If you've been following my work for a while, you're probably aware that I have a certain fondness in my heart for '80s and '90s Japanese bikes. Very specifically, I tend to be a Honda girl (see my Hawk or my VF500F Interceptor as exhibits A and B), but I'm also always curious to see what the other three Japanese OEMs had going on during the era, as well. I've got enough curiosity for all of it, honestly.
And as an enthusiast about bikes of this era, I have, of course, done my fair share of trawling online listings for the kinds of bikes I'm interested in. As anyone who spends any amount of time doing this can probably tell you, your mileage will definitely vary by market, particularly depending on what your particular interest is.
If I look directly in and around the Chicago area, it's tough to find a super clean, gorgeous Japanese bike of this era in the condition you'll see on this 1988 Kawasaki Ninja EX500. Especially not for $1,000, even if it's not running properly. (Trust me, while my VF500 didn't come from Wisconsin or Illinois, it also wasn't $1,000 and it's definitely had a rougher life than this Ninja has.)
Granted, that's presumably why this one was priced so low, but still. Even not running, that'd never happen in my area, even though Wisconsin isn't all that far away. For both vintage bikes and sports team rivalries, it's a whole other world north of the Cheddar Curtain.
If you're also an enthusiast with a soft spot in your heart for bikes of this era, chances are excellent that you're already getting warm tinglies just looking at the still image of this bike, before you even click the Play button on the video. Look at those fairings! That Muzzy pipe! For heaven's sake, the seat doesn't have a single crack in its cover! The pink accents on the wheels (aftermarket, but nicely done) just make the white and gold color scheme look even better!
When you do watch the video, the aesthetic appeal only becomes clearer. I swear to you, I practically swooned when I saw how nice and crisp and clear the gauge cluster was. No weird haze, or cracks, or evidence that it sat out too long in the sun. The windscreen has a little bit of crazing, but nowhere near the level you'd expect on a bike of this age.
It's extremely clear that whoever owned this bike in the past took very good care of it, and it's probably spent most of its life parked indoors when it's not been out riding. At the same time, it has been ridden, which is also what you want to see. The total sweet spot for bikes of this era, in terms of use and care, it appears.
Joe of 2Vintage picked this bike up for a song, as he often seems to do up in Wisconsin. As usual, he says it's because the seller said it wasn't running. But if you have the kind of skills that 2Vintage seems to demonstrate in all their videos, and you run into this situation with a bike looking this good, you'd hand over the $1K and wheel it right into your trailer too, right? Right.
Now, with what I've gone through so far with my 1985 Honda VF500F Interceptor, my instant bias was to wonder if it was a carb issue. But of course, I wanted to watch the video to see if my suspicion was correct.
As 2Vintage carefully gets into this bike, you see even more clearly what great condition it's in. There's one body panel that's missing (the tiny one near the right side of the saddle; you can see it i the still above), but all the others seem to be in fantastic shape. When he pulls off the lower fairing/belly pan (it's all one piece), it's just so nice. Nicer than any bike of this age has a right to be. Unbelievable.
It still even has the original Kawasaki factory tool kit tucked up under the saddle! Color me envious, honestly. You love to see it (or at least, I do).
He then starts checking all the things you'd expect: Fuses (all good), spark, compression (insanely good; no, seriously, be sure you watch this part). Eventually, he ends up taking the carbs off to check them, and discovers a little bit of clogging and one pinched diaphragm that needs replacement just to be safe, but nothing big or serious.
And then there's the vacuum line going to the fuel petcock. It seems to be impeding proper fueling on this little '88 Ninja EX500. Once he bypasses it entirely, the thing runs so sweet it's unreal.
Watch, listen, and judge for yourself how much better it runs once he sorts that issue out. This thing absolutely purrs once he gets it running properly. I mean, to the point where if you watch this video, and you aren't absolutely itching to ride this bike yourself by the end, I'm not even sure what you're doing here.
