Noting that quite a few of my fellow GTR owners are also ZZR1400 owners, how would you rate the 2 gearboxes. Ruddy worlds apart is my thinking. The GTR is liking cutting butter with the proverbial hot knife while the ZZR is the equivalent of banging my head against a wall.
Thunk into first, crunch into second, clonk into 3rd and then at last some smoothness. Or is mine (from new) just crap and I shouldn't listen to Kawasaki saying "they're all like that mate".
Thoughts?
EssexBoy.
Ive always found kawasaki gearboxes to very agricultural to say the least . My zzr1200 was very clunky, the gtr is better but not as smooth as a honda, some say it depends on the oil you use but ive never found that makes much difference.
Some guys with more experinence will chime in soon
Had a ZZR11 & 12, plus a ZX9 and 6, all of which had gearboxes that were ok, some good others not so much, however GTR is a cut above. I don't like the clonk in to first, but my Beemers did this so probably down to the shaft drive, after that smooth up and down the box.
Rode a friends ZZR over the weekend, he wanted to compare comfort (only one winner) and found the box ok, bit clunky if you are hesitant but ok when your 'on it' not great when pootling through town. This maybe the problem, if you thrash a ZZR it works well, but if you don't.....?
Your does sound particularly horrid!
I always thought that Kwak gearboxes were so-so until I rode a BMW, Moto Guzzi, Harley, Ducati and several others.
I've driven 1950s tractors that had better gearboxes than the BMW R100RT, Ducati 851 and any Harley I've ever ridden.
Kawasaki gearboxes are not as slick as Hondas, but compared to most they are awesome.
About on par with Suzuki and Yamaha IMHO.
My 1400 does get a bit "notchy" sometimes but it never refuses to change gear.
If you are riding hard then clutchless up-changes are smooth and slick.
If pootling then use the clutch but be firm with yer left foot.
On the plus side I'm approaching 50k miles, have destroyed a clutch friction plate, and have yet to find a false neutral.
The R100RT had them all over the place and that was when nearly new.
As for the ZZR gearbox, it felt exactly like the GTR gearbox to me.
Perhaps you just need to adjust the gear lever.
the gear box on my zzr1400 2008 model selects gears perfect, right up and down the box. when I first collected the bike from new, I did adjust the gear lever to suit me. As far as I'm concearned, both the gear box on the zzr and gtr are as good as each other and both select gears up and down the box fine :smiley:
Gearchanges on Kawasakis have always been "positive" some say clunky. but they never fail, and as George says try some other bikes and then make a comparison....you'll be surprised just how good your Kawas really is :yes:
Thanks guys for all the feedback. Can't say that my zzr has ever missed a gear, ever in 10,000 miles but it just isn't pleasant from 1 to 3. The only other bike that was worse and I mean really worse was an Enfield in India. But of all my riding in the UK the ZZR's gotta be the worst.
Commuting to London, touring the Spanish mountains it has never failed to make me wince time and time again. And then it will change smooth as silk for 5 changes and crap again.
GTR even slow in 2nd, 3rd I can change without even thinking about it if you get my meaning...almost imperceptable movement of left foot, and up or down a gear, but with the ZZR it's a case of physically getting the gear lever to move up, and the whole bike 'thunks' up another gear.
Has anyone driven the new ZZR...is it better ?
Eb