I traveled 3000 miles on my ZX-11!
Written: Jul 26 '02 (Updated Jul 30 '02)
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Pros: FAST, attractive, respected bike, smooth ride
Cons: very heavy, tall, seat not comfortable on long trips
The Bottom Line: It's built for SPEED, not touring (I don't care what the brochures say). Keep that in mind when you buy, and you'll be happy.
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| bkiser's Full Review: 2000 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-11 |
I owned a '94 ZX-11 from 1995 to 2000, and having one of these is a one of a kind experience. I've grown up riding motorcycles, starting with a little 50cc Honda when I was 4 or 5 years old. I remember I would ride from my mom to my dad, and dad would catch me before I could fall. I had all sorts of wonderful memories on motorcycles... probably because dad grew up on them as well, and I guess they're in my system. Dad didn't know what to say when I bought my first sportbike... and it was the fastest production bike on earth!
The ZX-11 is about 600 pounds of raw muscle. If I recall, it had a 6 gallon tank, and I got about 32 miles a gallon. That's not too great for a motorcycle, but you have to put it in perspective: you're not going to get great gas mileage from a Ferrari, either. Black or a dark red are standard colors for a ZX. I installed a K&N air filter and changed my front sprocket to get a few extra horsepower, and after that I think I got a little worse mileage. I got a real deal on the bike, too--I paid $8400 at a local shop in '94, after the bike had been around for almost a year.
The power of this machine is amazing. It'll shoot up to around 90 miles per hour in first gear. It redlines around 12500 rpms. You can easily do wheelies without touching your clutch--just goose the throttle a little and it'll raise right up. I've raced mine many times, and mph in the 120-130 range is commonplace. I once had the thing up to 152 when racing a Honda F3 in South Carolina. After the race, the guy pulled me over and said it was doing 145 mph when I passed him, and wanted to know how fast I was going. I told him I had sunglasses pressing into my left eye, which was watery, but I could see the needle ease past 150. Back when I was younger and dumber, that didn't seem so scary. In short, it used to be the #1 fastest bike, and even today it's one of the top dogs. This is still a respected bike in the sportbike arena because of its awesome power. It was also a reliable bike--it didn't give me any problems, except for the ones I caused (see near the end of my review).
I loved this bike, but I wouldn't buy it again without a seriously good reason. It's definitely for the speed enthusiast, and it had a few problems. Kawasaki called it a "sport-tourer". Well, I rode the thing from Kentucky to Key West, and I thought my entire bottom area was going to separate from my body. The trip down took 2.5 days, and the trip back took 2 days, and I rode like a maniac. I stayed between 75-125 miles per hour the entire trip. The bike ran like a top, but the right side of the bike had some sort of heat exhaust coming out onto my ankle. I tried wearing shorts during the Florida portion of the trip, and it kept burning my right leg. When I finally couldn't take it anymore I pulled over and took a look--it had blistered my leg! To this day, hair hardly grows there. I have no idea if that heat exhaust placement is normal, but mine sure caused some problems. Also, although the bike is reasonably comfortable, it's definitely not comfortable enough for touring. This long trip made me incredibly uncomfortable. If you plan on traveling, this is probably not the bike for you. If you insist on this bike, I'd recommend trying a high quality aftermarket seat--maybe a Corbin. The standard seat won't cut it for rides that last for years. You'll be crying for a nice soft hotel bed before too long...
At high speeds, the bike rides very smoothly. On the same trip, I remember riding through Georgia's four lanes... I was doing about 120 and was almost in a trancelike state because I'd been riding for hours with no break on a monotonous freeway. I hit a bump as I hit the start of a bridge, and the bike jolted an inch or two into the air. Scared the heck out of me. It wasn't the bike's fault, however.
The weight of the bike is a big negative. I'm sad to say that I dropped mine twice, both times when it was almost new. I set the side kickstand when I got off, but sometimes it's hard to tell if the kickstand is all the way down, and a few seconds after I got off of it--bamm--it fell! I once popped a wheelie but had to stop suddenly because a car ran out in front of me (I sound like a maniac, don't I?), and that sudden stop made me drop it. It was halfway on top of me, and it was really hard to lift off (and I'm a big, bulky guy). This is an extremely heavy bike. Because of this weight, it also won't hang with your friends on 600cc sportbikes in the twisties. My friends and I would ride fast through the mountain trails in eastern Kentucky, and one time, as usual, I was last when I almost ran into the police (and I mean this literally). I shot around a curve with a female passenger a little too fast, and skidded to a stop in front of the nice police officer. Luckily, I shot away without getting caught, like the young, immature punk that I was (keep in mind these stories are almost 10 years old). The problem is that the weight of the bike limits maneuverability. Combine that with the weight of a passenger, and you'll be going pretty slow around that twisty roads. The bike is just too heavy.
Also, the bike is a bit tall. I'm 6'2" tall, and getting on the bike, I had to lift my leg very high, and getting off the bike, I had to almost tiptoe to get off. Once your weight goes on the seat, you're okay, but getting on and off is awkward because it's so tall. This might be adjustable (I'm not sure), but if you adjust the suspension, make sure you don't stiffen it up so that your ride is uncomfortable. I think the newer models have some sort of easily adjustable suspension, but not my '94 model.
It's a very attractive sportbike, too. The big chrome pipes look great, although they're heavy and hurt performance. They are also a burn hazard because they get scalding hot. Several young ladies have scars on their legs thanks to this bike. Come to think of it, I think I have one myself! A friend of mine used to joke about the black "bat wings" (where the rear signal lights are) on the back of the bike. The appearance didn't bother me, though. I removed the back fender because all the plastic around the license plate isn't real attractive, and hides the big rear wheel. Remove that plastic and, in my opinion, the bike looked a lot better.
I never encountered mechanical problems--my chain never even needed replacing in the 8 years I owned the bike. Near the end, by keeping the bike outside in the weather, I had a lot of problems, but of course, they were to be expected. You can't abuse a bike by leaving it outside 24 hours a day for years. The tank rusted out and had to be replaced. After that, and several gas treatments, the bike ran like a top again. I think I felt some loss of power, but after all this time, years, and use, I couldn't complain.
Overall, it's a great bike if you just... want... MONSTER SPEED and good looks. If you are looking for something to cruise around with your friends, maybe travel, then you'd be better suited with a cruiser (maybe a Suzuki Intruder 1500--not the 800!) or a touring bike. Of course, if I could get a nice ZX-11 at an unreal cheap price, even I wouldn't turn it down. Enjoy your bike!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 8400
Condition: New
Model Year: 1994
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Epinions.com ID:
bkiser
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Reviews written: 33
Trusted by: 18 members
About Me:
I'm a Systems Consultant for the Kentucky Commonwealth Office of Technology.
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