Kawasaki’s Z1-inspired retro naked teased

Honda isn’t the only Japanese firm teasing the release of its new 2018 metal with a video, Kawasaki has also dropped a new video preempting the launch of its new retro-styled 900cc nakedbike, the Z900RS.

While the bike is largely obscured in the short, 28-second video, the brief glimpses we do see is a bike looking every bit the firm’s wildly popular 1972 Z1 machine, the bike often referred to as the grandfather of today’s Superbike.

Sporting the same ‘Jaffa’ orange and brown paint scheme as the original 1970s machine, other styling influences can be seen in the simple, circular headlight and bar-mounted twin clocks as the otherwise modern-day instrument cluster.

Bikesales understands it will be powered by the 948cc four-cylinder engine as the firm’s current Z900, though with a torque curve to match the RS’s different design brief. And while not confirmed, we’ve got everything crossed Kawasaki can produce a Z1-style exhaust system capable of meeting today’s strict emission rules.

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Since the discontinuation of the W800 series, the firm has lacked a retro-styled machine and with the popularity of the likes of Yamaha’s XSR900, Ducati’s Scrambler range and BMW’s R nineT line-up, the old-school Kawasaki should be very well received.

The 2018 Kawasaki Z900RS will make its world premier at this year’s Tokyo Motorcycle Show at the end of next month, before making its Australian debut at the 2017 Sydney Motorcycle Show at Darling Harbour’s Convention Centre from November 24-26.