KX 450F: Kawasaki's new lean green flying machine
By TMX Archives on 15th Jul 11
At first glance, you would be forgiven for thinking that the 2012 Kawasaki 450F is nothing special. Sure, it looks sharper than before with its stripped-back plastics, but underneath surely it's pretty much the same?...
It's got the expected perimeter aluminium frame housing a meaty DOHC single cylinder engine, with five-speed box, and some tasty KYB multi-adjustable suspension but really, what's the big deal?
Well, the devil is in the detail and the fact is that Kawasaki has put a massive amount of effort into the 2012 450 – and if truth be told they are reacting to the ground-breaking KTM 350F.
No, they clearly haven't gone down the 350cc capacity route! What they have done is tune their 450 towards delivering a similar all-round package, which is all about making their MX1 challenger easier to ride fast – more 250 than 500!
So there's a new slimmer chassis with a reduced capacity fuel tank, shorter rear silencer and other mods designed to both lower the centre of gravity and centralise the mass.
The new chassis is complimented by those stripped-down plastics plus adjustable handlebars (Renthal) and footpegs.
Kawasaki have even thrown-in a narrower section front tyre (80/100-21) which saves 150g and contributes to the overall aim of optimising the handling.
In the engine room the work has been towards providing the maximum possible useable torque spread, not maximum power, or even maximum torque, but
providing the most useable power possible at all times.
There's innovation too, like an electronic Launch Control system that helps you make your most effective gates yet.
Just push the button and do your usual thing at the gate. When you hit third gear the system returns automatically to normal.
And Kawasaki provides you with no fewer than three mapping options – normal, hard and soft – so you can optimise power delivery to suit track conditions.
There's also the option of tuning the bike to your own spec – although do you really think you know more than Kawasaki's engineers?
If you do, by all means go for it – you can be cool, tapping extra performance into your laptop!
That's the broad picture. There's obviously a bookful of detail work in the engine-room including carburised tappet surfaces and the electronic fuel injection (efi) system.
In fact there's detail throughout the whole bike that we could bore you solid with for several pages, but off-roaders are pretty quick on the uptake.
You have got the idea – the guys in Kawasaki R&D have really burned the midnight oil in order to bring you their best possible product for 2012.
Is it for you? Well, following a first ride at Gallerate in Italy, we have the taster here – after that, it's up to you!
