thai street racers (small bikes) as a riding position...

As I understand it, it's with the head near the handlebars and locked together feet on the buddy seat or body faring at the end of the tail of the bike...

[neverdie]

WHATEVER richie, I like the er6n, but i dont fancy riding it, or anything else in close quarters, up gutters over pedestrians etc etc.....flame me all you like but i blew the er6n off in bangers and the guy was a little peaved, he couldnt get thru where i could.... .....had he been able to get thru onto clear ground then he would of shreded me with tyre rubber, i know that.

Richie, build a bridge.

[TongueThaied]

Does any one know where i can get a Puig scrren fro my ER6-n (smoked transparant colour). At the moment Surat is out for 3 months and i am having trouble finding anyone who is carrying one in stock.

Cheers Kev

They have one in stock at the Nakhon Sawan Kawasaki shop. You can call Surasak (owner) at 089-8585759. He speaks a little English and is a pleasure to deal with. Don't quote me, but it it might have been 5,000 baht. I got a MRA VarioScreen for mine. Not the sporty look of the low profile screens like the Puig, but I can duck behind it when following sand or gravel spewing vehicles (don't wear a fishbowl).

[BSJ]

CroBiker's link to that ebay site shows the price of the Er6N Puig screen at 105 quid and the KTM Super Duke screen at 68 quid.

5000 baht seems like a bargain!

[TongueThaied]

From what I've read yes, most of the wear during break in occurs during the first 50km or so, but break-in continues, to a lesser extent, for the first 1000km, which is why regular mineral oil should be used to that point.

Use of synthetic oil before break-in is complete will not allow the engine to break-in completely. That's just what I've read, but it makes sense if you think about it.

But why? I've thought about it and can't think of any answer.

Why break-in with synthetic vs. mineral? Okay, here's the answer:

The only basic difference between synthetic oil and mineral oil, apart from its manufacture and origin, is the molecular and particulate structure of both the lubricants. Synthetic oil being a perfected product, has a very even and uniform structuring of molecules and particulates. On the other hand, mineral oil contains uneven and less uniform molecules as compared to synthetic oil. Think of two sacks of ball bearings. One sack, the synthetic one, contains perfectly uniform bearings. The other sack, the mineral one, contains slightly flawed bearings of varying size. That's the difference in a nutshell.

Now, when the car or motorcycle, engine, piston and piston block is new, it is always advisable to use, mineral oil. The uneven molecular structure of mineral oil makes the uneven surfaces of the components and auto parts rub with each other and erode, thus making the surfaces even and smooth. This is very useful, as the young components of the engine get into shape and adapt to the mechanism. In the case of pistons and rings, they seat more perfectly, which can lead to slightly more compression, i.e., horsepower, in the broken-in engine. As the engine grows older, the components get into shape and start running swiftly without any friction. This is where one should start using synthetic oil. This oil basically keeps the engine in shape and helps in increasing the durability of the engine.

One of the major factors affecting engine life is component wear and/or failure, which is often the result of high temperature operation. The uniformly smooth molecular structure of synthetic oils gives them a much lower coefficient friction (they slip more easily over one another causing less friction) than petroleum oils. The result is better heat control, and less heat means less stress to the lubricant. Less friction also means less heat, and heat is a major contributor to engine component wear and failure. Synthetic oils significantly reduce these two detrimental effects.

In addition to heat reduction, heat transfer is an important function of oil. Since each molecule in a synthetic oil is of uniform size, each is equally likely to touch a component surface at any given time (remember the sack of ball bearings), thus moving a certain amount of heat into the oil stream and away from the component. This makes synthetic oils far superior heat transfer agents than conventional petroleum oils.

There's more regarding the long term advantages of synthetics, such as greater "film strength," engine deposit reduction, better cold temperature fluidity, improved fuel economy, and slightly improved performance, but enough.

I agree that most of the break-in occurs in the first 50 kilometers, but it continues for long after that, lessening with each additional kilometer. Personally, I always wait until I have clocked at least 10,000 kilometers before changing to synthetics. Is there any benefit to waiting beyond 1,000 kilometers before making the change? I really have no idea. Everybody seems to have an opinion. Knowing that one cannot unfu¢k a sheep, I simply choose the longer peroid.