Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126988
~ e . , r- co 0') ,.......; ~ 00 CN ~. il) ..0 0 ..... U 0 The Ni':ija 1000 features a 997cc, liquid-cooled, 16-valve, in-line, four-cylinder engine. 1988 Kawasaki Street Bikes N-nja 1000 leads the way .Ka wa sa k i ' s 1988 Product Sales Guide q uickly claims, " th e king is back. " The king in this reference is the new ZXI000 Ninja,' an d i t spearheads the company's lineup of 1988 sport bikes. The Ninja 1000 features -a · id I d ?97~c, I iqui ·co~ e , If-valve, m-Ime, four-cylinder power- Th e Ninj a 600 ret urn s in 1988 with a claimed horsepower increase of 13 percent and Kawasaki's ESCS. The 250cc Ninja features many changes including new bodywork ( similar . t o that of the 6001. bigger forks and increased horsepower. 6 pl ant that Kawasaki claims will p rodu ce between 135 a n d 140 horsepower. . , The engine features an all -new cylinder head which is ta ller but much shorter front to back , whi le we igh ing less. The engi ne al so features a new valve train which uses one valve per roc ker (sma ller th an th ose used in the 750R with sh im adjusters on the top of each valve stem). The new system in creases the valve redline. from 10,500 to 13,800 rpm. Kawasaki claims that while lar ger diameter valves are used th ey are lighter th an th e ones used on th e 750R. Weight reduction is pl entiful on the Ninja 1000. From lighter, flat top p iston s to reduced co nnec ting rod weight (15 percent) . The cra nkshaft weight is also down from 11.6 to 10.5 kg., which in turn lowers the reciprocating weight by 14 percent; total engine weight loss is 6.6 p ounds. This year's Ninja 1000 also features new 36m m Keihin downdraft carburetors and th e airbox ca paci ty has been increased to eig h t liters (up from six liters to provide better throttle response). The bike also features digital ignition. Th~ powerplant .is housed in .an alum inu m box -secti on frame which features rem o vabl e double-cradl e do wntubes: the package weighs o nly 30.1 pounds. The Ninja 1000 uses 41m m, air-adj us table front forks and Kawasaki 's Uni-Trak (air-adj ustable with four-way adjustab le damping ) rear suspensio n. Stopping th e Ninja 1000 up front are dual di scs with full -Iloating. du al -piston calipers; th e rear disc system also u ses th e du al -p iston design. The 1000 will come with Bridgesto ne radial tires fitt ed on three-spoke wh eels. The total package has a claimed dry weig ht of 511.5 po unds. The 750R returns for ) 988 a.m1.ls. ba si call y th e sam e as last year's version. Slight cha n ges include push-cancel tum signals on the bike th at was first introduced in 750cc displacement last year. The Ninja 600 features many changes in 1988. including a claimed 13 horsepower increase in pow er. A box-section alumi n um swingarm, fo ur-way rebound damping on the Uni-Trak rear suspension, aluminum Iootpegs, a new ly-styled fai ring, an Electric Suspension Control System (ESCS - co m bi n i ng the Automatic Variable Damping Systern (AVDS) and ant i-di ve into one electrically-activated unit) and th e Bal anced Actuatio n Caliper (BAC).