ELECTRIC AVENUE

In 2018 Kawasaki explored a new direction, giving their Ninja ZX-10R semi-active suspension for the first time.

Traditionally, Kawasaki’s Ninja ZX-10R model is bought by, shall we say, ‘enthusiastic’ riders? A machine that has forged a reputation for its nocompromise attitude and track focus, the Ninja sells on the fact it wins World Superbike titles and will happily allow you to head the field on a trackday. While this may not appeal to all riders, to fans of the Ninja, this is music to their ears. However, in 2018 Kawasaki made a somewhat surprising announcement and released an SE version – a full-on Ninja aimed at those who wanted a little more luxury in their life... at a price. Can you really have luxury and still lead a trackday? Kawasaki thought so, and the key to this double life was some modern tech. Although the SE is identical to the base model Ninja in terms of its physical chassis and motor, it gained Brembo brakes, Marchesini wheels (which were already being used on the RR version) and a bi-directional quickshifter, and then upped the game with a semi-active suspension system – KECS had arrived. A first for the firm, Kawasaki Electronically Controlled Suspension (KECS) was developed jointly between Kawasaki and Showa, and works on stroke sensors in the forks and shock (at that time unique to Kawasaki’s system) linked to the bike’s various electronic systems. Claimed to have a reaction time of one millisecond, the KECS ECU measures movement in the sensors and looks at data from the IMU and other inputs every 10 milliseconds before adjusting the damping via a solenoid. With two set modes to choose from – road and track – as well as a manual option allowing the rider to dial in upto 15 levels of both compression and rebound (preload is still manual adjustment at both ends), in 2018, it was pretty cutting edge. Did it work? Well that’s the thing...