Kawasaki created quite the storm this week with the announcement of American Supercross star Ryan Villopoto competing in the Motocross World Championship and unveiling the company's new 2015 Ninja H2R.
Kawasaki dangled a carrot unveiling small details on their new ride in recent weeks frustrating some who just wanted a photo while others simply frothed at the mouth. The new streetbike certainly lived up to the marketing hype when unveiled this week at INTERMOT 2014 in Cologne, Germany - a trade show for motorcycle manufacturers started in 1998 that hosts more than 1,000 exhibitors and brings in nearly 200,000 visitors.
The Ninja H2R is a race bike as it doesn't come with turn signals or mirrors and is sold with full-slicks. The bike boasts a steel-tube trellis design and is purely designed for the track with a supercharged 998cc inline four-cylinder engine offering 300 hp. Oh, it's also got wings with a full carbon fiber body. The Ninja H2R is highest-horsepower MC ever produced.
All Photos: Kawasaki Motors Corp.
Kawasaki incorporated several company divisions in making the Ninja H2R a reality. The Gas Turbine division developed the one of a kind hyper-efficient supercharger, the machinery division developed components to withstand the vigor of racing beyond anything ever produced before and the Areospace division developed the wind tunnel-sculpted, carbon-fiber body work. The joint effort produced, what Kawasaki describes as, "a system of carefully crafted premium components that work in concert to create an unbelievably powerful machine."
The street legal version of the motorcycle, the Ninja H2, is debuting October 16-19 during the 2014 AIMExpo at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. The power output of the H2 was not announced at INTERMOT though some rumors indicate it having 250 hp. The new motorcycle is named after the original 1972 model Mach IV H2 and it also bears the River Mark logo, a symbol from the Kawasaki Heavy Industries group dating back to the 1870s.
No price tag yet but unconfirmed reports have European outfits publicizing the H2R at $80,000 and the H2 at $40,000.
