History of Kawasaki
Kawasaki Aircraft initially manufactured motorcycles under the Meguro name, having bought out an ailing motorcycle manufacturer called Meguro Manufacturing Co. Ltd with whom they had been in partnership earlier, but later formed Kawasaki Motor Sales. Some early motorcycles display an emblem with "Kawasaki Aircraft" on the fuel tank.
Merging
During the merger in 1962, Kawasaki engineers were engaged in the development of a four-stroke engine for small cars which ended in 1962 with some of the engineers transferred to the Meguro Works to work on the Meguro K1 and the SG, a single cylinder 250 cc OHV. In 1963, Kawasaki and Meguro merged to form Kawasaki Motorcycle Co.,Ltd. Kawasaki motorcycles from 1962 through 1967 used an emblem which can be described as a flag within a wing.
Work continued on the Meguro K1, a copying of the BSA A7 500 cc vertical twin.and on the Kawasaki W1. The K2 was exported to the U.S. for a test in response to the expanding American market for four-stroke motorcycles in which case it was rejected for a lack of power but by the mid-1960s, Kawasaki was finally exporting a moderate number of motorcycles. The Kawasaki H1 Mach III in 1968, along with several enduro-styled motorcycles to compete with Yamaha, Suzuki and Honda, increased sales of Kawasaki units.
Nowadays Kawasaki motorcycles are manufactured by the Motorcycle & Engine division of Kawasaki Heavy Industries at plants in Japan, USA, Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand.
List of Kawasaki Motorcycles:
Special purpose:
Kawasaki police motorcycles
Cruiser:
Vulcan 2000
Kawasaki Vulcan 1700 Classic/Classic LT/Nomad/Voyager
Vulcan 1600 Nomad
Vulcan 1600 Classic
Vulcan 1600 Mean Streak
Vulcan 1500 Drifter
Vulcan 900 Classic
Vulcan 800 Classic
Vulcan 800 Drifter
Eliminator
Vulcan 700
Vulcan 750
Vulcan 500 LTD
Vulcan 400 Classic - similar to the VN1600 and the VN800.
Vulcan 400 Drifter
Dual purpose:
KLR250
KLX250S
KLX400SR
KLE500
KLR650
KLX650C
Super Sherpa (KL250G/H)
Off road:
KDX50
KDX80
KDX125
KDX175
KDX200
KDX220
KDX250
KDX400
KDX420
KDX450
KLX110
KLX125
KLX125L
KLX140L
KLX250
KLX300R
KLX400R
KLX450R
KLX650R
KMX 125/200
KT250
KX60
KX65
KX80
KX85
KX100
KX125
KX250
KX500
KX250F
KX450F
Streetbikes:
A1 Samurai 250 (1967–1971)
A7 Avenger 350 (1967–1971)
B85 & B85M 125 (1965)
D1 100 (1966–1969)
Eliminator 125
ER-5
Fury 125
H1 Mach III 500 (1969–1975)
H2 Mach IV 750 (1971–1975)
KH500 (1976 only)
S1 Mach I 250 (1971–1975)
S2 Mach II 350 (1971–1975)
Versys
Z750
Z1000
ZRX1200R
ZZR250
ZZR400
ZZR600
ZZR1100
ZZR1200
ZZR1400, also marketed as the ZX-14
Sport bikes:
Ninja 250R (A.K.A. EX250, GPZ 250, ZZ-R250) (Production year: 1986–present)
Ninja 300 (A.K.A. EX300) (Production year: 2012-present)
Ninja 400R (A.K.A. EX400, (Production year: 2011–present)
Ninja 500R (A.K.A. EX500, GPZ500S, ZZ-R500) (Production year: 1987–2009)
Ninja 650R (A.K.A. ER-6F EX650R) (Production year: 2006–present)
Ninja ZX-150RR (A.K.A. KR150, KR150K, KRR150, Ninja 150 RR, Ninja RR) (Production year: 1996–present)
Ninja ZX-6R and 6RR (Production year: 1995–present)
Ninja ZX-750 F2 (Production year: 1988 Special Edition)
Ninja 1000 (A.K.A. Z1000Sx) (Production year: 2011–present)
Ninja ZX-10R (Production year: 2004–present)
Ninja ZX-12R
Sport-Touring:
ZG-1000 Concours / GTR1000
Concours 14 / 1400GTR
Voyager 1700 (reintroduced in 2009)
Models no longer in production:
A1 Samurai 250cc
A7 Avenger 350cc
B7 Pet (Step-Thru)
B8 125cc (1962–1965)
Kawasaki B8M Red-Tank Furore 125cc (1962–1965)
C2SS & C2TR (1964–1968)
G1M 100cc (1967)
G31M Centurion (1970–1971)
Kawasaki G4TR (197?-197?)
F11M 250cc (1967)
F21M "Green Streak" (1968–1971)
F3 Bushwhacker 175cc (1968–1970)
F4 Sidewinder 250cc (1969–1970)
F5 Bighorn 350cc (1970–1971)
F6 Enduro 125cc (1971–1974)
F7 Enduro 175cc (1971–1975)
F8 Bison 250cc (1971–1972)
F81M "Green Streak" 250cc (1971)
F9 Bighorn 350cc (1971–1975)
Ninja ZXR 250 / ZX-2R (produced: 1988–1999)
Ninja ZXR 400 (produced: 1991–1999)
Ninja ZXR 750 / ZX-7 (L model [zx7] street; M model [zx7r] race 93-95) (produced: 1984–1995)
Ninja ZX-7R / ZX-7RR (J model [ZX7] street; K model [ZX7R] race 91-92)(produced: 1996–2003)
Ninja ZX-9R (produced: (1994–2003)
Ninja 1000R (produced: (1986–1987)
Ninja ZX-10 / ZZR-1000 (produced: (1988–1990)
Ninja ZX-11 / ZZR 1100 (produced: (1990–2001)
ZZR1200 / ZZ-R1200 (produced: (2002 - 2005)
GPz750 (produced: (1983–1987)
GPZ1100B1/B2 (produced: (1981–1982)
GPZ1100E (produced: (1995–1996)
GPZ250R (Released in Japan only)
GPZ305 (produced (1983–1994)
GPz750 Turbo (produced: (1983–1985)
Ninja GPZ900R (produced: (1984–2003)
Ninja 600R AKA: GPz600R, GPX600R, ZX600A-C (produced: 1985–1997)
ZX600A Website with Specs.
454 LTD (produced: (1985–1990)
Kawasaki S1 Mach I 250cc (produced: 1972) (a two-stroke triple)
Kawasaki S2 Mach II 350cc (produced: 1972) (a two-stroke triple)
S3 400 (a two-stroke triple)
Kawasaki H1 Mach III 500cc (produced: 1968–1972) (a two-stroke triple)
Kawasaki H2 Mach IV 750cc (a two-stroke
KR250
AR125
ZG1200 Voyager XII (Four)
ZN1300 Voyager XIII (Six)
KE100 (produced 1976–2001)
KL250A1/A2/A3/A4 (produced: 1978–1981)
KR-1/KR-1S/KR-1R (produced: 1989)
KH250/400/500 (See article)
Z500/Z550 (A.K.A. KZ500, KZ550, GPz550) (produced: 1979–1985)
Z750B (Twin) (produced: 1976–1978)
Z1/KZ900 (produced: 1972–1976; Z900 sold in North America as KZ900)
Z1R (factory production cafe racer 1015cc four-cylinder; produced 1978–1980)
Z750RS Z2 (produced: 1973–1978)
KZ750L3 (produced: 1983)
KZ750L4 (produced: 1984)
KZ200 (produced: 1980–1984)
KZ305CSR
KZ400/Z400 (produced: 1974–1984)
KZ440/Z440
KZ350
Z650 (produced: 1976–1983; sold in North America as KZ650)
KZ1300 (Six cylinder)
ZL900A Eliminator (produced 1985–1986)
ZL600A Eliminator (produced 1986 only ??)
ZN700LTD (produced 1984–1985)
ZR-7 (produced: 1991–2003)
ZEPHYR 750 (produced: 1991–2003)
ZR-1100
KSR II
W650 (produced: 1999- 2007 )
Voyager
ZZR1100 (produced: 1990–2002)
KZ-1000 (various configurations; produced 1977–1980)
KZ-1100 (various configurations; produced 1981–1983)
AE 50 (produced: circa 1981–1982)
KZ900 A4 (produced: ca 1976)
ATV / Quad:
KFX 50
KFX 80
KFX 400
KFX 450R
KFX 700
Prairie 3604X4
Prairie 400
Prairie 700
Brute Force 650
Brute Force 750
Bayou 220
Bayou 250
KLF 300
KLF 400
Road racing motorcycles:
Ninja ZX-RR
KR250
KR350
KR500
KR750
KR1000
KR-2
KR-3
A1R
A7R
H1-R
H1-RW
H2-R
X-09
F5-R
602S
