VOL. 55 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 23, 2018 P89
in Europe thanks to the ever-
tightening emissions laws that
strangle the rev happy four-
cylinder.
But there's an argument far
more applicable to supersport
riders than whether polar bears
have somewhere to chill—and
that's price. The cost of a mod-
ern 600 is not that far off what
a superbike costs, making the
bang-for-buck ratio a difficult
one if all you're after is the fast-
est bike for the cheapest price.
For example, last year the
636cc Kawasaki ZX-6R would
set you back $11,699 for the
non-ABS version, with the com-
pany's flagship ZX-10R retailing
for $15,399. A difference of
$3700 for what is almost double
the motorcycle in terms of out-
right horsepower hasn't sat very
well with riders, so for this year
Kawasaki has come back with a
revised—although mechanically
very similar—ZX-6R and lopped
a massive $1699 off the retail
price to get it under the magic
$10K marker and bring the bike
back to the kind of price super-
sport machines enjoyed in their
heyday of the mid-2000s.
Under the hood
"The supersport market is still
incredibly important for us at
Kawasaki," says Kawasaki
USA's Brad Puetz. "We real-
ize the price was a barrier to
many riders, and we want to
keep people excited about this
segment because these bikes,
unlike 1000s, are ones that a
wider range of riders can get
the most out of on the track and
street. The motorcycle industry
needs the supersport segment,
and we want to see it grow."
Keeping people excited is a
difficult endeavor, however, and
you can't do that with just the
same bike, even if the price is re-
duced. As such, the 2019 Kawa-
saki ZX-6R is more a case of new
clothes than any performance
gains riders will notice, with
all-new styling with looks ripped
closely off the baby Ninja 400
with LED lighting front and rear;
new dash; a reshaped seat that's
skinnier where it meets the tank
and shorter front to back; the
fitment of the Kawasaki Quick
Shifter (KQS) system for clutch-
less up (not down) gearshifts;
The Showa
suspension on the
road is excellent,
offering great
bump absorption
and rider comfort.
A new seat unit is shorter front
to back and narrower.
