Kawasaki

KAWASAKI

KAWASAKI HAS ALWAYS thought big. Its 903cc Z1 was the biggest Japanese streetbike of its day; the KZ1300 Six was the most imposing bike of the late Seventies; and the 1300 Voyager weighs nearly as much as some small cars. So it should come as little surprise that for 1987, Kawasaki is at it again with the world's biggest cruiser.

This machine is so new that we have little information not provided by its picture, including the bike’s name. Kawasaki simply refers to it as Project 509 (the company’s internal model-designation) at this point. But here’s what we do know: It’s powered by a 1500cc, liquid-cooled V-Twin, and each mammoth, 750cc cylinder is topped by a sohc, four-valve head. Twin counterbalancers in the crankcase help cancel vibration. The

crankshaft uses a single crankpin for both cylinders, just as in a Harley or a Ducati. The emphasis of this machine is on low-speed power, which, at this displacement, should be something to behold. The bike pictured here is a prototype prepared for Kawasaki’s dealer show; production should start in January, with first deliveries shortly thereafter.

Kawasaki thought big with another model, as well: the KLR650. Based on the KLR600, this dual-purpose bike has seen its displacement grow and its bodywork go the Paris-Dakar route with a 6.1-gallon tank and a mini-fairing. Will a bike that would be all the rage in Paris or Milan sell in America? Only time will tell.

Another new entry from Kawasaki for 1987 seems a more certain success. The EX500 is a bike we, and many Kawasaki dealers, have been

asking for: a small, light sportbike based on the torquey and powerful 454 Twin. The 454 has grown into a full 500 for this application, but the main emphasis has been on keeping both its weight and its cost low. Nothing not needed has been added, as indicated by its single front disc and drum rear brake. In the showroom sit test, the EX feels almost as light as the Ninja 250, and Kawasaki claims it comes close to matching the original GPz550 in performance.

As for the rest of Kawasaki’s lineup, the impressive, and already released, Ninja 750 (tested in the November, 1986, issue) is the only other major addition. Gone is the original 900 Ninja, which couldn’t find enough operating room between the Ninja 1000 and 750. But even without that model, Kawasaki enters 1987 bigger, and better, than ever.