Kawasaki Motorcycles

About kawasaki

Kawasaki motorcycles are manufactured by the Motorcycle & Engine division of Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

The Kawasaki Company was founded in 1896 by Shozo Kawasaki as a shipyard meant for building oceangoing steel ships. At the beginning they constructed marine steam turbines, locomotives, freight cars, passenger carriages and bridge girders. In 1918 the Aircraft Department is established and after prolonged research Kawasaki succeeds in building Japan's first metal aircraft. Then came 1949 and they turned towards the motorcycles industry by making engines suited for motorcycles.

Kawasaki Aircraft initially manufactured motorcycles under the Meguro name, having bought out an ailing motorcycle manufacturer called Meguro Manufacturing Co. Ltd with whom they had been in partnership earlier, but later formed Kawasaki Motor Sales. Some early motorcycles display an emblem with "Kawasaki Aircraft" on the fuel tank. Kawasaki motorcycles from 1962 through 1967 used an emblem which can be described as a flag within a wing.

Kawasaki came out with their first bike in 1954, called Meihatsu. This bike had Kawasaki's own KB-5 engine. An improved model of the Meihatsu, called Meihatsu 125 Deluxe, was introduced in 1956.

Kawasaki was producing bikes for a while without much popularity, but technically progressing. Kawasaki started to be noticed as a big player on the motorcycles market due to the release of the 500cc H1 model (also known as Mach III). In 1973 Kawasaki introduced their first superbike, the Z1 which had a 903cc engine.

One of the most notable bikes in Kawasaki history, the GPZ900R came in 1983. This was the first model ever produced by Kawasaki to have a liquid-cooled engine and to reach 250 km/h. A year later they started to sell this bike in the US and they renamed it Ninja, thing which proved to be very benefactor, registering huge sales.

Their first ever motorsports victories were obtained by Dave Simmons in the FIM World Road Racing 125cc Championship. He won the West German and the Isle of Mann TT races and the series championship riding a KR-1. Then came 1981 and Kawasaki won the manufacturer's title in the FIM World Road Racing 250cc Championship, courtesy of A. Mang who was riding the KR250. Kawasaki's most notable win in their motorsports history was the Le mans 24-Hour Race back in 1983. The model which participated in that race was the ZXR-7.

Moto blog

Who To Watch In AMA Pro SuperSport

America’s road racing champions of tomorrow are racing in AMA Pro SuperSport today, and their season kicks off this weekend at Daytona International Raceway. With events on both Friday and Saturday, there are plenty of chances for glory for the 48 competitors entered. AMA Pro SuperSport is the most unpredictable class and the racing gives a chance for riders in the large fields to step up and prove they have what it takes. A great example is reigning AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Champion and current SuperBike pilot Cameron Beaubier, who cut his teeth in his two-victory, two-pole season in 2010.

Who To Watch In AMA Pro Superbike This Weekend

Photo: Brian J. Nelson Even though reigning AMA Pro Superbike champ Josh Herrin has left the series to try his hand in the Moto2 series, the Superbike field is still filled deep with talent heading into this weekend’s series opening round at Daytona. Here are just a few names to keep an eye on this weekend.

Superbike Coach Teams With Feel Like A Pro

Can Akkaya, former European superbike racer and currently proprietor of SuperbikeCoach.com, has announced a partnership with Feel Like A Pro. For those unfamiliar, Feel Like A Pro provides Kawasaki Ninja 250 race bike rentals across the west coast for a nominal fee of $299. The namesake comes from the experience you get, as a technician, gas, and tires are all included in the cost.

2014 AMA Supercross – Daytona Results

Ryan Villopoto was dominant in Daytona, leading all 20 laps to win his third race of the season. The Monster Energy Kawasaki ride strengthened his hold on the 2014 AMA Supercross championship lead, padding his lead over Red Bull KTM riders Ryan Dungey and Ken Roczen. The reigning three-time champion was far and away the fastest racer on the Daytona International Speedway infield, posting lap times more than a second faster than anyone else.

Kawasaki Patents Design for Naked Single

Kawasaki has registered a design patent for what appears to be a naked version of its recently revealed 250cc single-cylinder Ninja RR Mono. While the Ninja RR Mono (also known in some markets as the Ninja 250SL) is produced for the Asian market, the new design is registered with the European Union’s Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market, making it more likely to arrive in western markets. The detailed design renderings reveal many clues indicating this is a naked version of the RR Mono.

2014 AMA Supercross – Indianapolis Results

Ryan Dungey captured his first win of the 2014 AMA Supercross season in a wild main event that saw two of the top title contenders crashing on the starting straight at Indianapolis‘ Lucas Oil Stadium. Smartop MotoConcepts Suzuki rider Mike Alessi took the holeshot for the second race in a row, but the big news was incoming points leader Ryan Villopoto and Ken Roczen going down before the first turn. Roczen trailed Villopoto by nine points going into the Indianapolis round, but the KTM rookie’s hopes of overtaking the reigning champion took a blow when he went down on the straight, knocking Villopoto off in the process.

Schwantz, Tsujimoto Team Up For Yoshimura Legends Team At 2014 Suzuka 8-Hour

Former 500cc World Champion, Kevin Schwantz, will pair with former Japanese Champion, Satoshi Tsujimoto, in this year’s Suzuka 8-Hour race. The duo originally tackled Suzuka together in 1986, ultimately coming in third position. Now the two are back in celebration of Yoshimura’s 60th anniversary, as part of the company’s “Legend Team.” Yoshimura will also field a second entry with former Australian Champion Josh Waters and All Japan Superbike rider Takuya Tsuda.

Rossi, Pedrosa Fastest In Second Sepang MotoGP Test

Valentino Rossi and Dani Pedrosa topped the time sheets at the conclusion of the second MotoGP test at the Sepang track in Malaysia. Both clocked identical times of 1:59.999 to become the only riders to dip under the two minute mark the entire test. The hot and humid conditions in Sepang meant times wouldn’t be faster than they were in the first test here only a few weeks prior, and indeed, Rossi and Pedrosa’s time is 0.466 second slower than the fastest lap Marc Marquez set at the last test.

This Is What a 110 MPH Wheelie Looks Like…On Ice – Video

Ryan Suchanek is crazy. Aboard his Kawasaki ZX-10R, he set the Guiness world record for the fastest wheelie on ice at 95 mph. Last year he broke that record at 108.5 mph.

2014 AMA Supercross – Atlanta Results

KTM‘s Ken Roczen continues to impress, taking his second AMA Supercross win of his 450-class rookie season at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. Roczen, who also won the season opening Anaheim 1 round, took advantage of a mistake by Kawasaki‘s Ryan Villopoto to take the win and move within nine points of the defending champion in the rider standings. The main event started with Smartop Motoconcepts Suzuki rider Mike Alessi taking the holeshot for his best start this season.