Yes, you may have guessed it but this is my own bike. I have owned and been running this bike for little over a year now and must say that I still love it – BUT – I am ready for the next thing.
I think for many people the motorbike that they chose depends on what they are wanting to do at the time. When I bought this bike I had been riding for 6 months on a Suziki SV650S that it was recommended that I buy as a good first bike, and in fairness it was. Sadly the one I bought from Delboy I always felt was a bit of a lemon and that does not allow for the fact that it was bright yellow.
Moving over from an SV650S with what I think was about a 65 bhp engine to the ZX6R (636cc model) with its 116 bhp was quite a move, suddenly when twisting that handle the thing just flew. I was quick to learn that twisting the throttle too quick in first gear was a bad idea unless you want to be looking at the sky and nearby planes circling.
Steering
If you are looking to try an older ZX6r such as this one, moving from a bike such as the SV was a dream, the steering on the bike was so much lighter that I had to get a mate (that already as a ZX6R) to test ride it to make sure there wasn’t a fault with it!!!!
Comfort
As a tall rider this bike is not the best, the strain on your lower back and wrists gets noticeable very quickly and so is good for some fun or short rides but you would not want to do this for long rides too often! The seat on this bike looks luxurious over the new style seats coming out at the moment though and so this is plus for the bike.
Power
This is a sports bike, let us now forget this and as such it was not designed for comfort so let us talking riding. It is GREAT. If you want some sheer acceleration it is fantastic, I have been out riding with a number of other bikers including much larger bikes and none of them have left me standing and remembering this is only a 636cc I think this is rather impressive.
The engine on this bikes pulls really well up to about 10k revs, THEN IT REALLY GOES, when up in that range if you then quickly slip up a gear you will be at about 8k revs and about to get the big pull again, there is loads of power here for you and I am sure not many would be dissapointed. This is really useful when joining the motorways and as usual trying to get cars to avoid us 
Extras
What extras might you want on this bike? There is not much that is needed, if you are riding all year round then the heated grips make life a lot more acceptable, the only downside on this bike in my view is the exhaust, I would guess that Kawasaki went with the theory that if we put a massive ugle exhaust on the bike then maybe we can make more money but offering alternatives for some more money? I would allow for a change of exhaust pipe for both visual, sound and performance to really make it yours!
Summary
Overall as a bike this works really well as a bike to remind you that you are alive. There is exciting power if you want it without the need to thrash the machine, it is relatively comfortable for all other aging people out there with our beer bellies resting on the petrol tank. It is also enough of a bikes to feel comfortable pulling into a biker cafe and not feeling like peewee herman has arrived.
Can pick these up for about £2k second hand in the usual places (all motorcycle stuff.com will be opening a second hand section soon). So if you want a fun machine that would be GREAT for the track, or a road bike that CAN shift when you want it to then this could be the bike for you. If you want a bike for getting to work in comfort as an aging biker then this is not the best one for you!!
Agree or Disagree?? Leave your comments – Tell Joe Your View!!
