TOPIC:

I would just like to hear which qualities of this bike appeal to owners. What makes it desirable? Some of you have probably owned several over the years. I do know that Pete / Strate6 has owned many, and he has had other superbikes, but keeps coming back to the big Kawasaki. What is the magic quality of the bike?

They're a bit like the USS Enterprize, might be getting old but a refit brings them up to spec. they may be big and look lumbering but with a good captain they will hold their own against most comers but most important of all is they are still, despite their age, the flagship of the fleet.

It's Novelty
It's rarity
It's stability
It's ability to let me relive my youth
It's mechanical nature
It's easy to work on
It's about the chase, finding that rare part to keep it bone stock

I am sure we could add other line items.......

Great question this one.

For me its quite straight forward.................

A motorbike should not really have an engine as large as a Z1300 with 6 cylinders & does not really need them.
A motorbike should not really weigh best part of 1/3 of a ton, the Z1300 does.
It should handle / corner with great ease & confidence........& the brakes should stop it very very quickly when needs be......not a Z1300. To carry the huge weight it should NOT have thin 41mm forks.
The carbs are a nightmare, among the worst design on any bike in my opinion.
A motorcycle should be more economical than the average family car...........not the Z1300.
Do a quick calculation.........what percentage of a modern day 1300cc bikes weight is the average rider..........then do the same calculation for the Z1300 !!!

Finally any bike weighing 1/3 of a ton should have wide tyres to support the weight.

OK, thats the worrying bit...............but also the main reasons I like the bike so much !

Its the fact they are just so extreme & unconventional that is the attraction to me. If you really think about it, the bike would never have existed if it were not for the fact that Kawasaki & Honda were in a race to produce the first production 1000cc + 6 cylinder bike & Honda actually won with the CBX1000, which again is everything above & shares the same grace & beauty of the Z1300 due to its unconventionality (but the Z1300 being a much better bike overall).
Some experts say that the 6 cylinder bike Kawasaki had originally designed to produce was nearer 1000cc & very different to the Z1300, but once Honda launched the CBX1000 & won the race, they went back to the drawing board & came up with the Z1300 (I personally thank Honda for this !)

In 1978 I was a young bike mechanic working in a K/H/Y/S dealership & built 90% of the bikes from the import crates for the showroom. You can imagine the models I was building....Z1000/GS1000/XS1100/CB900F/GSX1100/GPZ1100 to name but a few........then came the Z1300. It was just so big & "over the top" that nothing else came close.......and still has not.

Then of course there is the feel & sound of that beautiful 6 cylinder engine. How can ANYONE not like that ???

Its pretty much everything a bike should not be, but that is the exact reason I own one & always will.

I always like to imagine what a Z1300 would look & go like today if Kawasaki were to produce one for todays market.......an interesting thought........but the genuine article would still then be the best.

I like to think the Z1300 I currently own is as close to that as possible, with the exception of the frame & the weight which is very hard to alter. Some want to keep them 100% stock, which is great, but I want to ride mine as my one and only bike, so want it to handle better, stop better, run better & most importantly SOUND like a real 6 cylinder bike. I think I got it !

Respect.

Pete F

Well I remember, aged about 11, reading about the launch of the Z1300 in bike magazines of the time & being amazed that a bike had the same sized engine as my Dad's car (he had a Mk.2 Ford Escort 1300 at the time).
I've always appreciated unusual stuff & like the sheer audacity of putting a six cylinder engine in a bike.
They're also an evolutionary dead end (if you read the write-ups on them, but now 6 cylinder bikes are making a resurgence) & so are a landmark bike really.
To me they're like an American muscle car on two wheels, they're not pretty in the conventional sense, but their brutal looks make them attractive.
Out of the sixes of the time I think the Z1300 is the best of the bunch, the Benelli Sei is prettier & handles better, but is under-powered. The CBX is maybe prettier but the cycle parts are out of proportion to the engine & the engine is fragile.

...and to top it all, that delicious exotic sound

Oh yes indeed.............that delicious exotic sound, roll on next spring but until then here it is.............

VOLUME UP FULL LADS !!!!!



Pete F