COMPARISON I KAWASAKI Z900RS SE VS. HONDA CB1000R BLACK EDITION
P90
The Kawasaki's chassis balance
leans slightly towards the back of
the bike, so the initial steering can
be a bit lazy. You have to weight the
front a bit more than you'd expect
to make for fast initial steering, es-
pecially at high speed, and is a trait
we also found evident when testing
the Honda back-to-back.
There's absolutely no denying
the Kawasaki is the winner in the
looks department. A retro suit,
when worn correctly, almost al-
ways outclasses modern attire and
Kawasaki has done well to stay
true to the ethos of the original Z1
900 from the early 1970s without
losing touch with modern real-
ity. Ironically, part of what makes
it look so good is one of its best
riding features, and that's the long
plank seat. It's one of the most
comfortable of any 1000cc naked
bikes on the market today, making
long rides nowhere near as painful
as one might expect.
HONDA CB1000R
BLACK EDITION
"Give yourself to the Dark Side…"
Darth Vader's famous line to Luke
Skywalker might be more adept for
the CB1000R Black Edition rider, as
its sheer lack of anything resembling
color other than black would make
the Dark Lord himself proud.
The CB1000R is the same as
the Black Edition; it's the only one
you can buy in North America, with
American Honda doing away with
the red color scheme they must
have thought wasn't black enough.
Sometimes a roomy, old-school
riding position is best.
