2008 Kawasaki ZX 10R

Kawasaki ZX 10R: Engineers aimed for the ideal superbike

(Kawasaki Release) For the 2008 NINJA® ZX™-10R, Kawasaki engineers aimed for an ideal superbike with engine and chassis performance capable of satisfying professional racers, combined with top-notch streetbike qualities for mainstream riders. It’s a delicate balance, but these aren’t your average engineers. They’ve been directly involved in the development of every 600 and 1000cc supersport machine since the 2003 Ninja ZX-6R, plus Kawasaki’s factory Superbike racing efforts, so they have the know-how to deliver the goods.

The result is an exceptionally communicative machine that provides the clean two-way rider and machine dialog demanded by professional racers. Placing the ZX-10R in the racing crucible and applying lessons from that unforgiving environment resulted in an ideal balance to satisfy the most demanding of riders.

Kawasaki engineers relied on the assistance of a professional Superbike rider to push the new ZX-10R’s engine and frame components to the limits in actual competition. Parts that met with the racer’s approval were then tried on the production test bike, tweaked, retested on the race bike and adjusted again. This process was repeated throughout the development cycle for the all-new 2008 Ninja ZX-10R.

2008 Kawasaki Ninja® ZX™-10R Specifications:

Engine: Four-stroke, liquid-cooled, DOHC, four valves per cylinder, inline-four

Displacement: 998cc

Bore x stroke: 76.0 x 55.0mm

Compression ratio: 12.7:1

Fuel injection: DFI with 43mm Keihin throttle bodies with oval sub-throttles, two injectors per cylinder

Front tire: 120/70 ZR17

Rear tire: 190/55 ZR17

Front suspension / wheel travel: 43mm inverted fork with DLC coating, adjustable rebound and compression damping, spring preload adjustability and top-out springs

Rear suspension / wheel travel: Bottom-Link Uni-Trak® with top-out spring, stepless, dual-range (high/low-speed) compression damping, stepless rebound damping, fully adjustable spring preload

Front brakes: Dual semi-floating 310 mm petal discs with dual four-piston radial-mount calipers

Rear brakes: Single 220mm petal disc with single-piston aluminum caliper