It seems inconceivable for a manufacturer to create a placid looking naked bike these days. Angry is the name of the game, like the designers need to create a bike with a chip on its shoulder.
Kawasaki was arguably the first to come up with this design philosophy with the first new Z1000 back in 2003, the year in which the Big K celebrated 30 years since the birth of the bike that went on to become the most famous Kawi of all, the Z1. That machine was a cut above in the anger stakes from what was coming out of the Honda, Yamaha and Ducati camps at the time. Naked bikes back then needed a change of image from plain old commuters to bikes with their own style and identity, and that original Z1000 helped spawn a market that now includes the KTM Super Duke and BMW S 1000 R—two bikes that weren’t loved enough as kids and are now just inherently pissed off.
You’ll get used to doing this sort of stuff really quickly with a Z1000
Those bikes have really upped the performance game over the last couple of years, and even though Kawasaki gave the Zee a freshen up back in 2010, the recent arrival of the Euros meant that if Japan was to stay in the race, Kawasaki had to beef up the 1000 even further. Honda and Yamaha have fallen off the 1000cc naked bike bandwagon, with Suzuki the only other Japanese builder to take the supernaked class seriously, and even then they only came to fight this year with the GSX-1000S.
So last year Kawasaki threw the book at the Zee, channeling the ancient Japanese philosophy of sugomi—which Kawasaki says is, “an intense aura or energy given off by a person or object of greatness and felt by the viewer. Someone, or something, possessing sugomi, inspires awe, leaves an indelible impression, is imposing in stature or ability, and commands respect.” Seriously, that’s got to be the best company press jargon ever, right?
Aggressive lines on the Z1000 make it look like it’s trying to find a fight
But press jargon means jack-all if the bike sucks, which this one certainly does not. The Zee matches up to the sugomi attitude in almost every way, namely in just how good that engine is. The throttle response is silky smooth—one of the best not just in this, but any class—and it needs to be because there’s a stonking amount of power with no electronics to hold it back. No traction control, no anti-wheelie, no variable rider modes—it’s just you, your right hand, and 1043cc of Kawasaki firepower.
The revs build exceptionally fast and there’s power all through the rev range. It doesn’t have a massive kick anywhere and the engine doesn’t come with variable velocity stacks, but power just builds and builds with the kind of ferocious intensity Kawasaki 1000cc engines have become renowned for. This surging power is matched to a gearbox with very short ratios, so you’ll find yourself snapping up the gearbox real quick when getting onto a freeway. The gears are so short I kept thinking I had another cog to shift to, only to realize I was in sixth already.
Engine is geared short for an aggressive explosion of horsepower
The tradeoff for the short gears and rapid acceleration is that at highway speeds the engine feels like it’s doing 1000 rpm more than it should, and the vibrations begin to chime in through the one-piece bar. But it’s a small tradeoff for blistering performance. Even in sixth gear at 70mph the acceleration is serious and the revs build fast. Power delivery is immediate and angry (see the theme here?) as the four 38mm Keihin throttle bodies plough fuel and air into the engine with the bike bursting forward as cars around just disappear behind you. The gearbox action itself is smooth and precise with a short, positive throw, and the best thing about snapping up through the gearbox under big power is that intoxicating induction roar—the Zee sounds like it could suck in small children from 1000 feet away. The gearing feels like it’d suit track riding quite easily but it also makes quick getaways a breeze. And that’s another factor about the Zee ¾ it hasn’t forgotten how to be a nice roadbike. It might look like a wrestler, but you can take it on a dinner date. You can cruise around and never take the thing above 4000 rpm and the Zee will happily accommodate your shortshifts as you go hunting for coffee on Sunday morning.
That smooth action throttle matched to the beautiful fueling shows through here ¾ the angriest looking bike in Kawasaki’s lineup quickly becoming as docile as a Labrador.
The chassis of the Zee is modeled closely on the ZX-10R’s, ensuring the machine is light and nimble at slow speeds, but at the same time providing good high-speed stability. It’s narrow mid-section makes it easy to maneuver when lane splitting, although the seat height of just 32.1 inches can put you right at shoulder height for wide car mirrors. Despite that seat height the Zee doesn’t feel cramped, which for me at 6’1” is a nice surprise.
The Zee is graced with Showa’s 41mm SFF-BP (Separate Function Fork–Big Piston, the right fork looks after compression and rebound, the left does preload) front end and a Showa monoshock, mounted horizontally atop the swingarm to move it away from the heat coming off the exhaust and to improve mass-centralization. The standard settings are quite firm for everyday riding, but I prefer a harder set-up so for me the feel straight out of the box was pretty close to what I like. The front-end has exceptional stability under brakes and provides lots of feel when you initially tip into a corner. It feels better the faster you go, and encourages you to go harder and harder under brakes. The back-end is only preload and rebound adjustable, which is a shame considering the front has the full gamut of adjustability, but the Showa monoshock still provides excellent stability under power when riding hard. Like the front it’s set pretty firm as standard, but that bodes well if you’re up for a bit of two-up riding and don’t want to have to change the settings on the shock each time.
The front monobloc Tokico calipers have tons of power and feel, one finger is all you need to haul the Zee up at speed and thankfully the rear brake isn’t an afterthought—it actually works. The braking system is backed up by a pretty unobtrusive ABS system that plays a back role in the show, only shuddering its way into the program when absolutely needed. You can squeeze the lever properly hard and not get any pulsing at the lever, but it’s nice to know it’s there. The ABS is switchable via the left button on the dash. It’s nice that Kawasaki gives you the option of having the system on or off because many manufacturers have taken that choice away from you.
The Zee is one seriously imposing looking bike. It’s small and muscly, like someone gave Mickey Mouse a vein-full of the good stuff and sent him to the gym for a month. Compared to something like a BMW S 1000 R the Kawasaki is tiny—you’re pitched forward to get your weight over the front tire, and the seat has a slight angle that’s comfortable for short trips, but becomes uncomfortable over big distances. I found myself standing on the ’pegs to get blood flow down my legs after about 45 minutes. For me the issue is not the angle of the seat but the padding; it becomes quite hard if you’re sitting for ages at a time but short trips are fine.
Seat pattern looks brilliant and adds some real aggressiveness to the Zee
The pillion perch mightn’t look very comfy but according to the wife it’s not too bad. The passenger’s legs can get cramped as the pegs are quite high but I got fewer complaints on the Zee than some other bikes I’ve taken home recently.
I like this bike not because of how it looks or goes, but because the whole package is simple and effective compared to the tech wizardry in a BMW S 1000 R or KTM Super Duke. It’s also very cheap. The Kawasaki Z1000 comes with a sticker price of $11,999 and for that you get an excellent machine—light, easy to ride if you want it to be, but with enough attitude to scare your dead grandmother. And it’s fast. That cheap-looking dash and its stupid fluorescent rev counter lights up real quick as the revs blast up the range, often accompanied by a front wheel that forgot where the tarmac is. Oh yeah, if you want to learn how to do a good wheelie, this is your bike.
That’s reason enough alone to love the big Zee.
Specifications
2015 Kawasaki Z1000
Engine: Inline four-cylinder, DOHC, four valves per cylinder, liquid cooled
Displacement: 1043cc
Bore x stroke: 77 x 56mm
Horsepower:
Compression ratio: 11.8:1
Ignition: Key
Transmission: Six-speed
Front suspension: 41mm Showa SFF-BP inverted cartridge fork, fully adjustable
Rear suspension: Showa monoshock, preload and rebound damping adjustable
Front wheel travel: 4.7 in.
Rear wheel travel: 4.8 in.
Front brake: Twin 310mm petal discs, Tokico four-piston calipers, ABS
Rear brake: Single 250mm disc, single-piston caliper, ABS
Front tire: Dunlop Sportmax D214T 120/70 ZR17
Rear tire: Dunlop Sportmax D214T 190/50 ZR17
Rake: 24.5°
Trail: 4.0 in.
Seat height: 32.1 in.
Weight: 487.3 lbs.
Color: Golden Blazed Green/Metallic Spark Black
MSRP: $11,999
