Kawasaki Police 1000

[Solo]

http://motordoctor.net/assets/images/a_police_2.jpg

Good points

Heel and toe shifter mounted above foot boards prevents scuffing the toe of your left boot.

Side cases (panniers) are capacious enough to hold gratuities from grateful traffic violators.

Accelerates quicker and handles better than police model Harley Road Kings.

Has a "positive neutral finder" which enables a rider to just kick the transmission into neutral. This is an especially handy feature when you have to dismount in a hurry and leave the bike with the engine running.

Bad points

Kawasaki discontinued this model, so factory support and replacement parts might be a problem.

Above 90 mph the front end gets floaty.

Engine noise bounces off the fairing, right back at the rider. This can be overcome by the siren.

Engine type: In-line 4, 4-stroke, DOHC, 8 valves

Displacement: 998 cc

Cooling: Air/Oil

Horsepower: 88 hp @ 9000 rpm

HP:Curb Wt ratio: 1:6.77 lbs

Torque: 112 ft-lbs @8000 rpm

Transmission: 5-speed

Rake/Trail: 27.0 degrees / 4.5 in.

Overall length: 90.2 in

Overall width w/side cases: 35.2 in.

Ground clearance: 6.3 in

Seat height: 30.7 in

Curb wt: 596 lbs

Edited November 26, 2011 by Solo

[Throttled]

I have not ridden a bike like that, you mention the front becomes floaty at speed because of the fairing. It looks like a sail and surely in hot weather it would take any cooling breeze away from you. Would it not be better without it?

[Solo]

...you mention the front becomes floaty at speed because of the fairing. It looks like a sail and surely in hot weather it would take any cooling breeze away from you. Would it not be better without it?

The bike would be cooler without the fairing and windshield, but then it wouldn't be a police bike. I never rode this bike in hot weather, but it was the bike used for many years by many American police departments, including some that were in really hot climates.

The tall windshield is a standard feature of most police bikes. American motor officers usually don't wear helmets with face shields, so a windshield helps to protect their eyes. The half fairing on the KZ1000P supported emergency lights, a radio speaker and housed the instruments.

My comment that poor aerodynamics might have caused the front end to be "floaty" at high speed is purely speculation. Above 90 mph my bike's whole front end "hunted", from left to right. Rather disconcerting and it served as a speed-limiter for me.