recently an 87' zilla has come up for sale in my area. a friend of mine was thinking of buying it. if he does, i'll probably have to go with him to look it over. what should i look for? it looks like new from the road. i don't know if it has a pipe, but it has a nice set of stock rears, and a like new set of spiders. the plastic, seat, frame and engine are all extremely clean looking. the guy is asking $2000. do you guys think it's a good deal? i'll try to set it up so we can ride it before my friend buys it.
thanks for any input.

 

if the machine is an '87, I'd be cautious about the motor. They switched to a 7 bolt head in '88 because the 6 bolt design had problems with blowing head gaskets. They also had a tendency to push the front end in corners in that year. I continue to look for an '88 or newer. $2000 is a little steep for a machine that is 14 years old when they went for $3200 new.

 

$2000 isnt bad as long as everything works. i have an 87 zilla and never had any problems with blowing head gaskets. People dont take the time to torque the motor bolts after every couple days of riding. They just gas and go. Just make sure the trans does not jump into netural. i rode a zilla that had this problem. take a look at my site for pics of my Zilla

 

Nah, 2000 doesnt sound too bad considering zillas are hard to come by since there arent many around anymore.

 

2000 IS A GREAT PRICE AND IF IT IS CLEAN GO GET IT. AS FOR THE MOTOR THE EXOCTIC ONE HAS IT RIGHT. WHEN YOU HAVE THAT MUCH FORCE IN A MOTOR YOU HAVE TO CHECK THE TORQUE ON THE HEAD FROM TIME TO TIME. I HAVE HAD 3 87 ZILLA'S ONE OF WHICH I BOUGHT NEW IN 87 AND HAVE NEVER HAD A BLOWN HEAD GASKET. PLUS FOR 75 BUCKS TUDORS PERFORMANCE OR CT CAN INSTALL OVERSIZED HEAD STUDS WHICH ELIMINATE THIS PROBLEM. SUZUKI CHANGED TO A 7 STUD DESIGN JUST TO TAKE CARE OF A FEW THAT HAD A PROBLEM. I ACTUALLY HAD TO GO TO A FLEX STEEL BASE GASKET BECAUSE I BLOW THOSE OUT WHILE THE FACTORY HEAD GASKET IS WORKING PERFECT. WHAT YOU WANT TO LOOK FOR IS THE USUAL STUFF. LIFT IT UP AND WIGGLE THE WHEELS AND AXLES TO CHECK THOSE BEARINGS, FIRE IT UP AND SEE IF YOU SMELL ANTIFREEZE. ALSO CHECK THAT ALL THE CONTROLS WORK PROPERLY AND THE CLUTCH FEELS SMOOTH. SEE IF HE WILL LET YOU DRAIN SOME OIL OUT AND LOOK FOR EXCESSIVE METAL. BY THE WAY IF YOU NEED TO GO WITH HIM TO CHECK IT OUT DOES HE REALLY NEED A ZILLA? ANY WAY GO GET IT AND HAVE FUN AND THE BOOK SAYS IT IS WORTH $1925 IN AVERAGE CONDITION.

 

they are selling for 3000.00 to 4000.00 here in missouri if you can find one for sale