Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

If you've owned a 9, the 12 will feel like a shopping trolley. They don;t steer very nicely at all.

MAXUMIS wrote:

maraach wrote:

MAXUMIS wrote:Mate i LOVE my 12 its everything i want for what it was made for,it to me is a steroided 9.You get the write tyre's and set the suspenion up buy someone that knows what they are doing and they handle great for a big bike.Yuor best bet is to test ride one that has at least a 190 rear tyre on it and see how you like it.Jonno has a great 05 model that would be worth having a look at IMO.

That sounds the best plan but finding one to ride is easier said than done. Especially seeing im probably not going to be able to act on purchasing one for a couple months at least.. i just kind of what to know if it is what im after. Who knows i might step onto it and realise that it isnt the bike for me. I know that is what happened on the zx10.. i was super keen, but just sitting on it in the shop and i knew i was never going to be happy on it.

And im not going to buy Jono's 12... Jono is keeping his 12.. he is just going through a moment of crazy... Lets let it pass and he can get back to his riding and being the 12's biggest fan

If you don't live to far from me you can take mine for a blast if you want to see what there like,just don't drop it PS i hope to god Jonno keeps them or at least one

I do appreciate the offer, but i have this rule about riding other peoples bikes that generally stops me from doing such things

However if i make it to one of the near future meet's and you are there if you would let me sit on it that would be great.

Nelso wrote:

z900/zx9 wrote:Being a nine addict just for kicks i went and sat on a 2011/12 zx10 last week and was surprised that it wasnt as aggresive as i thought.

That's because they are made for short-arses. Us normal sized people struggle immensely to fit on them.

Define Normal ,theres a can of worms oh and suffer in your normal jocks,yep good things come in small packages,quality not quantity
And yep when there cheap enough this bike will definitly be on my list

I've been trying to get a mate of mine to throw a leg over my 12 for months... he flat out refuses. Long story short he's wanted one for a good 12 years now and he knows that last shred of self-discipline will disappear once he rides one.

PS they steer good with the right tyres. (i.e. anything but stock)

However if i make it to one of the near future meet's and you are there if you would let me sit on it that would be great.[/quote]
No problem mate! PS Strika ride one with a 190/55 rear and the forks droped 6 mm's not at shop test ride!

dont they originally take a 200 rear tyre? im taking it dropping to the 190 gives it better handling?

200/55, 190/55, 190/50, 180/55..

Take your pick, any of the above will transform the handling over the stock 200/50. Nobody runs it. Most people seem to prefer 190/55, myself included.

better handeling quicker turning i ran mine as standard most of its life then put on a 190 when i couldnt get a 200 soon enough. I noticed the difference straight away the 200 was like having a car tyre on. The skinny tyre made it much better up the mountains and 190 is not really that skinny

Very similar with that planted front feel, just heaps more grunt. in fact my old 1994 9R is wider, just as heavy, 30mm shorter in the wheel base than the 12.

And to clear up this misconception that a 12R is a bigger 9, it isnt, it was a whole new design as the Kawasaki's flagship sportsbike at the time which the last of the 9R's looks come from, the only thing they share is the bore/stroke ratio like a lot of other models do.

MAXUMIS wrote:PS Strika ride one with a 190/55 rear and the forks droped 6 mm's not at shop test ride!

He has ridden my 12R in normal riding conditions. Well, define normal
I followed on his ZRX and they do turn easier initially.

The bike is well setup with raised rear and forks lifted through the tripples without going to aggressive, the right tyres fitted (M5), Ohlins TTX shock and re-valved forks. Compared to most other (smaller) sports bikes they take a bit of tipping in, I usually start tipping it a little earlier than I would on the 10R. You have to muscle it a bit on the slower stuff but once she is leant over it holds that line like its on rails.

BTW this bike was built for speed and big fast sweepers, it does this very well like no other.
However, compared to the 2011 ZX10R and the new 14R it is now showing all of its 13 years of technical age.

maraach wrote:dont they originally take a 200 rear tyre? im taking it dropping to the 190 gives it better handling?

Yes they came out with a 200 but a 190 is better suited to help with tipping it into a corner and more choice of brands.
They used that tyre for the weight and power back then when most still used timber or stone wheels.

MAXUMIS wrote:However if i make it to one of the near future meet's and you are there if you would let me sit on it that would be great.

No problem mate! PS Strika ride one with a 190/55 rear and the forks droped 6 mm's not at shop test ride![/quote]

I rode one that was more than well set up. See Jonno's comments below. I'm not dissin the bike, just saying that they steer like a shopping trolley. Which they do! I'd still own one. You just have to ride em differently is all. But, they do not steer well at all, set up or not set up.

I've owned

2 x 9's, now 3
1 x 12
1 x 14
Currently on a ninja 1000

Go to your local Kawasaki shop and go riding, you'll figure it out which one you want sooner later

Everyone here can waffle all they want, bottom line is they're all different and have different focus.

Go forth and test ride.

Jonno wrote:However, compared to the 2011 ZX10R and the new 14R it is now showing all of its 13 years of technical age.

Hmm this is what i was worried about. The look of the 12 is the Kawasaki look i have always known and loved which is why im probably so drawn to it. Why they dropped that styling in place of what they used for the 14 still baffles me. The 14 isn't a bad looking bike.. its just not quite the same. As you rightfully pointed out Jonno my E1 9 was very similar in style to the 2003 zx12r. Though i think the zx12r carried it a bit better due to the more aggressive nature of its lines.

However I am very much enjoying the newer tech my new toy is offering. Amazing brakes, slipper clutches, steering dampers, razor sharp turning.. that's a nice bunch of kit to be playing with.

Strika's point about the turning in the tight stuff does worry me. Last time i got into really tight (and steep) stuff on the 9 I almost came undone... if the 12 is tougher than that perhaps its a bit too much bike for me to handle. It makes sense what you said though, that its setup more for big sweepers and long rides.. which is also an area the 9 excelled in... which in fairness is what i was looking at it for.

A saying I have heard is... "you cant go past a 12R"

Go get one and see for yourself , stop procrastinating, just do it

9 has more mid range. Srs.

I agree with Marti Yep i reckon that a late model 9 would definitly outsteer a 12 through the twisties