Making Miles on the Concours

We had a break in the Canadian winter (in April) and I finally got a chance to exercise the Concours.  This jaunt took me over 250kms from where I live in the tedious industrial farming desert of South Western Ontario, an hour up to the road to the edge of the Niagara Escarpment where I have a small chance of finding a corner to ride around.  It usually gets colder by the lake, but contrary to physics, it went from 12°C when I left up to 27° by the lake.  It only dropped down into the low 20s again once I found some altitude on Blue Mountain (a hill anywhere but in Ontario).  Even on the straightness I got into moto-zen riding mode.

https://goo.gl/maps/6DWBjfGv1WgbX6Ws5

It's been a long, cold COVID winter #2 and the opportunities to make miles on two wheels have been thin this spring.  A warm Sunday to get up to the big water and stare at the blue horizon was much needed.

It is actually nuclear powered!  I feel like I really bonded with the Connie on this ride - we sailed for miles and we had many more in us when we stopped for the day.  If you're light on the throttle it gets reasonable mileage, but it's a wonderful thing when you wake up that motor.  Kawasaki has a special touch with engines.

I had the 360 camera along for the ride and put together a montage using an incredibly complicated process that involves batch processing the 360 panaramas into 'tiny planet' images and then clipping them all together in video editing.  It isn't for the faint of heart, but it sure looks unique.  This is the how-to if you're feeling brave.

Kawasaki Concours14/GTR1400 Kawasaki Foot Peg Ergonomics

Taking bend out of the bike: the
changes pegs and bar risers
have made so far.

The Concours 14 is an excellent long distance weapon, but it's built for someone much smaller than me.  When you're tackling motorcycle ergonomics you can't just slide a seat back, you've got to physically change parts, and the Concours parts aren't fit for my intentions with it.  I sold a Honda Fireblade to get this bike and it wasn't a like for like replacement.  If I'd wanted (or been able to use) a full on sports bike I'd have kept the 'Blade, so I'm not trying to pretend the Kawasaki is anything like the Honda.  The side of the C14 I'm interested in is the long distance/two up riding bit.

With that in mind this otherwise stock, low mileage 2010 Kawasaki Concours felt like it was trying too hard to be a sports bike when it simply isn't one.  The Honda only gave up 15 horsepower to the Kwak but was over 100kgs lighter!  After one 2+ hour ride the steering, while quite touring in appearance with long bars sweeping back from the headstock, are way too far forward and low for what I want to use the bike for.  At 6'3" and 250lbs I'm also clearly not the average rider Kawasaki was aiming at with the rider ergonomics.  To solve the lean I put in Murph's Kits bar risers which bring the grips 3/4 of an inch back and 1-3/8 inch up toward the rider.  This resulted in a 3% less lean and they installed very neatly, looking stock.

I could live with the pegs but my knees were feeling it on longer rides and my big feet meant I was sitting pigeon toed while trying to keep my feet off the rear brake and shifter.  What sold me on Murph's Kits rider pegs was the promise of no more awkward, pigeon toed foot positioning thanks to the angle in them.  They were straightforward and quick to install (10 mins?) and reduced knee angle a couple of degrees while also allowing me to rest my big wamps on the pegs instead of having to hold my feet off them awkwardly.  A nice bonus is if I hook my boot heels on the new pegs they drop into the windflow under the bike and feel great in vented boots on a hot day; no regrets with that choice either.

But none of this has helped my passenger feel comfortable on the bike, which was a major reason I pitched the Fireblade for a sports tourer.  WIth the panniers on the Connie leaves no room for passengers with big western feet.  The passenger pegs are also set very high, so high you'd have to be seriously into yoga to look comfortable on them.

Unfortunately, Murph ran out of gas after the rider pegs and doesn't offer any passenger peg alternatives.  A bit of lurking on message boards uncovered VicRay Custom Performance who machine a set of passenger pegs for the Concours 14.  Vic sends these kits out himself and it took a few weeks longer than Murph's deliveries (don't sweat Canadian deliveries if you're dealing with Murph, he's got them down!).  Vic's passenger pegs finally arrived this week and I installed them this afternoon.

The instructions were hand written but the installation was well explained and straightforward.  The quality of the machining is excellent and the extension of the pegs means we should have no more passenger ergonomic headaches while riding with panniers.  The rubber isolation and width of the alternate passenger peg also promises greater comfort.  We've been busy with work (contrary to popular belief, teachers work in the summer), but I'm optimistic about this choice too.  The new passenger pegs fold up neatly and suit the look of the bike.  If you didn't know they weren't stock you'd just assume they are.

The last piece of the puzzle is the seat.  The C14 seat is narrow and gets to be quite miserable on longer rides with an awful lot of pressure on your, um, parts.  Alanna described it as, 'hard on the vagina.", so it's uncomfortable for both rider and passenger.

The last time a poor OEM seat made me sad a Corbin saddle solved the puzzle.  I'd have gone for a used one but they retain their value and the used ones I could find were within a hundred bucks of getting my own custom designed seat.

Pre-pandemic my Tiger seat showed up in a surprisingly quick four weeks.  I'm five weeks into having ordered this time but I fear COVIDtime will strike again and the saddle won't show up for some weeks yet.

The pegs relax the legs and the bar risers ease the crouch.  Big Blue is more comfortable than it has ever been and is starting to show the promise of the touring/sports/muscle bike I was aiming for.  Once that Corbin lands it'll be ready to ironbutt on.

Sail Away: First Long Ride on The Kawasaki Concours 14

First long ride with Big Blue/Nami-Chan (not sure what its name is yet) today up to Georgian Bay to listen to the water.  For a kid who grew up by the sea living in landlocked Southern Ontario wears on me so sitting by the shore listening to the water lapping on the rocks calms my permanent sense of dislocation.

Thornbury Harbour, Geogian Bay, Ontario - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA

What's the Concours 14 like to ride over distance?  It's a very comfortable long distance machine. Compared to the Tiger it's smoother, significantly less vibey and quieter.  This isn't necessarily a good think because riding a motorbike isn't always about comfort - sometimes you want it to beat the shit out of you.  What is good is that the 1400GTR is a significantly different bike to ride than the old Triumph Tiger, so both fill a different need in the bike stable.

The Tiger (when it works perfectly which isn't often recently) is a capable off roader on trails and fire roads and lets the wind pass through you since it's practically naked, which is both exhausting and exhilarating.  After the long ride today the abilities of the Kawasaki are much more clear.  The only nagging issue is that my backside has gotten used to Corbin seat engineering and the Kawasaki stock saddle just isn't up to the job, but otherwise the bike is a revelation.  Effortlessly quick, smooth and surprisingly agile in the corners, though you can still feel the weight carries but it carries it low.

Windshield down, lots of airflow, a great view
and the bike feels more likes sports-bike.

For the first time I adjusted the X-screen modular MCA Windshield to its maximum length and it did an astonishing job of protecting me at highway speeds.  So much so that I barely closed the Roof helmet on the ride.  The pocket of air it creates is stable and the wind noise so much less that it's just another aspect of this bike that'll let you do long miles without exhausting yourself.

Ergonomically, the windscreen also does something smart for airflow.  If it gets hot you can lower it to the point where it almost vanishes.  This pushes a lot of air through your upper body and supports your chest from leaning on your wrists.  I hadn't put much stock in an adjustable windshield but it not only changes the look of the bike, it also changes its functionality too.  On long rides changes in airflow keep you comfortable and focused.

Windshield up while you're making tracks
on less demanding roads and you're in a
quiet bubble of air that lets you go for miles.

The bike itself seems to manage heat well which the old ZG1000 previous generation Concours 10 I had did not (it used to get stupid hot!).  If stuck in traffic, even over 30°C pavement, the temperature gauge never went above half way and the fans haven't needed to come on yet.  The lack of wind-flow over my legs on hot summer rides may yet be an issue though, the fairings are too good.

The other complexity piece of the C14 that I wasn't sure I was interested in was the digital dash but that too is proving valuable.  I'm no longer guessing what gear I'm in based on revs and road speed so I'm no longer trying to shift into a non-existent 7th gear, which happens often on the Tiger.  Though the 1400GTR revs so low while in 6th/overdrive (3200rpm @ 110kms/hr) that you wouldn't be looking for another gear anyway.

Mileage has been a concern on this smaller-tank/worse mileage than the Tiger bike.  The Kawasaki's 22 litre tank is 2 litres smaller than the Tiger's which also gets 10+ more miles to the gallon.  I'm going to fill up a spare 2 litre gas canister and run the Kawasaki for maximum range a few times to see what this C14 can actually do.  When I fill it up it cheerfully states it'll do 360km to a 22 litre tank which works out to 38.5mpg or 6.1 litres per 100 kms.  The display shows when you're maximizing mileage so a long ride without wringing its neck to see what mileage it can achieve is in order.  If I can get 400kms out of a tank that'll put me up into the mid-40s miles per gallon, which would be a good return on such a heavy, powerful machine.  The range indicator jumps around to the point of being meaningless and then cuts out when the bike gets low and you need it most - not the best user interface there, Kawasaki, but I've heard there may be a wiring hack to stop that from happening.

So, after a 290ish km run up to Georgian Bay and back I'm very happy with the bike's power, which is otherworldly, it's comfort is good but I'm looking at seat improvements.  I've heard other larger riders put peg extenders on so there is a bit less flex in the legs, which might eventually happen.  Many people also put bar risers on them so the bars come towards you a bit more, but I'm finding that I'm able to move myself on the seat to get a more vertical or more sporty riding position depending on what I'm doing, so bar risers aren't on the radar.

I did pick up a spare fuel bottle that fits nicely in the panniers (which take a bit of getting used to for all the keying in and out but are huge and don't affect the bike at speed at all).  Next time I'm on a long ride I'll top the spare bottle up when I top up the bike and then see how far I can push the range.

It was an uneventful ride except for one incident.  Leaving Thornbury harbour the 360 camera fell out of my pocket onto the road.  I pulled over quickly and safely and then ran back to scoop it up off the road.  There was traffic back at the lights in town just starting to move and 3 cyclists riding on the side of the road coming towards me but still some way away.  I ran out to the camera, scooped it up and ran back to the curb and almost took out one of the cyclists who had elected to accelerate towards me rather than giving me space to get off the road.

She yelled, "bike!" and I made a dexterity check that had me dodging around her rather than taking her off the bike.  They kept going but I was left standing there wondering what the thinking was.  You see a guy duck out into the road to pick something up so surely you would ease up a bit and let him do what he needs to do to get out of the way - but not in this case.  From what I've seen of cyclist's approach to sharing the road, I imagine that I'm entirely at fault for that.  It left me shaking my head at their thought processes.

What's a Kawasaki GTR1400/Concours14 like to ride? NUCLEAR SHINKANSEN!

I picked up this Concours14 (or 1400GTR or ZG1400 depending on what market you're in) back in April for $5500CAD.  It had been sitting for some time and was full of spider nests.  I got the safety sorted yesterday and got the bike licensed and on the road today so we're ready to finally make some tracks with this thing.

What's it like to ride?  I've owned more Kawasakis than any other kind of bike and their engines have always been what makes them special, and this bike is no different.  The 1352cc inline four at the heart of the Connie was identical to the ZR1400 hyperbike's motor back in the day, and it shows.

On my first ride I pulled out to pass a truck and it was behind me almost too quickly to process.  I'm coming off owning a late 90s Fireblade so it's not like I'm inexperienced with quick bikes, but the 1400GTR not only has the horsepower but also has the torque to back it up.  Where the 'Blade was staggeringly quick (and light), you had to wind it up to make it go.  It felt like a light but not overpowered machine at sub 6000rpm engine speeds.  At 6k it became seriously quick and if you were brave enough to chase the 13,000rpm redline the bike turned into a total head case.

You don't need to wring the Kawasaki's neck to make astonishingly rapid progress.  It weighs over 100 kilos more than the Fireblade but makes over 30 more horsepowers and pound-feets of torque; it doesn't feel heavy, which is an amazing accomplishment for a bike that can carry over 500lbs, has shaft drive and feels like it's ready for five hundred mile days.

It's not telepathic in corners like the 'Blade was, but that bike's focus was so singular that it made everything else difficult.  The 1400GTR does a good job of cutting up corners, hiding its 300 kilo weight well, but then it can also ride all day, still hit 40mpg and carry two up with luggage.

Ontario makes you buy a vehicle history when you buy a new bike but I don't mind because it offers you insight into the machine's history.  This bike is a 2010 model but it wasn't first licensed for the road until 2014 (!) meaning it's only been rolling for seven years rather than eleven.  The first owner had it two years and then sold it on to the guy I got it from.  He rode it for a couple of years and then parked it after it tipped over on him in a parking lot (hence all the spider nests).

The prolonged park is what shrank the seal in the clutch that I've since replaced.  The drop also stopped the windshield from moving but both things have been solved now and this Concours, with only 32k on the odometer, is finally ready to do what these bikes do best:  make big miles.  One of the guys at our local dealership is a Concours fan and got his over 400,000kms, so these things have staying power as well as horsepower.

I'm looking forward to getting to know this nuclear shinkansen (Kawasaki Heavy Industries makes bullet trains too!) better this summer.

Chasing down a clutch slave cylinder leak in a 2010 Kawasaki Concours C14

Motorbikes are like sharks, they die if they aren't in motion.  There is a funny moment in the Bakuon!! motorcycle anime where the old motorcycle store owner talks about how lazy motorcycles are since they just lay down if no one is holding them up.  So bikes are sharks that need people to keep them in motion.

The latest project bike is a fantastically complicated machine.  I've rebuilt fabulously complex sets-of-four-carburetors and chased down other complex repairs in motorcycles, but I suspect this 2010 Kawasaki Concours C14/GTR1400 has single systems, like its motorized windshield, that are more complicated than whole previous bikes I've worked on; this bike a complex mix of mechanical and digital engineering, and it's been sitting for several years when its previous owner could no longer give it the urge to stay in motion.

On the Concours the clutch slave cylinder uses brake fluid to hydraulically assist the clutch, giving you an even, assisted clutch action.  I went for a long ride on the Tiger yesterday and I'm not ride-fit yet as it's still early in the season.  The grip muscles in my left hand were singing by the end of the ride and I was getting lazy with gear changes as a result.  A hydraulically assisted clutch would make long rides more comfortable, so there are benefits to this complexity.

This is the first bike I've owned that isn't a simple mechanical clutch that uses a cable tied to the transmission.  On the C14 the clutch is on the lower right of the motor and the clutch and the slave cylinder it feeds is on the left.  When you apply the clutch the brake fluid in the hydraulic system pushes a (very) long rod that runs right through the bottom of the motor over to the clutch.  That long rod is coated in molybdenum disulfide grease and connects the hydraulic clutch slave system to the clutch itself over on the other side of the motor.

One of the parts diagram blowouts I was looking at called the 92026a a gasket, so I purchased that thinking that's where the leak was, but this isn't a gasket, it's a hard spacer.  When you attach the clutch slave cylinder housing to the bottom left side (left and right is with the rider on the bike), this spacer isn't a seal and the bolts holding it on need locktite to keep them in place because they're only held on with 97 inch-pounds of torgue (which is little more than my hand tight).  You don't want to crank on the bolts, you want to sympathetically install the housing to spec so the spacer isn't squashed and can do its job.

When I got into the clutch housing it was pretty grotty.  This stationary shark has lots of little rubber bits in it that don't sit well, and the 92049 rubber piston seal has perished in the years the bike sat.  The brake fluid that the clutch hydraulic system uses was leaking past the seal into the chamber with the rod in it, which is usually dry, and then leaking around the spacer.

In retrospect I should have looked over the shop manual more closely and wrapped my head around how the system works before I rushed in to buy a spacer I didn't need.  I've contacted Two-Wheel Motorsport to get the seal.  They were very quick with a 2-day turnaround (impressive during Ontario's third-wave of Covid) and offer curb-side pickup, so I'm hoping by mid-week I'll have what I need to rebuild the clutch slave cylinder and get the clutch back to spec.

I'm now wondering if this leaking seal was the reason why it was such a pain in the ass to bleed last time - that certainly makes sense.

That clutch cylinder (gold) slides out and the seal and spring are easily accessed.  You need to replace the seal if you remove the cylinder so make sure you've got one on hand if you're going to pop the cylinder out.

It's also recommended that you apply some rubber grease to the seal as you're installing it.  This stuff looks like it'll do the trick and is formulated specifically for a tough life immersed in brake fluid.

Interestingly, replacing this seal isn't in the clutch section of the shop manual but rather in the maintenance section, which suggests that these seals have a limited life-span and are a regular maintenance item.  If you own a C14 you're probably going to be doing these at some point, especially if the bike sits for any time or you're not a regularly clutch fluid maintainer.

NOTES

Upper bleeder is 8mm, lower is 10mm.

SPEED BLEEDER parts listed from Murphs:

part:  SB8125# thread: M8 X 1.25 length: 1.10, (27.99)

part:  SB8125L # thread: M8 X 1.25 length: 1.28, (32.54)

Online resources for Concours Speed Bleeders

Murph's Kits - but they are very US focused  *5 each PN SB8125L, and 2 each PN SB8125*

Dennis Kirk:  gives lots of technical details

FOLLOWUP

The installation of the seal is very straightforward.  You can slide the cylinder out by hand and then remove the seal, which sits in a depression, very easily.  The new one was a snugger fit when sliding it back in, which is probably why the old one was leaking.  I coated the seal in this brake lubricant, which helped it slide in.  Pushing evenly with the heel of my hand helped seat it straight.  I also lubed up the rod that runs through the motor to the clutch with this moly grease.

The whole process took about 10 minutes and no more leaks.  The clutch bled much more quickly and easily without the leak and the clutch feel is excellent now.

Getting the fairing back on required some fiddling as the previous owner's drop had bent the metal piece it attaches to and I'd fixed the cracks in the fairing so they all lined up true now.  I ended up heating it up and bending it back to its usual position and it all went together.  The bike's now ready for a safety but I'm having trouble getting a response from Lloyd, my usual go-to local mechanic.  Hopefully I can get the paperwork in order and get it on the road next week.

Concours Arts & Crafts

It's arts and crafts weekend with the new bike (and a bit of light maintenance changing the gear oil in the final drive.  Here is the list of things to do in the get-it-back-on-the-road plan for the Kawasaki Concours 14:

Solve the top-box situation

I've never had a fancy, colour matched top box before.  The one that came with the Connie is a Givi-based device and I have another Givi box that would slot right in there, but I want the fancy back.

How to get the fancy back?  The stock one broke off when the former owner tipped over a in a parking lot and snapped it off.  It broke one of the bars that hooks into the base and cracked the other.

To solve the breaks and restore the bike to normal removable top-box function I'd need to replace the broken tab.  The former owner threw a couple of bolts through the bottom into the frame mount, but this leaves two bolts poking out if the top box is removed and means the top box is basically permanently attached to the bike, which isn't ideal if you're heading into a hotel for the night when on the road.

The solution was to take  some steel frame and bolt it to the bottom of the top-box while poking it through the hole so it would act as the broken off tab.  The Dremel helped me clean up the holes and the steel frame fit snugly through the break.  I bolted it to the bottom of the case with low profile stove-style heads so they won't interfere with the base and then used Gorilla construction glue to seal it all.  Once it's dry I'll sand it down and paint it flat black and then it should be back to regular service.

I'm very happy with the final results.  I used the Dremel to round the metal tab I made so it matches the stock one and the box slides on and off like stock.  The Gorilla construction glue sealed very strong and securely.  Painting it all flat black makes it all but invisible, not that anyone would see it on the bike anyway.

Solve the paint scratches from the drop

The ColorRite package arrived this week with the suggested touch-up paints for this particular Neptune Candy Blue version of the C14.  It's a beautiful paint job and so the touch-up requires a base coat, the Neptune Candy Blue and then a clear coat on top.

I also picked up some 'Flat Super Black' that should cover the ding on the bottom body panel.

With some steady hands I should be able to minimize the scratches and then buff it into the regular paint work.  It won't be perfect but I think I can cover the worst of it to the point where it's not immediately noticeable.

None of the damage cracked any of the plastic body panels which is incredible considering the weight of the bike.  A bit of touch up and it'll be barely noticeable, especially as it is only at the bottom of the side panels.  All the higher up/more obvious panels look brand new.

If I end up hanging onto this one for a long time I'll eventually get the panels repainted but this was never meant to be an on--a-pedestal bike so I wasn't so worried about some scratches on the body work.

UPDATE

I dremelled down the rough edges from the bike's slow speed drop by the previous owner.  I then ran some fine grit sandpaper over it to flat it.  It isn't perfect but it's much better than it was.  The base coat from ColorRite is designed to darken the naturally light colours plastic so when the Candy Neptune Blue goes on over top it's not also trying to cover up white plastic.

I didn't go for the spay cans from ColorRite because the cost of shipping them was staggeringly expensive (pressurized containers make shippers nervous).  If I'd have ordered the spray bombs the cost of shipping would have been more than the paint itself.  Rather than dropping a couple of hundred dollars on a patchy fix I think I'm going to get these to the point where they aren't obviously damaged and then at some point in the future pull the panels, clean them up and send them out for a professional paint job.

Painting is one of those things that works best with the right kit, and in my tiny garage the opportunity to set up a paint booth simply doesn't exist.  While doing these touch-ups, spring is in full bloom outside and in a matter of minutes everything was covered in pollen.  Things like that make painting very difficult.

In retrospect I should have just cleaned up the damage and painted it flat black for now.  The pens ordered from ColorRite are great for filling in a scratch but damage of this scale isn't what they're designed for.

On the upside, the damage is much less noticeable now.  The other paint I ordered was the 'super flat black' that goes on the lower panels.  After cleaning up that lower panel I discovered a couple of cracks from the drop.  I've sealed them with Goop Automotive Adhesive, which I've used before.  This stuff dries black, is incredibly strong and bonds to everything.  Any time I've done fairing repairs this adhesive hasn't just repaired the break but made the fairing stronger in the process, I highly recommend it.

I wish the paint pens had worked better but I'm not surprised that they didn't, it isn't what they're designed for.  With the body worked neatened up I'm more focused on getting the mechanical repairs (the damned clutch!) sorted and getting the bike on the road with all the maintenance .  Making it pretty can come over next winter.

Kawasaki Concours 14 Project Updates: Easy Fob Battery Swaps and clutch gaskets

The battery in the fob for the C14 Concours is an easy DIY thing to do.  Pop open the fob (there is a hole at the front that you can slip a flat headed screwdriver into and then pop it apart.

It takes a 2025 lithium battery which you can find anywhere, I found this one hanging up in a Shoppers Drug Mart.  Pop out the battery, pop the new one in the slot (make sure the negative side is up), and snap it all back together again.  It took all of two minutes.  No reason to send that job to the dealership.

Meanwhile, having finally gotten the clutch bled and working properly, it promptly started leaking.  I think it wasn't before because it had run almost dry (the rubber cover in the fluid reservoir was sucked right down).

I've ordered a replacement gasket from my local dealer.  It was $14 including taxes and I should be able to pick it up in a couple of days in a curbside pickup.  There are benefits to having the dealer for this bike only fifteen minutes down the road.

You can see the drip lower right in that photo.  It should be any easy install but then I get to bleed the damned system again.  I'm hoping that the process I worked out last time produces quicker results this time.

You can see the rubber gasket on the back of the clutch cover in this photo.  It's three bolts and the whole thing should slide off.  The fluid was so contaminated last time that maybe this is a good thing - a chance to clean it all up inside and out.

I'm hoping to have the clutch sorted by the weekend and then sort out the safety and plates next week (assuming that's possible in COVID-riddled Ontario).

I'm looking forward to getting the Connie in motion again, it's been stationary too long.  Bikes are like sharks, if they don't keep moving they die.  Once this barely broken in (only 31k kms) Concours is in motion again I imagine it'll stay in motion for a long time.

Kawasaki Concours C14/GTR1400 TPMS (tire pressure measurement sensor)

Now that I've gotten this sidelined C14 closer to road-ready I'm seeing a tire pressure warning from the front tire.  Both tires are fairly new with good tread and they hold pressure well (both were still right on 42psi after 2 stationary weeks in wildly swinging spring Canadian temperatures), so this isn't a low tire pressure issue, it's a sensor battery issue.

COG has a very handy thread on it here.  The key take-aways here are:  TPMS appears to be very temperature sensitive and can get crusty when not used for some time as this spider nest covered bike has.  Once warmed up, TPMS can come back to life.  I only went around the block on the bike yesterday and it was only 8°C at the time, so not exactly 'warm'.  As one poster mentions, he's ridden for decades without TPMS so if it's not working it isn't the end of the world.  For me, the best advice here is how to turn off the panicky dash warnings that prevent you from seeing anything else:  

"a simple push and hold of the top button along with a push and release of the bottom button will light up a red warning light, and return the display function to normal when your TPMS battery is low. Also, BDF offers a simple plug in device which restores the range function and eliminates that annoying "LOW FUEL" flashing message."

It appears there are some UI (user interface) issues with how Kawasaki designed the C14 dashboard.  Having only ever owned bikes with analogue dash boards I'm finding this digital fussing kinda funny.  They may not be all fancy with multiple levels of information, but a well designed analogue set of clocks lasts forever, is easy to read and doesn't spaz out and distract you from riding.  Kawasaki really should have thought this through better.

TPMS in the Concours works through a radio sensor inside the tire that monitors tire pressure in real time.  I'd (foolishly) assumed this was somehow mounted in an accessible way around the air valve on the outside of the wheel but of course it isn't.

This handy home-mechanic goes through the process of getting into the tire in a gen-1 '08 Concours, finding the sensor and looking at the battery.  Kawasaki appears to have soldered the battery in (at least on '08s), which makes replacing the battery without replacing the whole unit tricky, but this guy gives it a go anyway.  Soldering onto a lithium batter is brave!  They like to explode when heated.

   

Here's the parts breakdown for the tire pressure sensor - you can see it bolts to the inside of the rim inside the tire so this is a maintenance-when-you're-changing-tires kinda thing.

This is the front pressure sensor part number: Kawasaki SENSOR,TPMS 315MHZ Part # 21176-0748.  

The rear tire pressure sensor is identical:
Kawasaki SENSOR,TPMS 315MHZ Part # 21176-0748

When someone asked how expensive they are to replace in that COG thread, someone else replied, "very."  They're out of stock on Amazon.  New ones are going for $300CAD a pop on eBay, so yes, very.

Partly because I won't miss what I've never had before and partly because I'm tight, I'll get this parked-too-long-Concours into motion and see if that doesn't wake everything up.  In the meantime I know how to turn off the panicky notifications that cripple the dash.  If the sensors don't come back online once warmed up and in regular use again, I'll consider sorting a new battery and/or unit when I do my first tire change on the bike.

Kawasaki Concours C14 Pneumatic Clutch Bleeding

Following that helpful advice on the ZGGTR.org site below, I gave the clutch bleeding another go yesterday.  I should have assumed there were multiple bleed nipples on this very complex and over engineered motorbike.

That poster suggests using a powered bleeding tool instead of the handpump kind.  My handpump one has been heavily used over the past five years.  The glass on the gauge fell off and the rubber hoses have gotten brittle and don't connect well.  On top of that the pump has started locking up on me so I just happened to get an air-line vacuum bleeding tool only a few weeks ago and it's a revaluation.  If you do bleeding in your own garage and have an air compressor, this thing isn't very expensive, seems well built and holy cow does it bleed!

For about thirty bucks (CAD) this thing makes bleeding a much less fraught experience.  The rubber tubing it comes with is flexible and grippy and makes a secure connection with the bleed nipples.  The vacuum control (the red lever) produces even, strong suction that makes bleeding much easier.

Terrible pic, but I'm pointing at the lower bleed
nipple for the clutch down by the gear change.

Bleeding the complex clutch pneumatic system on the C14 is described at "quite difficult" and the hand pump made that the truth.  The air compressor powered bleeder made producing even, consistent pressure much easier, but I was still unable to get the clutch to firm up until I read that piece below and realized there is a second bleed nipple up by the reservoir on the handlebars.  The GTR1400 is a complex beast, but once you start to get your head around how they engineered it, it all starts to make Connie-sense.

Make sure you're keeping the reservoir topped up with DOT4 brake fluid and bleed the top nipple.  When you're getting consistent fluid out of that one do it all up tight and then do the bottom nipple down by the gear shift.  You have to remove fairing to get to the bottom one.  Strangely, the top nipple is 8mm and the bottom 10mm, so you'll need two wrenches to do the job.

Once you've got the bottom one producing bubble free fluid you can lock it up and the clutch comes back immediately, or at least it did for me.

With the clutch flushed and filled with new DOT4 synthetic, I'm looking for wiring diagrams for the windshield.  The mechanism seems to be in good shape but there is a relay click from somewhere near the ignition module when I press the windshield rising button, so I suspect a bad connection or something electrical is at fault, but I need a wiring diagram to hunt that down.

I was worried that the C14 would be too much of a technical handful to DIY, but it's a beautifully crafted thing engineered to within an inch of its life.  As long as you can get your head around that it's not a particularly overwhelming thing to work on, but then I haven't had to put it all back together yet (keep your fasteners for the complex body-work in order!).

Thanks to ZGGTR.org for this helpful advice:

http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?topic=14429.0

"There are two bleeders; the first one is on the clutch master cylinder, pointing straight up.  The second one is on the slave cylinder which is on the left side of the engine. I believe on Gen. 2 C-14's you are going to have to remove the left fairing to get at that slave cylinder.

Bleed the top bleeder first and continue until the fluid is perfectly clear (no air bubbles or foam in the fluid). Then move onto the second bleeder and continue the same way.

Note that these bikes can be quite difficult to bleed at all, and also to finish bleeding (soft clutch or brakes that are nearly impossible to get the last of the air out of). I ended up buying an air- powered vacuum bleeder in 'self defense' just for this bike but they are expensive. The traditional way of pumping the system and then holding pressure on the lever while cracking the bleeder often just does not work as the system will not pump up in the first place."

https://forum.concours.org/index.php?threads/bleeding-clutch-fluid.4122/

Followup: 

When I finally took the bike out the clutch isn't disengaging drive properly and event though there is some feel at the lever it isn't enough to engage the clutch.  I've run an entire bottle of DOT4 through it and still can't get it clear.  Time for some alternative tricks:

http://zggtr.org/index.php?topic=18451.0

"Ended up holding the mityvac hose right on top of the fluid hole over the piston and pumped the lever while sucking. Seem to clear the problem and got lever pressure back. must have got a particle of dirt in the mechanism."

Another option might be to gravity feed fluid into the bottom bleeder and then draw the fluid (and bubbles) up from the bottom and out of the reservoir.

Speed Bleeders for the C14:

https://murphskits.com/speed-bleeders-for-c14/

Speed bleeder how to:  https://youtu.be/QVjPVhoPHow  

https://forum.concours.org/index.php?threads/speed-bleeder-install-help.46199/

Positive pressure bleeding is an alternative.  Perth County Moto has a hand pump:  https://perthcountymoto.com/products/eze-brake-bleeder  I wonder if they have any more German police leathers...

Followup Followup:

Finally got the clutch sorted today.  I got a fluid pump with a one way valve in it and pressurized the lower bleed valve and then drew fluid (and bubbles) backwards (bubbles like to go up) out of the reservoir using the vacuum pump.  Lotsa bubble, then less and less, then none.

The initial fluid had a lot of debris in it (little black dots).  Once I got them out there was a little black tornado of very fine debris which I also vacuumed out.  I suspect this system has never been changed (the bike is 11 years old but low miles and minimally maintained).  With all the debris finally out and the fluid clear, more bubble came out (moving the steering side to side seemed to really do the trick).  When no more bubbles came out the clutch feel immediately returned.

I took the bike around the block - great clutch feel and engagement.  That clutch is a f#*@er to bleed!  Next winter the Connie gets a set of Murph's speed bleeders and I'm doing the brakes (which have also probably not been done any time recently).