Hello good folks. The dilema? Does anyone know if the upper fairing (front cowl) stay bracket from a 2006 - 2007 ZX-14 is identical to the same bracket for a 2009 ZX-14? I bought (but have not yet recieved) a replacement bracket from a vendor on ebay for my 2009 ZX-14. Just after I placed the order I noticed the bracket advertised was for the 2006 - 2007 model year bike (my bad, I know). The photo advertised is identical to the bracket on my bike. In the vendor's description it says that the photo is a "standard" picture and that the bracket that'll be shipped will be the correct one for the model year of the motorcycle (2006 or 2007).

Immediately, I sent the vendor a message indicating that I had inadvertently ordered the bracket advertised, for my bike which is a 2009. They sent back a PayPal INVOICE for an additional $45 with a note that said:

CHAPLIN KAWASAKI

Note from merchant:

The auction you bought is for an aftermarket bracket to fit 2006 2007 zx14 as you know. If you need one for the 2009 there are no aftermarket ones made , so the only option is a new original Kawasaki bracket and it is $45.00 more money. As soon as you pay this I will send right out the one you need.

I suspect something is wrong because 1) there are at least 1/2 dozen or more aftermarket companies that make replacement brackets that are not OEM and 2) I see no major difference between the 2006 - 2007 model fairing and the later year model fairings to warrant machining a different bracket (I may be wrong) 3) I checked the zx-14 manual on PDF and the technical drawing for the 2006 looks identical to my bike's 2009 bracket.

Any thoughts or anyone go through something like this? Thank you very much beforehand.

PS I still haven't sent the vendor the additional $45. On the contrary, I asked them to ship the part as advertised and they wrote back the following:

You sent me an email saying you didn't have the advertised year but instead a 2009. Correct? So we sent you a money request and email because we don't carry this aftermarket item for the 2009 only stock one. I can send you the advertised one for the price you paid if you want but it will not fit a 2009. What would you like me to do?

- chaplinmotorsports

Any advice would be appreciated

* Last updated by: monstermike62 on 1/4/2013 @ 5:23 PM *

BS....take the original one....the one you first ordered.It'll fit.The ONLY way it wouldn't is IF their 'aftermarket' producers changed something with the casting.Let's hope not...DO NOT SEND ANY MORE MONEY....the meter bracket is the same for all years.YOU are correct.That part of this deal is a scam.....don't bite.God forbid they send you something other than a zx14 meter bracket,then say.."we told you so...so no refund"....Do not have any further talk with em about fitment.Just wait for your part.

"PS I still haven't sent the vendor the additional $45. On the contrary, I asked them to ship the part as advertised"...yes...that's good...stick with that.And don't do business with these guys again;)

"We don't carry this aftermarket item for the 2009 only stock one"...that's because it IS stock.Stock specs.Yer good on that.That's what you want.STOCK SPECS.Gotta be careful how and what ya ask sometimes with these overseas linguists.Sometimes if they suspect you don't know clearly what you want...they WILL try to jamb ya.

"I can send you the advertised one for the price you paid if you want but it will not fit a 2009"...wrong...it'll fit if it's made for the zx14.IDK who this guy is...but he's way ignorant thinking that.One deal here though....he says 'send the advertised one'...okay....is his 'advertised one' the right bracket?There's the catch...hopefully..it IS a zx14 Bracket.(NOT a 2012 14R)

Hope this helps and works out for ya!

BTW...I've NEVER heard of an 'aftermarket' zx14 meter bracket...what's up with that?Counterfeit?

I think....always best to buy genuine parts...then you have a leg to stand on.

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 1/4/2013 @ 12:22 PM *

Thanks Grn14. Appreciate your advice. When the vendor sent the invoice for the additional $45, I was tempted to report them to ebay but I'm curious to prove my theory right. It seems improbable that from 06 -07 up through 2011, Kawasaki would machine different brackets for the front cowl especially if all the front ZX-14 cowls are the same until the 2012 ZX-14 of course. Once again, I could be wrong, but I doubt it. Pisses me off to think that the vendor would try to run a scam on a client that pays in hard earned dollars. I would like to fix my bike as soon as possible but not at the risk of getting fleeced.

I have since sent a second message to the vendor asking them again, to send the part EXACTLY as they have advertised on the ebay listing. Hopefully, it should be the same. If not, I'm SOL because when I try to send it back they are going to say: "We told you so." And they don't have a money back return policy. Only a credit for the price paid minus 20% restocking fee. And yeah, you can bet I'm neither ever going to do business with them again, nor much less recommend them OR rate them favorably, for that matter.

* Last updated by: monstermike62 on 1/4/2013 @ 5:32 PM *

Here's an update and a happy ending to the upper fairing stay bracket dilema. The ebay seller, Chaplin motorsports did not send the bracket before the 10 days that ebay requires before opening a case under the buyer protection plan, which by the way worked as advertised. I opened a case. Wrote and explained to ebay customer service the problem I was having with the ebay seller. The next day, ebay CS sent me an email asking me if I would still like to recieve the 2006 - 2007 fairing stay bracket from the seller OR would I prefer a refund. I stated that I no longer had faith in the seller and that I would prefer a refund. Later that day, ebay once again sent me an email stating that my PayPal account had been credited for the full amount I had paid to the seller for the bracket.

With that issue resolved, I bought an aftermarket fairing bracket from another ebay seller from China (doublelin2010) for about $24.99 plus $15.00 for shipping. Honestly, I was amazed at how (relatively) fast the part arrived from China. It took only 12 days from when I placed the order until I opened the package. I would like to add that I was equally impressed how well the seller packed the part. The bracket itself was an excellent reproduction of the original. I did notice that the bracket was just a slight bit lighter that the OEM bracket, and I do mean SLIGHT to the point of barely noticeable. The finish and paint on the bracket were flawless.

As you can imagine, after not being able to ride my motorcycle in over a month, I was estatic once I got the fairing and other related parts mounted, waxed and thumbed the starter again before going out for a well deserved ride. While riding around the neighborhood, I thought about how much I enjoyed motorcycling and re-affirmed my commitment to be a more conscious and carefull rider, not to mention, keep my bike and Jeep from ever tangling up again!