Kawasaki Ninja 1000 Review - 2011 First Ride

While the Ninja 1000 is a new model this year, as a co-developed sibling to the Z1000, it feels more than just a little bit familiar. According to Kawasaki, the Ninja was conceived and born alongside the revised Z, which was released last year. The decision to stagger their model years was made in part to meet a perceived greater demand for the allegedly “naked” Zed, particularly in Europe. Also, because sorting the details involved in bringing a new bike to market takes from limited resources, Kawasaki says the Ninja got bumped to 2011.Speaking of the Ninja 1000 as a variation on the same motorcycle theme, we could nearly summarize...

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Yamaha FZ8 coming to the U.S.-2011, Will 800 become the new 750?

Yamaha announced today that it will be importing its sporty FZ8 naked sportster to the U.S. for 2011.  The fuel-injected, 779cc, alloy perimeter-framed four-cylinder has been on sale in Europe since last year, and it’s being touted as a compromise between the less-powerful 600cc middleweights and the bigger literbikes like Yamaha’s R1-based FZ1 and Kawasaki’s Z1000. The FZ8 actually has much in common with the FZ1. Its engine – six-point mounted as a stressed, chassis-reinforcing member – shares the same 53.6mm stroke, but its bore size is 9mm smaller, at 68mm, instead of 77mm as found on the FZ1. The FZ8’s 464-lb curb weight comes...

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Kawasaki ZX-10R Review Traction control 2011, power modes and ABS on an all-new, more powerful Ninja

Although seven years have elapsed since Kawasaki introduced its first modern superbike of liter-size displacement, it seems like only a couple of years that the ZX-10R first hit racetracks and streets. Even harder to fathom – especially in light of the rapid progression of product development in the literbike wars – is the fact that the all-new 2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R is the first ground-up redesign of the master assassin since the ZX’s introduction in 2004.This iteration of the Zed-X received such an overhaul this go ’round, during the 2011 model’s recent press introduction at the hilly Road Atlanta race circuit in Braselton, Ga., Kawasaki’s...

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Ducati Diavel Review (Almost) - 2011

All right, let’s come clean and admit this isn’t really a review of Ducati’s segment-busting new bike, the power-cruiser-esque Diavel. But from info recently gathered – including comments from Ducati’s CEO, plus the timeless seat-bounce test – we now have a clearer idea of the qualities of this controversial new Italian steed. Factory MotoGP rider Nicky Hayden Hayden rode the Diavel onto the LA Auto Show’s stage two days ago, culminating with a tire-smoking burnout. Ducati was there to share the spotlight with the AMG division of Mercedes-Benz, together announcing a new partnership that sees the high-performance AMG sub-brand sponsoring...

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