Side bag key knobs

[PH14]

KiPass has no effect on whether or not the saddlebags have to be locked when they are closed. That system simply uses a key to open and close- it has nothing at all to do with KiPass.

How would a 'normal' ignition key be different then the ignition key that comes with a C-14?

It is all fine and well if you do not like KiPass but I am not following your logic in sighting the items that you have and the problems associated with them.

Brian

Because Brian, I still have to remove a key, or get a key out of my pocket, and in this case remove it from the fob to open the bags or the fuel cap. I didn't say KIPASS didn't work, it does, I said it was a poorly implemented system. I still have to use a key, and a normal ignition would work as well since I have to remove the key anyway. A normal ignition key removes easily without having to push down, and wait for the system to release it, turn and remove. With a normal key, you turn off the ignition and pull the key. It couldn't be easier. If I had a bike with no bags and a way to open the fuel cap without a key, then great. As it is, it is a pointless system that only complicates things.

I don't live in fear of KIPASS, I don't even give it any thought. I do think though it is a pointless system since I continually have to use a key anyway. I know you love KIPASS, but for me, I would prefer a simple key. In the bigger picture, I bought the bike knowing it had KIPASS, but wishing it didn't. I bought the bike because it fit my needs and to ride, which i do. I really don't care if this bike has KIPASS or not, but it would be simpler if it didn't.

To add to things, I now have helmet locks on the bike, and another key. Kawasaki didn't seem to think we needed that so now that I have that, I get to juggle yet another key. Maybe they should have called it KeysPass.

[B.D.F.]

Gotcha- the 3/8" downward movement of the key downward followed by the seven millisecond delay.

I do not agree- there is no effective difference in using either the fuel cap lock or the saddlebag locks on a bike equipped with KiPass or one without- both require you to withdraw a key, from either the ignition or some other source (pocket, hanging on a lanyard, etc.) to use in another place on the bike.

And I do not see the correlation between KiPass and helmet lock key that you now need. If you had a standard stamped metal ignition key, would something be different about your add- on helmet lock arrangement?

And yes, I do like KiPass but that does not make it any better or worse than it is in reality, just as you not likening it does not make it any better or worse than it is in reality. I certainly appreciate any logical, reasonable thoughts about any system (in the universe, be it KiPass or gravity) but your 'argument' sounds like the old- timers who hated fuel injection and electronic ignition just because it was new. I find KiPass convenient because the key is always in front of me, secure in the ignition. I can get to and use that key faster and easier than any key I have to retrieve from a pocket or lanyard. That, to the best of my belief, is a logical assessment.

YMMV

Got that thread- locker handy Jim? Another one bites the dust….   

Brian

Because Brian, I still have to remove a key, or get a key out of my pocket, and in this case remove it from the fob to open the bags or the fuel cap. I didn't say KIPASS didn't work, it does, I said it was a poorly implemented system. I still have to use a key, and a normal ignition would work as well since I have to remove the key anyway. A normal ignition key removes easily without having to push down, and wait for the system to release it, turn and remove. With a normal key, you turn off the ignition and pull the key. It couldn't be easier. If I had a bike with no bags and a way to open the fuel cap without a key, then great. As it is, it is a pointless system that only complicates things.

I don't live in fear of KIPASS, I don't even give it any thought. I do think though it is a pointless system since I continually have to use a key anyway. I know you love KIPASS, but for me, I would prefer a simple key. In the bigger picture, I bought the bike knowing it had KIPASS, but wishing it didn't. I bought the bike because it fit my needs and to ride, which i do. I really don't care if this bike has KIPASS or not, but it would be simpler if it didn't.

To add to things, I now have helmet locks on the bike, and another key. Kawasaki didn't seem to think we needed that so now that I have that, I get to juggle yet another key. Maybe they should have called it KeysPass.

[CB Schmaltz]

I hate looking for the FOB
pulling  the key
then opening my bags
I like this idea
better than my black duct tape holding the key

[Tremainiac]

KIPASS is a latent security devise.
I have had key made for the side bags on the same ring as my top box, house and garage key.
I love not having to look for my ignition key after I put on my rain gear.
Like getting into my garage in the pouring rain or my house.
Need to carry a set anyhow.

[lather]

Where's Rod Serling when I need him? You guys are getting weird. I could not understand why people are gluing toilet bolt covers to their keys until the zombie threat explained it all.

What can you expect from people who post pictures of their old air filters?

 

[B.D.F.]

Well take it from me, that dirty air filter thread just took a turn for the weird.... 

Brian

Where's Rod Serling when I need him? You guys are getting weird. I could not understand why people are gluing toilet bolt covers to their keys until the zombie threat explained it all.

What can you expect from people who post pictures of their old air filters?

 

[freebird6]

I was happy to see this and welcome the innovative ideas guys have for this bike. Moving over from the Mean Streak Forums where guys really were innovative and readily shared ideas I found it is a bit of a shock to find the naysayers and arguments against innovation here.

I like this idea and will probably take the 3 extra keys I had made and try this trick. I s sure enjoyed havin the extra keys to rely on and save time
 

[VirginiaJim]

Where's Rod Serling when I need him? You guys are getting weird. I could not understand why people are gluing toilet bolt covers to their keys until the zombie threat explained it all.

What can you expect from people who post pictures of their old air filters?

 

  +1

[VirginiaJim]

I was happy to see this and welcome the innovative ideas guys have for this bike. Moving over from the Mean Streak Forums where guys really were innovative and readily shared ideas I found it is a bit of a shock to find the naysayers and arguments against innovation here.

Say it ain't so!  As far as we're concerned there's plenty of innovation here.  We have naysayer's of course but that's to be expected.  We would hate to have to moderate boards where everyone thinks alike or who still has all of their marbles.  I lost mine years ago, in fact.  Yep.

Got that thread- locker handy Jim? Another one bites the dust….   

Brian

We are inclined to say no in your general direction.....at least for now..

[PH14]

Gotcha- the 3/8" downward movement of the key downward followed by the seven millisecond delay.

I do not agree- there is no effective difference in using either the fuel cap lock or the saddlebag locks on a bike equipped with KiPass or one without- both require you to withdraw a key, from either the ignition or some other source (pocket, hanging on a lanyard, etc.) to use in another place on the bike.

And I do not see the correlation between KiPass and helmet lock key that you now need. If you had a standard stamped metal ignition key, would something be different about your add- on helmet lock arrangement?

And yes, I do like KiPass but that does not make it any better or worse than it is in reality, just as you not likening it does not make it any better or worse than it is in reality. I certainly appreciate any logical, reasonable thoughts about any system (in the universe, be it KiPass or gravity) but your 'argument' sounds like the old- timers who hated fuel injection and electronic ignition just because it was new. I find KiPass convenient because the key is always in front of me, secure in the ignition. I can get to and use that key faster and easier than any key I have to retrieve from a pocket or lanyard. That, to the best of my belief, is a logical assessment.

YMMV

Got that thread- locker handy Jim? Another one bites the dust….   

Brian

Yeah, I've noticed a lot of threads you take part in get locked. You also seem to miss a lot of what people say. I never said I didn't like KIPASS, i personally don't give it much thought day to day. I did say it was a poorly integrated system, the system encompassing the entire bike. Since it still requires the use of a key for the rest of the bike, it isn't a real convenience. As for the helmet locks, it is simply a feature most bikes have that Kawasaki for some reason decided this bike didn't need. Now that I have added it, I need another key. So, had Kawasaki integrated all of it, including helmet locks, it would have been nice. The simple option to leave the bags unlocked would have been nice as well. Or a simple key minus the KIPASS. I just find the system pointless, but it works and allows me to start the bike and ride.

Sorry if I have a different opinion than you do Brian. That's what makes people different. Just because I find KIPASS pointless, solving a problem that simply didn't exist, doesn't mean I hate it or the bike. It also doesn't mean I dislke you or feel you don't have anything to contribute. I do however find your smarta** comments to be a bit tiring at times. That is the last I have to say about this matter.

[B.D.F.]

Too bad you are not up for more bantering because it could get interesting and the entire tone of this thread seems to be taking a turn for the civil....

True about the thread locking- I seem to be going through a low- tolerance phase lately. I usually try to be careful in my tone and delivery but of late the sharper replies are coming through. Jim does a great job of locking those threads that need it and it is usually pretty easy to see it coming. Let's see where this one goes....

I really do try to read and understand what others say. It makes an interaction work a lot better. Perhaps my reading comprehension is low but when you make statements like 'poorly integrated system' and "I would prefer a simple key" it implies to me that you do not like the system. You might not have used those specific words but that is the meaning I took away from reading your previous posts. I would counter that if you are truly neutral about KiPass, you have stated it poorly in my opinion.

Helmet locks are still irrevelant to KiPass. Kawasaki could have added them to the bike originally and had the keys that fit the bike fit the helmet lock but they did not. That is not a fault or facet of KiPass in any way. They are not related. I have also added a helmet lock to my bike and also think that it would have been nice if Kawasaki did this in the first place but it is a stand- alone though that is not related to any other system on the bike. In addition to that, I have a Givi top box now that also requires a key to open; I wish Givi had made the system so the box could be latched closed without using the lock. Both of those devices force me to dig out keys to use them and I find that annoying but I do not see how having those exact same devices on a ZX 14 with a conventional key would be any different. I also agree with you about the saddlebags- it would have been nice if the lock was optional and separate from the actual latch similar to what BMW uses.

As far as the personal comments, no problem from me. Personality interaction is an individual thing and sometimes it just does not work. The good news is that this forum software apparently has an individual blocking function (I have not used it) so if things get intolerable.....

Note the lack of smarta$$ comments in this post. Not because I was avoiding them but because nothing came to mind while typing. Of course you would say that happens a lot even when I do insert smarta$$ comments. Which is guess in and of itself is a smarta$$ comment. 

Have a nice day (seriously, not sarcastically).
Brian

Yeah, I've noticed a lot of threads you take part in get locked. You also seem to miss a lot of what people say. I never said I didn't like KIPASS, i personally don't give it much thought day to day. I did say it was a poorly integrated system, the system encompassing the entire bike. Since it still requires the use of a key for the rest of the bike, it isn't a real convenience. As for the helmet locks, it is simply a feature most bikes have that Kawasaki for some reason decided this bike didn't need. Now that I have added it, I need another key. So, had Kawasaki integrated all of it, including helmet locks, it would have been nice. The simple option to leave the bags unlocked would have been nice as well. Or a simple key minus the KIPASS. I just find the system pointless, but it works and allows me to start the bike and ride.

Sorry if I have a different opinion than you do Brian. That's what makes people different. Just because I find KIPASS pointless, solving a problem that simply didn't exist, doesn't mean I hate it or the bike. It also doesn't mean I dislke you or feel you don't have anything to contribute. I do however find your smarta** comments to be a bit tiring at times. That is the last I have to say about this matter.

[lt1]

Back to the thread topic, it's not so much that KiPass is poorly intergrated, it is that the C14's locking system is poorly integrated. 

Kawi sells a supposedly trunk that requires a separate key.  No real slam against Givi, because Kawi could have required/requested the trunk key to match.  BMW manages to do it, and the C14 is a BMW competitor, though at a lower price point.

Failing to include helmet locks on an S/T is just stupid IMHO.  One could argue that the C14 has 2 locking, enclose helmet holders, of course, but then all the storage space is gone.

To me, the poor integration consists of having to have multiple keys to the bike.  After going to all the trouble of making a bike that you don't have to carry a key for (just a fob), you wind up having to carry two keys in addition to the fob.  It's not a major calamity, but it lessens the one of the benefits/selling points of the system.

One other thing that was poorly thought out was the design of the stove knob.  If a few ridges or gripping points were added, it would be much easier to remove.  Most of the time, it's pretty easy, but even the slightest dampness makes it a bit of a challenge.  Poor design for a key that needs to be removed regularly for the tank and bags.
It's no big deal that KiPass does not unlock the saddlebags remotely.  With non-removable bags, that makes some sense, but would be costly to implement on the C14.

Owning bikes that both allow and disallow the bags to be closed without locking, I can see the benefit of each system.  Personally, I prefer that the bags have to be locked.   Though I admire the cleverness of the posters who have made custom bag-keys, it makes more keys to track, carry and/or put in the saddlebags, which is what I would prefer to avoid.

[CrashGordon]

I can see both sides of this issue. I use my bike mostly for commuting without the bags so I find KiPass very handy. Just get on the bike and go. Park the bike and get off. When I am traveling with the bags, I do find it awkward that there's no option to open the bags without the key. Perhaps Kawi could have come up with a way to keep the bags closed but not locked so that we could open them easily when we wanted to and then lock them when we were leaving them unattended? Would that have been very difficult?

I have no issue with the gas cap. I use the stove key and like Brian said, gas stops are very quick. As I mentioned to someone in another thread, I keep my wallet in may tankbag and a gas stop for me takes about 2 minutes. I don't even have to take my gloves off. No complaints about how the key is implemented for the gashole.

[Fearless]

Where is everyone getting the extra keys? Can Lows or Home depot just cut them from a blank?

[Excavator]

I had my spare keys made at a local locksmith. $2.40 for two keys. I don't think the hardware stores have the blanks for our bikes keys.

[ZG]

Ace Hardware here.

[stevewfl]

Nice work around.

On the new BMW sport tourer the FOB controls the bags and such too

[ZG]

On the new BMW sport tourer the FOB controls the bags and such too

Now that sounds cool. 

[mikeboileau]

It must be winter everywhere.......

[Unclesteve]

If the Kipass key is a problem, why not have a conventional key made and use it?  It works.