Kawasaki ZX-6R
Best Lap: 1:21:57
Excepting Ducati's 1198, there's not a racier bike in this bunch than Kawasaki's ZX-6R--and even that's a close call. Kawi's little ripper fits like a racer: slim through the middle with a sculpted tank that's easy to anchor knee to. It handles like a racer, too, planted root-down at full lean and tracking like it's on rails, even at crazy speeds. And the rev-hungry inline-four delivers a glorious high-rpm power rush that has you grinning in your helmet at every corner exit.
This all-new bike takes its inspiration from the ZX-10R, and exhibits the same unity of purpose: It was designed bottom-up for fast laps. The frameset is more rigid front and rear, and is hung with the biggest suspension innovation of '09: Showa's Big Piston Fork (BPF). The best front end this side of a gas-charged Ohlins (which alone costs more than the ZX-6R), the BPF works even better here than on the similarly equipped, 40-pound-heavier GSX-R1000. The biggest benefit comes during aggressive trail-braking. Even loaded up, the BPF maintains excellent compliance and delivers a stream of telepathic feedback.
Corner entries are the little Ninja's strong suit. The rock-solid fork, coupled with strong, easy-to-modulate Nissin radial-mount brakes and a seamless slipper clutch, let you rush an apex as deep as you dare. Unfortunately, the stellar front end is paired to a less-capable Showa shock that faded badly during street testing, causing a harsh ride and eroding stability in long, fast sweepers.
Later trackside tweaks (shimming the shock to increase ride height and adding rebound) improved the situation somewhat, but the rear end still chattered at deep lean angles, particularly on the bumpy skid pad.
Horsepower is an impressive 8-up jump compared to last year (now 108.7 bhp at the wheel), thanks to improved cylinder porting, reshaped cams, reduced mechanical losses and new, ZX-10R-type double-bore velocity stacks. You certainly feel those extra ponies, especially as the revs climb. This ZX-6R pulls so hard off corners that we had to check the tailsection decal to be sure Kawi hadn't slipped us another 636cc cheater. Character-wise, this hyper-motor is everything the hushed Honda isn't, with a manic, revvy personality that definitely enhances the on-track experience. For all the Kawi's extra power and improved front-end feedback, however, three of our five testers still lapped quicker on the Honda--even if the livelier Ninja felt seconds faster from the saddle.
And unlike the CBR, the ZX-6R's transcendent track manners don't necessarily translate to a sublime street ride. Power output is less impressive when the engine isn't screaming like a bumblebee on meth, and when you're not target-fixated on the next apex you notice little things like how close together the bars are, and the slight flat spot at cracked-open throttle. It's an imminently more rideable Ninja than the anemic '08 bike, however, and even if it couldn't quite match the Honda lap for lap, it's certainly a viable choice--and one that, with the right tweaks, might offer even more sporting potential.
Luckily, Ari's got a ZX-6R long-termer to help us figure that out...
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