New '82 XZ550 Owner in the UK

[Paul Mc]

Greetings.  ;D
Had a look for a "newbies section" for intros, didn't find one so I'll slot in here.
Picked up an '82 XZ550 last Saturday, non-faired version, frame number 11U.
Has been stood unused for over a year, 46K miles and 15 careless owners.
Someone cared for the bike 'though, found that the frame was powder coated when I was looking for the frame number.
Braided hoses and a fairly new battery help too.
Photos at http://s278.photobucket.com/albums/kk120/Paul_McCann/XZ550/
Needs a little TLC, a pair of rear indicators and a choke cable and possibly a pair of mirrors (I'm guessing it's a standard thread so I should be able to get something that fits and looks okay too).
Has a fair quality home paint job, if I decide to keep her long term I may try to spray it up as original as I can...
I'll give her a good look over in the coming weeks, but at first glance it looks fairly easy to put back on the road - not too bad for £175...
Paul

[vadasz1]

Welcome to your new global Vision family.  Have alook under the MAP heading and check to see who is near you in the UK.  If memory serves me correct there are atleast a half dozen or so in the little island.

Also ,before LUCKY yells at you, kindly replace your brake bar bolts (both of them) with new ones.

In your pictures I don't see a fuel gauge on the instrument cluster so that might indicat that your bike is actually a 82 model, but European bikes could be different in that sence.

Have fun fixing her up.  I also like the colour of the bike as it is now.

[Lucky]

now, now...I'm not yelling at anyone.. well mayby Dave...  ;D

You know we were all hoping you were Paul Mcartney, lol

looks like an interesting homespun exhaust, kind of big on the diameter, wondering if it affects top end.

Welcome, & feel free to ask any questions you have, we've heard 'em all before :D

--Lucky

[Paul Mc]

Well, it definately has twin front disks, I'm only assuming it's an '83 (the UK registration marks of that time spanned 2 different years, so not clear which year it is, and I've not got the registration paperwork yet, it may say '82). Doesn't have a fuel gauge, just a temperature gauge...
Bit of an impulse buy, I'd wanted one years ago but couldn't find one, and this just came up on a web board I advise on so I grabbed it - still haven't convinced the missus it was a good idea (there are only 3 other bikes in the garage - and one of those is hers!) but as long as it's not a money pit she won't complain too much.
Good site by the way, found this and XZ550.com - surprisingly good amount of info.
Spotted the bit about the bar bolts, also the one about cutting the wire on the rev limiter, will sort those out as I tinker...
Had the bike running for a few seconds on Saturday, there is an 'interesting' tone on those silencers (am not convinced that there is much silencing going on...)
The colour is growing on me - kind of a cadbury purple (UK chocolate bars) although would look better with an XZ550 badge on the side panels...

[Rick G]

Hi Paul, I may be wrong but I don't think that the European bikes got the fuel guage.
Wish I could see the silencers, but this computer is too slow to deal with photo bucket.
I wouldn't call it a money pit , but there may be some items that need to be addressed at first , however once there taken care of, it will require no more maintenance than any other bike.
I'm guessing that the price in (feeble ) US dollars would be around 400/450 , not so bad!

[Tiger]

 :) Hi and welcome to the ROV, the best place a Vision (XZ550) can bring its new owner too :D :D... 8)

Not a bad looking "V" for a southern girl!!! with a southern boy for an owner!!! I'm a Geordie living in Canada ;)

Lucky has a great CD/DVD that includes: Owners, workshop and parts manuals, helpfull hints and tips, OEM advertising, etc...It will save you a lot of blood, sweat 'n tears (and money) going forward with your project.

When you need help, advice, part(s), etc, feel free to ask and someone will give you the answer(s). This is a great site with all of us dedicated to the Vision.

                 8).......TIGER....... 8)

[Paul Mc]

Not a bad looking "V" for a southern girl!!! with a southern boy for an owner!!! I'm a Geordie living in Canada ;)                 8).......TIGER....... 8)

Cheers Tiger - it's a southern belle but I'm a NI man myself.
Seems to have been a good purchase so far, the only problem I can see in the short term could be the quality of the downpipes (haven't had a good look underneath where the rear cylinder exhaust attachs yet) as the bike has been sat in the elements for a year without being used/covered etc...

Confirmed last night it's an '82 bike, not an '83 as I thought - have adjusted the original post title accordingly...
Paul