ZX9R Long Initial impressions.

Just got back from a little jaunt of about 280klms to see how the new girl goes! Left Melbourne around 11.30/45 and headed west on the Geelong Fwy to Hoppers Xing, Melton, Toolern Vale, Gisborne, 2 laps of Mt Macedon, Woodend, Trentham,Newbury, Blackwood, Greendale, Myrniong, Ballan, Mt Wallace, Anakie gorge, Little river, Werribee, Newport! A mix of mega tight hilly turns and loooooooooong fast straights, with a sensational 40 k's of 140-180k sweepers (taken at the speed limit of course).

1st thing I noticed with it, was how doughy the power comes on. I don't care who they are, bike manufacturers are yet to show me an EFi system, which is as smooth as a set of CV carbs. Homer drool.

2nd thing I noticed was, the impression the engine gives when revved stationery, is of a harsh rough motor. Nothing could be further from the truth. Silky smooth it is. From just off iddle there is a little roughness till 3000 rpm if you load it up, but no different to a 2006 R1 really in terms of harshness. Then from 3000rpm on, the motor just Zips up through the rev range akin to a spinning turbo. Smooth as. Power initially dissapointed me. More on this later.

3rd thing I noticed, was how plush the whole chassis and suspension is! Magic carpet ride it is in comparison with the Hornet. I guess a cantilever rear shock really does have it's limitations. Where the Hornet would have been kicking and screaming the 9 just floated over it with barely a movement. Mind, the rear does pack down a bit under duress.

4th thing I noticed was how feckin far the clutch lever sits from the bar..........I nearly need two hands to grab it! Got used to it as the ride progressed thankfully.

5th thing I noticed was 4th gear can go walkabout sometimes if you are not positive or get lazy with the shift from 3rd!


6th thing I notice was, that i could almost live with the ride position It grew on me the more I rode it!

left che' Strika and headed along Douglas Pde, and up onto Francis st to fill up. Got the cheap crappy stuff which seamed to work pretty good (98).

jumped on the freeway and remembered to take it easy with THE BRAND NEW TYRES!!!

I turned right off Willy Rd and onto the W.G. Westbound. As I turned the corner and straightened the bike up for the onramp, I clicked second, and pinned it. Clicked 3rd and repeated process. Backed off before i went into orbit over the crest and settled into the traffic. I started playing about a bit with the throttle in various gears to try and gauge how much power it had and where, and initially, I was a little dissapointed with the power it had. I thought it was wimpy off the bottom and through the middle. But I wasn't taking much notice of the speed, till it was almost too late. I think, the smooth motor hides what it's doing to some degree, as it was hauling arse like a mad bastard, but just did it in a really unfussed silky smooth way, which gave the impression it wasn't working hard. But, it's not slow!!!

The run over Mt Macedon was done a couple of times to try and get rid of those green tyres. I had already had a moment, when new tyres met a shiny smooth surface in the middle of a fastish lefthander, and let go momentarily, till the hit some rougher stuff and regained grip, so wanted to have them scrubbed clean as soon as poss.

The bike is long, a little top heavy, slow steering, and very very stable. Absolutely perfect for the road. At the track the thing is going to need some radical changes to the set-up to get it to steer, but for the road, it was damn near perfect. The rear shock can get a little grumpy when you get up it in the twisties, and very soon starts flapping about a bit. But as road bikes go, it's pretty damn good. Nothing a WP shock and TM forks won't fix!

AS the ride went on, I got on better and better with this bike, and what started as a so so impression, soon grew into a healthy grin. initially, I was trying to ride it like my old 636. But, it doesn't really respond well to being that heavy handed. Very sudden changes of direction tying the chassis in knots for a bit, till it sorted itself out. I changed the way I rode it, riding it more like my 1995 ZX6R racer. They actually feel very similiar believe it or not, apart from the additional inertia from the crank, and a few more Kgs!!! They steer very similarly! So once i approached it a bit differently, the bike really responded well. I do stil think it needs to be sharpened a tad for me as it is running a little wide at some inapproriate moments

The power to 3000 rpm is probably sim to the Hornet, but from 3-5 it's a bit flat. Then from 5 it picks up a bit. But where I saw it's forte, was in the 6-10 rev range. It sings up there like a 600!! Only diff being it tapers off once it hits 11 rather than rushing to the 11500 rpm redline. The last 6 or 700 rpms are a little dull. Maybe some pipe/jetting changes and an ignition may fix it as it may have a soft limiter built into the igniter which tapers off the timing up near redline.

I tended to keep it above 6 for spirited riding. At that it's right in the sweet spot when you need it.


More later!

Gotta love the 9

wish i could have come next time, better be soon

Nice review

Yep a jet kit and pipe and its smooth all the way through the range plus another 8-10 ponys

I managed to ctc me old mate Bullshit Bob, who has his very own 4 mile long tarmac test strip out near Anakie! He didn't set the timing up for me, but several glances down, revealed some interesting numbers being displayed. It was like $2.80 on the cash register. Now I know you have to take the GST off that to make it accurate, but it was interesting to see what it did. I think the ignition would need to be changed to go any further, and the mirrors removed. Big windsocks they are. Work good but!!!

At 100 KPH, the engine is ticking over at 4000rpm! (anyone with a 00 know if thats standard??? I think it must be close to it, as the radar displayed 102KPH when me speedo indicated 107KPH coming out of Geelong!!!!) which is in a nice smooth part of the rev range, with enough on top for normal, but not spirited overtaking. Mind you, during spirited riding, you're never much near 4000rpm are you!!!

I need to do something with the front forks, as they are shuddering like a bastard under certain braking conditions. I thought it was the discs initially, but the lever doesn't pulse at all even at very high revolutions
I think the spring, and the damping, are having a little barney with each other under certain road conditions, causing a little hydraulic lock and patter from the front end....while upright !

It's very easy to ride, and I hate to say this, but as it's so refined, very Honda Esque, in the way it rides, apart from it having a way smoother power plant than any Honda I have ever ridden!

It power wheelies once it hits around 7500 in 2nd. But doesn't just glide smoothly up. It stands up like a 16 year old at a strip show!!!!!

It goes from front on the ground to ............FFFfFFFFFFFFFhhhhhhhpppppp!! Faaaaark! And it's vertical! Back brake, back brake!!!!!

Once on board and moving the bikes bulk dissapears under you, and the only time you notice it, is when you look directly down. And who does that while riding??? And when you tuck down behind the screen to err........get out of that cold breeze the corners of the tank make your elbows stick out a little!

I likened the engine to a big 600 in it's power delivery. Still has loads of torque, but it just spins up like one. With a similiar curve, just a lot more power everywhere!

Economy was pretty impressive. I was tooling about a fair bit, revving it's nuts off regularly, and even doing all that it still only used 6.36L/100klms!!!! Brilliant!

I had one headshake all day, and that was in a straight line. They do have some power but, and a slight rise in the tarmac at full noise in 4th will pick up the front, without you intending it!

It needs suspension, chassis set-up, and a damper and it'll handle like a gooden!

Nice write-up and particularly interesting to me as I just bought a '00 9 myself and yes the 25k per 1000rpm is right.

I tend to agree with what you say although as I have only had two bikes since 1986 I can't compare the handling or whatever to anything else except a KTM Duke which it is very unlike so your comments about it being like a 600 were interesting and I did think that the power delivery was smooth,well smoother than a 625cc single anyway.

I've only ridden mine four times for 200,350,400 and 600k days out and I'm just getting used to the riding possie and the amount of control had over the thing,it feels weightless when on the move and is so stable I plan to fit a cruise control so I can take photo's on the move as well as just look about generally.

It's not bad offroad either,well more of a dirtroad with rocky teeth that was about 30k's long,yep,it was long.

Apart from that and the fact that I've never had a bike with a fairing or as much as ridden one we,that's the 9 and me,seem to be getting along quite well,have to admit that I haven't gone over 8000revs yet and probably won't for a while as I was warned about the Kawasaki Power Band ™ which was present in both my H1 and Z900 and here I am back again.

There's something about Kawasakis that stays with you,in my case for 35 years.

good stuff marty, welcome to the nine lovers club.

do the forks , get a rear shock and you'll be loving life - trust me.

comfy comfy....just what us - ah - elder blokes need

1st thing I noticed with it, was how doughy the power comes on. I don't care who they are, bike manufacturers are yet to show me an EFi system, which is as smooth as a set of CV carbs. Homer drool.

2nd thing I noticed was, the impression the engine gives when revved stationery, is of a harsh rough motor. Nothing could be further from the truth. Silky smooth it is. From just off iddle there is a little roughness till 3000 rpm if you load it up, but no different to a 2006 R1 really in terms of harshness. Then from 3000rpm on, the motor just Zips up through the rev range akin to a spinning turbo. Smooth as. Power initially dissapointed me. More on this later.

yep

3rd thing I noticed, was how plush the whole chassis and suspension is! Magic carpet ride it is in comparison with the Hornet. I guess a cantilever rear shock really does have it's limitations. Where the Hornet would have been kicking and screaming the 9 just floated over it with barely a movement. Mind, the rear does pack down a bit under duress.

just imagine when........

4th thing I noticed was how feckin far the clutch lever sits from the bar..........I nearly need two hands to grab it! Got used to it as the ride progressed thankfully.

mine has an adjustable lever - farf knows why they didnt continue it on the E model. i couldnt get over the reach to shauns clutch in his imaculate E2

5th thing I noticed was 4th gear can go walkabout sometimes if you are not positive or get lazy with the shift from 3rd!

they like positive gear changes, much like any kawasaki

6th thing I notice was, that i could almost live with the ride position It grew on me the more I rode it!

told you it was comfy.............

I started playing about a bit with the throttle in various gears to try and gauge how much power it had and where, and initially, I was a little dissapointed with the power it had. I thought it was wimpy off the bottom and through the middle. But I wasn't taking much notice of the speed, till it was almost too late. I think, the smooth motor hides what it's doing to some degree, as it was hauling arse like a mad bastard, but just did it in a really unfussed silky smooth way, which gave the impression it wasn't working hard. But, it's not slow!!!

and i think this is why neka insists the 9 is gut less..........it is VERY deceptive....and they guy on the cbr found out on theway home...talk about impromtu wheelies......nearly scared the shite outta me.....

Absolutely perfect for the road.

yep, i think i may have said that one or twice

The rear shock can get a little grumpy when you get up it in the twisties, and very soon starts flapping about a bit. But as road bikes go, it's pretty damn good. Nothing a WP shock and TM forks won't fix!

correct can strongly recommend that

AS the ride went on, I got on better and better with this bike, and what started as a so so impression, soon grew into a healthy grin.

convert convert

The power to 3000 rpm is probably sim to the Hornet, but from 3-5 it's a bit flat. Then from 5 it picks up a bit. But where I saw it's forte, was in the 6-10 rev range. It sings up there like a 600!! Only diff being it tapers off once it hits 11 rather than rushing to the 11500 rpm redline. The last 6 or 700 rpms are a little dull. Maybe some pipe/jetting changes and an ignition may fix it as it may have a soft limiter built into the igniter which tapers off the timing up near redline.

mine will pull to 500 or so into the redline....when it hit the limiter it was still making more power. that just with a pipe - no other mods to the engine or gearing

I tended to keep it above 6 for spirited riding. At that it's right in the sweet spot when you need it.

works for me

Bahahaha At Phil!

Bahahaha At Phil!

did i mention i love my bike.

and shaun told me on the weekend he is smitten too......

Bahahaha At Phil!

did i mention i love my bike.

and shaun told me on the weekend he is smitten too......

Yeah i like it Phil, but I'm not gunna bang on about it too much as people with think it's purchase justification!!!!!!!!

I reckon I may finally learn how to wheelie properly with this thing!!! It lifts the front very obviously at around 4500 in 1st, then 7500 in second, but it needs a little lip for third, or a little clutch! And it did do a noice little foot off the ground for half an hour one coming up a hill in 4th today!!!!!!

What ride heights do you run Phil? (Thats if the Ohlins is std length??)

Bahahaha At Phil!

did i mention i love my bike.

and shaun told me on the weekend he is smitten too......

Yeah i like it Phil, but I'm not gunna bang on about it too much as people with think it's purchase justification!!!!!!!!

I reckon I may finally learn how to wheelie properly with this thing!!! It lifts the front very obviously at around 4500 in 1st, then 7500 in second, but it needs a little lip for third, or a little clutch! And it did do a noice little foot off the ground for half an hour one coming up a hill in 4th today!!!!!!

What ride heights do you run Phil? (Thats if the Ohlins is std length??)

cant remember off the top of my head, i think it is std length, may be a mm or 2 longer. i had glenn willing set my stock suspension up for me, i havent changed a thing (except put the ohlins in the rear). its plush but doesnt wallow.

when shaun rode mine he thought he wanted his a little harder, after riding mine again he has gone back a little softer but i think he is going to see if glenn can have a look at his when mine goes in for its checkup and service later this year.

and i cant do wheelies......my bike can - i just enjoy the ride

but yeah 4500 in first up she comes nicely - i dont change gears, perhaps one of the reasons i have had no trouble after 108K, did i mention original clutch

crikey..strika, phil...get a room!!

and take ur 9's with yas..maybe u can do sum partner swapping?? mwajhahahahaha

i can sort the springs n dampers myself,just thought u might have the magic number for it. But i'll get my guy to measure it up.