Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

the ZX-7RR is actually 60mm narrower than the old ZXR750, the new bike loses o ut a litt le on top end because it's not very effic ient aerodynamically. Th ough the engine is strong up high , it' s pushing too m uch a ir . (I reckon Kaw asa ki need s a ses sio n in the wind tu n nel like the one Suzuki evidently signed up for in producing the sl eek, swoopy new TLI000R twin), Still, ta p p in g the Yanagawa bike' s p e rf ectly se t-up KLS s p eed -s h ifter at 14,300 rpm - don't risk hittin g the harsh rev-limi ter - kee ps you right in the userfrien d ly part of the rev band, and m eans yo u can capi talize on what is su rely now co m petit ive h orsepo w er deli ve re d as part of a very ridable package. But st ill, Kawasaki must surely be working on ge tting even more pow er a t s till h ig her rev s fo r '98 - o r else w ha t was th e point of ever going to th e shorts tro ke mo to r? Th e o ld lo nge r-stroke ZXR tu rned 14,700 rpm. Will w e see a I S-g rand ZX-7RR mo to r in th e comi ng season? In its present form, the Kawasaki is ac tually now a p retty forgiving bike to ride, certainly more so than befo re - the q u it e wide IS00- rpm ave rage ga p between gears underlines that. Th is isn't a peaky m oto rcycl e that gives you a cra mp in yo ur left foo t from ha ving to shift gea rs so often to keep it on the boi l. But it's also a po tent one, thanks to th e ma ny engi ne improvements introduced for ' 97 as w ell as Kawasaki's ret aini ng the best of before, all aimed at reducing ine rtia an d internal friction in the motor (thoug h, perhaps surprising ly, the slippe r clutch is still a wet oil-ba th design , the promised dry o ne no t ye t in use) . These include two-ring slip per pistons, redesigned titan iu m rods and valves, gear cam drive instead of chain for extra precision , a lighter cranksh aft, red esigned cylinder heads with a n altered combustion chamber and revised camshafts, 41mm FCR Keihins used all the time (39mm are also ho mologated ), a new ig ni tion system, and a Skorpio n tita nium exha ust tha t. giv es more' pow er up high without sac rificing midrange or upsetting the noise meter. A nd that's without co ns idering the chassis . Because what Kawasaki has done her e is achieve a contradiction in term s: It has created an in -li ne fourcy lin der superbike tha t changes direction, hold s a line an d rides bumps under power as well as my Supermono single o r b etter than any othe r superbik e , incl uding the twins! This was especially noticeable in the two Se ntul chicanes, where th e Kawasaki s teered no t just more preci sely bu t also more sweetly tha n the Hondas I'd been rid ing a couple of d a ys ea rl ier. It's easier to cha nge d irec tio n w ith, a nd d oesn't pus h th e fro nt end und er power like the RC4 S does - presumably because the center of g ravit y is low (the Kawasaki' s in -li ne m otor's crankshaft he igh t is appa rently 2Sm m lower rel at ive to the ax les than the V-fou r Honda' s, in a chassis w ith a w heelbase a lso 2Smm lo nger tha n the H onda's ). Thi s rangier stature cou pled with the lower cee of gee means the Kawasaki is easier to steer, is more stable u nd e r braking on the way into a tu rn as well as gripping better on the gas on the way o ut (because the re's less weight tra nsfer tha n o n a sho rter bike ca rrying its weight higher u p ), and holds a line better - es pecia lly over bu m ps. Yet, amazing ly, Kaw asaki has d elivered this from a low-slung in-li ne four without producing any grou nd-clearance p roblems, in spite of the excellent g rip of the 16.Sinc h Dun lop rear tire w hen you get hard on the gas. .This rubb er seems id eally suited to bikes with this engine format, perhaps because its structure is more compliant and forgiving than Michelin' s, permitting a lower setting o n th e adjustable sw ingarm pivot, delivering good initial grip while allowing the tire to slide predictably - as Simon Crafar had given a master-class demonstration of three davs beforeh and . 'Whatever the case , I felt I could brake an d tu rn the Kawasaki eas ier and hold a KAWASAKI ZX·7RR Specifications Engin e Bore x stroke Displacement Output Compres sion ra tio Carburetion Ignition Transmission Clutch Chassis Suspension Front Rear Rakeltrail Wheelba_ Weight Weight distribution. fI r Brakes Front , : Uquid·cooled DOHC in-line four-cylmder wI fourvalves per cylinder and gear camshaft drive 73x 44.7mm 749cc Over 165 bhp at 14.000 (at gearboX> 14.0:1 '(4) 41mm Keihin FCR fiat -slide Digital programmable electronicCDI 6·speed w I power shifter Multiplate wet s praq-type Aluminum twin spar .46mm Ohlins inverted telescopic forks Fabricated aluminum swingarm with adjustable pivot. rising·rate linkage and single Ohlins shock 25"192mm 55.9 in. 358.6 Ibs. wI oil. water - no fuel 52/48% : Dual 320mm Brembo discs wI four-piston Brembo calipers Rear Wheals /tlres Front Single 200mm Nissin stee l disc wI two-piston Niss in cali er p 120175-17 Dunlop KR106 radial on 3.50-in.-wide Marchesini wheel Rear _ 195/55R420-16 .5 Dunlop KR133 , radial on 6.00-in.-wide Marchesini wheel ~ Top speed 187.9 mph (Hockenheiml Year of nufac:ture ...... . ....... .. . .•. .. . . . . . . . . . . .. ... .. . . . ... .. .... 1997 Owner Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd., Akashi City. Japan (Above) The ZX-7RR is the class of the superbike field in terms of han dling, and it is stable under braking go ing into turn s and stable on the power com ing out , all the while holding a tighter line than any of the rest. (Right) Chassis specs are fairly conservative for the twin-spar aluminum-frame bike 25 degrees of rake and 92mm trail, coupled with longish 55.9-inch wheelbase. (Right below) The ultrashort-stroke In-line four screams on the top but still has usable midrang e . - a far cry from last year's bike. The engine currently redlines at 14 ,500 rpm and features a host of titanium internal pieces. a tig hter line than the Honda, then hook up hard on the gas quite a bit earlier, instead of having to wait a little for the RC4S's power understeer to be neu tralized befo re I cou ld take ad vantage of its ace acceleratio n. This is what p robably allowed the Kawasaki to be a match for the Ho nda on ma ny tracks last season, because its superior ha ndling on th e way out of a turn nega ted H on d a ' s adva n tage in engine pickup. It may be that much narrower th an th e o ld ZX R7S0 , but the Kaw asaki still seems quite w ide w he n you' re sitting aboard it , beca use of th e twin aird ucts in th e n ose of th e bo dywork - a n op tical ill u sion th at d oesn't detract from the ease with w hich yo u can choose a line in a turn, and stick to it. It de finitely feels m ore low-slu ng tha n ot he r supe rbikes when you sit on it, and it changes di rection better than the Honda or Ducati in a chicane. The nice th ing about the Kawasaki i s th at this wa s obtai ned without radical ' steering geometry and the attendant sacrifice in stability around bumpy fast turns, like the left sweeper before the first chicane. John Kocinski 's Honda had tried to tie itself in knots here each la p ; the Kawasaki was rock steady. Th e rid ing position is surprisingly spacious, too: Yanagawa says he used to tig hten everything up, but now he likes to m o ve aro u nd o n th e bi ke m ore, to take advantage of its forgiving - th at word again! - ha ndling . The only thing I thought migh t be improved were the brakes: Kawasaki has opted for four-pot Brembos this sea son, replacing last year's six-piston APs, which I never m u ch cared for . These new ones stop okay, but don't have the bit e tha t the fabulous six-po t Nissins used by Yamaha have - the latest ve rsio n of the sa me brakes th a t Kawasaki was the first to us e in Superbike raci ng . Th e Brembos d o wo rk 'more progressively, thou g h , and ha ve lots of fee l when yo u have to touch them ligh tly to take off a little corner speed w hen you, ahem , go too deep into a turn because yo u misj udged the line! And the Kawasaki is m uch mo re stab le than the Ko ci n s ki H o nd a und e r braking , not only becaus e the lo w er build redu ces w e ight tra n sfer (s o it d oesn' t lift th e ba ck wheel in th e ai r when y ou s q ueeze hard ) but a ls o because the new '97 46mm Ohlins forks (Kawasaki d idn't sw itch ba ck t.6 -the new-ge ne ration 42mm o nes as Yamaha d id) ha v e l Ornrn, m o r e travel tha n before. Th e travel is now 130mm w hic h, cou p led with revised springs, prevents the fro nt end fro m bottomi ng out under heavy braking as it did before. Kawasaki racing boss Makoto O htsu was present at Sentul for my test, and he says that th e company has a three-year plan for World Superbike success: After two of the three years, he feels they' re ahead of schedule. Will 1999 see the company achieve its target and win the title in the han d s of Aki ra th e Shark or new teamma te Ne il Hodgson, whose switch fro m Du cati ha s to be one of th e smarter moves a rider has made th is winter? Don't bet against it - th is is no w a ve ry good m otorcycl e, with a chassis packa ge th at is now outstanding, ye t is still at a com pa ra tively early stage in its d evelopment cycle. Perhaps the bes t is yet to come?! 1:X

• Cover