2013 Kawasaki Z800 Specs and Price

Friday, October 19, 2012
2013 Kawasaki Z800 Specs and Price

Kawasaki unveiled its newest middleweight standard, the 2013 Z800, to the public at the INTERMOT show in Cologne, Germany today. It is the follow-up machine to the outgoing Z750 – a solid performer in a popular segment. With an all- new look and larger engine displacement, it is obvious this new Z has the 2013 Yamaha FZ8 squarely in its sights.

An 806cc liquid-cooled, Inline Four powers the new standard bike and is based off the current Z750 engine. A 1.6mm-larger bore and a slightly higher compression ratio (11.9:1 vs. 11.6:1) are touted as giving the Z800 more performance at every rpm, but claims power gains are most noticeable in the low-and mid-ranges. The throttle body diameter has also been increased from 32mm to 34mm to feed the 58cc larger mill. Final gearing has been shortened via a two-tooth larger rear sprocket to emphasize acceleration.

Refinement and changes to the chassis include a new connecting pipe on the tubular backbone chassis for revised rigidity that offers better feedback to the rider. Up front a 41mm KYB inverted fork has been optimized for the increased engine performance and frame tweaks.

Adjustments are for rebound and preload only. The rear KYB piggyback shock gets scooted 20mm to the left of the chassis for better balance from left to right. Like the front fork, preload and rebound are adjustable.

An all-new aggressive styling comes along with the changes to the chassis and engine. A new front cowl has a multi-faceted design for a more aggressive look but is still unmistakably from the Z family. At the rear, a Z-patterned taillight has been integrated into the cowl. A color matched belly cowl hugs the underside of the engine. A new fully digital instrument cluster features a vertical bar-style tachometer, a fuel gauge, remaining range, clock and engine temp information.

Braking duties have been updated with new opposed, 4-piston calipers mated to larger 310mm petal discs. ABS is available and built by Nissin. For now it looks like this cool new Z is for overseas markets only as middleweight standards continue to struggle to get a foothold here in the States (the Z750 hasn’t been included in the US lineup since the 2006 model year).

2013 Kawasaki Z800 expected price is around USD$12,908.72

Powered by Blogger.