AUTOMOTIVE MOTORCYCLE: Kawasaki

Showing posts with label Kawasaki. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Top Five All Time Favorite Production bikes. Third of Five. 1969/70 Kawasaki H1 2 stroke.

You just know I'd have to get a 2 stroke in here. It's my first passion after all. But this one was really tough for me. Ordinarily it'd be a snap. Just put up a picture of a TZ750 and call it a day. But while the TZ was technically a "production" bike it was hardly common much less street legal. I could go with an RZ500 but it's a non-US bike. RZ350? Maybe.. I do love them but they're hardly "iconic" so no. I'm also a huge fan of the Yamaha RD350 and 400 series bikes but they're not very inspiring when completely stock so in fairness I have to scratch them. Then there's the entire Suzuki T and GT lineup which is quite impressive and brilliantly engineered but no one bike grabs me.

That leaves the Kawasaki triples which could win as a category but in fairness I should pick just one. I personally own and much prefer the late model H1 500's to the H2 750's. And my ideal bike is an H2 engine in an H1 chassis (I'm actually building one). But again that's not "production". So which way to turn? It's very close. While I'm very tempted to go with the gorgeous purple 75 H2 (it is a stunner) I have to go with the first in the series that set the tone. The 1969 / 1970 first generation Kawasaki H1. Just a stunner of a motorcycle for it's day and indeed,ANY day.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Kawasaki W650, W800

New Kawasaki W650, W800.That is information that we owe to our fellow English MCN, according to their source,a green check mark is preparing to return to the market of "old" modern.

Kawasaki W800 was the precursor to the time with, we recall the beautiful Estrella 250 and the W650. The latter launched the fashion of neo retro successfully somewhere really helped and Triumph Bonneville.

But the W650 had a charm that Bonneville has never been able to find: a true character engine! And this engine was sublime: vertical twin stalled at 360 ° (both pistons go up and down at the same time), eight valves and a camshaft in head caused by a very nice tree outside: a lovely mechanical sculpture.