My buddy just bought a 08 ZX 1400 and it seems to have the nedle peged all the time. It has only 3k miles and is flawless. Do these motors always run hot? Is there an upgrade to address this?
thanks,

 

Check the cooling pathway (completely) first. Yes; being an '08 it SHOULD work just fine, but strange things happen. Make sure thermostat is good, fan works, coolant is fresh, air is out of system, no coolant leaks on head or in the engine oil, water pump works, hoses are in good shape, expansion tank and vent hoses are clean and clear, etc. Can always get a pressure check on the rad and cap if you're really bored.
Sounds like something is not right. Better to check now than be stranded.
Welcome to the forums, BTW. Keep us posted. What bike do you have? We want pics!
Gear up; stay safe.

 

Jeff, as I mentioned this isn't my bike.( I don't own a kawasaki) I am doing the research for a friend. He states that the needle will go to the 2/3 or 3/4 mark on the guage. Then the fan will go on. It seems to me this should be normal operations for the bike. My friend is somewhat paranoid being a new bike to him and not really knowing what is normal for it.

Looking at the bike the coolant is clean and the tank is filled correctly. My sense is that all is well with the bike. He was only wondering if these bikes had some heating issues that he should be aware of so he could address them.
I did the search function and nothing came up.
Again, thanks for the feedback.

PS, my bikes are an Aprilia Falco, Ducati 916 and a Triumph Thruxton.

 

I know this is the complete opposite end of the bike spectrum from a 14, but my 250 did this to me on the way home from the shop after it's initial valve clearance check. The needle got to 1-needle's width of hitting the red line sitting at a stop light.

Upon checking the coolant level the next morning, the radiator was a few ounces shy of being totally full. I don't know why it didn't draw in coolant overnight, (or why the shop didn't fill it all the way back up), but but it didn't. I filled it to the rim, closed it up and rode it for several months and it never got that hot again.

 

MAR, yep; caught that, was aware it wasn't your bike. I was interested in what bike(s) YOU owned. Nice line-up! (Except you need a Kawasaki, too.)

 

I have had kawasakis in the past. i put a lot of miles on a 79 KZ100 mk2. I might but my buddies zx 1400 when he tires of it.

 

My 06 10r runs up in the 180-210 area.

 

in sunny s.w florida my 14 runs 1 bar above middle in traffic it will be 2 bars above middle at night its in the middle i think it has a problem

 

let me clarify mine doesnt have the problem i think the original post has the problem

 

so how many bars is how many degrees?