MZ 1000S 2005

Description

 2005 MZ 1000S - Excellent Condition - RE-LISTED DUE TO NON PAYMENT. MY APOLIGIES TO ANYONE THAT WAS INTERESTED AND WAS UNABLE TO BID. No Reserve !!New Tires / Fresh Oil change / New Vortex Sprockets / Chain - Clear Title / NYS Inspection - Ready to GO. Never Dropped or Down  - Always stored in environmentally controlled Garage - Never used on a Track!The completely original. professionally done graphic is specifically designed for this bike - it is color matched to the OEM Graphics and was done by a great artist I have worked with on other projects. The level detail of the work. which is a combination of 50's style pin up and WWI fighter squadron insignia required that the panels be clear coated so as to not be damaged by wiping/waxing/regular cleaning -  I am told by the body shop that they can be removed and brought back to the OEM look for 200. 00 or so by any good body/hot-rod shop - again - it was never my intention to sell this bike. These are more like BMW's and Moto Guzzi's than anything else - not even broken in till over 20k. And these were meant to be sold in the Eastern Block Countries where dealers are scarce at best - so it is very over built and made to give tractor like reliability and easy serviceability. Gloss Black/Silver graphics Color scheme with Remus Slip on Exhausts made specifically for this bike - engine is bone stock - fuels beautifully - complete paper work from first owner and myself - factory tool kit - Digital service and owners manual in ENGLISH - parts readily available from Grahams In the UK - Pazzo Clutch and Brake levers (I do have OEM levers and they are in mint condition) Sprockets are Yamaha parts and oil filter is standard K&N item. Slight light scratches in clear coat on tail section. only noticeable up close and in full sun from first owner running soft luggage while sport touring. Also included are the stock passenger seat and an OEM tail cowl. I do NOT have the stock exhausts. The below reviews are a better explanation than I could write so I am including them here. Bike is an incredible sport bike. and an even better sport touring bike. while she's big sitting at rest and tall in the saddle (If you have a short inseam - this might not be the bike for you - I'm 6'0" and I'm solidly on the balls of my feet at a stop. ) But get it going and the size melts away - it is capable of staying with modern bikes easily in really twisty tight mountain roads and the torque is simply addicting - come out of a corner and just roll it on - you are pulling away while everyone else is downshifting like crazy to match your drive out of the corner - and like a BMW K1200/1300 or Moto Guzzi sport bike - incredibly confidence inspiring and OMG easy to ride fast. As they mention in the reviews - it dislikes being lugged around. but it will happily pull hard all the way to the redline and still feels like it has more on tap. With the one tooth larger rear sprocket as recommended by the owners group. makes being in the right gear for anything very easy and it is very stable and planted at any speed. Very much like a Ducati. Guzzi or Triumph it is a visceral bike to ride and really loves to go fast - deceptively fast bike - but is still well balanced and easy to ride slowly with great German engineered maneuverability and poise in town. Just get used to people staring. pointing and asking you questions at stop lights! Review Number 1:

When the conversation turns to German motorcycles. three letters usually spring to mind: BMW. Possibly the most famous acronym in the two-wheeled world. the Bavarian Motor Works has been producing solid. reliable motorcycles for more than 80 years. Not as recognizable in the United States. though. is another German manufacturer that has been producing motorcycles for just as long. Simply known as MZ (Motorradwerk Zschopau). the company traces its roots to the once-glorious DKW Company. which first began producing small two-stroke engines for bicycles in 1920.

Chance landed the company behind the Iron Curtain at the end of World War II. and the East German company took the name MZ in 1956; by the time Germany unified in 1989. more than 2 million small two-stroke motorcycles had rolled out of the Zschopau factory. MZ enjoyed substantial racing success both in the dirt and on the racetracks of Europe. and in 1992 the company privatized and began producing motorcycles under the name MuZ (Motorrad und Zweiradwerk) for a short time. before being bought out by Hong Leong Group. a powerful Malaysian conglomerate. Continuing with its range of single-cylinder machines using a Yamaha 660cc engine. MZ started investing heavily in new machinery and tooling to produce a flagship 1-liter motorcycle. Known as the MZ1000S. the first prototypes appeared in 2001; the bike entered full production in early 2004.

There is no denying the bike?ˆ™s distinct Euro look. The sleek. angular bodywork wraps around a dual bridge. trellis-style. chrome moly frame. and features a unique pair of dual stacked headlights up front. A Marzocchi 43mm inverted fork holds a stylish 17-inch front wheel and features full adjustability for rebound and compression damping. as well as spring preload. The front wheel?ˆ”as with the rear?ˆ”was designed exclusively for MZ to be lighter and stronger than a conventional alloy wheel and comes wrapped in a 120/70 ZR 17 Metzeler Sportec M1 tire. A pair of Nissin four-piston calipers. squeezing industry standard 320mm semifloating discs. handle braking duties.

A beautifully crafted dual cantilever. aluminum swingarm is attached to the trellis frame in the rear and houses a single multiadjustable Sachs rear shock that features a remote hydraulic preload adjuster and a 5. 5-inch rear wheel fitted with a 180/55 ZR 17 Metzeler Sportec M1. There is nothing radical about the rear brake setup?ˆ”just a good. solid Nissin two-piston caliper married to a 240mm disc. The MZ1000S truly sets itself apart from the rest of the Euro crowd with its powerplant. Featuring a compact. 180-degree inline twin. the 998cc engine has been built with longevity in mind. and in its current state of tune puts out 115 hp at 9. 00 rpm. Double overhead camshafts work on four valves per cylinder. and are driven by a hydraulically adjusted cam chain running on the side of the engine. A Sagem fuel injection system feeds into the large cylinders. and burned gas exits through a two-into-two exhaust system. with two catalytic converters in each muffler. This allows the MZ to pass stringent Euro emission laws.

With the engine in such a mild state of tune. it is something of a surprise to learn the 6-speed gearbox is a removable cassette-style unit. With a definite sport touring focus. it seems strange that MZ would fit a gearbox more suited to the demands of racing; this poses the possibility that a return to the racetrack might be in the cards for MZ in the near future.

Hitting the starter button. the engine jumps immediately into a high tickover. The bike doesn?ˆ™t come with a fast idle lever. so you have to wait either for it to settle down or put up with an alarming clunk as you select first gear. Even with a balancer shaft in place. healthy vibes from the big parallel twin remain. but once the analog tachometer starts to climb over 3. 00 rpm these soon smooth out. Power is good and plentiful. with a strong even pull all the way to a 9. 00 rpm redline; just don?ˆ™t twist the throttle too hard at very low revs. Even though the fuel injection is near perfect. and the bike won?ˆ™t miss a beat. low rpm and large throttle openings equal unwanted vibration.

Once underway. ride comfort is excellent. The MZ has a roomy. broad seat. and the clip-on handlebars attach above the triple clamps. so you are not put in a racer?ˆ™s crouch. This is further complemented by the footpegs. which are not sportbike high. and for fast roadwork. the position is ideal. On the racetrack. the MZ certainly has some limitations if you try too hard. but for the occasional track day jaunt. it performs admirably.

Touting solid. stable handling. strong fade-free brakes. and a willing engine that can propel you over 145 mph with ease. the MZ1000S will come to America in limited numbers. Priced at $10. 95. it is hard to tell whether dedicated Europhiles will be persuaded away from their V-twins. Boxer twins. or inline triples. but for the limited number of people who opt for the ?ˆ?other?ˆ? German manufacturer. there will be no disappointments in the quality and charm of this unique machine.

Review Number 2:You may not realize it but MZ has been around for a very long time. In fact. the German company has been around since the beginning of the motorcycle itself. first as an engine supplier beginning in 1907. Then known as DKW (Dampf-Kraft-Wagen). the company began producing complete motorcycles in 1925. DKW annually produced 60. 00 of its 2-stroke powered motorbikes between 1925 and 1930. becoming one of the first manufacturers to build motorcycles on a truly mass-production level and growing to be what the company claims was the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer at the time.  DKW enjoyed amazing success in competition right out of the gate. winning 45 championships in all forms of racing. including Grand Prix from 1922 through 1936. Three decades after the company's inception. the name was changed to Motorradwerk Zschopau or. more simply. MZ. Racers like Ewald Kluge. Horst Fugner. Alan Shepard. Dieter Braun and Mike Hailwood were just some of the riders who enjoyed victory aboard the German-made machines.  Following the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany. MZ looked beyond the European Bloc and outward at the world market for the next half-century. Then. in 1996. the Malaysian company Hong Leong Industries stepped in to provide an injection of capital that helped propel MZ to new levels of success on the sales floor. beginning with the single-cylinder. 660cc Yamaha-powered Skorpion. Small-displacement bikes have been the staple of this proud company from the start. but in response to the changing demands of consumers around the world. MZ designed and built its first large-displacement motorcycle. the MZ 1000S.  The 1000S is built around a 998cc inline-Twin powerplant wrapped in a double-tube trellis chrome-moly frame and clothed in slippery bodywork designed by the same engineer that penned the F-117 Stealth Fighter.  On the race track the motor of MZ 1000S felt even better than it did on the street. The seamless powerband made it easy to pour on the power on corner exits. Although the bike has been available in Europe for some time. the big MZ is just now arriving on these shores. MCUSA was offered an opportunity to sample the latest version during the 2005 MZ1000S's introduction at Firebird International Raceway in Phoenix. Arizona.  At first glance the bike is a beautiful piece of machinery. It exudes German craftsmanship from its aerodynamic front cowling with its quartet of projector beam headlight tucked neatly within. to its bulbous tank and angular tail section. all the way down to the powder-coated frame and trick 3-spoke wheels. Its spacious ergonomics tip its hand that it has a mild sporting bent. although it feels a bit on the portly side with a claimed weight of over 500 lbs.  During the technical briefing conducted by MZ North America Manager John Stoddart. we were informed that the 1000S is designed to be a sport-touring motorcycle "with an emphasis on sport. " An interesting look back at MZ history followed. and our interest in the new model was piqued.  Although the bike's press launch was held at a race track. the bike came equipped with its OEM-spec sport-touring compound tires. so there would be no lap records broken on this day. With that pressure off. the short and curvy F. I. R. road course proved to be a nice venue in which to divine the bike's strong points and shortcomings.  On the track. the softly suspended 1000S offered a smooth ride. The inline-Twin motor doles out its power in a linear fashion with no apparent surge of power anywhere in the rev range. If the revs are kept above 6000 rpm. the bike accelerates just fine for a sport-tourer. Its 6-speed transmission is precise. although it engages with a clunk in the lower gears.  The black version of the 1000S has a very stealthy look to it. I personally liked this scheme the best because it gave the bike a bit more of an aggressive look than the silver model. Slowing down was effortless thanks to the 320mm front rotors and 4-piston Nissin calipers out front; a twin-piston caliper on the rear clamps on a 243mm disc. The front brakes do an excellent job of slowing the massive machine down from triple-digit speeds. Initial bite is soft. which is good because the spongy fork would have suffered because of it.  Sorting out the soft suspension for the track turned out to be an exercise in futility. The fully adjustable 43mm Marzocchi fork seemed underdamped and undersprung for track work. no matter the attempted adjustments. Even when I sampled the test unit that was dialed in for Sport Rider magazine's rep. I found it was too soft to encourage anything much over a spirited pace. Its front end felt vague. perhaps due to a lack of compression damping. so I never really felt confident pushing it hard on the track. Then again. as we were reminded. this bike was meant to pull duty on the street as a touring mount. not a track bike.  Despite all this complaining. I had a great time riding the 1000S. It was very stable and. more importantly. comfortable. even after hours of track riding. Swapping the bike from side to side in the quick transitions was about the only place I could really feel the mass of the bike resisting. but it's nothing to really whine about. The pegs are high enough to keep from being ground off. and the relatively high bars kept my troublesome lower back from aching. Wind protection is excellent at full tuck. and all the gauges and controls were right where I expected them to be (unlike that other German manufacturer's bikes).  Arizona Highway 88 curves its way through the Sonoran Desert. The MZ 1000S proved it is a capable sporting machine while gobbling up miles of the 88 during our test ride. Upon reflection. it was clear to me that this bike was capable of doing anything the average human would ever expect out it on the track. But it is clearly not a pure sportbike. Now all I needed to know was how it worked on the street.  MZ says the 1000S to be a touring machine with a sporting influence. so I decided to put the claims to the test by spending an extra day in Phoenix to put a few hundred street miles on the big Twin. hoping to answer some of the questions that were lingering in my mind after the track day.  My test unit came equipped with MZs expandable soft luggage. which although a little bit on the smallish side. provides ample storage space for all our various sundry items on this trip. Larry Williams from Moto-Euro magazine were gracious enough to equip my passenger/photographer/sister Andrea and myself with some cool-weather riding gear so that we didn't freeze our tails off in mountains outside of the Valley of the Sun. With our bags packed full of cameras. jacket liners. energy bars and water bottles it was time to head out.  

The day trip would take us out the curvy Hwy 88 past the Lost Dutchman Mountains and beyond to the popular sport-riding destination of Canyon Lake and Tortilla Flats. The first leg of the journey was an hour or so of two-up riding on the 360 freeway heading east away from the hustle and bustle of metropolitan Phoenix and out towards the savage lands of the Sonoran Desert.  The bike soaked up freeway road imperfections like a trooper. providing a very comfortable ride over the normally bumpy stretch of asphalt and concrete. Just as I thought. the Marzocchi fork and Sachs shock redeemed themselves during this touring segment. There was minimal buzz in the bars until the speedo reached 80-plus mph. which is really good news for people planning on spending significant time traveling from point to point on the MZ. Little or no vibes reach the bars below 80 mph.

The silver version of the 1000S really does looks good with the sun shining on it though. Notice here the right-side drive and the sweet cast aluminum wheels which are just a couple points of interest that separate this bike from the competition.

The mirrors are all but worthless. though. They offer a completely unobstructed view of traffic behind. but they must be soaking up all the vibes the big 96mm pistons produce because they never stop being blurry. Once in the Superstition Mountain canyon. the 1000S performed sporting duty with authority. It held a line without wavering. was fairly easy to muscle from side to side. and offered enough of its linear power to keep me grinning. The bike's extra mass was not quite as noticeable on the street as it was on the track. . and it felt reminiscent of Suzuki's TL1000R but with less torque.  My major complaint that appeared during the street ride was some serious driveline lash at lower speeds. The 1000S first exhibited this problem when we were caught behind a line of slow traffic with nothing but blind corners for miles ahead. It was only in this situation that the bike revealed this nasty habit. It chugged annoyingly at low rpm in first gear. prompting my passenger to ask if something was wrong with the bike.  A call to MCUSA contributor Neale Bayly. who happens to have a long-term MZ1000S in his possession. confirmed this was not an isolated case. His solution was to fit a larger rear sprocket of his MZ test mule to provide a less lurchy ride and a little extra low-end grunt that the stock bike is missing. Read Neale's 2004 MZ 1000S First Ride for another perspective. if you so feel the urge.  

The 2005 MZ 1000S gets some well deserved rest after a full day of Sport-Touring duty. The picturesque Lost Dutchman State Park provides the amazing backdrop.

Overall. I found the look of the MZ a little on the vanilla side of appealing. It just seemed to be missing the verve necessary to make it truly stand out in a sea of cafe'-style bikes. If it was stripped of all the front bodywork and equipped with a wicked looking front headlight and a set of Renthal bars and aimed directly at the street-fighter segment. then these styling issues wouldn't be such a point of dissention for me. MZ revealed just such a machine at the 2004 Intermot show. so we're expecting it to be the next version of this bike to hit our shores.  So the question is: What is the MZ 1000S? The answer is simple. It is an alternative to the cookie-cutter sport-touring bikes we see all the time. It is different and it's not ashamed to admit it. Its parallel-Twin motor offers a seamless spread of useable power and its ergos are all-day comfortable. And its tubular frame is as unique as the stealth fighter-inspired bodywork. so it will never be confused with any other bike.  If we had a 1000S of our own. we'd put a larger rear sprocket on to alleviate its low-speed driveline lash and figure out how to improve on the buzzy mirrors. After that. some suspension tuning would be in order. Once these minor changes were completed. this bike would be much better.  As it is in stock trim. the MZ1000S is a capable sport-touring machine. If you are in the market for an S-T and are not the type of person who is real happy when you roll up to your favorite riding spot only to see 4 or 5 bikes that match your own parked out front. then you should take a look at the 1000S. Its user-friendly power. comfortable riding position. unique look. competitive $10. 95 price tag. make the MZ 1000S a bike worthy of consideration.  

Sold AS IS - No Warranty expressed or implied!!I reserve the right to end the auction early as the bike is listed locally as well. Available for local inspection or pick up - NO TEST RIDES - Buyer is responsible for ALL shipping costs and arrangements - I will assist in providing an easy pick up area. I will accept PAYPAL as a payment option - but ONLY if Buyer agrees to pay all fees. No Trades - PLEASE DO NOT BID IF YOU HAVE NO INTENTION OF BUYING!!

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