Mount a fuel injected Ninja ZX-9R-based engine in a lightweight chassis, fit Ninja running gear, and wrap it in new plastic and what do you get? Say hello to the Z1000.
Kawasaki added a sharp edge to the retro look with the new Z1000, using solid colours and fighter plane angles to the plastics.
The engine is the bullet-proof ZX-9R motor, bored out to 953cc and fuel injected with two throttle valves per injector for smoother power delivery. Big K tuned the liquid-cooled, 16-valve, in-line four to give masses of mid-range stomp, at the expense of top end - just what you want on a naked bike.
An inverted front fork with 41mm tubes makes the Thou look good and handle better, thanks to preload and rebound adjustments. Kawasaki's own Uni-Track rear suspension features a nitrogen gas-charged shock with piggyback reservoir, stepless spring preload and rebound damping adjustment.
An aluminium swingarm and wheels pinched from the ZX-9R mean the Z1000 should hold the road pretty well.
With semi-floating 300mm discs and lightweight four-pot calipers up front, and a 220mm single-piston caliper at the rear, you should be able to pin down the 198kg Z1000 pretty quickly.
Streetbikes need the muscle look if they are going to hack it, so Kawasaki hid the fact that the frame is an old style steel cradle made from large diameter, thin walled tubing. They've fixed plastic covers to the lower part of the engine to make it look like it's a beam frame.
We'll let them off seeing as how they've given the Zed Thou four gorgeous, golden cigar-tube exhaust cans and a digital speedometer inside an LCD rev meter. You can choose black or green paint jobs, but we'll have one in orange.
