sorry to hear that, man...best of luck-

They should absolutely pay for the service. Maybe we can send kawasaki an email with the threads regarding this problem from this web-site...just an idea.

 

I didn't have much luck either. They said that they would pay for the frame but I'd have to pay for the labor. The frame itself only costs about $700 which is a LOT less than the labor to replace it. A lot of bikes are showing up with the same cracks but Kawasaki will not step up and accept responsibility for the safety issues. They figure that the cost of lawsuits(death or otherwise) is cheaper than a total frame recall of 2 years worth of bikes including parts and labor. If enough people log in the complaints with the NHTSA, they will investigate the issue and maybe it might save someone's life that may not know of the crack... I'd imagine that there are a lot of people that have the cracks on their bikes but just don't know that they're there. It's sad that they have taken this stand but it'll be the last Kawasaki I'll ever buy. It's been a flawless bike until this. I've never even used any type of warranty claims either. So much for their help.. Better luck to you..... Just don't forget to log in the complaint... http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/home.cfm

Sunshine

 

Where do you live?

 

Update

spdy - I live in Southampton, UK.

Got a response from Kawasaki UK yesterday. As expected they will only pay parts, not labour. That's their so-called "goodwill" policy.
I did phone and have a bit of a rant but they wouldn't budge, and they know it would cost me more than it's worth to take legal action. They even admitted that it was not my fault... so surely it must be theirs? In which case why should I pay for their design / manufacturing faults?

Anyway, I accepted their "generous" offer and they are sending me a frame. The local Kawasaki dealer wanted £400 to fit it, but I can get a qualified Kawasaki mechanic friend of mine to do it for £200 ($400 US?), so it's not too bad.
I'll also take the opportunity to get the frame, subframe and swingarm powder coated black at the same - £80 the lot - Bargain!

I guess Customer Satisfaction doesn't mean a lot to Kawasaki. I've been a loyal Kwak fan for years, and bought several of their bikes new. I do loads of miles and always get the bikes serviced at a main Kwak dealer, so over the years they've had loads of money from me. It seems my loyalty and custom means little to them. Makes you wonder if any other manufacturers would show a little more respect...

 

:? I have checked the frame on my '00 several times and find no cracks, even with 24,000 not always gentle miles, track days, and one lowside. I think the cracks happen in a small% of all units, like defects with any other brand, and I doubt the service would be much better. My local Kaw/Suz/Yam dealer says that Kaw is by far the better of the three when it comes to factory recalls/fixes.

I will keep checking mine, and if it happens I will get my son to MIG it up right and just paint it. Too bad anyone has to suffer this ill though, it does not look like fun swapping frames. This fall I am going to replace everything but the oil drain plug with new ZX-10 components, so then the point may be moot.

 

I guess if it was me I wouldn't worry about it. I wouldn't think replacing the frame would be that big a deal. Just take a bit of time to do. It would make a great winter project.

So does anyone know what the % of failure is. I'm thinking that it must be pretty small. Do they have a recall on it? or just a service warning?

 

I will keep checking mine, and if it happens I will get my son to MIG it up right and just paint it.

Actually, you would TIG weld the crack. You 'll just need to install some bracing behind there to prevent it from stress-cracking at the new welds since it'll have some heat to it...

With 26K miles on mine, I would have expected that I would have been safe to say that my frame wouldn't have cracked. But, it just recently showed up. Fortunately I had been regularly looking for it since it had been an issue brought up here on the forums. I think that most of the cracks start on the inside of the frame and then work their way across to the top. The inside is a high stress point anyhow with that dimple in there.....

Sunshine

 

My frame cracked about a yr ago and i got it tig welded. I drag race and run some 1.50 60 ft times and havent had any problem.

 

What are the differences between MIG and TIG welding? IN laymans terms please...

 

MIG (GMAW or Gas Metal Arc Welding) - An arc welding process which joins metals by heating them with an arc. The arc is between a continuously fed filler metal (consumable) electrode and the workpiece. Externally supplied gas or gas mixtures provide shielding.


TIG Welding (GTAW or Gas Tungsten Arc) - Often called TIG welding (Tungsten Inert Gas), this welding process joins metals by heating them with a tungsten electrode which should not become part of the completed weld. Filler metal is sometimes used and argon inert gas or inert gas mixtures are used for shielding.

 

In laymans terms....

MIG- wire-feed welder
TIG- using Tungsten and Argon gas manually feeding in a "filler" rod into the melted area.. Kinda like gas torch welding..

Sunshine

 

Thanks for the explanations guys.

 

MIG, TIG...

What I Should have said....is I will just wrap the bastard with half a roll of duct tape and call it good. Simple, easy, cheap.

Jus kidding

 

Naw.... Just drill a couple of holes and safety wire it together..LOL

 

Cracked frames?

Is this problem only on the 00 or does it affect 01- up yrs as well? I'm looking at getting a 9R.Thanks guys

 

It seems that mostly the 00 models are effected. There was a frame revision somewhere on the 01 models. Some of the ZX-6R's are even having some issues with the frames too.....

Sunshine

 

Sunshine, Do you know that forcertain? As far as I've known the '00 and '01s are the same except for the paint?

 

Is there a list of affected VIN ranges or is this happening to all models?

 

Yea, somewhere in the 01 production the frames are different. Besides, I have not heard of an 01 with issues at all. They are the same otherwise..

 

Yea, somewhere in the 01 production the frames are different. Besides, I have not heard of an 01 with issues at all. They are the same otherwise..

That warms my heart? Does that mean I can resume my regulailly scheduled wheelies and such?

Actually if the change happened mid production, I'd love to know what vins are weak framed. Where did you get you info? I wanna do a little follow up. 8)

 

I've worked on a couple of them recently and I had one that was a little different... So I assume that there was a change somewhere down the line..

Sunshine

 

Boing!

Just got the bike back from my friendly local mechanic on Easter Sunday.
Thought I'd post a piccie:

Couple of other pics available here:
http://www.zx-12r.org/PhotoPost/data//500/2100DSCN3447.JPG
http://www.zx-12r.org/PhotoPost/data//500/2100DSCN3446.JPG

Cost of job:

New frame (supplied by Kawasaki 'goodwill' policy) - £0
Labour - £200
Swingarm bearings - £30
Oil / Coolant - £20
Powder coat frame, subframe, swingarm - £90
Total: £340

Many thanks to:
Pete Maxted for stripping and rebuilding in his spare time - a superb job done. Pete used to be chief technician at Southampton Kawasaki until they collapsed. He has worked on my bike many times and I would recommend him to anyone. Good mechanics are hard to come by, and he is the best.
Steve Willis of K&N powder coating (Portchester, Hampshire) for powder coating at short notice. Job turned around in 1 day. Excellent quality, with two coats of powder.

 

Damn that black powder coating job looks sweet...I wish I knew where to get that done to my nine here in the states. How much did the powdercoating cost ya?

 

I am stripping an 01 down right now to get powder coated black and some other stuff done to it.

The owner picked up a set of Sato adjustable rearsets for it the other day. They are really nice.

 

Larry the bike looks awesome. I really like the colors, with the black frame and wheels.

On a side note:
I appreciate you putting the cost of the rebuild, but I have no clue what that equates to in the states? lol