1978 Z1R-TC Z1RTC Turbo Moly Graphics

Check similar bike (lot 296) sold at Bonhams Vegas auction in last month for over 20k. You can find the auction results on their site. This ’78 Kawasaki Z1RTC Molly Graphics is one of only 250 made and sold through Kawasaki dealers. This bike is in good original condition for its age. and has several new/restored parts. and is stored in air conditioned comfort. Lights. turn signals. horn and other electrics work as they should. except the fuel gauge and ammeter. I believe those senders are available from Z1enterprises. The bad: Cosmetics could use some help. See photos. Some scratches in fairing. small tear in seat. tires are old and should be replaced if you are going to ride it hard. Missing rubbers around instruments and fairing. and a couple trim pieces. but those are available from Z1 Enterprises. The good: Rebuilt front brakes with steel braided lines. and new master cylinder piston and new rubber in reservoir. rebuilt rear brakes. new chain. new carb. new-ish battery. I have owned this low vin# Z1RTC since January 2012. and it has been titled in my name since then. It now has 8. 66 miles showing. but is missing the speedo cable. I doubt the mileage is much more than that. It had been stored in a barn and the chrome and cosmetics were in rough shape. I had the turbo rebuilt by Majestic Turbo in Kileen TX. and had the chrome pieces re done. I installed a new Mikuni HSR 42 with the proper jetting last month. and it fired right up. but I have not done a long test ride yet. Shifts fine thru gears in slow neighborhood ride. Motor compression is good. but I don't know details on engine internals or if the crank was welded. Stock carb included. but would need to be rebuilt. The Mikuni solves all of the rough idle and mixture issues of the stock carb. and makes it much easier to ride around at normal speeds. Also included in the sale: ATP sales brochure. ATP wholesale and retail product catalogs. Turbo Cycle Corp Z1RTC sales brochure. Period magazine articles. Rayjay Turbos Maintenance and overhaul manual. I'm selling this one at this stage as I have too many other projects. and already have a perfect other '78 TC. As Cycle Guide said in April ’79 issue (photocopy included) “There’s just one sensible thing to do with a Kawasaki Z1R TC II turbo-chain it to your floor and feed it a little raw meet now and then. Little children and puppydogs will do nicely. When the moon is full. you might want to exercise the turbo a little. but always on a very short leash. It’s not intended to mix in polite society. As any Lon Chaney Jr. movie attests. average citizens break out pitchforks when they’re confronted with a werewolf. Just imagine their reaction to a 135 mph flame belching. tire smoking werewolf. "As Motorcyclist Magazine said in August 1978: (copy included) The boost needle rose slowly at first. then progressively faster. then all hell broke loose inside the engine. As if catapulted from a carrier deck. the Z1R leaped forward at a frightening pace. with the tach needle hurrying toward the redline. The pull on the handlebars became more than a ski-slope rope tow. and seemed to double. and then quadruple as boost pressure increased. In an instant. the speedo needle flashed by the 100 mark. the tach needle had surged into the red zone and the boost gauge was jiggling near 8 pounds of pressure. its preset limit. Against a force which literally pinned his body rearward. Ken slapped the clutch leaver engaging 4th gear and within a second the speedo jumped to an alarming 120 mph. the tach had again swung into the red. and the road turned into streaks of indistinguishable color. When jerking the gearbox into 5th. Ken had expected. and somewhat hoped. that the acceleration would taper off. but the turbo showed no mercy-the handlebars were pulling. the wind was pushing. the noise was deafening and the sensation extra terrestrial. With terror embossed on his eyeballs. he watched the speedo skyrocket to an indicated 145 mph. where he finally called it quits. exhausted from the tremendous surge of acceleration Local pickup. or ship at your own cost. I will deliver to a Austin TX area shipping dock. but organizing shipping is buyer’s responsibility. $500 deposit by paypal in 24 hours of auction end. and full payment due in 7 days. by certified bank check/money order. I reserve the right to end the auction early. Please ask any questions. Thanks for looking.

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