Thursday, November 6, 2008

2009 Kawasaki ZX-6R


The 2009 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R was unveiled at the Kawasaki Dealer Show in Texas this weekend. Team Green's supersport contender comes with a long list of improvements including a 22-lb weight reduction, improved bottom-end to mid-range power and racy ZX-10R-inspired bodywork to a paddock near you.

Use of lighter materials like magnesium case covers, lighter camshafts, lighter starter and a few minor weight saving treatments combine to pare away a few pounds. More importantly is that Kawasaki says they have made significant improvements to both bottom end and midrange power while smoothing out the delivery by implementing a couple tuner tricks to improve 'combustion efficiency'. The application of the 'double bore velocity stacks' is supposed to specifically help with midrange power as well. By incorporating a stack within a stack it should provide the benefits of multiple length stacks without employing variable length technology or some variation thereof. It will still utilize a slipper clutch and cassette-style 6-speed transmission. If these changes provide the significant boost that Kawi claims then it will address one of the issues we had with the 2007-2008 Ninja ZX-6R.

The previous ZX-6 was the heaviest of the current crop of Japanese super sports so we expect it to tip the scales at the 380-lb range, without fuel if the numbers pan out as advertised. A low-slung exhaust system, which locates the pre-chamber underneath the bike, will keep weight low and centralized.



Changes to the chassis include a 2-piece aluminum subframe that is narrow and light, a revised ram air intake casting that doubles as the support for gauges and mirrors in an effort to further reduce weight. Showa's new Big Piston Front (BPF) 41mm fork features a large-diameter internal piston, which is supposed to reducing the effects of damping pressure and eliminating the heavier internals found in cartridge-style forks. Kawasaki says this will improve frontend feel and decreasing turn-in effort. In addition to the new fork, steering geometry is altered significantly. This year the ZX features 24-degree rake and 4-inches of trail compared to 25-degree and 4.3-inches on the 07-08 model. Quicker steering, lighter weight and more power could put the 6R back in the hunt in the middleweight class comparisons. The same Ohlins steering stabilizer from the ZX-10 has found a home on the ZX-6R.



Kawasaki made it very important that the company's commitment to racing is an important part of the plan so expectations are high for the 2009 Ninja ZX-6R. It will be available in Lime Green, Metallic Black, Candy Blue, Flat Black and in Monster graphics with an MSRP of $9,799.

Engine: Four-stroke, liquid-cooled, DOHC, four valves per cylinder, inline-four
Displacement: 599cc
Bore x stroke: 67.0 x 42.5mm
Compression ratio: 13.3:1
Fuel injection: DFI with four 38mm Keihin throttle bodies, oval sub-throttles, two injectors per throttle body
Ignition: TCBI with digital advance
Transmission: Six-speed
Final drive: X-ring chain
Rake / trail: 24 deg / 4.0 in.
Frame type: Aluminum perimeter
Front tire: 120/70 ZR17
Rear tire: 180/55 ZR17
Wheelbase: 55.1 in.
Front suspension/wheel travel: 41 mm inverted Showa Big Piston Front fork with top-out springs, stepless compression and rebound damping, fully-adjustable spring preload / 4.7 in.
Rear suspension/wheel travel: Bottom-Link Uni-Trak® with gas-charged shock, top-out spring and pillow ball upper mount, dual-range (high/low-speed) stepless compression damping, 25-way adjustable rebound damping, fully-adjustable spring preload / 5.2 in.
Front brakes: Dual 300mm petal rotors with dual radial-mounted, four-piston, four-pad calipers
Rear brake: Single 220mm petal rotor with single-piston caliper
Overall length: 82.3 in.
Overall width: 27.8 in.
Overall height: 43.9 in.
Fuel capacity: 4.5 gal.
Seat height: 32.3 in.
Curb weight: 421.2 lbs.
Color choices: Lime Green, Metallic Diablo Black/Flat Super Black, Candy Surf Blue/Flat Super Black
MSRP: $9,799
Warranty: 12 Months

Free Mod for 2008/2007 Kawasaki ZX6R

ZX-6R Free Horsepower!
By Kevin Duke

Pity the poor sportbike engineers who must find a way to create 599cc engines that produce 100 horsepower at the rear wheel while meeting every-stricter exhaust emissions regulations. And while spent exhaust gases must be cleaner than ever, noise emissions must also be kept in check, although that standard hasn’t been revised in decades.

Duke learns that meeting EPA regulations hampers racetrack performance.

Nowhere is that more apparent than Kawasaki’s ZX-6R. Since its 2005 iteration, the ZX’s ECU includes programming which closes a valve in the exhaust at high revs, restricting its top-end power and reducing its overrev zone past the engine’s power peak. (European ZX’s aren’t afflicted, as they have different sound-level regulations across the Pond.) This combines to make the stock Ninja feel less exciting, and its rapid power loss once past the engine’s peak forces some extra gearshifts, especially when riding in the power-hungry environment of a racetrack. Our ZX test unit was the least powerful 600 on the dyno, spinning up just 97.7 hp at its peak.





But why is the Kawi saddled with this limitation while the other OEMs don’t seem to suffer from similar programming? That’s been difficult to identify, but Kawi reps assure us their bikes adhere to the obfuscatory EPA noise regulations guidelines that are self-regulated by the OEMs.

“All Kawasaki street motorcycles, including the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R, sold in the United States have been designed to meet all current U.S. emissions and noise regulations for street-legal motorcycles,” is Team Green’s official statement on the subject. Since the sportbikes from other OEMs aren’t similarly affected, the implication is they aren’t meeting the same requirements.

Glenn Hansen, Suzuki’s communications manager, explained to us that the ECUs on Suzuki products bound for America are different than their Euro counterparts, and he added that all their bikes meet current regulations. He pointed out that using dual mufflers on Suzuki’s GSX-R1000 was partially the result of meeting noise edicts.

Lucky for ZX trackday riders (off-road-use only, doncha know? Nudge, nudge, wink, wink, say no more…), the party-pooping programming can quickly be defeated. Simply unplug the cap of the four-pin electrical connection under the seat and bridge the black/yellow wires to the green/dark green wires across from each other in the connector. This defaults the ECU to European spec and lets the engine breathe at high rpm by keeping the exhaust “power” valve open.

When we performed this trick on our ZX, we found a 5-hp increase (102.8 hp) in peak power, making it competitive with its rivals, but the biggest improvement was in the overrev zone above 13,000 rpm where the stock ECU programming strangles the Ninja. There is nearly a 10-hp gap at 14,000 rpm, with the stock bike wheezing out 93.4 ponies to the modified ECU’s 102.7.

It should be noted that the Ninja doesn’t feel particularly down on power during street rides, as it’s only when screaming up near maximum revs that this shortcoming becomes apparent. But it’s too bad that the stock bike needs an excuse, because in race trim the ZX-6Rs are formidable foes in the Supersport and Formula Xtreme race classes.


In stock form, the ZX-6R runs out of breath at high revs, but the ECU jumper mod lets it run like it should. In modified form, it posted a 5-horse boost in horsepower and a much more usable overrev zone.

Full article is here :
http://www.motorcycle.com/shoot-outs/2008-supersport-shootout-cbr600rr-vs-daytona-675-vs-zx6r-vs-r6-vs-gsxr600-82371.html

2009 Kawasaki ZX-6R Monster Energy Special Edition













MIVV Suono Exhaust

After using my bike for 8 month I finally decided to change my exhaust pipe. It was a hard decision to make considering all the aftermarket exhaust that was available. I researched all the brands, I listened to their sounds on YouTube and asked advice from all the 'sifoo' and after doing some soul searching I decided to get the MIVV. This brand is not well known here in Malaysia but it is used by Dani Pedrosa and Nickey Hayden on their Repsol Honda MotoGP bike. Went to the workshop after office hour and Mat joined me there.




The ZX6-R stock exhaust that is about to be replace.


Mat: Hmmphh... Akra aku lagi ringan lah!!!


Up close and personal, it's shorter compared to Pojie's Two Brothers.


The bike being striped down naked by Dewa and Adik while Amir gave a watchful eye.


Amir taking over from his 'apprentice'.


The exhaust comes with it's own fender eliminator.


Mat: Try takde exhaust dulu, baru jadi macam aku.
Bedah: Baik Boss.


Amir carefully fitting all the bits and pieces onto the bike, making sure nothing is loose or missing.


Now I have to think how to get home without waking up my neighbours huhuhu :p

Max Power Dynochart <-- Click

Max Torque Dynochart <-- Click

-BedahNooB-