Issue 134 : April - May 2004
Fred Hill Remembered
David Short
Kawasaki Z750
London to Galway
West Oxon Bike Show
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Fred Hill Remembered
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Naked Muscle
This is a middleweight naked sports bike aimed at a broad range of riders and riding applications who do not necessarily want full fairings and cramped riding positions. This sort of bike is of course of great interest to the older motorcyclist and the rider looking for a basic workhorse that is also fun to ride despite the bike being aimed at the younger rider who does not want an outright sports bike. Although the Z750 retains much of the Z1000's aggressive attitude and in-your-face styling, this sporty machine has a new look and personality all its own, thankfully without the 'ray gun' four individual silencers of the bigger machine! Although the Z750 retains many of the attractive styling cues of the Z1000, since the bike is aimed at younger, middleweight sports customers, including intermediate riders and ladies, its visual appeal is lighter and fresher than that of the Z1000. It has been designed to have a natural riding position to make it easier for riders to reach the ground with their feet which will inspire confidence in the shorter rider. The excellent relationship between pegs, seat and handlebars gives a spacious and relaxed riding position that also helps reduce fatigue, even on long rides, making it ideal for those in the saddle all day. Thanks to this as well the bike is excellent in heavy traffic, being very manoeuvrable and quite flickable, allowing gaps to be easily taken as soon as they appear. The small headlight cowl is also quite reasonable at deflecting some of the blast at high speeds and Kawasaki claim this is due to the horizontal ducts on either side of the cowl that create an "air curtain" which reduces wind buffeting at higher speeds and improves rider comfort. Nestling behind this is a lightweight instrument cluster featuring a perimeter LCD tachometer and digital LCD speedometer in addition to a digital temp gauge, clock, trip meter, fuel gauge and a comprehensive range of indicator lamps. Red LED enhances both readability and aesthetics both during the day and at nightime. Class-leading engine performance comes from a fairly traditional liquid-cooled in-line four powerplant based on the larger and more powerful Z1000 engine. The 748cc's pump out a broad spread of smooth, linear power across the rev range, a characteristic which riders of all skill levels will appreciate. The Z750 is also the first machine in its class to offer fuel injection. The high-tech automotive system features dual throttle valves and fine atomising injectors to deliver smooth throttle response, excellent fuel economy and low exhaust emissions. A large, Z1000 radiator eliminates the need for an oil cooler, resulting in a more compact, cleaner engine package. Quiet-running ZX-12R-type ring fan also helps reduce noise. This is backed up by an all-stainless exhaust system with stylish oval muffler that sounds quite good for one that meets all current and future standards! The motor itself is housed in a modified Z1000 frame with a box section swing arm and the stiffness-balanced chassis allows you to push the bike quite hard when required. Sturdy 41mm front suspension units coupled with a linkage equipped rear suspension using a gas shock delivers a smooth ride and gives excellent road holding qualities. The rear has all the usual adjustments for those who feel that standard settings are not sufficient, although for most they will be! Ridden hard or easy, this machine never loses its composure. The whole plot rolls along on brand new front and rear wheels that feature a six-spoke design with "H" cross-section spokes. (This lightweight and stylish design is also used on the Ninja ZX-10R wheels.) As far as stopping power is concerned, at the front are dual 300 mm front discs operated by twin-pot callipers which deliver confidence-inspiring stopping performance in town and on the open roads even when the wick is really turned up. These are balanced by a lightweight 220 mm rear disc operated by a lightweight single-pot calliper. After two weeks use involving some pretty bad weather I must say the bike performed faultlessly as one might expect. It was a delight in town and also quite comfortable on the long runs in and out of town. There is little to criticise, because in many ways it is quite basic despite using up-to-date technology, but this is what the industry needs. Certainly it was frugal in its use of petrol and running costs should also be acceptable, certainly the purchase price of £5,095 is, making this a very real player in a competitive marketplace. Yes I could live with this bike in the long term without too many problems, or without getting bored! Ian Kerr |
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Following on from the success of Kawasaki's Z1000, a naked bike built in tribute to the original legendary Z1, Kawasaki has now launched a new Z750 built on the same lines...