Has The Zephyr Zone passed its sell by date?

[ZoneAdmin]

Hi all zone members

It has been very quiet on here so far this year, only 4 posts to date.

The zone is a great source of information and advice for our common interest in Kawasaki Zephyrs and I am sure was the reason we all originally joined.

The renewal for the site fees is due in May and I will pay this again for another year, however if there is no interest in the site it could be the last year.

The weather is getting better now (UK) and restrictions are lifting so hopefully with everyone getting their bikes out interest will grow.

What are your feelings on the future of the zone?

[hugojose]

I believe your gesture of paying another year is absolutely great...thought you would call it quits any moment........but personally, don't see much future or valid reason to continue.

,,,,,,,,,Zephyrs never sold well, and I presume some are getting too old, and/or owners are getting older and moving on to something else.

In North America the succesor to the Zephyr 750, the ZR-7 forum survives because it is embedded in a bigger general Kawasaki forum that is much wider. We also have the KZriders forum which deals with models even older than the Zephyr and is huge.....................but a forum with a single series in low numnbers....time is moving on, and not many feel dealing with older machinery.....I think we all are seeing the writing on the wall.

[Swampy]

I don't like to have to agree but yes you're right, I come on here to have a look to see if anything has been posted and I guess I am partly to blame as for many others as for not posting.
But we all know what has killed this forum and that's Facebook and the many groups that have appeared !

[Stereordinary]

I’d be sad to see this place go. I still check for new posts here daily. But with that said, I understand the sentiments expressed so far.

[arejay]

I too still habitually check the forum daily, I also check the Facebook page but I don't find the Facebook page as interesting or technically involved as this forum used to be and I think while i accept that there are a some very skilled and knowledgeable people on Facebook it's hard to define between them and the people who just think they are so I personally wouldn't be confident in using the Facebook as a source of information, on this forum it was easier to get to know who knew what they were talking about and who to trust. Realistically I suppose i'd be considered an old man now, I've been retired almost a year already but I certainly have no problems riding or any immediate plans to get rid of my 1100 in fact I am riding it more now than i did when I was younger however I'm less likely to ride or even go out into the garage to work on it in the the winter months so hopefully if everyone is in a simular situation to me the forum will pick up a bit when the summer gets here. How about if everyone who reads this and is still interested in the forum go out into their garage or shed and get an image of their zephyr as is and post it on here with a brief description of this years plans for it to try and kick start the forum

[Fishrider]

The problem with the Facebook page is that there is no real way to follow or track specific issues or projects in a specific linear thread. Searching doesn't always yield good results, and even when you do find posts pertaining to your particular problem the post is lacking in specific information. Its nice for pretty pics and updating issues, but short on actually providing good help. PLUS its Facebook. Boo. I wasn't on here for awhile for specific reasons, but I hope to be back on for a bit as I get my back into actual riding condition. As long as I own a Zephyr I hope this forum stays up. Forums, IMO are far better than Facebook, but then maybe I am showing my age as well. Yes, Zephyrs are getting up there in age, and yes there are even some new options on the market like the Z900rs. Which I could have EASILY purchased based on the amount I have sunk into my project. But my project is also a hobby. I could Venmo you a couple bucks if it will allow me to. I am in the States. I have never tried to Venmo someone out of country.

The Facebook pages are pretty active which leads me to believe there are still plenty of bikes being ridden out there. I think the Facebook group rules will allow for links to this forum as long as they are not for promotional purposes. Translated from French: "Offer more than you take from this group. Self-promotion, spam and irrelevant links are not allowed." Those are the rules. I am happy to post a link to this forum on the Facebook page. Just saying.

[ZoneAdmin]

Thanks for all the comments.

There is a great post yesterday/today in Ongoing Projects titled “Restoring Zephanie” by Stereordinary. I think information like this is interesting for Zephyr owners and will hopefully revive the zone.

Yes Fishrider, if you want to add links to this forum in other platforms please go ahead.

[Stereordinary]

Thanks for the shoutout.

It's kind of interesting to me that we English-speakers are having a discussion about whether or not the end has come for our beloved Zephyrs, yet if you spend any time on Instagram you will see a massive, very healthy community of Zephyr enthusiasts still alive and well in Japan. I mean it makes sense, given Kawasaki is a Japanese company. But over there you have this huge cult following for any of the Zephyr models, especially the ZephyrX, a 400cc version that came later and was never exported. There's parts, and mods available, and I even have a magazine that profiles some custom builds. I'm learning Japanese right now, but I still can't read much. Yet the magazine clearly has the word Zephyr in English on more than one page.

[ZoneAdmin]

Hi, yes I know Zephyrs are very popular in Japan, and command very good prices. There is a company called Webike in Japan that sells many parts from companies like PMC and Doremi. I follow some guys in Japan on Twitter who have Zephyrs.

Congratulations on learning Japanese, I worked for a Japanese company for 12 years and my boss was Japanese. I visited there in 2012, for work, and would like to go back with my wife on holiday.

I do not think the end has come for Kawasaki Zephyrs, it is just the current lack of interest on the forum.

[ZoneAdmin]

Recent picture of a Zephyr for sale in Japan for 2,000,000 JPY, this equates to just over £12,000

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