1. Warp Speed,
Mr. Sulu...
Do you remember Star Trek?
The original series was an eye-
opener for many generations.
That beautiful and futuristic
spaceship, the USS Enterprise
with it's Captain and crew,
boldly going where no man has
gone before. The clincher? All
Star Trek episodes always end
with the Enterprise switching on
its warpdrive and practically
leaping into the inky black abyss
of space into another adventure.
Wow!
NEW WHEELS
Text by Amir Hamzah
Photos by Capt. Nik Huzlan

2. That stupendous warp into space is uncannily
similar to a ride on a litre class superbike. The
latest missiles emerging from various
manufacturers have one thing in common: big
power. Big power will normally go hand in
glove with big speed. However, the punch-up
for top speed honours appear to have been
put on hiatus. Now the focus is on managing
all this power. But still, the sheer speed at
which the horizon hurtles towards you on wide
open throttle is overwhelming and usually
results in a common reflex action: right wrist
closing the throttle...
Experience and skill over the years numbs the
sensation but everything will come flashing
back the first time you open the throttle a bit
too vigorously on this big beastie. Throttle
control? Pah! You need bladder control to
tame this particular superbike. But then again,
Kawasaki has always been one to produce the
most powerful, most outrageously fast bikes
the world has ever seen. Their history
demands it. From the Mach III 500 triple, the Z1
900, the 750 Turbo to the ZZR1100, Kawasaki
has no choice but to build this bike.
The history of the ZX/ZZR series goes back a
long way. But the closest relative, DNA-wise,
would be the 1988 ZX-10. Back in the day, this
was one of the fastest bikes in the world,
although what was most bikers remember
about this model were the little 'Vespa-like'
cubbyholes in the sidepanels. Fortunately, this
bike evolved into the later ZZR series of bikes,
starting with the C and D series models from
1990 till 2001, in the process losing the quaint
cubbyholes, and gaining weight and fostering
its legend and gaining many speeding tickets.
Everyone remembers the ZZR1100 as the 'Top
Speed King' and it held the title for almost a
decade, fending off the likes of Honda's
CBR1100XX Super Blackbird before being
dethroned by the upstart Suzuki GSX1300R
Hayabusa. The ZZR1100 was one of Kawasaki's
most popular models and losing the top speed
title may have resulted in the ZZR evolving
(devolving?) into the 'Mickey Mouse' ZZR1200
in 2002. The ZZR1200 was a step forwards and
two step back, maybe. But Kawasaki are back
with a vengeance this time, the ZX-14 is
claimed to be 'The Most Powerful Motorcycle
in the World'. Are the Top Speed Wars are
over? Perhaps the age of political correctness
is going past dawn and going to noontime
after all...
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msportbike 000

3. above 140 kmh (so I've heard) when the
windblast and body position balances out. A
double bubble windshield would help if you're
on the tall side. The comfortable seat is ready
to set off on a world tour even if you're not.
It's good enough for a tankful of petrol before
numbness sets in. Controls fall easily to hand
and are nicely weighted. The petal brake disks
and radial calipers, especially, enable you to
control your speed easily with two fingers. No
doubt the radial brake master cylinder also
contributes to this performance. You shouldn't
need to use the rear petal disk unless you're
Mick Doohan. Ask your dad if you don't
recognize the name.
An advanced version of Kawasaki's unique
aluminum monocoque frame wraps over and
around that powerplant, helping to create a
slim, compact package. First seen on the ZX-
12R, this design is inherently more rigid than
the ubiquitious twin-spar frame and by rigidly
mounting the engine to this monocoque
structure, it's strength is greatly increased.
One noteworthy frame detail: the air filter
comes out the side of the frame. No more
fiddling with the fuel tank and various
unrecognizable plumbing to replace it. Cool if
you're a DIYer. Speaking of which, a
centrestand is not included for easy chain
lubing. It's an optional item.
The ZX-14 also uses an inverted 43mm
cartridge fork adjustable for damping and new
Uni-Trak linkage rear suspension, which is also
adjustable for damping and preload, to
complement that highly rigid frame. I'll take
their word for it as I can't fault the handling in
high speed sweepers. Completely neutral and
benign, the ZX-14's handling is way lighter than
you would expect it to be for such a big bike.
Tight U-turns and fast left-rights are
despatched with ease and traffic jams are a
piece of cake...sandwich? Hmm. No steering
damper is provided and none needed. A little
bit of understeer is apparent when you're
pushing it in medium speed corners but a
period of personal adjustment is all that's
needed. The footpegs are the first thing to
touch down but it takes some lean angle to do
this unlike the previous Walt Disney edition
which needed no encouragement to start
dragging chassis parts. Anyway, the only gripe
is with the ZX-14 is if you're hustling a long
series of tight hairpins (read: Frasers' Hill).
After the 15th hairpin, you tend to feel the
avoirdupois a bit more. Fast sweepers like
Simpang Pulai are where it's at. Nonetheless,
it's not a situation you find yourself in
everyday (unless you work as the chef at The
Gap). Overall, the handling can be described as
friendly but we found the suspension to be on
the harder side of comfortable. We didn't
experience any jolting on highway expansion
joints or sharp edged bumps but it definitely
felt firm. Backing off a click of compression
damping front and rear helped somewhat but
the sporty side of the ZX-14 definitely shines
through.
It's pretty obvious where all this good
handling comes from. Kawasaki engineers
have managed to combine long wheelbase
stability with sportbike nimbleness by using a
long swingarm and a short engine. The fork
rake and trail dimensions were designed for
fast steering without incurring instability. And
mass centralization is clearly evident in the
chassis design philosophy. This overall design
philosophy even extends to the wheelrims.
These have an offset centre rib which enables
any balancing weights to be placed exactly on
the wheelrim's centerline. Attention to detail
is superb.
The traditionally laid out and clear black on
white analog speedometer and tachometer
combo is separated by a large LCD. The
electronics on this motorcycle utilize CAN
(Controller Area Network) technology, which
saves weight (by using fewer wires) and allows
for a greater volume of information. This
enables Kawasaki to offer features normally
found on dedicated toring bikes such as
current MPG, average MPG, fuel mileage range,
and battery voltage. This multi-function digital
display also includes the usual fuel gauge,
gear indicator, dual trip meters, odometer, and
clock. The best feature and one that remained
in use while we had the bike was the Range
feature. This actually calculates, on the fly,
your maximum range based on the amount of
fuel and speed (throttle opening etc) you're
carrying. Very useful. An odd addition is the
launch rpm control. Perhaps this is to appease
the American market who love drag racing but
I found it useful in the Batu Road Traffic Lights
Grand Prix. The better to get to the Sale
earlier. There is also an adjustable shift
indicator light but we never needed it as
redline in any gear is not a time to be watching
the instrument console. You might find
yourself quickly embedded in a nearby
planet...or a convenient double parker.
The Ninja ZX-14 is Kawasaki's latest flagship
and is the most powerful bike they have ever
built. The engine has evolved from the Ninja
ZX-12R, no slouch itself, and it features a bore
and stroke of 84 x 61mm from 1352cc, packed
into a compact watercooled in-line four
cylinder engine with the usual twin cams, 16
valves and is virtually the same width as the
ZX-12R. No mean feat. Kawasaki's Ram Air is
correct and present and fuel injection is
carried over as well. Our test bike produced
168 brake horsepower, a healthy output and
above the average output for the model. All
168 horses redline at 11000 rpm and actually
peak at a lower 9500 rpm. What does all this
mean? It means that you can let that
supersports bike carve you up in the corners,
you'll have him for breakfast once the road
opens up. Warp speed, Mr. Sulu...
What you actually feel as power though, is the
torque. Peaking at 101 Nm, the ZX-14 has ample
grunt to enable you to dawdle along in city
traffic in top gear most of the time. However,
most of it's ample torque is concentrated
above 6000 rpm so a downshift or so may be
needed in that slick shifting 6 speed gearbox
to stop that boy racer Satria GTi getting into
that gap in the traffic jam. Careful you don't
climb that Wira's roof in the process. When this
bike goes, it goes. If you're not bothered, just
ride on that seamless torque curve all day.
Throttle response is excellent and that
drivetrain is snatch-free. Below 4000 rpm, it
feels a bit slow to respond but the sheer urge
above 6000 rpm may be to blame for that. We
had to remap our brains several times over
the course of this roadtest. If you need more,
hook up a Power Commander III and some
performance exhaust pipes. Still not enough,
see your shrink. The smooth engine uses twin
secondary balancers to tame unwanted
vibration, but a little bit of low amplitude,high
frequency tingles still reach the handlebars. In
other words, the ZX-14 is a comfortable ride, in
town or on the highway to Betong (a planet on
the outer rim of the Milky Way). Top speed is
academic, fella...(maybe I'm chicken) but
supposedly some reports have numbers
resembling 186 mph popping up.
The ergonomics are more sport than tourer.
This means you're hunched forwards slightly,
arms comfortably stretched out, the footpegs
set low and rearwards slightly. The windscreen
is low and the windblast hits you shoulder
level if you are of average height (about 5' 7").
The riding position starts feeling more natural
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000 msportbike msportbike 000

4. Handling is better than my previous ZZR1200. The
bike is just little short of a sportsbike, in my
opinion. It's effortless to ride fast. Wind control at
280 kmh (indicated) and above is very nice with
very little wind noise. But like the ZZR1200 a double
bubble windshield would make it better. The bike is
very stable and planted at high speeds and I feel no
need for a steering damper. No head shake at all.
On the Dynojet machine, it went up to red line and
indicated over 320 kmh on the speedometer. With
no Ram Air assistance!
The dashboard and gauges are very nice and the
wind screen does not get in the way of looking at
the gauges. The speedometer has large numbers
and is easy to read. Very important...(see above).
The lights...GREAT!!! Flip on the high beams and the
driver in front will get blinded (I've tried this
myself).
Fit and finish are extremely good. Some owners say
their tail cowl scratches their sidepanels but mine
has not. I love that seat cowl! The exhaust is not my
favourite so I have changed to Ayambrand slip-ons.
Just for good effect, I added a Power Commander
III. The result: 176 bhp at the rear wheel. This bike
suits me perfectly, whether sportriding, touring etc.
My only problem: footpeg ground clearance. Overall
l love the bike, people always double-take the bike...
or me?
The ZZR1200 and the ZX-14 are very much alike, just
that the ZX-14 is better at everything. Power at
higher speeds like above 200 kmh the ZX-14 is just
getting it's legs and is pulling harder every second.
The ZX-14 has a very flat powerband, it pulls strong
from 6000 rpm to 11000 rpm. As the rpms rise the
power get stronger and it goes faster really quickly.
From 3000 rpm to 5000 rpm it is a little down on
torque but from 6000 rpm to 11000 rpm, wow! The
engine is quieter than the ZZR1200 but just a bit, it
has no weird sounds or strange vibrations. You can
whack the throttle on and off in a low speed turn
and not get drive line snatch. I'm planning to
remove the secondary valve and install a timing
retarder eliminator (TRE) to improve the low end
torque.
The ZX-14 has a great seat and I get no pain in my
wrists or lower part of my neck like other bikes I've
owned. The ride is very smooth, no vibes in the
handlebars but just light vibrations in the footpegs.
At this moment I have no reason to change to a
Corbin seat (like my ZZR1200). Road noise is very
minimal even after I changed my tyres from the
standard set. Those Bridgestones only lasted 6000
kms.
The radial front brakes the greatest! I have owned
many bikes and the brakes on the ZX-14 are this best
so far. The clutch is where ZX-14 really shines, really
controllable and a soft light pull. Transmission is
the smoothest shifting transmission I have ever
used, no jerking at all.
Wrapped in either Passion Red, Ebony, or
Candy Thunder Blue, the aerodynamic fairing
is the icing on the cake. There's is an aircraft-
like quality about the styling, with fluted
edges, aerodynamic kick-ups and mini fairings
all over (especially unique is the one under the
twin laser cannons...err, pipes). The ZX-14
doesn't react to strong sidewinds much so the
designers have done their homework. The
narrow monocoque frame means there's no
massive alloy beams to break up the fairing's
lines. Most onlookers' comments were positive
and Kawasaki's unique position as an aircraft
manufacturer mean that form follows
function. What works right, looks right. Love it
or hate it, there's no doubt the styling is
unique. A seat cowl comes standard with the
bike and it improves the looks tremendously.
We think it's also a sub-conscious tilt towards
sportsbikes.
The cherry on top of the icing is the USS
Enterprise's, sorry, ZX-14's six front lights (two
low beams in the middle, two high beams and
the two sidelights) to blow that roadhog boy
racer out of the fast lane. That front façade is
the most arresting feature of the ZX-14's
styling and they help rid the universe of
roadhogs too. The rear lights are bright LCDs
in a V formation. V for victory, I suppose. When
you get ahead of your quarry, signal your
victory by flashing the brake lights a couple of
times. That helps with tailgaters as well.
Is there any place in Malaysia where we can
use the ZX-14's power and speed? Or for that
matter, any of the litre class superbikes
humongous power? Not an easy question to
answer but does it really need an answer? The
ZX and its ilk pay homage to speed and power,
as Ferrari and Lamborghini do in the car world.
In our land of regulated speed limits do they
have any right to exist? You bet they do! And
oddly enough, the answer lies in the first
question in this paragraph. Even if there were
places where you could reach 300 kmh, you
would hardly be able to hold it for more than 5
seconds. A cow or a driver with the IQ of a cow
would end your fun (and more) with a single
bonehead maneuver. So it's not the speed and
power but the realization that you are riding a
machine that can achieve these speeds that
make these machines exciting. The owner
need not use all that latent power, in other
words. Just riding a machine capable of these
speeds satisfies.
From what we can gather from riding the ZX-14,
this is not Kawasaki's attempt to recapture the
top speed crown from the Hayabusa per se,
but an attempt to sharpen the focus of the
ZX/ZZR series. This is the sportiest ZX bike yet
and it shows. If you're into long continental
trips to enjoy the view, the ZX-14 will fill that
role with aplomb but with an added edge: real
world cornering ability. So choose the
twistiest bit of road far away and let the ZX-14
take you there in comfort. Sport touring never
looked so good. With the power to blow almost
anything away and sweet, almost supersports
handling with comfy ergos and a handy trip
computer, I now know what Capt James T. Kirk
felt like in his USS Enterprise.
"A Klingon Warbird off the port bow, Cap'n.
She's uncloaking... "."Fire the photon
torpedoes when ready, Mr. Spock", and
another sportsbike gets a surprised spanking.
Five victory flashes. Cool.
000 msportbike
SSPPEECCIIFFIICCAATTIIOONNSS
EEnnggiinnee TTyyppee
4-Stroke, 4-Cylinder, Liquid-Cooled, DOHC, 4 Valve
Cylinder Head
DDiissppllaacceemmeenntt
1352 cc
BBoorree && SSttrrookkee
84.0 x 61.0 mm
MMaaxxiimmuumm TToorrqquuee
113.5 lb-ft @ 7500rpm
HHoorrsseeppoowweerr
187 bhp @ 9500 rpm + 197 bhp Ram Air @ 9500
rpm
CCoommpprreessssiioonn RRaattiioo
12.0:1
FFuueell IInnjjeeccttiioonn
DFI with Mikuni 44mm Throttle Bodies (4)
IIggnniittiioonn
TCBI with Digital Advance
TTrraannssmmiissssiioonn
6-Speed
FFiinnaall DDrriivvee
X-Ring Chain
RRaakkee//TTrraaiill
23 degree / 94 mm
FFrroonntt WWhheeeell TTrraavveell
4.6 in
RReeaarr WWhheeeell TTrraavveell
4.8 in
FFrroonntt TTiirree SSiizzee
120/70 ZR17
RReeaarr TTiirree SSiizzee
190/50 ZR17
WWhheeeellbbaassee
57.5 in
FFrroonntt SSuussppeennssiioonn
43mm Inverted Cartridge Fork with Adjustable
Preload, Stepless Rebound and Compression
Damping
RReeaarr SSuussppeennssiioonn
Uni-Trak with Adjustable Preload, Stepless
Rebound and Compression Damping, Ride Height
FFrroonntt BBrraakkee TTyyppee
Dual Floating Petal Discs with 4-Piston Calipers
RReeaarr BBrraakkee TTyyppee
Single Petal Disc
FFuueell TTaannkk CCaappaacciittyy
5.8 gal
SSeeaatt HHeeiigghhtt
31.5 in
DDrryy WWeeiigghhtt
474 lbs.
CCoolloorr
Passion Red, Ebony, Candy Thunder Blue
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RIDE IMPRESSION
Owner's View: Azizi Hashim
“... it's not the speed and power but the realization that you are riding
a machine that can achieve these speeds that make these machines exciting.”