I have to agree with axledeep on using the Kawa manuals. I bought them both for something like $70, only to find they aren't too terribly much help. You have to remember that the official tech manuals are written for Kawasaki mechanics, not the shade-tree mechanics like us. They are very sparse in their pictures and explanations. I went and bought a Haynes manual for $25 while I was waiting for official manuals to arrive in the mail (it took over 2 months!!!) and found it to be much, much more helpful. Good pictures, good instructions, I would recommend it, the only problem is that the Haynes EX500 manuals only go up to the '96 model year. I initially ran into a problem with the turn signals being different on my '04 than the ones described in the manual, but I think everything else is the same. I don't have the Clymer for the EX500, but I used to have one for my old Honda Nighthawk 250, it was a pretty good manual, but I think the Haynes is just a little easier to use and a little more clear. So my ranking, from my limited use of the Clymer for a completely different bike, would Haynes first, Clymer a close second, and the official tech manuals a distant third.
In regard to the fuel to use, I had been using the minimum 87 since I got the bike (approx. 4.5K miles now), yesterday for kicks I put in the 93 super unleaded. It made a pretty big difference!! I'm not so sure I had more power, but the engine sure does run smoother now. I have a lot less buzzing in my bars at at all rpms than I did running the regular 87. I'll use 93 exclusively now, it only cost me something like a dollar more when I filled the entire tank. I'm curious to see what my fuel consumption will be like now. I've heard some folks get better mileage when they run the higher octane gas.
