quote:
Originally posted by 4.40s1nine:
I have a 2013 ZX1400R that I purchased new. It is a great bike that I can recommend without any reservations. To say that I have enjoyed mine would be an immense understatement. It still puts a smile on my face every time I ride it. I have ridden a lot of bikes, and a lot of miles, and I think this is one of the best for sure. The fit and finish on the bike is very nice, and the motor is simply incredible.
In regards to reliability, I have not had a single problem with it at all, and I do not baby it whatsoever. The needle has been past 180 mph, and has spent quite a bit of time between 100 and 150. I have access to a world class track that is nearby (we do also have a lot of lonely desert roads that are straight for miles). I have really only had to change the oil and tires on it. Had the 1st service done at the dealer for the warranty and then taken care of the oil changes myself. The oil change is extremely easy on this bike, as you do not have to remove any of the fairings. The bike enjoys a very good aftermarket, with some amazing sounding exhaust systems.
I have owned several Kawasaki motorcycles, including other older Ninjas throughout the years, and they have all been reliable from what
I remember of them. I think Kawasaki was ranked 3rd place out of all the bike manufacturers for the highest reliability, with the top 3 only being separated by a couple of percentage points. This was from when I was doing my research for the ZX14R, so it might have changed since then, but I can't imagine too much of a difference now.
The handling of the bike is simply amazing. It is hard to imagine that something with that much weight, and that long of a wheel base can handle well, but it absolutely does. There are a lot of great canyons where I live, and that is usually where I do most of my non-track riding. Depending on your size, you might need to change the suspension settings. It was a little soft for me from the factory, so I took it to a specialist and he got it set up for my weight with gear on and for the type of riding I was planning on doing. With those adjustments, it is simply perfect for me. Pick a line and it just nails it, mid-corner corrections are very doable if needed. The bike is also just incredibly stable and smooth. It is probably the smoothest bike I have ever ridden.
Comfort was a big concern of mine before purchasing it, but it nice as well. The factory seat is good, and the reach to the bars is comfortable. The reach is not anywhere near as aggressive as a liter bike. I am 6' tall with average length arms, and I lean forward just a little bit for normal riding and I can lean back to vertical with just a little stretch. I originally thought I was going to get bar risers, but 3 years later, I still have not bought them. 200 miles in a day on this is very easy to do for me, and I don't have the best back. My rides are generally in the 160 to 200 mile range, and a full tank can cover that range. Though if you are doing a lot of high speed pulls in your riding, plan on no more than 160 to 170. Depending on your riding style, you can average over 40 mpg and even approach 50 mpg. I average right around 32 mpg and for some unknown reason, I don't mind at all.
For insurance, I would check with Geico. My last bike was a 2002 ZX1200R (another incredible Ninja) and Progressive was the best for that bike as it was listed as a sport tourer, instead of a sport bike. The Hypersport bike term was not in use at that time so while it was one of the fastest bikes of its time, they put it in the same group as the Goldwing. I think I was paying 40$ a month for full coverage. Well when I got this bike I called Progressive thinking that with my other bike and bundling it with the new one, it would be a reasonable rate. Man was I wrong. They wanted something like 260$ a month for the ZX14R alone, not worth it. I started wondering if I had made a mistake buying the bike. After a couple more quotes of even higher amounts, called Geico. They quoted me 56$ month. I was so skeptical that I confirmed the rep had the right bike and so I asked why they were so cheap. Apparently they have a partnership with Kawasaki, could not believe the difference.
I also like their traction control system and the slipper clutch. They both add to making this bike so easy to ride. I actually used the ZX14R to teach my younger brother how to ride a motorcycle, so I definitely believe that. Spent about an hour in a huge empty parking lot getting him familiar with the controls and going over the basics. I put the power mode in low, and the traction control in the highest setting where he could not do a wheelie no matter what he did with the throttle and the clutch. He then rode around practicing starts and stops, turns and so on. That was enough for him to feel comfortable enough to want to try it on the street. Took him to an industrial park on a weekend so that he could learn on streets with little to no traffic. He had fun with that for a couple of hours as his confidence was building with each loop around the park. After that, I took him to a small rural town with easy access to a nice highway. The town gave him experience with more traffic than the industrial park, while still not being overwhelming. It also introduced him to what it is like to be able to get on a freeway that did not usually have a lot of traffic either. By the end of that last day, he had turned power mode to full and the traction control to the lightest settings. He came away with a new appreciation for freeway on ramps, so much so that he was actually ensuring he had ample room in front of him before engaging a launch. The smile on my brother's face when he came back from his first successful freeway on ramp launch, more than made the bike purchase worth it. He came away being very impressed with the bike exactly because of its comfort, handling, and ease of use. There is no way I would have tried teaching him on this bike if I did not have complete confidence in it. Oh he did come away from the experience with something else, the joy of knowing what it is like to accelerate to triple digits on a motorcycle and what it is like hitting 60 mph in around 2.6 seconds.
The last thing I want to cover is in response to Perception's comment about it not feeling as raw as a liter bike. I can verify that for sure. My 2002 ZX1200R is fairly close in performance to the ZX14R in regards to acceleration from 0 to about 130 mph. My ZX12 seemed to make the hair on my neck stand up as the bike hurls you backward in a launch, and the sound the bike made as it worked up to 11,000 rpm, combined to make it feel very much like a raw event each time I opened it up. The ZX14R is actually faster, but it is so smooth that the speed is masked. I have never been on a bike that masks speed like this one. I have not had a moment yet where the bike did not feel smooth and stable (even when it was backed into a corner in a nameless canyon or two, ok maybe 3).
I would feel very bad if I did not let you know about the 2 biggest problems I have with this bike. The first is how many tires you can go through, even in a single riding season. The second problem is with the awful gas mileage. With some bikes now being capable of getting 70 mpg or higher, my average of 32 mpg seems pathetic in comparison. The good thing about the problems I have with this bike, is that I have the ability to correct each one, and it resides in my right hand. I guess it is a good thing my heart and my mind do not care what that wrist is doing on any of my rides.
I hope this helps and that I did not spew out too much info for you to take in. If you do have other questions for me, just let me know and I will be happy to follow up with you. If you are close to where I live, I would definitely be willing to let you check it out for yourself. I have some videos of my bike in action that I can share with you if you are interested in that. There are also a couple of videos online that helped me when I was deciding if I wanted to get this bike.
There is one other bike that you might want to look at from Kawasaki. That is their new H2 SX for this year. It is an H2, but setup for touring specifically. So it is basically a 1000 cc motorcycle with a super charger that can do 2 up riding. Oh, it also is something like 200 hp and it comes with launch control, and luggage. They are definitely more than a ZX14R though. I can't get over the thought of being on a tourer that I can use to listen to the whistle of a super charger any time I want.
Final note, the 11,500 sounds like it might be for a dealer leftover. If that is the case, that is a great price for a new bike from the dealer. These bikes seem to hold their value fairly well. If it is for a used bike, might do it for an extremely low mileage example in pristine condition with the transferrable factory warranty. Otherwise would suggest waiting a month or two for the inevitable year end deals.
Glad to see so many riders on the forum. Hope everyone rides safe and smart.
Great write up and thanks for taking the time to share your experience with the ZX1400 in great detail. Kawasaki should hire you as their spokesman for their motorcycles.
I saw the H2SX SE at the bike show in NYC on 1 December but at 22k it's out of my price range for a second bike. Awesome looking bike and I'm sure Kawasaki got everything right on it but I'm just not prepared to spend that kind of coin on a second bike. Thanks again for the write up I appreciate it.
Thank you 4.40s1nine for taking the time to write that. 
