Kawasaki Ninja Owners Manual: Chain Slack Inspection

Kawasaki Ninja Owners Manual / Maintenance and adjustment / Drive Chain / Chain Slack Inspection

Set the motorcycle up on its side stand.
Rotate the rear wheel to find the position where the chain is tightest, and measure the maximum chain slack by pulling up and pushing down the chain midway between the engine sprocket and rear wheel sprocket.

A. Chain Slack

If the drive chain is too tight or too loose, adjust it so that the chain slack will be within the standard value.

Drive Chain Slack

Drive Chain

The drive chain slack and lubrication must be checked each day before riding the motorcycle and must be maintained in accordance with the Periodic Maintenance Chart for safety and to prevent exce ...

Chain Slack Adjustment

Remove the cotter pin, and loosen the axle nut. Loosen the left and right chain adjuster locknuts. A. Axle Nut B. Cotter Pin C. Adjuster D. Locknut If the chain is too loose, tu ...

Other materials:

Oil and/or Oil Filter Change
To change the engine oil and replace oil filter, the engine oil drain bolt and oil filter must be removed. The oil change and oil filter replacement should be done by an authorized Kawasaki dealer. A. Engine Oil Drain Bolt A. Oil Filter WARNINGEngine oil is a toxic s ...

Coolant Level Inspection
NOTE Check the level when the engine is cold (room or ambient temperature). Check the coolant level in the reserve tank [A] with the motorcycle held perpendicular (Do not use the sidestand). If the coolant level is lower than the “L” level line [B], remove the upper fairing assembly (s ...

Camshaft, Camshaft Cap Wear Inspection
Remove the camshaft caps (see Camshaft Removal). Cut the strips of plastigage (press gauge) to journal width. Place a strip on each journal parallel to the camshaft installed in the correct position. Tighten the camshaft cap bolts and upper camshaft chain guide bolts to the specified ...