After a quick reveal in images at INTERMOT last month, Kawasaki has officially unveiled the new Z650 and Z900 street-fighter bikes at EICMA in Milan. Both the Z650 and Z900 are replacements to current ER-6n and Z800 in the bike maker's line-up and get updated with more power, improved styling and revised underpinnings.
Starting with the 2017 Kawasaki Z650, the moniker makes a comeback to the Japanese giant's stable after first making an appearance in the 1970s on a four-cylinder offering. In its latest avatar, the Z650 takes over from where the ER-6n left. It is much sharper in design with the styling inspired by the Z1000.
Underneath, the Kawasaki Z650 shares its underpinnings with the new Ninja 650, which was revealed at INTERMOT this year. So, you get a new as well as lighter chassis and swingarm, 41mm telescopic front forks, a conventional monoshock suspension setup at the rear and Nissin sourced brakes.
Power comes from the same 649cc twin-cylinder engine on the Kawasaki Z650, albeit the engine has been tweaked with longer header pipes, 36mm throttle bodies, new intake and exhaust cams. The BS4 compliant unit now makes 69bhp of power, down by 2bhp over the ER-6n, which is compensated by the lighter kerb weight of 185 kg.
2017 Kawasaki Z900
Coming to the new Kawasaki Z900, the new street-fighter evolves from the Z800 with sharper lines on the naked body and packs in an all-new Trellis frame, while the engine has been borrowed from the Z1000. The new 948cc in-line four-cylinder engine on the ZZ900 makes 123.6bhp of power. The bike's kerb weight stands at 210.5 kg, which is hardly light, but certainly won't be felt once on the move.
The 2017 Kawasaki Z900 also boasts of a Assist and Slipper clutch, 525 chain to reduce drive losses, while other mechanicals include 41mm inverted front forks and a rear monoshock, while ABS is offered as standard on the model.
Both the Kawasaki Z650 and Z900 are likely to make their way to India most likely next year. The motorcycles will be replacing their outgoing versions and while the Z650 will be locally assembled, the Z900 will be imported as a CBU in the country.
