Zx-6 Vs. Cbr600f2
ZX-6 vs. CBR600F2
CW COMPARISON
HONDA GETS COMPANY AT THE TOP OF THE 600cc HEAP
THE RUMORS HAD CIRCULATED FOR MONTHS. THEY SAID Kawasaki would in 1993 offer a redesigned ZX-6 that would be faster and better-handling than Honda’s CBR600F2, the current 600-class sales and performance leader.
We were skeptical. After all, the CBR offers an almost unreal combination of power, ridability, comfort and value. It’s clearly the best 600 available, and for Kawasaki to beat Honda at its own game would be difficult indeed.
Now that we’ve ridden the all-new ZX-6, we’re impressed. It’s super fast, comfortable and handles surprisingly well. But is it as good as the CBR? Is it better?
To find out, we rode our ZX-6 testbike and a 1993 CBR for 300 miles along the California coast on some of the curviest roads in existence. If either bike was going to stand out, the route we had planned would certainly make it obvious.
Right away, the new ZX-6 impressed us with its high degree of comfort. Like the first-generation ZX-6, the new 6’s riding position is roomy and well laid-out, with enough seatto-peg distance to keep an average-sized rider’s knees from feeling pretzeled. The bars are angled nicely, and the reach to them seems just about right. The CBR, praised for its riding position and comfort in the past, felt a bit cramped next to the ZX-6 due to its higher-mounted footpegs. Wind and weather protection seemed a toss-up, though the ZX’s slightly wider and taller windscreen might be a benefit in the rain.
Adding to the ZX-6’s comfort advantage is its smoothrunning engine. At most rpm levels, the ZX-6 produced silky-smooth power; and even at stratospheric revs, only a hint of high-frequency vibration crept into the clip-ons and footpegs. Not so with the CBR, which buzzes noticeably throughout its rpm range-excessively so above 10,000 rpm. Though this is less noticeable during all-out sport rides, it becomes bothersome and tiring in a hurry on longer trips.
Okay, enough about comfort and engine smoothness. Is the ZX-6 faster than the CBR?
It is. Our ZX-6 testbike shrieked past our radar gun at 153 mph, 6 mph faster than the CBR, the previous 600class top-speed record holder. The ZX-6 also bested the CBR at the dragstrip, turning in a quarter-mile dash of 11.19 seconds at 123.5 mph, more than a tenth of a second quicker and almost 4 mph faster than the last CBR600 we tested. Those numbers make the ZX-6 the quickest, fastest production 600 Cycle World has ever seen.
In addition to CBR-beating peak power, the ZX-6 offers a ton of midrange power, which means you don’t have to keep the motor spinning near redline in order to generate serious locomotion. Roll-on numbers are particularly telling: From 40 to 60 mph in top gear, the CBR and ZX-6 run side-by-side, but from 60 to 80 mph, a more realistic top-gear situation, the ZX-6 leaves the CBR in its wake with a 4.2-second run, seven-tenths of a second quicker. All in all, the ZX-6 motor is faster, smoother, and a bit more flexible and user-friendly.
In terms of handling, the ZX-6 is every bit the CBR’s equal on the street, though it goes about its business quite differently. The most apparent difference is the ZX-6’s light steering, which requires very little bar effort to heel the bike over to a prescribed lean angle. In contrast, the CBR demands more effort to achieve the same transitional quickness. Through the coastal twisties, the ZX’s light steering proved beneficial; it hid the ZX-6’s 33-pound weight disadvantage and allowed its rider to transition between comers more quickly and with less effort than while aboard the Honda.
At the limit, the ZX-6 proved competent, offering as much high-speed stability, agility and control as the rocksteady CBR. Through fast, bumpy comers and during aggressive, cut-and-thrust maneuvering, the softly sprung ZX moved around on its legs a bit more than the taut CBR and dragged its footpegs and centerstand, but its well-damped suspension componentry kept things well under control. The ZX-6’s Michelin A59/M59 radiais, standard on the CBR for its first two years of production, worked well, offering as much grip and feedback as the excellent Bridgestone radiais fitted to the 1993-spec CBR.
In the end, both bikes have their own pluses. The CBR has less weight, more cornering clearance and a $300 lower price tag. The ZX-6 offers fit and finish that’s as good as that of the superbly finished CBR, a slightly more comfortable riding position and an engine that’s both smooth and powerful, one of the all-time great middleweight inline-Fours.
For many riders, that alone will sway them in the direction of the ZX-6. Other riders will wait to see how the 6 does on the racetrack against the previously all-conquering Honda 600s. Kawasaki has signed super-tuner Rob Muzzy and rider Miguel DuHamel in an attempt to unseat the CBRs, so 600cc supersport races should be interesting this year.
Regardless of how successful Muzzy and DuHamel are against the Hondas in ’93, one thing is certain: With its super fast, superbly balanced ZX-6, Kawasaki has vaulted itself from mid-pack right to the top of the 600cc streetbike standings. □
