Ok, got a new Z400 and have a small prob.

[Muddinguy]

Well my buddy bought it.. but hes not into forums.. so..
it's an 03 Suzuki Z-400

After "De-****ing" previous owners wonderful work.. we topped off the coolant and fired it up.. Nifty little thing happened when i goosed the throttle.. water flew out of the radiator neck at a good rate.. hmm i work on cars everyday for 8 hrs never seen one do that... hmm maybe quads flow different ? and the water being shot out was blackish as if there were some carbon in it.. Anyhow get it filled put the cap and noticed the coolant in the overflow splashing around like there's big air bubbles coming in there.. pulled the cap off the overflow and smelled it.. smells like exh gas.. WTF so we're pretty sure there's a blown head gasket on this machine.. roll it back in the shop and run it a little more and it starts pissing out more carbon colored water... shut it off and it stopped.. WTF??


So are there any common problems with these machines ?? or is it just result of an incompetent previous owner ?

[jonboy]

Sounds like a blown HG for sure. Which really is not a common problem with these bikes. I'm pretty sure it was from the previous owner like you stated. But that sort of ignorance and lack of care for the bike leads me to believe there is more to it. When you tear the top end down be sure to check everything. Also it had to get really hot to blow the gasket so check the coolant system( clogged radiator, water pump working?) While he's got it apart he might as well spend $170 for a DRZe kit from Advantange Cycles. It would be well worth it.

[airmobile101]

Yea, thats the only bad thing about buying a used bike. You never know what your getting. Besides the DRZ kit, you might want to make sure the head or cylinder surface didnt get warped. Im sure thats its fine, but you never know.

[Muddinguy]

What is the DRz kit ?? neither of us know anything about Suzuki's.. Both Honda guys (for now) and i beleive he is going to have the head checked out by a machine shop
yea we tore into it yesterday fixing all the hack fixes form the previous owner.. Bolts didnt line up or they broke off so the body mount and MUFFLER :eek2: were held on with zip ties

[cataway]

hmmmmmmmm not surprised to hear about zip ties.... ya its been done.
its not well known but the tq on the head bolts should be higher
than what the book says, go with 42-44 foot lb's

[Whit11b]

Yea, this is my quad he's talkin' about. Happy now Cronk, I signed up here? I'm not impressed by the previous owner's workmanship. I mean duct taping the air box in place? Really, is it that hard to drill a hole and put a bolt in it? Once I get into it I'll be able to get things straightened out.


First time ever dealing with a Suzuki product. I was really wondering what common problems these had.

[airmobile101]

Originally posted by Muddinguy
What is the DRz kit ?? neither of us know anything about Suzuki's.. Both Honda guys (for now) and i beleive he is going to have the head checked out by a machine shop
yea we tore into it yesterday fixing all the hack fixes form the previous owner.. Bolts didnt line up or they broke off so the body mount and MUFFLER :eek2: were held on with zip ties
Its moreless for reliability purposes. New chaim chain, valve springs and stuff like that off a DRZ400.

[400ex_rider13]

Originally posted by airmobile101
Its moreless for reliability purposes. New chaim chain, valve springs and stuff like that off a DRZ400.
The chain is the same right? The drz chain part # changes to the ltz.

[Whit11b]

Picked up gaskets and a service manual today. Pulled the head off the motor. Looks like it was just a small leak in the gasket, no coolant ended up in the cylinder or crankcase.

I'm gonna do some clean up and inspecting. This thing may have been overhauled.

Still finding minor problems here and there. Nothing major or hard to fix, but still aggravating.

I'm gonna pick some stuff up and try to get this thing back together tomorrow, unless the head is warped.

[cataway]

check your intake valves they have a tendence to ware out faster then they should

[airmobile101]

Originally posted by 400ex_rider13
The chain is the same right? The drz chain part # changes to the ltz.
No, you want a D.I.D cam chain, I dont have the stock # handy,but if you google search LTZ 400 CAM CHAIN,you should get a #. I currently run a PROX cam chain that you can get from RMATV. Just make sure if you change out that cam chain, you install a manual cam chain tensioner. Oh, but to answer your original question, yea, the DRZ and LTZ cam chain are the same.

[jonboy]

Advantage cycle sells the kit with a new DID chain. The ltz is a 2/3 chain vs. the drz 3/4 chain. It is much stronger than the ltz. It has the stronger dual rate valve springs which will allow you to run a bigger rev box(cdi) with out much worry. Also it uses the drz 1 ply base gasket which bumps up the compression ratio about a 1/2 point. Believe it or not you will notice the difference. Get a lighter JE piston at the stock bore to throw in and it will rev faster. Later on down the road if you have to tear it down get a DRZ flywheel it is lighter than the LTZ's and will give you even faster revs. Definately get a full exhaust. Then rejet or even better get an FCR39 from a YFZ450 and open up the intake and then you'll have a very reliable bike to contend with just about any type of riding you want to do. Dont just take my word for it check out cataways bikes. Or jump over to suzuki central and see what others have.

[stockboy]

today i was out riding and when i went to put it a way i checked the oil and it overflowed it smells like gas what would that be

[Whit11b]

I checked out the head this afternoon and everything was good. Have it all assembled, just waiting on a thermostat.

I've decided to just fix the thing and sell it. Don't have a good feeling with this machine.

Thanks for the advice guys.