![]() Little LED running-light sideburns flank the main headlamp for a splash of style. ![]() As a cherry on top, there’s refreshed styling - little bits around the LED headlight, more compact shrouds, and an updated fuel-tank cover. The full-color screen also offers Bluetooth connectivity to Team Green’s Rideology app, not to mention changeable night/day backgrounds. This is standard-issue hardware for Kawasaki in 2020, being applied to the Z H2 and Ninja 1000SX, as well. Plus, all of it is controlled via a new, 4.3-inch TFT display in the cockpit. It’s more than just ABS now, with switchable traction control, individual power-mode selection, and four ride modes to choose from. Photo by Spenser Robert.Įlectronic features really differentiate the 2020 model from the previous version. Kawasaki’s customer research found 50 percent of Z900 owners use the bike for commuting. This is what the reach to the ground looks like for a six-foot, two-inch rider. Mechanically, it remains a fairly basic inline-four-cylinder powerplant, bolted to a trellis-style frame with a flat handlebar and not a lot of frills. Kawasaki updated the tubes of the frame around the swingarm pivot to be stronger, and the rear shock spring is now stiffer. Most of the chassis architecture of the bike is the same, as well. The 948 cc engine is largely unchanged, except for a tweak to the intake funnels in the airbox to help keep up with emissions requirements. Arguably an ideal blend or compromise, and for 2020 much of that is the same. The first-generation of Z900 was already lighter than both bikes, only a shade more expensive than the Z800, and pumped out a claimed 125 horsepower. Alternatively, you can have it in Candy Plasma Blue for an extra $300 (see gallery). The 2020 Z900 in black, gray, and green suits it. Then again, at $12,000, it was nearly $4,000 more than a Z800. ![]() On paper, the Z1000 was much better - it was lighter (amazingly) and packed more power. The ultra-sugomi Z1000 boasted 142 ponies, flexed a 32.1-inch seat height, and tipped the scales at around 490 pounds all fueled up. The Z800 claimed 113 horsepower, had a 32.5-inch seat height, and weighed more than 500 pounds with a full tank. From a specification standpoint, let’s remember the Z900’s former siblings for what they were. However, it’s not for sale in the United States anymore. The Z900 has been updated for 2020, and now that we’re a few years out from it stepping into the spotlight, it seems like a good time to take a ride and reflect on whether it really is the best of both worlds.īefore we get going here, I should recognize that the Z1000 is still available in Europe. When Kawasaki introduced the Z900 in 2017, the plan was to replace the Z800 and Z1000 models with a machine that would deliver the best aspects of both in performance and useability.
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