Kawasaki Ninja ZX-11

Ninja ZX-11

Manufacturer	Kawasaki
Predecessor	Kawasaki ZX-10
Successor	ZZ-R1200/ZX-12R
Class	Sport Tourer
Engine	1052 cc 4-stroke, 4-cylinder, DOHC, liquid-cooled
Power	108 kW (147 PS) @ 10,500 rpm 92 kW (125 PS) @ 9,500 rpm (UK) 68 kW (92 PS) @ 8,500 rpm (Sweden)
Torque	110 N·m @ 8,500 rpm 86 N·m (8.8 kgf·m, 63.7 ft·lbf) @ 4,500 rpm (Sweden)
Transmission	6 speed

The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-11/ZZ-R1100 was produced from 1990-2001. It was marketed as the ZX-11 Ninja in North America and the ZZ-R1100 in the rest of the world.

The C-model ran from 1990-1993 while the D-model ran from 1993-2001. The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10 was the predecessor of the ZX-11 Ninja.

1992 Kawasaki ZX-11 C Model

Now more accurately classified as a sports/tourer, this bike held the crown of "The World's Fastest Production Bike" for close to a decade with a record top speed of 283 km/h (176 mph). When the bike was introduced in 1990, the nearest production bike top speed was 16 km/h (10 mph) slower and it belonged to the ZX-10, the bike that Kawasaki was replacing with the ZX-11. The 11's quarter mile time was clocked at 10.25 seconds at 135 mph (217 km/h) by a popular motorcycle periodical in 1994. The ZX-11 was also the first production bike to be fitted with a ram air induction system. The "worlds fastest production bike" title was lost in 1996 when Honda introduced the Super Blackbird, an 1137cc powered sport/tourer.

In 2000 the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-12R was introduced. The ZX-12 was designed to be more of a pure sportbike. It was much anticipated since the Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa held the title for fastest production bike when it was introduced in 1999. Pre-production ZX-12R models were tested in Japan and were indeed faster than the Hayabusa, but European governments threatened to ban it altogether, leading Kawasaki to de-tune the ZX-12R prior to its release. Consequently the ZX-12R failed to de-throne the Hayabusa as top speed king, though terminal speeds for both models were very close. There are still disputes between the two to this day since all motorcycle manufacturing companies agreed to limit top speed to 300 km/h (186 mph) in the year 2000. In 2002 the Kawasaki ZZR1200 was released which is a sport tourer and more akin to the ZX-11.