I spent about a month researching motorcycles, to determine what bike would be best for me. I've been riding bikes for over 30 years, and thought I already knew what I wanted. I was looking for either the Honda ST1300 or the Kawasaki Concours. But, halfway through my research, I added the ZRX1200R...
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I spent about a month researching motorcycles, to determine what bike would be best for me. I've been riding bikes for over 30 years, and thought I already knew what I wanted. I was looking for either the Honda ST1300 or the Kawasaki Concours. But, halfway through my research, I added the ZRX1200R to my list. This research found all sorts of comments, reviews and maintenance issues. But, the one thing I couldn't find, was anybody saying anything about problems they were having with their ZRX1200R.
Sure, it has no clock, but was that enough to keep me from buying it? Not even close. After all, I do own a watch. The only other negative thing I found during my hours and hours of researching, was from one small rider, about 150 lbs. He complained that the bike was a bit top-heavy. I weigh 220 lbs., so I discounted that comment. Riding it proved that decision was wise. It's balance is perfectly fine. The other owners talked about the fantastic low- and mid-range torque, the great handing, the smoothness, and the comfort. Even that little fairing actually helps the wind buffeting!
I am SO glad I bought this bike! It's everything I wanted in a motorcycle: upright seating position, pure power, great handling, easy maintenance, and old-fashioned (but still modern) looks. The price was near half of the ST1300 I was looking at. The Concour may be nice, but it can't accelerate near as fast, handle near as good, and the engine is tucked away - somewhere. I like naked standards, and am very disappointed to know that they are nearly disappearing from the market. I hope Kawasaki keeps making this model. It's worth a lot more than what they charge for it. Trust me - you'll love this bike.
I'd like to mention a few things about this model that you might not find anywhere else. First, the under the seat storage is very large. I first thought it was the airbox, but it's the trunk! I guess it's about 6"x6"x about 10" deep. The manual says don't store anything over 6.5 pounds. What are they storing? Frozen fish? I can't put 6.5 pounds in there if I tried. But, I can hold lots of bungees and gloves. Plus, the best part, the Owner's manual and tool kit aren't stored there. Those have their own closed storage area under the passenger section. So, it's all yours to store all your stuff.
The passenger footpegs are a bit small, but my 5'2" wife says they're fine. The grab bars are more for looks and bungees than they are for passenger usage. Anyone hanging onto the grab bars under fast acceleration will find their feet flying up in the air! Trust me - under hard acceleration, hold onto the operator - you'll be very glad you did. The fairing certainly doesn't need to be see-through, since you'd have to be laying on the tank with no helmet to even get close to seeing through it. It's too low and too steep to be used as a windshield. But, it does a great job stopping wind up to the neck level. Trucks passing you on a two-lane highway is no longer a concern. Even high cross-winds don't affect this bike much at all. There's a separate helmet lock on the outside left rear. But, if you have two helmets, another storage hook is under the locking seat, so both helmets can easily be locked up. Plus, they're located on the left side of the bike, opposite the tailpipe. So, there is no chance of your helmets being scorched by the exhaust pipe. Speaking of tailpipe, the passenger's footpeg mount keeps your shoe from touching the pipe. I'm not sure if that was on purpose, but my wife loves that, after having burnt many of her shoes on my Honda VF750S (V45 Sabre). The driver's footpegs both have aluminum guards to keep you from getting your heels burnt, too.
Roll-on performance is nothing but amazing. To rapidly accelerate, shifting gears is now an option, rather than a requirement. The passenger seating area is more like a couch, not like the crotch-rockets of today. Plenty of room exists to change your position around on long rides, avoiding muscle cramps. Cruisers and standards can't make this claim. Most all my past standard bikes (I've had 11) were uncomfortable after about 30-45 miles of riding. But, you can sit on this motorcycle all day long, even forgetting it's a motorcycle. All-in-all, it's quite an amazing machine. Way to go, Kawasaki! All this, coming from a dedicated Honda man.
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