I have some questions. Are they liquid cooled? Are the any hubs that fit the rear for a 4 bolt conversion? Are they a 5 speed? How do they handle compared to the Z? Any other info would great.
Luke

They are liqud cooled, have a 5-speed manual, you can buy axel/hubs and they handle like a 1980's tank. But what a blast to screem up a hill with!

1980's tank, LOL.. thats about right. They handle like a boat anchor, but they scream!! Not everyone can handle the raw power of the zilla.

Is there a better year to buy then another? If you add after market suspention parts does it still handle poorly, Is it set up or ergonomics (sp?)? I have found a few differnet years for sale in my area and am really thinking about picking one up.
Luke

I heard that the first year of production had the wildest motor. That would be a 1987 I just googled it. Every year after that they had to tone it down a little bit because of injuries until production was stopped in 1990.

wow thats crazy^

they are super fast, and very easy to mod.......the honda 250r out handles it buy leaps and bounds, but you have to mod the motor to get zilla type of power out of it


if i was going 2-stroke i would not rule out the 250r's


parts are easier to get ahold of on the 250 r

I dont know i hate tha Z handling.. i love old school tha 500 is the sickest period everyone i have come up against has gotten beat. as far as mods they are easy, there is no cam and vavles.. all you need is a die grinder some sand paper and time to port and polish them. there are lots of head pipes and carbs for more power. elka and works make suspension kits, dura blue makes a sway bar kit for the front end. LSR makes anti-vibration steering setup cause they vibrate like crazy. so in general there isnt much to compete 700 gytr can kiss tha ass of my 500 it doesnt come close.

you're right and wrong. The 1987 is known as the large reed motor. The intakes are way bigger than the 88-90. Also, the 87's have 6 head studs while 88-90;s have 7. 87's are prone to blowing head gaskets. that's why suzuki added 7. They also shrunk the intake and lowered the compression ratio a little.

88-90 motors are almost identical. 1 thing that changed is that the 89-90's had a larger hub on the flywheel because the 87-88's rivets failed.

As far as the best year zilla... well, it's actually 87. well..... at least the 87 jug. buy a 88-90 model zilla. remove the jug and put an 87 jug on it. the 87 trans is crap. all you have to do to fix the head gasket issue is to install 10mm studs. also, Zilla's are prone to crack around the intakes. you need to have them reinforced welded. You'll also want to have brass inserts installed around the crank bearings. the steel ones don't expand at the right rate and will cause air leaks around the main bearings.

Also, the 87 carbs are complete junk. the 88-90's are much better. the 87's didnt even come from the factory jetted correctly and the 87's a-arms were made with square tubing. 88-90's were not. Note: the a-arms between 87 and 88-90 are not interchangeable.

Zilla's are called tanks only because they are bulky. They have a long nose. (about 3in longer than most wheelers) BUT, they only weight about 396 or so lbs. Not bad weight considering the new bikes weigh 350lbs.

my zilla handles pretty good. but i have upgraded the suspension. the huge t-shaped seat helps out a lot and you'll need every inch of it. Zilla's will wear you out! but i love it!

What it boils down to is that zilla have lots of factory flaws (even the welds are crappy) be with the right fixes, they are just as reliable as any other bike on the market today. If you want a great running zilla, have Dr Q do yours. he did mine and it is a monster in the sand!!! on the pavement, it has no problems pulling 5th gear wheelies.