Kawasaki Z900 ABS

Overview

The Kawasaki Z800, despite being a strong selling and brilliant product, was in the need of a substantial upgrade. Kawasaki too understood this fact, which is why it gave a very comprehensive upgrade to it in the form of the Z900. An upgrade in each and every aspect, including the nomenclature, the Z900 has moved closer to the Z1000 in terms of performance and hardware as well. In Malaysia, the Z900 is being offered in four colors – blue, black, green, and red.

Design

When you look at the Z900, you will feel that the motorcycle features a design which actually looks like a blend of the sharp-looking Z800 and curvaceous and aerodynamic Z1000.

At the front, the Z900 gets a revised, it gets Z800’s headlamp. It has sharp-looking twin headlamps tucked in a dual tone cowl, with the turn indicators moving up from the side fenders to the front raked visor above the headlamp. Like the Z1000, the Z900 too gets a small pilot lamp placed between the front headlamps and visor.

On moving sideways, the much aggressive and muscular stance of the Z800 has been toned down a bit for the Z900. Though, it doesn’t lose out on the factor sharpness, with the overall side profile now being much closer to that of the Z1000. The redesigned fuel tank now gets smaller but still angular extensions. The side body panels, in spite of growing in size, are now partially exposing the new trellis frame (more on that later). The tail section ends up in a new rear fender and LED tail lamp, which unlike the Z-shaped pattern of the Z800, is now a more conventional unit.

Unlike the very futuristic looking fully digital instrument console of the Z800, the Z900 gets an all-new console, which comes with a minimalistic design. A fully digital unit, this console has digital readouts for speedometer, tachometer, gear indicator, odometer, trip meters, fuel gauge, temperature indicator, and clock.

Ride & Handling

The Z900 is an advancement over the Z800 in each and every aspect to be talked about, including the new mechanical components under the revamped skin. The new Z900, like every other new generation model of Kawasaki, comes with a tubular trellis frame, which is strong yet lighter than that of the Z800. Apart from it, the Z900 comes equipped with 41 mm upside-down telescopic forks at the front and horizontal back link monoshock at the rear, both of which come with rebound damping and spring preload adjustability.

In terms of stopping power, the Z900 comes fitted with new dual 300mm petal disc brakes at the front and a single 250mm petal disc brake at the rear.

Engine & Fuel Consumption

Unlike the 803 cc unit of the Z800, the new Kawasaki Z900 comes with an all-new four stroke, inline four, liquid cooled, fuel injected, 948 cc engine. This produces a maximum power output of 125 PS, almost 14 PS more than that of the Z800, whereas the peak torque output stands at 98.6 Nm, making it more powerful than the Z800. The engine is mated to a 6-speed gearbox, with shorter gear ratios to make the Z800 more enjoyable and quick to ride in lower gears.

Braking & Safety

Compared to its competitors, the Kawasaki Z900 misses out on many modern electronic riding aids, which is quite a shame, considering how wonderful this motorcycle is. Though this motorcycle comes with ABS as standard, however, the inclusion of switchable riding modes and traction control would have been welcomed.

Verdict

As we said in the very beginning of the review, the Z900 is an upgrade over the Z800 in each and every form. Be it design, performance or riding dynamics. While it has lost some of the aggressiveness of the Z800 in terms of design, the fact that it has come closer to the Z1000 with its new design makes sure it has only upgraded its form. In terms of function too, the new 948 cc engine is much more powerful than the Z800’s engine, thus putting it closer to the territory of litre class roadsters, without being much intimidating. Adding to it, the new trellis frame, lower weight, stiffer suspension setup and better brakes ensure that it is easier and more enjoyable to ride as well.