Kawasaki ninja

2011 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R Video

2010-12-14T07:18:00.000-08:00

2011 Kawasaki Ninja Motorcycle Pricing and Specifications

2010-12-11T23:55:00.000-08:00

2011 Kawasaki Ninja Motorcycle Pricing and Specifications

Get information, pricing, specs, photos and more for the entire 2011 Kawasaki lineup.

November 2010

[ 2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R/ZX-10R ABS ]

2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 1700 Voyager/Vulcan 1700 Voyager ABS
A full-dress V-Twin cruiser loaded with touring amenities and high-tech features.
More »	MSRP	$17,499/18,599
	Displacement	1700cc
	Bike Category	Street/Touring

2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 1700 Vaquero
A full-dress V-Twin cruiser with touring amenities including a cruise control and a sound system.
More »	MSRP	$16,499
	Displacement	1700cc
	Bike Category	Street/Touring

2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 1700 Nomad
A V-Twin cruiser with hard bags, a windshield and all-day comfort.
More »	MSRP	$15,499
	Displacement	1700cc
	Bike Category	Street Touring; Commuter

2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 1700 Classic
Classically styled cruiser with a 1700cc V-Twin engine and electronic fuel injection.
More »	MSRP	$12,199
	Displacement	1700cc
	Bike Category	Street/Cruiser

2011 Kawasaki Concours 14 ABS
An ultra-powerful, 1352cc, award-winning sport-tourer with electronic traction-control and ABS.
More »	MSRP	$15,599
	Displacement	1352cc
	Bike Category	Street/Touring

2011 Kawasaki ZX-14
An ultra-sport machine that packs 1352cc of inline-Four power into a cruise-missile package.
More »	MSRP	$13,599
	Displacement	1352cc
	Bike Category	Street/Sport

2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R/ZX-10R ABS
An ultra-powerful 1000cc inline-Four superbike with multi-level traction control and power modes.
More »	MSRP	$13,799/14,799
	Displacement	998cc
	Bike Category	Street/Sport

2011 Kawasaki Ninja 1000
A liter-class sportbike designed more for comfortable street riding than competitive racetrack use.
More »	MSRP	$10,999
	Displacement	1043cc
	Bike Category	Street/Sport

2011 Kawasaki Z1000
A liter-class naked bike with minimal bodywork and big sportbike power.
More »	MSRP	$10,599
	Displacement	1043cc
	Bike Category	Street/Standard/Naked; Commuter

2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Classic LT/Vulcan 900 Classic SE
A classic 900cc V-Twin cruiser in a manageable package.
More »	MSRP	$9399/8199
	Displacement	903cc
	Bike Category	Street/Cruiser; Commuter

2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Custom/Vulcan 900 Custom SE
A stylish and affordable mid-size V-Twin cruiser.
More »	MSRP	$8549/8999
	Displacement	903cc
	Bike Category	Street/Cruiser; Commuter

2011 Kawasaki Versys
A very versatile and practical middleweight twin-cylinder motorcycle.
More »	MSRP	$7699
	Displacement	649cc
	Bike Category	Street/Adventure; Commuter; Entry-Level

2011 Kawasaki Ninja 650R
A versatile, sporty, affordably priced supersport-style parallel-Twin.
More »	MSRP	$7199
	Displacement	649cc
	Bike Category	Street/Sport; Commuter; Entry-Level

2011 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R
A repli-racer middleweight supersport with power and handling bred on the racetrack.
More »	MSRP	$10,699
	Displacement	599cc
	Bike Category	Street/Sport

2011 Kawasaki Ninja 250R
An entry-level two-cylinder sportbike that is inexpensive and gets excellent fuel mileage.
More »	MSRP	$3999 to $4249
	Displacement	249cc
	Bike Category	Street/Sport; Commuter; Entry-Level

2011 Kawasaki KLR650
A very capable dual-purpose bike that is efficient on the street and holds its own off-road.
More »	MSRP	$6149
	Displacement	651cc
	Bike Category	Street/Dual-Purpose; Commuter

2011 Kawasaki KX450F
A very competitive 450cc four-stroke motocross racebike.
More »	MSRP	$8149
	Displacement	449cc
	Bike Category	Off-Road/Motocross

2011 Kawasaki KX250F
A lightweight, championship-caliber, 250cc four-stroke motocross racebike.
More »	MSRP	$7299
	Displacement	249cc
	Bike Category	Off-Road/Motocross

Kawasaki Ninja Z1000 2010

2010-12-04T19:20:00.000-08:00

On the road, Kawasaki's all-new Z1000 bike feels aggressive, raw and supersport-inspired while maintaining a civil nature.

By Blake Conner, Photography By Jeff Allen

April 2010

"Not another naked." That was the first response from Kawasaki's U.S. product-planning department when the Japanese home office asked how many Z1000s the American market could absorb. Lack of sales success with previous standards meant Kawasaki over here wasn't sure it wanted anything to do with the new bike, especially in the current economic environment. Now, with the Z1000 obviously green-lighted, something must have changed at the Irvine, California, headquarters. So what was the swing factor?

"The Z1000 is one of those bikes that is very hard to put into words," said Kawasaki Product Manager Karl Edmondson. "No matter what is said in a PowerPoint presentation or in the press kit, it's one of those bikes you just have to go out and ride."

And that is exactly what they did. A little bit of seat time in Japan helped the Orange County crew change their minds, primarily because of the Z1000's performance—terrific performance, actually.

"One of the issues with standard bikes," Edmondson explained, "is that they tend to have standard power, standard suspension, standard braking performance and standard handling and turning ability. The perception in the marketplace is that in order to get the best styling, engine performance, handling and suspension, you have to buy a premium-class sportbike like a ZX-10R or ZX-6R. The problem is that the number of riders capable of getting the most out of a supersport bike is very limited. These models are so focused on performance that they've become full-on racebikes that are just barely street legal. The fun factor has kind of gone away in regard to the streetability of some of these motorcycles."

To accomplish its goals, Kawasaki completely scrapped the previous Z1000 and started from scratch. The design objectives were two-pronged: "First, we wanted to have a visual impact and get away from the 'standard' or 'naked' categories, so it wasn't just a typical generic bike; we wanted to give it a really sporty image," Edmondson said. "The second goal was to have a riding impact, to give it supersport-like engine performance and handling, and to give it the type of feedback you get when riding a sportbike, but do it in a package that is more natural and comfortable for everyday street riding."

A good place to start was with the engine, which was designed specifically for the Z. It's not based on the ZX-10R or the previous Z1000 motors; it's an all-new mill sharing virtually nothing with others in the family. The liquid-cooled, dohc, 16-valve inline-Four displaces 1043cc from 77.0 x 56.0mm bore and stroke dimensions. The engine's physical layout (which places the crankshaft and transmission shafts on the same horizontal plane and are not triangulated, as has become the repli-racer norm) was specified so that it would quickly be identifiable as a Z1000.

Engineers wanted high performance, but the power also had to be accessible to a broad range of riders and be fun for real-world riding conditions. This meant torque and throttle response would take precedent over top-end horsepower. The engine had to be smooth, as well, because many riders complained about excessive engine vibration on the previous models.

To get the longer stroke deemed necessary for torque production while maintaining a compact engine size, the crankshaft was lowered in the case to keep cylinder height similar to that of the previous model. A gear-driven secondary balancer was added to help quell vibration that might find its way to the rider via the three solid engine-attachment points (the fourth is rubber).

Fueling is handled by a bank of 38mm, single-injector Keihin downdraft throttle bodies, which incorporate oval-type sub-throttles controlled by the ECU; the rider's right wrist still opens the primaries. Cool air is inducted from a pair of intakes on the upper sides of the mini-fairings through the frame and into an airbox, which employs an intake-sound-enhancing resonator (think blowing across the top of a bottle) for a throaty growl.

Much will be said about the exhaust system's love-it-or-hate-it styling, but in technical terms, it is 1.5 pounds lighter than the one used on the previous Z1000, while the quad-style mufflers are shorter and require less volume (due to a large pre-chamber under the engine), contributing to better mass centralization. Three catalyzers are incorporated into the system; there is no O2 sensor.

After we looked at the power curves obtained on the Cycle Worlddyno, it became apparent that the engineers accomplished their torque-rich mission. An amazingly linear horsepower curve is complemented by a flat torque curve that gets an added bump in production around 7000 rpm.

Out on the road, this tractability and flexibility mean that the engine is always there for you. "A nice clutch and good fuel mapping make snappy off-the-line launches easy to execute," said Editor-in-Chief Mark Hoyer. "And, man, is there torque!"

And you won't have to wait long for power to build when passing a car, as the relatively short gearing has the engine spinning just below peak torque. From about 6000 rpm on up, just snap open the throttle and cars disappear in the mirrors. Of course, a downshift at that same point puts the revs right in the fattest part of the curve and makes delivery even more potent.

With Road Test Editor Don Canet at the controls, the Z ripped off a smoking 10.38-second quarter-mile, getting out of the hole with authority but falling off a bit in the upper echelons of the rev range, which is no surprise considering the engine's design intent. On the tight, twisty, crested roads encountered during the Cambria, California, press introduction, the Z1000 was a blast. Rises in the terrain invited the rider to loft the front wheel in easy, controlled power wheelies, the low gearing allowing this to be done in any of the first four cogs.

Performance doesn't come without civility, either. "Engine vibration is mightily reduced from the level produced by the previous Z1000 and, particularly, the buzzy first-gen Zed," said Hoyer. "This new one is a pretty smooth-running inline-Four. Not quite as refined as Kawasaki's own ZX-14 but very good."

Complaints about engine performance were few, but our testers did notice a slight hesitation from the injection system. "When picking up the throttle on corner exits, there was a slight delay, a non-intuitive degree of torque for the throttle position selected," Hoyer said. "It almost feels like a computer-controlled-secondary-butterfly thing, sort of similar to the artificial softening of the first-year ZX-14's bottom-end response in the lower gears." This was also apparent while riding the bike in the pouring rain in Cambria, when trying to be smooth was occasionally thwarted by the slight restraint in throttle response.

Our other minor gripe regards shift action between the six gears. Our test unit exhibited a notchy feeling, especially in our first couple hundred miles, but action did improve as we got more seat time.

One area that offers zero hesitation is the chassis. Out goes the old steel frame and in its place is a stiff, die-cast aluminum unit welded of five pieces. As with the company's ZX-10R, main spars curve over the top of the engine to keep the bike slim between the rider's knees.

Suspension front and rear is new. An inverted 41mm Showa fork is now fully adjustable, with compression damping clickers added to the provisions for rebound damping and spring preload tweaks. The Showa shock and its linkage are mounted in a semi-horizontal position above the swingarm, where they help centralize mass and are protected from exhaust heat. The linkage ratio is identical to that of the previous bike's Uni-Trak setup.

The new chassis and suspension package strikes an excellent balance between performance and comfort. "Chassis behavior on a winding road is very good," said Hoyer. "Cornering response on turn-in is swift without being ultra-quick, and steering effort is nicely weighted. There was a little wiggle at the apex on deep-lean corners, but this is often a byproduct of wide bars and unintended rider input. Otherwise, the Z1000 flicks in easily and settles into corners with a satisfyingly solid feel. Damping is on the taut side of comfortable, with good bump compliance. Despite the above-mentioned wiggle, the chassis feels rock-solid and substantial overall, very 'together.'"

Chassis behavior also is almost unfailingly neutral, allowing the bike to be trail-braked deep into corners with no negative influence on steering input or control.

An area that typically gets ignored on Japanese nakeds is the brakes. Not so with the Zed. Up front is a top-line combination of an adjustable-span lever actuating a radial master cylinder and twin Tokico four-piston, radial-mount calipers that pinch 300mm petal discs. Feel and power from the front were excellent, with low lever effort and plenty of information from the contact patch at the limit. Canet commented after brake testing that the fork was well-damped and didn't blow through the travel at first application, as is sometimes the case with standard-style bikes. Out back, the single-piston caliper and 250mm disc provided only adequate feel, making the rear tire too easy to accidentally lock up, especially in wet conditions.

Strictly speaking, the Z1000 isn't a completely naked bike. There is the small upper fairing with projector-beam headlights and an aggressive lower cowl. In between, side fairings nicely incorporate turnsignals. Out back, the slim tailsection has clean lines while including hidden grabrails recessed into its underside. And then, of course, there is the white vinyl passenger seat of our Pearl Stardust White testbike (the orange accents get no billing in the official name)... Opting for Metallic Spark Black gets you a black passenger seat.

After hopping on the bike, the rider is met with a reasonable, 30.2-inch seat height, which allows firm footing for most riders of 5-foot-11 or taller. Reach to the solid-mount, motocross-style handlebar is natural and comfortable. The aluminum footpegs are a touch on the high side for a "standard" but offer excellent cornering clearance on this sport-oriented bike. A small degree of engine vibration was noticeable through the aluminum pegs, but the plus side is that their knurled tops kept feet firmly-planted in all conditions, well worth any vibe-reducing comfort tradeoff provided by slippery-in-the-wet rubber strips. The seating position tilts the rider into a sporty but not overly aggressive pose without putting much, if any, weight on the wrists. Wind/rain protection is minimal, as you might expect, but the bikini fairing does take some air pressure off the rider's chest. Mirrors are effectively-placed and offer a good rear view; the almost total absence of vibration through the handlebar helps keep things in focus.

With strong, real-world engine performance and no shortcuts taken on the chassis, the $10,499 Z1000 can punch out the daily commute or tear up a backroad with the best bikes in the class. This is not just another naked.

2011 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 - First Ride

2010-11-23T05:55:00.000-08:00

Kawasaki clothes the naked Z1000, comforts the afflicted with an all-new Ninja 1000.

By John Burns, Photography By Kinney Jones

October 2010

The road up Mt. Tamalpais is paved with good intentions but covered in a thick coniferous carpet of dropped foliage from the huge redwood and Douglas firs that canopy it. Hmmm, is this any place for a 50-year-old motojournalist on a 503-pound 136-hp Kawasaki? At first it seems like a terrible idea, but after slithering through a few corners, you figure out this is a really friendly, well-insured Kawasaki that’s got your back. All that new bodywork tells the casual observer it’s another one of them Ninjabikes. But with the same upright ergos as the Z1000 naked bike it’s built upon, this newest Ninja puts the rider in a position of complete control to deal with dodgy traction, flying fellow squids and all the other slings, arrows and banana peels the road throws at him. Pretty soon the smell of all that fresh pine sizzling on hot exhaust takes me right back to circa 1965, jumping in raked-up piles of pine needles just before my dad did what they all did in those pre-green days—throw on a match. Mmmm...

To go with the great ergonomics, Kawasaki gave this one full-coverage plastic designed to draw engine heat away from the rider, a three-position, manual-adjust windscreen, 10mm-thicker seat foam, rubber footpegs, etc. Not only is the new Ninja 1000 a clothed naked bike (because we Americans just like fairings, apparently), Kawasaki thinks it could also bridge the gap to its Concours 14, for riders who want a lighter, less complex sport tourer. To that end, it also gets a 5-gallon fuel tank and a bunch of available options, including hard saddlebags (still in the works).

Mainly what it gets is a killer of a classic Kawasaki four-banger, just like the 1043cc unit that powers the Z1000. Power comes on smooth enough from way low in the rev band to let the rear Bridgestone BT016 find traction even on this Christmas-tree killing floor of a road. And on those rare clean stretches where the pavement briefly uncoils, the thing pulls hard from as little as 3500 rpm. This motor makes you recalibrate your internal tachometer. Kawasaki says it makes the same peak torque as its new ZX-10R, but at 7800 rpm instead of 8700. By the time the tach gets to 7000, you definitely want your full attention focused far ahead on the road, and your brain ready to deal with the 136-hp Kawasaki says it produces at 9600 rpm. Thanks to its bodywork, they also say it’ll reach terminal velocity quicker than the Z1000, and because of that, its speed is electronically governed to a mph the Kawasaki spokespeople would not reveal—an admission, to a bunch of motojournalists, tantamount to Mission Control Houston initiating countdown.

Sadly, due to traffic and lack of long straights in appropriate places, all I can say is that limit lies somewhere on the other side of 136-mph indicated on the bike’s digital display—and 136 is a speed the Ninja can dial up in a hurry. On the straights through inhabited areas, though, you can drop the engine down to 1500 rpm and 25 mph in sixth, roll the throttle back open, and the Ninja will pull itself right back up to speed with no complaints whatsoever. Way flexible. With this engine, an automatic gearbox would be redundant.

On a racetrack, a ZX-10R or any Open-class sportbike would annihilate the Ninja. Sorting through Mt. Tam’s endless junk drawer of slippery blind corners, on the other hand, the tables are turned. With its immediate, smooth grunt off the bottom and sit-up, wide-barred ergos (the grips are actually 10mm closer to each other than on the Z1000), the Ninja feels more like a big, faired-in adventure bike, with the majority of your weight planted squarely on your butt and feet, where you can feel what both tires are up to. (The rear enjoys roosting the people behind you with pine-tree shrapnel. Toothpick, anyone?) At the same time, in spite of the weight the bike gained, it steers light, quick and accurately into corners with clean pavement, and the fact that it’s narrow between the knees just like the Z1000 also helps it snap easily side to side.

The 41mm fully-adjustable fork and preload/rebound-adjustable single-shock rear are on the harsh side of plush compared to the components Kawasaki puts on its more expensive bikes, but then I’m 20 or 30 pounds lighter than the typical American Ninja buyer. The BT016 Bridgestones and suspension do do a fine job keeping things balanced front-to rear and in general keeping the bike pointed in the right direction—not such an easy thing given the torque the engine doles out. Accelerating hard over truly bumpy pavement with the front wheel only marginally in ground contact, the bike always kept its composure, even without benefit of a steering damper. And radial-mount brake calipers operated by a radial-pump master cylinder don’t feel budget at all; they’re two-finger powerful, linear-feeling and nicely sensitive to trail braking.

In the most upright of its three positions, the new windshield might be nice for touring, but we never went straight long enough to find out. (And when we were going straight, we were trying to find the secret top speed.) And the new bodywork might suck hot air from the engine and away from your legs as advertised, but it was only in the 60s in Marin County that day, a place as close to Eden as you’ll find in the continental U.S., so we can’t really address that either. What we can address is, even though we only covered a couple hundred miles in our day with the new Ninja, nearly every one of those miles was hard-fought, and when the sun was setting into the Pacific at the end of it, we all would’ve been happy to keep on riding. No complaints from the old guys (which I suddenly am one of). Sportbike performance and sport-touring comfort are a tough combination to beat.

As to why you’d clothe such a great naked bike in the first place, Kawasaki’s research and experience tell it that’s what American riders want, and at $10,999, the new fairing only adds $400 to what you’d pay for the naked Z1000, so what the heck? If the fairing broadens the appeal of a bike that was already really appealing (a CW Ten Best), everybody’s happy. Its research also tells Kawasaki that lots of people who buy “performance cruisers” like the Suzuki M109, aren’t necessarily cruiser guys, but they might very well be performance guys no longer willing to assume the sportbike position the performance war left in its wake. Alrighty then, says Kawasaki. This Ninja’s for you.

SPECIFICATIONS
Engine	Liquid-cooled, DOHC, four valves per cylinder, inline-Four
Displacement	1043cc
Bore x Stroke	77.0 x 56.0 mm
Compression Ratio	11.8:1
Fuel System	Fuel injection, four 38mm Keihin throttle bodies, oval sub-throttles
Ignition	TCBI with digital advance
Transmission	Six-speed
Final Drive	X-ring Chain
Rake/Trail	24.5deg / 4.0 in.
Front Tire Size	120/70 ZR17
Rear Tire Size	190/55 ZR17
Wheelbase	56.9 in.
Front Suspension / wheel travel	41 mm inverted cartridge fork; adjustable for compression damping, rebound damping, spring preload; 4.7 in. travel
Rear Suspension / wheel travel	Horizontal monoshock; adjustable for rebound damping and spring preload; 5.4 in. travel
Front Brakes	Dual 300mm petal-type rotors with radial-mount four-piston calipers
Rear Brakes	Single 250mm petal-type rotor with single-piston caliper
Fuel Capacity	5.0 gal.
Seat Height	32.3 in.
Curb Weight	502.7 lbs.
Colors	Ebony, Candy Fire Red / Ebony

2011 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R - First Ride

2010-11-22T02:22:00.000-08:00

2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R - First Ride

Best of the breed? We’ll soon find out.

By Don Canet, Photography By Riles & Nelson

November 2010

I just returned from Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, where Kawasaki staged a press introduction

for its all-new 2011 ZX-10R. Putting in five 20-minute sessions aboard the new Ninja offered ample

time to sample its various combinations of electronic rider assists with selectable power modes, including Full, Medium and Low, along with three levels of S-KTRC (Sport Kawasaki Traction Control).

I also lapped in F-mode with traction control disabled and found the engine’s raw delivery to be impressively manageable; it feels impressively linear from basement revs to its 14,000-rpm-rev limit. There’s no debate, however, that my quickest laps came when S-KTRC was watching my back. All in

all, the system is the least intrusive and most effective TC implementation I’ve experience to date.

Early reports have the North American model producing around 170 rear-wheel horsepower in stock

tune, and while this is about 10 percent down on the European-spec 10R, our Yankee Ninja provided

an exhilarating ride around Road Atlanta’s undulating 2.5-mile road course. Our hosts treated us to an additional four laps aboard a bike equipped with the race-kit ECU and slip-on exhaust, said to unleash

an additional 18 peak horsepower. To be honest, the speed and acceleration difference wasn’t huge.

The new chassis proved very agile in negotiating the track’s esses and two chicanes, with superb feedback though the Showa suspension, now featuring a Big Piston Fork. High-speed stability

down the long backstraight was excellent, and a blessing, as an indicated speed of over 180 mph

could be achieved when tipping into the flat-out right-hand bend before braking hard for the

second-gear chicane that follows. The initial impression here is that Kawasaki has built a very

competitive liter-class sportbike that has what it takes to go head-to-head with the CW Ten Best

-winning BMW S1000RR and other class contenders like the Aprilia RSV4, Ducati 1198, Honda CBR1000RR, Suzuki GSX-R1000, KTM RC8 and Yamaha YZF-R1.

The bike ridden at the intro was the non-ABS model ($13,799), which is also the first to arrive in

dealer showrooms; Street ABS equipped ZX-10Rs ($14,799) have yet to roll off the production line.

Check back Monday for a more in-depth riding impression, more photos and a video of the bike in

action. In the meantime, have a look at the in-depth tech preview and video of the 2011 ZX-10R we published earlier, plus the first ride of the previous, 2010 model.

Top 3 Reasons To Buy Chain Wallets by Matt L

2010-11-13T08:15:00.000-08:00

Are you tired of constantly loosing your wallet? Worried about someone stealing your personal belongings, money, and anything else that you normally keep on you? Now you can protect the things that mean the most to you when you use chain wallets. Here are the top 3 reasons why you would want to buy a chain wallet for yourself.

1. Keep Your Money Safe

You never know when someone might try to pick pocket you while your on the local bus, train, or in any other public place. Money is one very important thing that you don't want to lose, and chain wallets can help prevent this from happening because they are made so that they can be secured to your belt loop, belt, or anything else that might be firmly attached to you. When someone tries to take your wallet out of your pants, jacket, or wherever you have it stored, they'll have a hard time since it is connected to you.

2. Prevent Losing Your Wallet

When you're riding your motorcycle, riding on the bus to school, walking around downtown, or are in any other type of situation where you could easily lose your wallet, then you might consider purchasing a chain wallet that you can attach to you so you don't lose it. Wallets can fall out of your pockets or bags in situations like these, so chain wallets can prevent that from happening.

3. Great Wallet, Great Look

You can find some really nice looking chain wallets that will complement any wardrobe. Motorcyclists often like to purchase chain wallets because they look great with their leather gear. Some chain wallets also have cool looking emblems on them that can really help bring out the biker in you. The chain wallet isn't just for the motorcyclist however because anyone that enjoys high quality leather items can enjoy them just as much.

2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R Preview

2010-11-12T05:04:00.000-08:00

2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R Preview

We discover secret info about the baddest Ninja ever!

By Kevin Duke, Jul. 13, 2010, Photography by Kawasaki

If you’ve been paying attention lately, you’ll have seen evidence of a new teaser marketing campaign in advance of Kawasaki’s upcoming 2011 ZX-10R literbike. A trickling of info, photos and an all-too-brief video have been served up at Kawasaki-Challenge.com since the site launched on June 21.

The site’s latest dollop of 10R news came last week when a race version of the 2011 ZX-10R took part in track testing at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan on July 7 and 8. The non-stock Ninja was ridden on the first day by test rider Hidemichi Takahashi, followed up on day two by Kawasaki’s former World Superbike star rider, Akira Yanagawa.
Precious little details about the bike have been officially released, but based on information we’ve recently gleaned, we’re able to shed some light on what we will see from Kawasaki this fall when the production bike is officially unveiled.
First off, let’s dispel two wild rumors. The new 10R has neither a big-bang firing order nor a horizontal placement of its cylinders, despite fanciful speculation in lesser publications. Rumors of variable valve timing are also likely unfounded. Instead, we find an evolutionary literbike design of a traditional inline-Four engine wrapped in a perimeter-beam aluminum frame.
And yet, despite the apparent lack of visible innovation, we’re told to expect a seriously competitive liter-sized sportbike. It’s a total ground-up redesign. Rumors suggest a production version of the new 10R can lap Kawi’s Autopolis test track seconds quicker than the 2010 model.
This design concept sketch shows the general styling theme of the 2011 ZX-10R, but the race version (based upon the production bike) seen at Suzuka deviates significantly from the sketch, especially the shape and design of the side fairing panels.
Perhaps the headlining news is that Kawi’s lawyers have allowed engineers to develop what might turn out to be a class-leading electronic rider-aid package, including multi-adjustable traction control. We’re told to expect a TC system that is better than the BMW package on the S1000RR, able to be toggled through more customizable settings. A performance-based anti-lock braking system will be optional, but a BMW-like quick-shifter won’t be part of the package. The new Ninja will have comprehensive instrumentation, including the ability to switch between street and track displays.
Speaking of the S1000RR, that’s the stunning new target Kawasaki has to aim for in this revitalized market segment. The current ZX-10R is the lowest-revving literbike (aside from the Aprilia RSV4), so we’re expecting a modest increase in max revs from 13,000 to maybe 13,500 rpm. That’s still short of the S1000’s lofty 14K rev limit, suggesting the Ninja engine’s bore is less than the massive 80mm slugs in the BMW.
From what we’ve been able to gather, the newest Ninja is expected to produce peak horsepower numbers near or in excess of 170 ponies at the rear tire. The S1000 pumps out a minimum of 170 hp.
Oncoming air will be crammed into a pressurized airbox via this massive nose intake.
In terms of styling, it seems like the 2011 ZX-10 has the design bones that should produce the most attractive 10R yet. The shape of its bodywork is chiseled yet sleek, wrapping tightly around the mechanical bits. Large side cut-outs in the fairing add to the perception of lightness and expose the engine. A diminutive tailsection helps aid the impression of lightness.
Speaking of weight, it will be interesting to see how many ounces can be whittled away. The current 10R weighs in at 458 pounds with its tank filled, and that’s 5 more than the S1000RR and a whopping 21 pounds heavier than Honda’s CBR1000RR. The 2011 ZX will surely be lighter than the BMW, and it might even approach the CBR’s astonishingly low (437-lb) weight. Keep in mind that 20-some pounds were shed from the ZX-6R in its last redesign.
The 10R’s nose is particularly interesting. A huge centrally located ram-air duct is impossible to ignore, and it funnels cool air into a pressurized airbox via channels in the aluminum frame’s steering head. Expect some form of cat-eye headlights on either side of that gaping maw. Its sloped nose implies slippery aerodynamics, underlined by its beak that extends many inches past the front axle. A faired front fender includes leading-edge extensions for smoother flow through 180-plus mph winds.
The aluminum-beam perimeter frame appears to have abandoned Kawasaki’s over-the-engine design, looking quite conventional. This change seems to have had the side benefit of a lower fuel tank, perhaps augmented by a sub-tank partially located under the seat.
A race-spec version of the 2011 ZX-10R was tested last week at Suzuka.
As has become typical for modern sportbikes, the ZX-10’s exhaust system will be another variation of an under-engine collector box and a stylized side-mount shorty muffler.
Also of note is the Ninja’s braced aluminum swingarm. It looks like Kawi has tightened up the dimensions of the main frame to allow for a longer swingarm inside of a similar wheelbase, which is known to aid traction. The suspension is also all new, with the front end using a Showa Big Piston fork like that first seen on the 2009 ZX-6R.
The left-side profile shows a longer swingarm that has a beefy-looking brace. Note how the nose fairing stretches forward to punch a cleaner hole in the wind.
Unlike the race-prepped ZX-10R seen testing at Suzuka, Brembo brakes are doubtful to make it to the production version of the new ZX. The streetbike will be blessed with adjustable footpegs to better accommodate riders of different sizes.
Although many details remain unknown or in sketch form, a new sportbike like the 10R must already be in its near-final status, with final development currently ironing out any last-minute wrinkles. Complete information will be available when Kawasaki makes its official announcement in early October.
source : http://www.motorcycle.com