Kawasaki Motorcycles

About kawasaki

Kawasaki motorcycles are manufactured by the Motorcycle & Engine division of Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

The Kawasaki Company was founded in 1896 by Shozo Kawasaki as a shipyard meant for building oceangoing steel ships. At the beginning they constructed marine steam turbines, locomotives, freight cars, passenger carriages and bridge girders. In 1918 the Aircraft Department is established and after prolonged research Kawasaki succeeds in building Japan's first metal aircraft. Then came 1949 and they turned towards the motorcycles industry by making engines suited for motorcycles.

Kawasaki Aircraft initially manufactured motorcycles under the Meguro name, having bought out an ailing motorcycle manufacturer called Meguro Manufacturing Co. Ltd with whom they had been in partnership earlier, but later formed Kawasaki Motor Sales. Some early motorcycles display an emblem with "Kawasaki Aircraft" on the fuel tank. Kawasaki motorcycles from 1962 through 1967 used an emblem which can be described as a flag within a wing.

Kawasaki came out with their first bike in 1954, called Meihatsu. This bike had Kawasaki's own KB-5 engine. An improved model of the Meihatsu, called Meihatsu 125 Deluxe, was introduced in 1956.

Kawasaki was producing bikes for a while without much popularity, but technically progressing. Kawasaki started to be noticed as a big player on the motorcycles market due to the release of the 500cc H1 model (also known as Mach III). In 1973 Kawasaki introduced their first superbike, the Z1 which had a 903cc engine.

One of the most notable bikes in Kawasaki history, the GPZ900R came in 1983. This was the first model ever produced by Kawasaki to have a liquid-cooled engine and to reach 250 km/h. A year later they started to sell this bike in the US and they renamed it Ninja, thing which proved to be very benefactor, registering huge sales.

Their first ever motorsports victories were obtained by Dave Simmons in the FIM World Road Racing 125cc Championship. He won the West German and the Isle of Mann TT races and the series championship riding a KR-1. Then came 1981 and Kawasaki won the manufacturer's title in the FIM World Road Racing 250cc Championship, courtesy of A. Mang who was riding the KR250. Kawasaki's most notable win in their motorsports history was the Le mans 24-Hour Race back in 1983. The model which participated in that race was the ZXR-7.

Moto blog

AMA Supercross: 2012 Phoenix Results

Ryan Dungey gave KTM its first ever AMA Supercross win, taking the holeshot and leading every lap in Phoenix, Ariz. With an audience of 49,236 watching at Chase Field, it was the field that had to chase Dungey during the main event. Dungey jumped out in front at the first corner followed by JGRMX Yamaha‘s Davi Millsaps and defending AMA Supercross Champion Ryan Villopoto of Kawasaki.

Motorcycle Drifting, Part 2.

Today’s Friday Fun Video comes courtesy of the marketing department at Icon Motorsports. Following the success of their first motorcycle drift video, featuring Nick Brocha on a stretched Kawasaki ZX-10R scorching rubber with Jim Guthrie on a Corvette-powered Mazda RX7, the guys set out to one-up themselves. With this video, I think it’s safe to say “Mission Accomplished.” This time around, Brocha is joined by Ernie Vigil and they’re riding modified Triumph Speed Triples.

Preliminary 2012 MotoGP Entry List Released

The International Motorcycling Federation (FIM) has released a preliminary entry list for the 2012 MotoGP World Championship. The provisional list includes 21 riders in the premiere class, including nine classified as Claiming Rule Team entries. Defending MotoGP Champion Casey Stoner will wear the #1 plate for the 2012 season, the first with both CRT entries and the new 1000cc engine displacement cap.

2012 Kawasaki Versys 1000 Makes North American Debut in Canada

As we’ve previously reported, the new Kawasaki Versys 1000 will not be imported to the U.S, but it will be available in North America in Canada as a 2012 model. Kawasaki Canada presented the Versys 1000 at its display at this past weekend’s North American International Motorcycle Supershow in Toronto, for the new “adventure sport” model’s debut on this side of the Atlantic. While he can’t speak for Kawasaki USA’s decision making, Bob Calwell, district manager for Kawasaki Canada, he does note that the Canadian company does have a history of making different product selections.

AMA Supercross: 2012 Anaheim I Results

Ryan Villopoto picked up where he left off while Ryan Dungey gave KTM its first ever AMA Supercross podium as the season kicked off in Anaheim, Calif. Reigning champion and Monster Energy Kawasaki rider Villopoto took the holeshot and led all 20 laps to win the Anaheim I season opener by over 12 seconds ahead of Chad Reed‘s TwoTwo Motorsports Honda. “Villopoto made us look silly out here tonight,” says Reed.

Lehman Trikes Founder Passes at 60

Lehman Trikes announced the passing of its founder and director, John K. Lehman, from heart failure brought on by an embolism. The 2009 Sturgis Hall of Fame member died Jan.

Supercross Preview With Factory Kawasaki Riders Ryan Villopoto & Jake Weimer

In anticipation of this Saturday’s Supercross opener in Anaheim, California, Kawasaki invited a select crowd of enthusiasts and journalists to join their employees at the corporate offices in Irvine, California, for the annual Team Monster Energy Kawasaki pep rally. We sat down with defending SX champ, Ryan Villopoto, and his teammate, Jake Weimer, to get their perspectives on the upcoming season. Both men entered last season at less than 100%.

BSB 2012; Mystic Mac investigates

In my opinion, the smartest move in the BSB off season has to be Michael Laverty moving from Swan Yamaha to HM Plant Honda. With a ban on electronics for 2012, and in particular traction control, WFR's Graham Gowland has already proved to Laverty how competitive an EVO spec Fireblade can be - so I’m tipping both these riders to be bang on the money at the Brands Hatch season opener in April. Unlike BMW, Kawasaki and Yamaha, Honda have deliberately developed their road-going Superbike without electronics to give a user friendly feel with good mechanical traction, so it’ll be interesting to see how the opposition copes with their high-tech trickery stripped off.

Randy de Puniet's custom W650

MotoGP star Randy de Puniet commissioned Deus customs to build him a motorcycle for the streets of Sydney. Randy's brief was for a middleweight, 2-up twin that would be light enough to slice through the city streets and have the power for blasts on the open road, and have orange, black and white for the paint. Deus chose the Kawasaki W650, lowered it at both ends, fitted an SR500 tank, lobbed the old air box and added K&N filters, stuck on a custom 2-into-2 exhaust system and added low-profile fenders to finish off the clean and simple look.

Stuck for a gift? Solution No3: Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki or Kawasaki merchandise

After the excesses of KTM and Harley's gifts ranges, Hondas seems tame. But even the sober Japanese firm has a handful of oddities in its line-up. The Japanese have been accused of imitating in the past, and Honda's incorporation of a baby's dummy in its official accessories catalogue mimics KTM's 'Silencer-System Mini Pro'.