SuperBike Magazine

November 24, 2009 - Neil Handley

First test review on the 2010 Kawasaki Z1000 naked muscle bike. ... Scroll down for the full story

SuperBike's more than capable Ad man Neil Handley donned his riding gear to jump on the 2010 Kawasaki Z1000 launch from sunny Estepona in Southern Spain. Here's his opinion from the golf course, er, hotel room…

The new for 2010 Kawasaki Z1000 was unveiled to the eagerly awaiting European press in the Spanish Costas today. Mooted by us as the latest hooligan tool, the Kawasaki big cheeses were keen to stress it wasn't. It was a sensible day to day all rounder they said. Cue raised eyebrows as the promo video started. Sideways action and big wheelies being the main topic as the 'professional rider on a closed road' spun it up on every opportunity in a dark underground car park setting.

Everyone went to dinner impressed and after a couple of glasses of vino to settle us in for the night we were ready for the next morning's action. The sun blessed us for the day and temperatures were into the 70's, more than enough to give the Z1000 a spanking round the twisty roads of Ronda.

The bike is all-new from the ground up with a new bigger capacity engine, a slimline twin spar frame that could grace the ZX-10R and styling cues not unlike Suzuki's B-King. The riding position is relaxed with the new bars raised slightly higher and further back and you sit quite low in the seat with your legs wrapped snugly under the bulbous tank.

The engine is fast with a claimed 138bhp although it feels about 120bhp on the road. The bikes we rode were pre-production, but 99 per cent as they would come out of the showroom. They had stiffened the suspension by a click or two for the fast windy roads and it was pretty much perfect although the Dunlop D210 tyres felt culpable for any mild shiftiness from the front end.

The new chassis setup challenges you to ride as hard as you can. The bike is a little on the heavy side at 218kg but it has lost 10kg over the old one from the lighter engine and frame. It doesn't feel heavy though, flip flopping from side to side for near on 40 miles of pure biking nirvana.

I wouldn't have wanted to be on any other bike on that road. The Z1000 works so well in all conditions you can concentrate on where you are going rather than what the bike is doing. I wasn't tired at the end of the day and all my joints and arse pads were pain-free.

In all honesty I couldn't find a fault with the new Z1000. I wanted to. Badly. But it is that good. Well maybe I could scoff at the snake skin seat that comes as standard on the brown colour. But actually, well done to Kawasaki for being brave and doing something different.

The bike will be in dealers from January priced around £7,200. Tidy.


Will the Z1000 topple the Triumph Speed Triple as the super naked heavyweight? Only a group test will find out. Read the full launch report in the February 2010 issue of SuperBike, out on sale and in the shops 23rd December.