Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Not two, but three . Z800 crashed the day before the event, ZX10r crashed into Ninja 1000, ZX10r heavily damaged.. The rider was hospitalized, but there were no fractures and only superficial wounds.

About the theft, Ninja 1000 guy made a run for it after the incident and didn't return till the end; don't know whether a police complaint was made or not...

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Had been to triumph showroom this afternoon for test riding ST. Firstly there is no price hike at the moment. ST is still 8.92L on-road bangalore. Dealership is expecting a 3 to 4% hike whenever triumph announces (Probably in a week or two).

I rode a black Street Triple which had a fly screen, belly pan and quick shifter installed. Took it near cubbon road via richmond. Encountered peak traffic and some open stretch.

Following are my observations of Street Triple:

+Ve
1] Bike is easy to ride in city traffic because of light weight but we have to rev a bit in first gear for take off else engine shuts down/stalls. I did not stall it even once but sales exec did it 4 times
2] Exhaust note is pure music to ears but the test bike had akra exhaust. Not sure how good stock bike sounds.
3] Power delivery is predictable and throttle response is crisp.
4] Bike is very fast and road grip is good. I was able to touch 100 KMPH on cubbon road and felt bike to be planted.
5] On board computer was displaying a real time fuel efficiency above 24KMPL when ridden with light wrist and between 15 to 18 when ripping.
6] 1 Year/10K KM service interval. This keeps down over all cost of maintenance.

-Ve
1] I felt i was riding a pulsar or CBR250 as size of bike is not big (like Z800). This could be positive for some but is negative for me. When it is big bike, it should look big IMO.
2] Between 1500 to 2000 RPM there was jerk on decelerating. Showroom executive agreed to it and said it could be because of quick shifter.
3] Since we have to rev it more in first gear, riding in congested traffic will be a bit painful.

My observations after test riding Z800:

+ve
1] Looks, looks and looks. Z800 looks huge and has that big bike look and feel.
2] Inline 4 motor is very very sweet. Exhaust note is better than ST IMO.
3] Acceleration is quick and throttle response is crisp.
4] Road grip is fantastic and extra weight helps in going fast over bad patches of road.
5] Gear box is smooth and shifts are light and precise.
6] Easy to ride in city even though its heavy. Also power delivery is predictable.
7] Its got slipper clutch and ride by wire throttle as well.

-Ve
1] Weight. It is heavier than most of litre class bikes. It weighs 231KG. Though this helps on highways, riding in city will require more effort.
2] Clutch is on heavier side.
3] No gear indicator.

But some how i did not feel connected with Street triple (dil ka connection). ST is a great bike and i know it is worlds best middle weight bike but i felt connected with Z800. Though Z800 is heavy by 45KG & Rs 70K over ST, i felt i will be happy riding a Z800 over ST any day. My wife too liked Z800 more than ST. I am planning to take another ride of Z800 next week and then finalize. I did not discuss about finance option as i will be paying full amount in cash/BT.

Please note that the above observations are purely mine based on test riding both bikes on congested city roads as well as open roads.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Triple stock doesn't sound as soothing as Z with stock exhaust. Triple test ride bike has Arrow exhaust. Also the waiting period is about 45-60days so price hike will be certain by the time of delivery. Also Triple doesn't have slipper clutch.

The heart indeed connects with Z800

Happy motoring.

Sent from a stupid smart phone !

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Oh yes. Keerthi will be getting 4 street triples next month and 3 in October. They promised me to deliver it in the month of october. I guess on-road of ST will be 9.2 to 9.3 by the time they deliver. Another 30K will get us Z800 which makes Z800 even more VFM. I agree that heart connects with Z800. Looking forward to owning one in coming days if all is well.

BTW do you know service interval for Z800?

Edit: Kawasaki Bangalore has 4 Z800 in stock and these are made in Japan and not Thailand as claimed by sales exec.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

OMG, It means it was the last this kind of test ride event

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Being a proud owner of the Z800 i can surely claim that the bike is really a charm to ride in any condition weather its bumper to bumper traffic or the straight roads and even the twisties. The bike on paper is heavy but it connects to the rider really well and you does not feel the weight on the go, tyres are super sticky brakes do their duty all the time and short gearing coupled with the low end torque provides insane acceleration, slipper clutch is a boon in traffic. With the looks to kill and super silky inline4 makes it even more VFM.

Service interval is 6000km/year.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Thanks. I completely agree to your point. Could you please tell us service costs and also realistic mileage figures? Any accessories you bought?

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Service cost for the 1st service is around Rs6500 that i have heard, going to get my 1st service done this week so will update the actual cost. No accessories as of now but will get the crash guards(sliders) soon. As far as mileage is concerned i have not calculated it as off now but the digital meter shows around 17kmpl, i just fill it up whenever its around half tank mark because have to get it filled from Delhi as i don't know any fuel bunk in Gurgaon which stocks 93 or 97 Octane fuel.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

I was told that regular fuel from good pump will do the job. That's the reason for reducing service interval kms to 6k.

Sent from a stupid smart phone !

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

I am yet to test ride a Z800 but I have already TD'd the Street Triple. And even then, I would book a Z800 if I had to.

Make no mistake, the Striple is a very good, practical bike. But I found it somehow missing in character. Looks small and has very little road presence. I cant personally get past those twin bug eyed HL on Striple. But Speed Triple is another matter altogether, now THAT is a bike with a character.
Also, I found the Striple lacking in refinement (relatively of course to an inline-4). Somehow, didnt feel like a bike putting down a wad of cash for.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Look using the high octane fuel is all related to the compression ratio and nothing else, the compression ratio of Z800 is 11.9:1 hence the high octane fuel is required for the optimum engine performance and i dont want to loose any available horses so i fill up with high octane fuel.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

I second your opinion. I felt Z800 is a bike worth 9.6L here in Bangalore and its very VFM at 8.77L in Pune.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Sorry to burst your bubble guys, but this high octane thing is not only dependent on the compression ratio. For eg: The Z800 has 11.9:1, the R1 12.7:1 and both have 95RON or higher recommended. But the Street has 12.86:1 and only 91RON recommended. This is as recommended by the company, nothing I have postulated or derived. So, guys please stick to whatever is given in the manual, just my 2 cents of advice

Also, I did try out one tank full of 97 Speed on my Striple and found no difference in performance whatsoever. But my friend who has an R1 said he finds the engine very sluggish and lacks performance whenever he runs it on lower grade petrol. So bottom line is stick to whatever is given in the manual, don't be suckered by the marketing guys. They'll say it's okay, because the effects of this will be only long term, and so they can wash off their hands after the sale.

P.S One of my friends interested in buying the ZX10R wrote to the Kawasaki officials, demanding official confirmation that the bike can be run on 91RON, and to that Kawasaki officials are yet to reply

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800


I picked ST3 over z800 because:

Z800 have a steel frame which results in almost 50kg heavier bike.
Saddle height is lower on ST3 (I am only 5'6")
Triple have stand out character in my opinion.

Z800 is by far a better looking bike. No contest in that department.
That wasn't my propriety.

Also I need not pay for service guys stay and transportation with a triumph. They have dealership in most cities.

No test/review by a reputed magazine or website puts the z ahead of the triple for real reasons.

100 per cent happy with the triple here.

For the speed, I am not sure if we need more motor on a roadster. Still speed got character in spades.
Fz/MT 9 is the thing that should come to India. That is such an awesome motorcycle for the price. Of course not for IL4 lovers.

Re: Test drive Kawasaki Z800

Absolutely aggre with you, thats the reason why i am sticking to the high octane fuel because its recommended and available near my location so not taking any chances with it.