Racer Test: 1998 Kawasaki ZX9R Ninja -  A Certain Je Ne Sais Quois 

by Dean Adams
Articel from American Roadracing
Feb/Mar 1998 Issue
************************

Even during its off-season, the French Riviera is stunning.
Photographer Tom Riles, Sport Rider magazine's Peter "Love" Jones,
Kawasaki's Scott Buckley and I are almost enjoying a quiet lunch and
conversation at sidewalk cafe C in Nice, France, just a block from the
sandy shores of the Mediterranean. The cafe becomes a bit more crowded
as the French sit down for their midday meal. We continue to talk.
Conversation topics include the topless beach we just strolled
 past, power tools, the topless beach we just strolled past, the
motorcycle industry
 and the topless beach we just strolled past. Buckley is wearing a
Kawasaki ZX9R
 T-shirt given to him a few days prior at the official press
introduction of the 1998
 Kawasaki ZX9R at Paul Ricard, an hour north of where we now sit
eating veal and
 drinking red wine. Overall, the mood is typically French: the waiter
refuses to
 acknowledge us and the cuisine costs a fortune. In our T-shirts and
baseball caps,
 we stick out like sore American thumbs. 

 Nearly the entire time we are there, the wait staff and fellow
patrons ignore us.
 No one says hello or even bon jour. When he finally does stroll over
to our table,
 the waiter speaks a total of six words to us during the entire
ordering process. We
 catch European patrons at the other tables looking at us; staring at
us. They are not
 staring at us with merriment. We are ugly Americans and we are
definitely not
 welcome in France--our money is, but we are merely tolerated.

 Then it happens. An Austrian man sitting at the table next to us
listens to our
 conversation for some time as he carefully examines Buckley’s shirt.
After a few
 minutes he asks a question and makes a statement at the same time, as
only
 Europeans can do: "Excuse me, you have ridden the new Kawasaki ZX9R,
yes?" 

 Yes, we have, someone replies. 

 His eyes light up. "The one with 140 horsepower? The same one that is
very
 light?"

 Yes. It's a good bike, we tell him. We rode it at Paul Ricard and it
didn't
 disappoint. It is expected that this will end the conversation. 

 Again his eyes light up, the eyes of this middle-aged, balding
Austrian on business
 in Nice. "Paul Ricard? Really? Tell me, how fast did the ZX9R go down
the
 Mistrial Straight?" he asks of the infamous French straight well
known for
 triple-digit speeds. Two hundred-seventy kph, we reply. 

 "Ah, very good," he says. "I have a Honda CBR900RR now and the new
Ninja is
 one of the models I'm considering for next year."

 He begs more specs from us and as he talks I notice how typical he is
of
 Europeans with regards to motorcycles. The guy is about ready for
retirement and
 he could survive off his paunch for a month. If he rode in America,
most likely he
 would be a cruiser rider. In Europe he's a speed freak. "270 (168mph)
kilometers
 an hour," he repeats with a look of joy on his face, "that's really
something."

 Kawasaki is King

 Blind faith in a Japanese motorcycle manufacturer is rare.
Harley-Davidson guys
 are known for riding bikes only from Milwaukee. Ducati enthusiasts
won't look
 twice at anything not from the country shaped like a boot. On the
contrary, and
 certainly with exceptions, Japanese motorcycle enthusiasts buy
whatever is fast,
 good looking or in vogue, predominately without any concern for
brand. 

 Except Kawasaki guys.

 I know men who have owned 10 to 12 bikes in their adult lives and all
of them
 have been Kawasakis. Those guys say that the bikes made in Japan by
the gents
 who put the mean in green are very good motorcycles. They're
well-engineered
 from the ground up, well-thought out. Kawasaki is a pragmatic
motorcycle
 manufacturer and they don't introduce new models every year that
wholly
 supersede the ones made the season prior. They're easy to work on and
a favorite
 of mechanics because you don't have to visit an orthopedic surgeon
and have your
 left arm intentionally broken in seven spots and then have the bones
set in a
 medieval torture-style fashion, just so that you can get your hand
inside the
 chassis and make sure the number two spark plug boot is clamped down
tight.
 Kawasaki sport bikes are not always on the cutting edge, not always
the lightest
 and not always the fastest, but they have a core group of buyers who
will only buy
 machines from Team Green. 

 And to those I say: do I have a bike for you. Kawasaki guys will love
the new 1998
 ZX9R. Besides the green paint and fuel tank decals, it's a brand new
bike. The big
 green meanie has been shaved down by about seventy pounds from the
1997
 model ZX9R; the engine is much more compact and the frame is lighter.
 Essentially weight was trimmed from the machine wherever and however
the boys
 at Kawasaki could. This gives the 1998 Kawasaki ZX9R the feel of
either a really
 big 600 or a hopped-up 750, probably more of the former in my
opinion. It's fast,
 it stops well and it's a very stable motorcycle. I think it's the
best motorcycle
 Kawasaki has made since the 1992 ZX7R. 

 Ultimate Streetbike? Mission Accomplished

 There are many firsts on this bike from Kawasaki: it's the first with
an electronic
 speedometer. The entire machine has undergone a typical
full-development cycle.
 They whittled away weight where they could and made all the
components fit
 together in a more compact fashion. 

 The new ZX9R engine is roughly the same size as that in the new ZX6R.
It's
 fourteen millimeters shorter than the old ZX9R engine. The new engine
is
 oversquare (75 x 50.9mm bore and stroke) and has larger valves and an
almost
 straight intake tract. Everything inside the cases was lightened
including the
 crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons and related pieces. A new
gear-driven
 alternator (over the old chain-driven model) is used and the engine’s
cylinder
 head is now smaller because of new direct- valve actuation. They also
added
 Suzuki-style stick coils (doing away with the spark-plug wiring
harness) which
 makes for a very clean engine compartment. The old back-torque
limiter clutch
 was tossed in favor of a conventional unit with cable actuation.
Engine oil is
 cooled by a neat, compact oil cooler mounted just inside of the
spin-on oil filter
 housing. The engine is rubber mounted on top and rigidly mounted
below to the
 aluminum chassis, which is all new itself. The cradle-style, frame
down-tubes of
 the 1997 unit are gone. Conventional cartridge forks hold the front
wheel on.

 It's a little confusing to discern what Kawasaki actually set out to
do with this
 bike. All the company ink on it states the bike is a pure sports
bike--trying to bill
 it as the fastest streetbike in the world. To accomplish this such a
machine would
 require a high-revving engine that makes mondo horsepower on top
(such as he
 CBR1100XX) to achieve the all-important drag strip and top speed
numbers. But
 instead of doing this, Kawasaki built a lightweight, straight-port,
oversquare
 engine and enhanced its streetbike manners through low-speed
carburetion, the
 advance curve on the low side of the ignition, and near perfect
transmission ratios
 for the street. In short, they set out to build a very cutting edge
high-performance,
 narrow-focus streetbike and instead built an extremely competent,
stable and
 well-mannered, wickedly fast streetbike. The first generation ZX9R
was billed as
 a high-performance sport bike but it sucked as a production race
bike; it was too
 big and heavy for Kawasaki's then in place endurance team to be
competitive.
 They were soundly beaten by Honda. Again, Kawasaki set out to build a
racebike
 and came up with a great sport-touring machine. They tested it at
Japanese test
 tracks, but the prototype machines were tested all over Europe by
Kawasaki test
 riders--on the street.

 Although Kawasaki intended to build a racebike, they know that it
will be used as a
 race machine by probably less than fifteen individual riders in the
world. For the
 rest of the world, it's a streetbike. So, Kawasaki spent much of its
development on
 this machine smoothing out the power delivery on the bottom end of
the
 powerband and making sure that the close-ratio, six-speed gearbox and
the
 low-end carburetion were seamlessly matched so that the street
manners of the
 Big Nine were courteous. The ignition, incorporating Kawasaki's
digital ignition
 controls advance throughout the rev range and for engine load. It
works in
 conjunction with a throttle position sensor mounted on the right end
of the
 throttle shaft. This gives the ignition CPU information on throttle
speed, rpm and
 throttle angle. 

 A manufacturer will obviously gain some lower-end torque in just
about any
 big-bore engine application, merely from the huge cubes. But in
 high-performance applications, on a four-cylinder, overhead-cam
engine,
 normally you can choose between having the majority of the power up
top or
 down low and rarely both. Kawasaki went down low in this case and
street riders
 will applaud their efforts. Which is not to say that it isn't fast on
top or is lacking
 in acceleration. The 1998 ZX9R is definitely one of the fastest, if
not  the 
 fastest street motorcycles available today, except for the Yamaha
R-1. The low
 weight and high horsepower numbers (Kawasaki claims 143 ponies at the
 crankshaft) mean that the bike is simply a slippery green missile. 

 The ZX9R is extremely easy to ride. The electronic throttle position
sensor,
 finely-tuned carburetors, cable-actuated clutch and six-speed
transmission work
 very well in all situations, but especially in the lower-speed street
world all of us
 short of Doug Chandler co-habitate in. The low-end power and
completely
 glitch-free carburetion inspire confidence that is rarely found in
big four-cylinder
 street bikes. Most of the time these machines give the rider more of
a sense of
 being a passenger on a really heavy and power-mad locomotive than a
sense of
 being in complete control. Want control? Buy a 600. Want 170mph top
speed and
 the ability to accelerate from 130mph to 150mph faster than anything
else? Buy a
 liter-bike, or so was my advice prior to this machine. The Kawasaki
ZX9R
 becomes the first streetbike to bridge the gap between high
horsepower and civil
 manners. 

 And, although Kawasaki doesn't want the phrase "sport-touring" used
in reference
 to the new bike (since that was never the plan), man, I have to tell
you this
 motorcycle will make a killer sport touring bike. By making the bike
smaller, and
 shorter and lighter, Kawasaki stumbled on near perfect ergonomics.
The footpeg
 height is just a bit short of natural and most of your body weight is
propped up on
 the seat and on the fuel tank--not by your wrists which is standard
for most sport
 bikes. The longest period I spent in the saddle was just short of an
hour and 15
 minutes but I could have done three times that without stopping;
which is really a
 statement taking into consideration my creaking, pre-rheumatic bones.

 Dislikes? Few is any.

 I had few complaints of the new Kawasaki ZX9R. After listening to the
Team
 Yoshimura boys bitch all year about the Tokico brakes on their
Superbikes, I was
 skeptical of their performance on the street, mostly because Yates
and company
 complained about their lack of feel. Lack of feel on the street is
not something
 one wants, obviously. Thankfully these brakes worked quite well and
 demonstrated superior feel. After some hard riding at the track, the
rotors did
 start to warp but unless your daily commute includes two 160-170mph
straights
 and slow corners, this is not a detail to sweat.

 Ripping at Ricard

 Kawasaki jetted us to France to ride the new machine at Paul Ricard.
Ricard is an
 extremely fast circuit, even in the short-version course that we
used, which cut
 the infamous Mistrial straight down by about a third. Still, the
course is
 essentially two long straights connected by a series of challenging
decreasing
 radius corners--it's hard on brakes and running gear as you're
slowing down from
 at least 130-150mph-plus twice a lap. In this environment the ZX9R
chewed up
 the stock Bridgestone rear tires in a hurry (the street compound on a
test bike
 shared by racing legend Dave Aldana and myself was questionable after
ten of my
 laps and just two of Dave's trips around the park). Race compound
tires were
 added and this improved tire grip and life. Moreover, my personal
riding style is
 fairly hard on transmissions--,I don't use the clutch on up-shifts
and I caught a few
 false neutrals when up-shifting, which was a minor annoyance. These
ZX9Rs were
 very early pre-production units and Kawasaki is well aware of this
minor problem;
 it will no doubt be fixed before actual production bikes reach
dealers. 

 This type of information, gleaned from racetrack by press-types, is
sometimes
 used as vital data utilized by customers when choosing whether or not
to buy a
 particular bike. It shouldn't be. The ZX9R is a streetbike, wholly,
and its
 performance in an extremely abusive racetrack environment should be
viewed by
 a potential buyer as, at most, a stress test from hell. You could
ride this bike
 every day of your life on American streets and never, ever encounter
any of the
 niggling problems that we experienced in the racetrack environment. 

 Vertical Vestiges

 The street ride portion of the press introduction for me was much
more revealing
 of the true performance of the new ZX9R than were multiple laps
around Ricard.
 Unquestionably Kawasaki has built a very fast sub-liter streetbike,
one that many
 Kawasaki fans have been waiting years for. If that fact hadn't been
bludgeoned into
 my head on the track at Ricard, it was on the twisting mountain roads
around the
 circuit. A representative of Kawasaki France was nice enough to make
an
 "arrangement" with the local police so that we could have one day's
vacation from
 traffic laws, i.e. we could ride as fast as we wanted and, if stopped
by the local
 police, all we were to say is that we were with Kawasaki and we'd be
 inconvenienced no more. So it was a situation where you could ride on
the street
 as fast as your personal limits allowed. With a clear road in front
of me I exited a
 small side road onto the D-4 and tried to run down the chase van
which was a
 half-mile or so ahead of me. I was motivated to find the van as I had
no money, no
 map and speak very little French, finding my way home could have been
an ugly
 adventure. I gave the bike the whip from a five mph rolling start.
Trees, mountains,
 garbage and French prostitutes (no kidding) were but a blur on the
side of the road
 as the linear-powerband engine, electronic throttle position sensor
and fairly
 close ratio box did their stuff. Unexpectedly, at the top of second
gear, the
 front-end--at perhaps 85 mph--reared like a horse and I was suddenly
staring at
 the sky as we. charged through the remainder of second gear and all
of third! Fun
 stuff. 

 Kawasaki fans: grab the checkbook and see your local dealer. 






**************************
              Specifications: 1998 Kawasaki ZX9R

              Engine

                   Type: Liquid-cooled 899cc Four stroke in-line
four-cylinder, 16 valves,
                   DOHC. 
                   Bore and Stroke: 55.0 x 50.9mm 
                   Compression ratio: 11.5:1 
                   Carburetion: Keihin CVKD40 (4) 
                   Ignition: Digital 
                   Valve timing: Intake: open 55 BTDC, Close 81, ABDC,
Duration 316 
                   Exhaust: 47 BBDC, Close 65 ATDC, Duration 292 
                   Exhaust Type: Titanium four into one 

              Drivetrain

                   Transmission: six speed 
                   Primary drive: gear 
                   Final Drive: 530 chain 

              Suspension:

                   Front: 46mm cartridge fork with adjustable preload
12-way rebound and
                   ten-way compression damping. 
                   Rear: Bottom-link Uni-track with gas-charged shock.
Adjustable spring
                   preload and twenty-way rebound and compression
damping 

              Tires:

                   Bridgestone: Front, 120/70/ZR17 Rear)180/55/ZR17
Rake: 24 degrees 
                   Trail: 93mm 
                   Brakes: (Front) Dual semi-floating 269 mm Tokico
discs, (Rear) 184mm
                   single disk 
                   Calipers: (Front) dual six-piston calipers. (Rear)
Single-piston, pin-slide 
___
"More Power" - T. Taylor