Kawasaki Z1000

Aaah. Another Z... makes a self-confessed Kwakaphile warm all over doesn't it? At least it does this one.

That's how I felt about the new Z1000 on the way to Ballina for a two-day road and closed-circuit ride on the new offering. Bit of pressure placed on it right there I suppose. Will it offer the sort of feeling I used to get from the Z9?

Fast forward a few hours and I'm leathering up for the ride. 'Geez it's small,' 'love the orange', 'not so sure about the black', 'those pipes are gonna be loved or hated' - my own thoughts granted, but prospective buyers could well experience very similar musings while rubbing their chins on the showroom floor.

While the bike is partly put together using a meld of ZX-9R hardware (although with a substantially altered powerplant) and ZX-6R body bits, this is no parts-bin special. It's an integrated package that works both visually and on the road. Let's look at some of the donations from its brothers in the Big K stable.

From the ZX-9R comes bits including the engine (953cc this time courtesy of enlarged bore), swingarm, wheels, and calipers; while the lovely ZX-6R has been kind enough to donate its front guard, hugger, seat unit and pillion cowl. There's other stuff, but I won't bore you. That's the main guts of the matter. The bike is aimed squarely at the Yamaha FZ1. The powers-that-be at Kawasaki make no bones about it. And in most areas the bike lives up to the boast of offering more than brand Y. Once again, that's a big call. How? Well for starters they reckon it looks better and I reckon they are right.

The polished rims lend the bike a strong streetfighter persona right from the off - and what about those pipes! I just love 'em. Love the look, the finish, the whole deal. Look at the bike from the rear. That is one cool angle for mine. And big plaudits to the design team at Kawasaki. It is trying something - and that deserves our respect. Well done.

Okay, that's the design bit I like. Not so the instrument cluster. You get the tiny unit from the ZX-6R and higher-spec 6RR without the shift light and lap timer. Okay, I won't miss those, but the tacho readout is an LCD "bar-type" arrangement. My whinge is that it is too small and, in polarising sunglasses, virtually invisible. No such bleat exists on the digital speed readout, nor available information supplied by the dash. You get info and warnings on: speedometer, tachometer, odometer, trip meter, fuel gauge, neutral, high beam, turn signals, high water temp, low oil pressure, electronic fuel-injection. All worthy stuff.

The seating position is more sit-up-and-beg than race-rep, and that's how it should be. Dunno about you, but bum-up and head-down means "working hard" in any pursuit and I reckon the physics of bikes of the Z1000's ilk make infinitely more sense. Given that the bike is small as I've already outlined, the comfort factor is good. The seat is smallish and canted forward, but the relationship to the bars and pegs were spot-on for me. Long stints will be possible.

If the bike is going to hurt you over the longer ride it will be because of the lack of wind protection. I'm a fairing-boy. Yep, softcock, sissy, blouse... Get it off your chest if so inclined. It's the thing that would stop me owning a naked - but it's the only thing.

Make no mistake, this is a naked. While that little boutique thing up the front looks grouse, it does nothing to deflect wind. This is one area where the FZ1 has it over the Z1000. At anything over 140kmh, you feel the wind in a fairly serious manner. You have to; it's simple maths. It has to be said that if you cruise often at that speed or beyond, you are going to have plenty of time to feel no wind at all. Constable Diligent will see to that, so the naked configuration may well not be an issue. Your call.

The bike behaves very nicely indeed on the road - the chassis is simply a gem. The suspension is really nice at both ends, with real-world bumps and imperfections relegated to the sub-conscious. The 41mm inverted forks offer preload and rebound adjustment (rebound in one leg only. Kawasaki reckons they are stiff enough to deal with this arrangement and I see no reason to argue). At the blunt-end you get the familiar Uni-Trak set-up featuring a Showa shock with preload and rebound adjustment. All you'll ever need is the short analysis.

Brakes are twin Nissin four-potters at the bow, and astern you get a single disc gripped by a single-piston caliper. Stopping is not a problem and the picks are close but just short of the category-best FZ1 hardware.

K knows how to do front-ends. Always has and I reckon always will. Remember the ZXR750, then the ZX-7R? "Axle in your hands" were my words back then and the Z1000 does it again. You just never feel like you could lose the front. Toss in that very quick tip-in aided by those wide gold-finished, aluminium bars and quick-ish geometry and I'll wager that you'll be first into your favourite corner. Forget your mate's front wheel on entry - you won't be seeing it.

Coming out could be a slightly different matter though. While power is more than adequate and mid-range is good, the bike still produces its peak power at 10,000rpm. I'd like to see all that a bit earlier, maybe around 7500rpm - for what result? King of the mountain status for you that's what. It's better then a ZX-9R in the middle though and that's a big effort. Maybe I'm nit-picking...

Injection is slightly jerky at low revs, but only slightly and it's as willing to respond to a big call-up as John Howard to George Dubya. Can't help but feel that Kawasaki has put a whole lot more independent thought into its building of a fine motorcycle, but that's another story and I'll get even more letters...

Now where was I. Yes, a motorcycle. A good motorcycle. The Z1000 is going to win some hearts. It jumps smack-bang into a very tough category, but it is a very strong contender for top naked. At $15,490 it represents good value. Its dearer than a Honda Hornet but cheaper than an FZ1. Competitive is the term that comes to mind. And it really looks good doesn't it? Over to you...