[n_aditya]

Thanks for inviting me for the ride, Sharath. It was great riding with you all.

I hadn't noticed that the tail lamps on the Z have a unique way of lighting up and illuminating the LED's in the Z lettering. Looks cool and that's what I'm clicking a picture of in one of the snaps above.

Ride safe guys.

[ebonho]

Nice photos djay, aditya. Don't know if its the camera angle but the N250 actually looks bigger than the N650 side on.

Oh and one of you (if not both) could please tell Venkat from Doc's side that prosperity looks good on him.

[Fullrevs]

Nice photos Djay. Was to have joined you by now but a few personal problems have come in the way of buying the bike. Hope things get better soon!

If you guys dont mind a janata DS500 joining you all, would be happy to make it next time.

[djay99]

Originally Posted by Fullrevs

Nice photos Djay. Was to have joined you by now but a few personal problems have come in the way of buying the bike. Hope things get better soon!

If you guys dont mind a janata DS500 joining you all, would be happy to make it next time.

Thanks Sumit. Was thinking of asking you about your booking.
You can join us for next ride

[djay99]

Have clocked 1500KM on odo. Another 100+ KM and i can start redlining . Yesterday rode for ~ 150KM. Started at 7AM and rode to Bidadi till TKM plant.
Engine is super smooth and gear shifts have become smooth. I felt little harshness at 6K RPM which disappear post 6200RPM. Was riding hard on mysore road and overtaking cars was soooo easy. As usual few car owners were trying to race expecting that they may win but i never cared. Instant mileage indicator was hovering around 18 to 22KMPL and eco mode indicator was on even at 40KMPH in 1st gear
No pain in wrist & butt. Took a break of 10 min near auto plant and started my return journey.

At around 4PM, went to Begur and later to lets gear up store. Ride from begur to hsr layout was very boring since road is narrow with potholes and lot of two wheeler traffic. Had couple of scary moments when bommanahalli village boys were coming very close to me in tight traffic & trying to have look at my bike.
I have got used to weight of the bike and not feeling any discomfort when riding in city traffic. Just the clutch is on a heavier side and after riding in b2b traffic, i get some pain in wrist.

Initial brake bite has improved a lot and i have set brake lever at #5. I had to brake very hard at 80kmph on bannerghatta road and i guess ABS kicked in as i felt disc was locked for a moment. This ABS is more important in a bike than a car IMO. Good that kawasaki launched ABS spec bike.
Planning to get few bits painted like Z1000 green in coming days. How will this bike look if alloy wheels are painted green?

[djay99]

Current Odo: 1700KM

Went on a breakfast ride to Kolar Adigas on sunday with sharath (Street triple), roshan (N300) and hiran (CBR250). Rode for ~200KM. While returning, finished run-in. Exhaust was very loud post 8K RPM.

Yesterday filled 97 Octance fuel and i could see engine response to be smooth and more crisp. Planning to use 97 RON fuel whenever possible with occasional 91RON fuel.
Speed 97 costs Rs 88 per litre now. Last time it costed me over Rs 95.

Note from Support - Please avoid mention of high speeds which are over the prescribed legal limit, unless it was achieved on a closed road such as a race track.

[djay99]

Went on 140KM ride today morning towards krishnagiri mcdonalds. As its a sunday, traffic was less.
As roads were mostly empty, got opportunity to redline couple of times. There's hell lot of rush post 8K RPM and acceleration is fierce. Was holding on to 12K RPM for few seconds in 2 and 3 gear.
Engine is super smooth and exhaust is super loud post 8K rpm.

I was practicing hard braking on empty stretches and managed to test ABS. Locked rear brake couple of times and felt vibes in rear brake lever indicating ABS is working.

Also installed kawasaki engine guards yesterday (got them from thai). They improve looks of the bike and they seem to be built well.

Got AGV Sport solare riding pant from prs mumbai. Good one imo.

A few pics from today's ride:

[Fullrevs]

Why does the temperature gauge show 99 degrees Celcius Djay? Needs a reset or something?

[djay99]

Originally Posted by Fullrevs

Why does the temperature gauge show 99 degrees Celcius Djay? Needs a reset or something?

I took that pic when i reached home after my ride and hence temp was high. No reset required.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by djay99

I took that pic when i reached home after my ride and hence temp was high. No reset required.

I am hooked to your thread Djay. The black baby zed is completely grown on me looks wise. Love the engine guards. Metal?

Are the pants textile, mesh or leather? How is the armor? Is it waterproof? Cost? A couple of my friends did not have a good experience with mesh AGV riding pants (from the same store), hence asking.

[Fullrevs]

Agree with ebonho. I am also totally glued to this thread along with another Z800 thread by another BHPian. I was to have owned one by now but certain personal problems have come in the way and plans are deferred to late jan-early feb. Thats when I hope to join these guys on their sunday breakfast rides.

We would love to see a video of your bike in action Djay. If possible?! Exhaust notes etc would also be great to see.

[djay99]

Originally Posted by ebonho

I am hooked to your thread Djay. The black baby zed is completely grown on me looks wise. Love the engine guards. Metal?

Are the pants textile, mesh or leather? How is the armor? Is it waterproof? Cost? A couple of my friends did not have a good experience with mesh AGV riding pants (from the same store), hence asking.

Thanks doc. Looks like you seem to be liking Zed though its not as flickable as ktm's
Engine guards are of very high quality metal. Fit and finish is top notch and i feel they add to the looks of an already good looking bike.

These pants are textile cum mesh. I had received an old stock which i did not like. Asked PRS for replacement and they delivered a new stock. This pant is significantly different when compared to old one. Total cost 6400 incl shipping.
It has CE approved knee pad, memory foam padding in hips & lower back. Its not waterproof & no thermal liner. Its very comfortable as i had no issues during my 140KM ride.

Originally Posted by Fullrevs

Agree with ebonho. I am also totally glued to this thread along with another Z800 thread by another BHPian. I was to have owned one by now but certain personal problems have come in the way and plans are deferred to late jan-early feb. Thats when I hope to join these guys on their sunday breakfast rides.

We would love to see a video of your bike in action Djay. If possible?! Exhaust notes etc would also be great to see.

No worries mate. Jan is another couple of months away

I am planning to buy a gopro camera but its working out to be expensive at 300$+. Any cheap options?

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by djay99

Thanks doc. Looks like you seem to be liking Zed though its not as flickable as ktm's

Very little on our roads is as mentally flickable as the Dukes are. The ZX14R rider (good rider) and the CB1000 rider I was riding along with at the head of our pack on the way to and back from the chai pakora IBW ride yesterday (there was a Bonnie guy with free flows too some stretches on the to leg) commented that I was throwing it around the corners like a toy. Its a very fun and potent toy all the same. More on the ride in the Duke 390 thread .....

I sat on the ZX - that bike is insane - but heavy at 250 kilos. Then an Intruder comes along and the ZX looks like a svelte beauty!

I got my first opportunity at the destination to check out a couple of baby zeds up close. What immediately struck me is two things -

(1) How beautifully nimble and COMPACT the zed is built like. Its really compact. Something I appreciate a lot in a bike.

(2) How Kawasaki loves giving its nakeds these big ass humongous bulbous tanks. While their faired Ninjas are so much sleeker (and more proportionate). I really do not appreciate these sort of mountainous tanks. Though in the Zeds favor, unlike with the N650, the tank is beautifully cut and sculpted. Still, for me personally, its too big. Maybe it feels nice to grip on the move, don't know. The N650 tank between my legs makes the bike feel too top heavy, like a big pendulum, when you try to throw it into corners aggressively. Makes you lose touch with the road somewhat.

P.S. Loads of N650 guys thinking of shifting to the zed. Spoke to many of them. While many like the 800, lot of them are looking at the 1000. They say the 1000 is totally different than the 800 when it comes to the feel and handling. Which was surprising for me personally, because I always thought the two bikes are different only in terms of the engine? Any thoughts on this?

[djay99]

Originally Posted by ebonho

P.S. Loads of N650 guys thinking of shifting to the zed. Spoke to many of them. While many like the 800, lot of them are looking at the 1000. They say the 1000 is totally different than the 800 when it comes to the feel and handling. Which was surprising for me personally, because I always thought the two bikes are different only in terms of the engine? Any thoughts on this?

I would buy Z1000 mainly for its looks. It looks gorgeous and i can spend all day just looking at her. I had initially though of buying Z1000 at 15L in Bangalore but following points made Z800 a better choice.
1] Z800 is cheaper by over 5 lacs.
2] Ride quality of Z1000 is harsh. Z800 has supple ride quality and suits our road conditions.
3] Power delivery of Z1000 was bit scary for me in city rides.
4] I felt Z800 is more flickable than Z1000 & i can enjoy more on z800 since power delivery is more predictable than Z1000.

Z1000 is more premium than 800. It has an aluminum frame, twin exhausts, fully adjustable suspension apart from killer looks. But i wish it had traction control and power modes.

If i want more power (though i think i never need), i can buy PC5 and tune z800. I guess i can extract 140PS from this machine.

I still feel speed triple is a better choice (litre class) since its on-road price is equal to ex-showroom in Bangalore.

But keep all this stuff on one side, I might still buy Z1000 for its looks

EDIT: Did you ride Z800? How is it?

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by djay99

EDIT: Did you ride Z800? How is it?

No I have not ridden one bro. As a personal rule I never ask anyone for a ride on his bike (and I very rarely give others a ride on mine). Kawasaki does not give test rides either. And if at all I were to ride a friend's Z800, I would definitely not ride one when they were so new. Usually post 10,000 kms, it becomes easier to accept a small test ride - but only if offered.

One thing I dont understand is why none of the Jap manufacturers (not just Kawasaki) are willing to give us a proper supersport 600 ? If its the rule about 600 cc then how are the Ninja 650/ER6N and Daytona 675 etc. selling here? The current generation of supersports (unlike the early 2000's ones at 599 cc) are all 600 cc+ (636, etc.) So it cannot be that rule.