VOL. 52 ISSUE 20 MAY 19, 2015 P97
So last year Kawasaki threw the book at
the Zee, channeling the ancient Japanese
philosophy of sugomi—which Kawasaki says
is, "an intense aura or energy given off by a
person or object of greatness and felt by the
viewer. Someone, or something, possessing
sugomi, inspires awe, leaves an indelible
impression, is imposing in stature or ability,
and commands respect." Seriously, that's
got to be the best company press jargon
ever, right?
But press jargon means jack-all if the bike
sucks, which this one certainly does not.
The Zee matches up to the sugomi attitude
in almost every way, namely in just how
good that engine is. The throttle response is
silky smooth—one of the best not just in this,
but any class—and it needs to be because
there's a stonking amount of power with
no electronics to hold it back. No traction
control, no anti-wheelie, no variable rider
modes—it's just you, your right hand, and
1043cc of Kawasaki firepower.
The revs build exceptionally fast and
there's power all through the rev range. It
doesn't have a massive kick anywhere and
the engine doesn't come with variable veloc-
ity stacks, but power just builds and builds
with the kind of ferocious intensity Kawasaki
1000cc engines have become renowned
for. This surging power is matched to a
gearbox with very short ratios, so you'll find
yourself snapping up the gearbox real quick
when getting onto a freeway. The gears are
so short I kept thinking I had another cog to
shift to, only to realize I was in sixth already.
The tradeoff for the short gears and rapid
acceleration is that at highway speeds the
engine feels like it's doing 1000 rpm more
than it should, and the vibrations begin to
chime in through the one-piece bar. But it's
a small tradeoff for blistering performance.
Even in sixth gear at 70mph the acceleration
is serious and the revs build fast. Power de-
"THE GEARBOX ACTION
ITSELF IS SMOOTH AND
PRECISE WITH A SHORT,
POSITIVE THROW,
AND THE BEST THING
ABOUT SNAPPING UP
THROUGH THE GEARBOX
UNDER BIG POWER IS
THAT INTOXICATING
INDUCTION ROAR—THE
ZEE SOUNDS LIKE IT
COULD SUCK IN SMALL
CHILDREN FROM 1000
FEET AWAY."
(Above) You can
clearly see the fork
caps in this shot, with
preload on the left
and compression/
rebound on the right.
(Right) The double
barrel exhausts look
tough but carry a bit
of extra weight over a
single system.
