Cycle News

Cycle News 2016 Issue 49 December 13

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/762384

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2017 KAWASAKI Z650 FIRST RIDE P62 new tubular trellis frame around it, sculpting an attractive motor- cycle by incorporating its tech- nical bits as aesthetic design cues. What little there is in the way of body parts carries a mod- ern, wedged theme throughout, from the gas tank to the tail sec- tion, tastefully augmented by the bikini fairing, all contributing to an impressive and attractive aura in the Z650. What justifies the "all-new" moniker for the Z650 is the trellis frame, the exposed tubes working as much a visual design element as a stress-bearing unit (especially in the Pearl Flat Star- dust paint scheme that presents the frame in a striking green). The angles of the trellis chassis are comprised of short lengths of tubing, with as straight a bend as possible, rendering a high de- gree of lateral and torsional rigid- ity to reduce frame flex, which is key to stability and more pre- cise handling. The trellis frame is mated with a high-tensile, hollow-pressed gull-wing-design swingarm. The swingarm was designed to have the straightest line possible from the pivot bolt to the axle to provide optimal rigidity for minimal flex. Squeezed into the trellis frame is a 649cc liquid-cooled, DOHC, four-valve per cylinder parallel twin engine. The 83 x 60mm bore and stroke engine has a 10.8:1 compression ratio. The platform is a good choice, with an easy- These are two of the three color options for the Z650.

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